Wisen's notes

# Ask for forgiveness, not permission

This is a quote from Grace Hopper. This is one way to Influencing without authority.

This is also one of the many principles that stuck in my head when I worked for ThoughtWorks. The idea is if you have a good idea, rather than asking for a permission, which normally takes a long time to be reviewed, do it anyway.

When you do it anyway, there are 2 potential outcomes:

  1. People don't agree with what you've done: Ask for forgiveness
  2. People agree with what you've done

# References

The Pragmatic Programmer (p.9)

  1. While doing this, you may be comforted by the line attributed to Rear Admiral Dr. Grace Hopper: "It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission."

Grace Hopper - Wikiquote (opens new window)

It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.

  • Repocmd
    • I couldn't recall what exactly went through my head at that point, but I clearly ignored that QA analyst and continue improving the CLI. Not being the same country helps. But most importantly, I Ask for forgiveness, not permission, even when I didn't know about this principle back then.