The Rule of Business ---> There are NO Rules in Business (only guidelines).

I subscribe to a lot of companies on Facebook. It helps me stay in touch with what is going on, in the business world. Just commented on a post by a famous B School that I love and respect. Wrote something on the following lines:

"The Rule of Business is This - There are No Rules in Business! Only guidelines"

I know that this is a pretty profound statement for someone like me (still a student, not yet a graduate) to make. But I stand by it 100%. What I mean is this: There can be an analysis of trends, there can be scientific forecasts, there can be guidelines, there can be documented evidence in business. But there can be NO FIXED RULES in the business world. And I do not mean legal rules. I mean business principles.

Why is that? Time and again, businesses have been proven wrong in their approaches. Time and again so called experts have been proven wrong. History is littered with stories of wrong forecasts by analysts and wrong decisions by CEOs. Why did we not all see the 2008 crash coming, then? If we had so many nice business rules in the books, why are all businesses not making a profit? Why are organizations still plagued by inefficiencies and problems?

In my view, the secret is to go on a case by case basis. Of couse guidelines are important. But not rules. Each case is different. The circumstances and environment (internal and external) are different in each case. Protocols and rules are like cages that inhibit us from free thinking. We are under the false assumption that we know everything there is to be known. Wrong. Formal business education is only a century or two old. There is always, repeat ALWAYS opportunity for new guidelines and breakthroughs.

Ok, so that was my rant of the day, LOL.

Cheers!

Gerry.
Blogger @ www.gerry.in