Are Rules Made to be Broken?

July 14, 2026/Julie Stobbe/

Reading Time – 5 minutes

I have thought that I was always a rule follower. It was easy for me and made me feel good. I didn’t have to deal with feelings of disobedience, fear of being discovered, or lying. Following the rules made life easy.

One day, someone was upset with me for not following a rule. I was amazed. In my mind, it was a good rule in certain situations, but not in mine. Now I realize I use rules more as guidelines. I follow some rules and adjust others to make sense.

Have you ever wondered how to decide what rules to change? Here are some ideas.

What Does Breaking the Rules Mean?

Some rules are just meant to be broken. They’ve been around for decades, and no one pays much attention to them anymore. Then there are the rules that people still follow out of habit. Breaking the rules doesn’t mean breaking the law. This blog deals with the rules of society rather than those set up to protect us.

Ignoring some of society’s rules is acceptable and preferable and can make you happier than conforming.
Expect consequences for breaking any rule. The consequence may be as simply as a raised eyebrow or a smattering of disagreement, but know the rule and how it may affect you when you break it.
Be true to your beliefs and values. If you break a rule that makes you depart from your traditions and the beliefs you hold dear, you aren’t being true to yourself and will suffer worse consequences.
Arm yourself with knowledge and experience before you break a rule and consider the risks to yourself and others.
Don’t be as concerned with what others think as how much breaking a rule will affect your life and the lives of those you love.
Don’t be afraid to reveal yourself when you break a rule, but don’t break rules just for the “fun” of it. Give it much forethought.
Nothing is written in stone when it comes to rules. Consider your life as a blank canvas where you can pick and choose how to paint the picture.
Rules of society help us get along with clarity and order. But some rules of society clearly hamper our creativity and progress.
Don’t break a rule simply to cause chaos. Study it carefully and then decide if it’s worth the consequences to break it.

Know that most rules are put into place for a reason and that reason may have more of a domino effect if you choose to break it. With knowledge and much thought, you’ll know when a rule is begging to be broken, and which have value and should remain in place.

10 Rules to Break

There are rules which have been dictated for years – or decades before – that just aren’t relevant for how we live and work anymore. 10 Rules to Break, breaks down ten somewhat antiquated rules which can be pared down or done away with for how we live today. Some rules don’t fit into today’s society. The ten rules mentioned in this section were set forth at a time when work situations and life situations were different than today. They need to be tweaked.

One outdated rule is that you must be qualified for every job. That may still apply to certain careers such as surgeons or electricians, but many jobs today simply need experience and a learning process.
The 9 to 5 rule was implemented during the days of factories and when it was important to get a certain amount of productivity done during the day. Now, people work on different schedules because technology allows that freedom.
Mistakes shouldn’t necessarily be considered a bad thing. You learn from the mistakes, and no matter how grievous the mistake, you can recover with time and effort.
In the past, the serious type of personality was considered the most desirable. It signified intelligence and a motivated mindset. Today, it’s more about a balance between the two and not taking yourself so seriously that you fail to enjoy life.
Another rule of yesterday that no longer means as much today is that you should be friendly to everyone. In today’s transient society, you don’t always know “everyone,” and the rule of the day is that you should be cautious.
Working hard to succeed is another rule that isn’t as valuable today as yesterday. Now, “working smarter” is the desired work mode and technology, again, has allowed us to work more efficiently.

Why Break the Rules?

There are rules you can break that have been dictated for years by society that are outdated. For example, the rule of working 9 until 5 every day can now be broken so that you can work much more effectively and enjoy more progress. This section deals with why and how you can break some of the rules – and some cautions about breaking others.

Taking yourself too seriously is one rule that was first designed to make you seem more professional in your demeanour. Now, it’s best to lighten up and add a bit of humor into your life, no matter what you’re doing. It’s easier on the mind and body too.
The rule of “your parents are always right” is a rule that is good when you’re a child and need protection from all the things that could harm you. But, as you gain more experience, you may be the only one who knows what’s truly best for you.
Practicing humility in your life is a good thing as long as it doesn’t set you apart as a weak or ineffective person. Most professions or jobs today require that we set ourselves up to be strong leaders, but adding a bit of humility in the equation can’t hurt.
Staying true to your goals and dreams is a rule that is touted in the media, books and magazines. It’s always a good thing to pursue your goals and dreams, but don’t be afraid to change your mind.
Before you break a rule, be sure you’re willing to face the consequences, if any.
Making errors isn’t necessarily a bad thing. You can learn lots from your mistakes if you simply accept that it happened and analyze the problem and how you can ensure it never happens again.
Being friendly to everyone is no longer logical in today’s world. Caution trumps friendliness – which doesn’t give you a free pass to be rude, but does mean you should be careful about your level of friendliness.

Breaking the Rules of Society to Meet Your Goals

The human race has put forth some very strange rules that are made to be broken in some instances. Some of these rules are antiquated – not relevant in today’s society – and some are simply misguided.

The rules put in place long ago were no doubt designed to help us reach our goals and fulfill our dreams, but times have changed the way most of these rules are viewed today.

Breaking the Rules, doesn’t advocate that you break the law. Those rules and laws were made to protect you, and if you disagree with the law, you can work through the proper channels to change them.

Breaking the Rules is meant to be a guide that you can use to break the rules of society when needed to make life better and more prosperous for yourself. Sometimes people are hesitant to break rules because they’re afraid of what people might think of them, but only those willing to step out from the norms of society and make a few waves can expect a reward that is above and beyond the norm.

There are certain rules of society that you should always adhere to; this is an important lesson to learn from this discussion.

Criteria for rule breaking include being true to the values you’ve set for yourself. When you depart from a rule, it’s best to use your gut instinct to guide you. You’ll know when the thought of breaking a rule feels bad – or when it feels right and like something you should do for your own good or the good of others.

You should be concerned with what people think of the rule you’re breaking, but not so much that it fills you with guilt or breaks the heart of someone you care about.

Remember that your life is a blank canvas and whatever you’re changing or rethinking about rules can affect what eventually becomes a permanent part of your life story.

I think I have covered the topic. Let me know what I missed. Leave me a comment.

Julie Stobbe is the 2024-2025 winner of the Harold Taylor Award for outstanding contributions to the organizing industry and Professional Organizers in Canada. As a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach, she brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides, mentors and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.