Fix The Broken Window First — by Dan Lynn
By Dan Lynn
About 25 years ago, I bought an old building from 1882. It was full of history and sat right in the middle of our town — but it had fallen into disrepair. Broken windows, chipping paint, weeds everywhere. At over 12,000 square feet, it was far too big to fix all at once.
So we started with the front. We painted it, replaced the broken windows, pulled the weeds, and hung a new awning over the front door. The front looked great. The rest of the building was exactly as run-down as before.
Then something I didn't expect happened. People started stopping us on the street to say thank you. A few even had tears in their eyes. I remember thinking, all we did was paint the front and fix a window — why does this mean so much to them?
I understood later, when I read Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point and learned about the Broken Windows Theory. The original idea, from researchers James Wilson and George Kelling, is that a single unrepaired broken window signals that nobody cares — and that signal invites more neglect, more disorder, a slow downward spiral. But it runs the other way too: one visible sign that someone does care can give a whole place hope.
That's what we'd done without realizing it. The building was in the center of the town, and fixing it told everyone the decline had stopped. It wasn't lipstick on a pig. It was hope.
The lesson stuck with me: small, visible acts of care have an outsized effect. Sometimes you change how an entire community feels by fixing one window.
Questions this Key Learning answers
How do I start fixing a problem that feels too big?
The author’s building was far too large to repair all at once, so he started with the front: painting it, replacing broken windows, pulling weeds, and adding an awning. His lesson is to begin with a small, visible act of care. The larger turnaround may remain unfinished, but a noticeable repair can restore hope and confidence.
Which workplace problem should I fix first?
Our analysis suggests finding the visible frustration employees or customers have learned to tolerate, such as a confusing invoice, a failed handoff, or a useless meeting. Choose an early repair people will notice without a presentation. Fixing something familiar shows that management has listened and acted, replacing resignation with an expectation of progress.
How can a small fix rebuild trust in management?
The author found that one repaired window signaled that someone cared and that decline had stopped. Our analysis applies the same lesson inside organizations: leaders build belief through evidence, not speeches. Completing one familiar, visible fix can show that problems are seen and action is possible, then invite people to identify the next repair.