The Rule She Questioned

I've learned that "we've always done it this way" is often the strongest reason to ask why. When a policy stops protecting or serving the people it was designed for, leadership means having the courage to question it and the discipline to replace habit with something better.

The moment I hear, 'because we've always done it this way,' I try not to let my eyes roll to the back of my head. I've learned that respectfully questioning a process isn't about breaking rules it's about making sure the rule still serves the people it was created for, because sometimes there's a better way waiting to be discovered simply because no one thought to ask.

Through my journey as an advocate, I've learned that just because something has always been done a certain way doesn't mean it should continue that way. When I saw policies and processes creating barriers for people who were already struggling, I chose to speak up, ask the hard questions, and push for change because advocacy, to me, means making sure people are heard, valued, and not left behind.

Rules can outlive the reasons they were created. When I saw policies creating barriers instead of supporting people, I respectfully spoke up. Speaking up can be uncomfortable, but it often opens the door to more compassionate and effective change.

Yes. In my work as a Linen Utilization Manager, I have learned that sometimes the most expensive phrase in an organization is, "That's the way we've always done it."

I questioned a compliance process built on inconsistent standards because it created unnecessary work for employees and unfair consequences for homeowners. By advocating for clearer expectations, training, shared templates, and better feedback, I helped shift the focus from blaming individuals to improving the system itself.

I'm not afraid to question "the way we've always done it." If a process no longer serves the people it was designed for, it's time to challenge it, simplify it, and make room for something better.

One of the greatest gifts a woman can give another woman is making her feel like she belongs in rooms where she is learning to believe she belongs herself.

One question has changed how I approach public service: Who was this process designed to work for? I have encountered policies and procedures that made perfect sense from an administrative perspective but created unnecessary barriers for the people they were intended to serve. In those moments, I learned to question not necessarily the requirement, but the way we had chosen to implement it. That distinction matters. Compliance and customer-centered service do not have to compete. We can honor the intent of a policy while still examining every form, step, verification, handoff, and interaction between the policy and the person. Some of my most meaningful work has come from asking whether complexity was truly required or simply inherited. I believe good public service should not require people to become experts at navigating government. It should require government to become better at serving people.

I began questioning whether checking every compliance box really told us enough about the quality of early learning classrooms children were experiencing. Working with other leaders, we helped change Florida's approach so that accountability included the quality of teacher-child interactions, not just whether programs had met procedural requirements.