rule

1. Authoritative statement of what to do or not to do in a specific situation, issued by an appropriate person or body. It clarifies, demarcates, or interprets a law or policy.

2. Statement that establishes a principle or standard, and serves as a norm for guiding or mandating action or conduct. Rules may be divided into four general categories: (1) Folklore: Unpublished rules that are conveyed by behavior and are implicitly understood. (2) Guidelines: Commonly published and recommended practices that allow some discretion with their interpretation and use. (3) Mandates: Published commands that may not be ignored in any circumstance and whose violation is punished. (4) Policies: Published rules that imply a predicted behavior and whose violation may be permitted or tolerated under certain circumstances.

Few companies can rely on--let alone afford--clever marketing schemes to separate themselves from the competition. Yes, Starbucks made people believe they wanted $4 caffeinated concoctions, and Louis Vuitton lulled people into shelling out $1,500 for denim handbags, but those are the exceptions that prove the rule. If you want to win in business, you need to offer something tangibly valuable that the competition doesn't. Examples: rock-bottom prices (Wal-Mart); ingenious product design (Apple); extreme convenience (Fed Ex).

• Some Rules Were Made to be Broken
• Think about Business as a Game
• Leading and Motivating by Example
• Be Pessimistic of Deals
• Technological Progress and the Consumer
• Human Capital Can Easily Walk Out the Door
• Rule of Free Enterprise
• The Business Game