Chesterton’s Fence and Understanding The Why Behind Decisions

Making better decisions requires understanding the rationale behind previous decisions. If you don’t understand how you got here, you run the risk of making things not better, but worse.

Before changing anything in your organization, you should examine the history of decisions, including the reasons and context behind them. Choices made in the past might be more complicated than they seem on the surface. It’s important to assume other people at the time knew things you didn’t, had experiences you didn’t, and had different circumstances to navigate at the time the decision was made.

The important thing in any business decision you make is to consider not just the consequences of your decisions, but also the consequences of those consequences. To understand this concept better, let’s consider Chesterton’s Fence.

Chesterton’s Fence is a way of thinking inspired by a quote from the writer G. K. Chesterton’s 1929 book, The Thing. In the book, Chesterton describes the classic case of the reformer who notices something, such as a fence and fails to see the reason for its existence. However, before he decides to remove it, he must figure out why it exists in the first place. If he doesn’t do this, he is likely to do more harm than good with its removal. In short, don’t remove a proverbial fence until you know why it was put up in the first place.

Chesterton explained that fences are built by people who carefully planned them out and had some reason for thinking the fence would be a good thing for somebody. Fences are hard to build — they require planning and considerable effort. So until you identify that reason, you have no business removing it. While the reason might not be a good or relevant one; you just need to be aware of what the reason is. Otherwise, you may have unintended consequences, potentially causing damage for years.

Especially as a newly minted department leader, or a new executive in a new company, you should consider the principle of Chesterton’s fence. While there are many things you might see that you believe need change, it’s important to stop and examine why those decisions were made, including the broader context and reasoning. This will set you up for better, smarter choices that will help avoid catastrophic failure.

About the Author

Andrea’s 20-year, field-tested background provides practical, behavioral science approaches to creating differentiated, human-focused organizations. A 4x ADDY award-winner, TEDx presenter, and 3x book author, she began her career at a tech start-up. She led the strategic sales, marketing, and customer engagement efforts at two global industrial manufacturers. She now leads a change agency dedicated to helping organizations differentiate their brands using behavioral science.

In addition to writing and consulting, Andrea speaks to leaders and industry organizations worldwide. Please contact Andrea to access information on her book, keynoting, research, or consulting. More information is also available at www.pragmadik.com or . www.andreabelkolson.com

Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.