BRUNSWICK SCHOOL
MARCH 2013
MONTHLY MAILING Broken Windows Last spring, at our year-end Senior Awards ceremony, I shared with the Class of 2012 a perspective on life that was, ironically, derived from a well-respected theory of crime fighting . . . read into that what you will. The theory was first introduced in the 1980s when its author, George Kelling, wrote about it in a magazine called the Atlantic Monthly. After his article was published, his theory quickly became known as the “Broken Window” theory of crime fighting. Let me first explain why it is called that and then I will try to relate the concept to the lives which are ahead for our boys. The “Broken Window” theory: imagine a building in a run-down area of a city with some broken windows. (Close your eyes and imagine the scene in your mind.) The theory is that if the windows that are damaged aren’t repaired, the temptation for vandals is to break additional windows. Because there is a sense that no one cares, over time they may take things a step further and break into the building, stealing or damaging its contents, maybe covering it in graffiti and even, ultimately, setting it on fire. You could say the same thing for a sidewalk that has some litter on it. People who see that litter are more inclined to litter themselves and eventually the whole sidewalk gets covered in discarded McDonald’s bags and broken bottles . . . eventually, maybe, some people even try to break into cars or houses on the street or drug dealers start working the street corners because they sense the degree of neglect and disrepair. So, the “Broken Windows” theory is that if you fix small things right away - repair the first broken window so as to avoid a second getting broken, pick up the first McDonald’s carton on the sidewalk so that a shattered bottle doesn’t come next - then you will not only make small problems better, but you will also (and this is important) avoid having those small problems evolve into bigger problems. Well, as an educator of the “whole boy,” (and as you probably have guessed) I think this theory of the “Broken Windows” applies to life as well. In crime fighting, fixing broken windows means just that - fixing broken windows to keep neighborhoods tidy and free of disrepair and in doing so, keeping out the crime that often accompanies such disrepair and neglect. In life, fixing the “Broken Windows” to me means meeting our smallest commitments so that our bigger ones come more easily: being on time when others are late, being considerate when others are rude, and being honest when others shade the truth. Another way to say this is that I believe that if you take care of the small things in life, the big things will often take care of themselves. And the reason I believe this is that over the years, I have found that life is, to a surprising extent, all about establishing good habits and all about fixing your occasional “Broken Windows.” So often to the extent that any adult has any regrets about his or her life, it is because he wishes that he had done just a little bit more when instead, at the time, he did just a little bit less. Establishing habits in life that take care of the little things can so often lead to success in the big things as well. So often, just a little bit here or there can make all the difference in a situation, in an experience or in a relationship. Whether in school or in life, getting in the habit of doing just a little bit more (when you could have gotten away with less) can make all the difference. In a school such as Brunswick, such a philosophy often translates into whether the book our boys were assigned they really read carefully enough or whether the paper they wrote was really researched enough. In life it means do our boys eventually make the extra effort to be a good husband and a good father? Do they go the extra mile for a prospective client or for a charity with which they become involved? Do they allow themselves the opportunity to fully develop into all that they could be both for themselves and for those around them? Do they always take the little steps to fix the “Broken Windows?” So, as Brunswick teaches to the “whole boy,” it seems to me we must urge our sons to use the opportunities ahead - the big and the little ones, perhaps especially the little ones - to make the most of what they can become. “Broken Windows” are everywhere around us, all the time, in every task, every encounter, every conversation, every job, every thought. If our boys are to succeed at all in life, it is when they get in the habit of fixing life’s “Broken Windows” because we know that when we add all those little bits, all those inch by inch steps, those teeny little opportunities, when we add them together, doing so will make the difference between leading a meaningful life or an empty one, between being just alive and truly living. So, last spring with our seniors and always, I urge Brunswick boys to pay attention to life’s “Broken Windows,” a small opportunity to build greatness.