There’s nothing wrong with rules, standards just work better.

Logic suggests rules create compliance. But rules are innately constraining, not compelling. No one wakes up with a burning desire to obey rules. Rules feel clinical and emotionless. Setting standards is a better approach in most situations.

Standards also have an intense, unmistakable subjectivity. Your standards don’t have to fit someone else’s rules. Standards are mostly qualities chosen from the inside-out, while rules are primarily instructions imposed from the outside-in.

That difference is important for anyone serious about being authentic, building teams, or becoming a leader worth following.

Embrace the chase. Do the work.