I’m a big fan of the broken windows theory. The theory states that our environment has an impact on our social (or anti-social) behavior. First introduced by Wilson and Kelling, the broken windows theory received a lot of attention nearly three decades ago. The theoretical explanation is that, if you have a building with broken windows, which do not get repaired over time, the chances are high that it attracts vandals to break even more windows. This is because it sends a message that such things, as for example broken windows are accepted in that specific environment. The theory suggest to fix these windows quickly in order to avoid serious crime.
I see broken windows figuratively everywhere. One piece of paper evolves into a huge pile of papers. One short E-Mail I didn’t reply to, turns into an inbox with E-Mails dating back almost a year (“yeah, I’ll answer the mail when I have some time”). A blog that hasn’t been updated for month. You get it.
But why do I like the broken windows theory? I like it because it taught me how important small and incremental changes are. That not tolerating broken windows in life, can have a huge impact in the long-run and this idea is applicable almost in any part of life. Ramit Sethi mentions often enough how effective these small little things are in personal finance, which become nothing more than habits over time. A poet once said: “If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make that change”. I think that change is easier than we think. It is as easy as fixing some broken windows. But the difficult part is to identify these as such. Clutter you didn’t get rid of. The one pound you gained in weight. The small amount of debt you took to finance some unimportant stuff. Friends you didn’t drop a line once in a while because your were so busy. The time where I didn’t talk with my partner, because I didn’t want to make a fuss out of it. These are all little things. Just some small broken windows. But we know that you don’t become a hoarder, obese, broke, friendless or divorced over night. These broken windows create the environment that allow such things. What are your broken windows?
Good post. Like!
I didn’t know that the theory was called that way but its absolutely true. For managing people you could also translate it into “being a good example to others”.