Worker who always comes to work 20 to 30 minutes early is late to work once, prompting reprimand from their boss, the next time they're late they show up 2.5 hours late instead: 'Same penalty for being 6 minutes late as for being 3 hours late? Ok boss'

When you're strictly following rules, there's a good chance that you might come to realize the folly of doing so. Sure, you should always seek to do the right thing, and whereas you might think that that's always following a rule to the letter, but rules are as flawed as the people who made them, and following them without question might not get you the result that you were intending. 

Disclaimer here: I'm talking about the silly little things you'll see in your handbook at work, the things that your boss might read and decide that they're going to enforce with impunity, and this is not a justification for speeding or breaking whatever laws you don't feel you're beholden to.

But, when it comes to the strict enforcement of rules, there's a clear difference between understanding the intended effect or purpose of a rule and blind enforcement, simply following the rule to the letter, no matter what ridiculous, inconsistent, or unintended end of that enforcement. Of course, at the end of the day, in either case, there is a need for consistency, or else you'll run into issues with things like fairness.

You'll encounter leaders who follow either philosophy of rule-following throughout the course of your career.