# Bookmarked: Debugging a system and improving it requires a blameless culture

- Author: @gurupanguji
- Date: 2026-02-11
- URL: https://gurupanguji.com/blog/2026/02/11/debugging-a-system-and-improving-it-requires-a-blameless-culture/
- Categories: link, philosophy
- Tags: culture, family, life, philosophy

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> #### [How blame stops your debugging](https://humansinsystems.com/blog/you-cant-debug-a-systems-by-blaming-a-person#:~:text=How%20blame%20stops,really%20going%20on.)
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> I want to start by stepping away from incidents for a second.
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> Let’s say you're in the kitchen with a friend. You’re cooking together, chatting, chopping, stirring. At some point, your friend cuts their finger while chopping onions. The first thing you do is obvious: mitigate the impact. You grab a paper towel, help them rinse the cut, and find a band-aid.
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> Now imagine that right after you put on the band-aid, you say *a version of*: *“Well, be a little more careful with that knife.”*
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> In that very moment, you close an important connection as you’ve decided the “cause” is that they weren’t careful enough. As a result, you may never find out that the knife has a small notch in the blade that makes it slip sometimes, or that your friend’s attention was low because of a hard conversation earlier, or that you were both rushing because the pan was already hot and you wanted to get the onions in before they burned.
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> You might only see some of that later, *when* it happens to you.
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> “Just be more careful” feels like an answer, but it trades a simple story for a chance to understand what’s really going on.

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<p>What a simple and illustrative example.</p>
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<p>SRE culture has taught me some wonderful things. However, a good post-mortem is certainly one that sticks with me and has served me well across various professional scenarios. </p>
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<p>This only works in a trusting culture. This only works in a competent culture. This only works when you want to build a competent, trusting culture. </p>
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<p>What's more worthy of this than your own family? I can't believe I didn't realize this until today. </p>
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