Wikipedia:Don't search for objections

This is an essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints.

This page in a nutshell: It's not helpful to search for every possible objection before making an action.

When making an edit or preforming some other action it might be helpful to discuss first to see if there are objections. In many cases this isn't necessary.

Examples

• When adding content to a minor topic.
• When moving an article due to a spelling error or otherwise violating the naming conventions.
• When removing unsourced content (the burden usually lies of those wanting to keep it to provide a source).
• When merging a permastub that hasn't been edited for a long time.
• Making a change that might be controversial to a minor or not controversial topic that would very likely gain consensus anyway if discussed.

However, this doesn't mean that one should go round unilaterally making changes that are reasonably controversial for example:

• Adding or modifying a significant amount of content to a controversial, major or featured article.
• Moving a major or controversial topic.
• Removing content that may violate Wikipedia's neutral point of view policy that is disputed.