People Share 50 Rules Of Life That Are "Unspoken," Yet Everyone Follows Them

If you ever ask yourself who the hell created all these rules, and why we all need to abide by them, this one's for you. I have to agree that the idea of a free society where each individual is allowed to roam freely, with no obligations or consequences, has something appealing about it.

And some rules are so embedded into our society, we don’t dare to question them. “Societies going back thousands of years have had ‘unwritten rules.’ Unwritten rules would be defined as normal, accepted behavior that everyone (or almost everyone!) is willing to adhere to,” Susan Petang, a certified life coach and the author of “The Quiet Zone Coaching,” told Bored Panda. Susan teaches women how to stop feeling overwhelmed and start waking up happy in the morning again.

She continued: “They're necessary not only for keeping order, but establishing boundaries and defining what is considered kind, polite, or compassionate—or rude!—in that particular culture.”

What’s interesting is that even now, different cultures can have different unwritten rules. “For example, burping after a meal in China is considered a compliment, and here in the US, it's considered rude. By having these unwritten rules, we also can more easily identify when others are upset with us or being dismissive,” Susan said and added that “it's like having an emotional shorthand.”

Susan believes that our lives might be more complicated, and possibly more lawless, if we didn't have expected rules of behavior. “Imagine how chaotic life would be if people could randomly punch others in the nose if they didn't like what was being said or done?”

On the other hand, there are times when unwritten rules of behavior can be complicated and unnecessary, the life coach argues. “They can also be prejudicial. For example, it can be difficult for those with autism to understand some of the social nuances that we take for granted—which might make them feel ostracized, unaccepted, or unloved.”

The life coach added that there are also unwritten rules in some cultures that can be interpreted as rude or boorish in others. “Our earlier example of burping is one; another might be how some cultures consider bargaining for everything to be OK, while in other cultures it's considered rude to question the cost of something.”