Why do we not like being told what to do?

Whilst staying in Anglesey, for a gloriously sunny bank holiday weekend, I was amused by what I found in the cupboard.

It made me wonder why the instruction had not been heeded. Was it because people do not like being told what to do? Was it because someone ignored it and everyone after that just followed suit; “if it was alright for them then it is alright for me”. Was it just apathy?

The shelf needed to be kept empty because if it was piled high it was in danger of breaking.

How many times does this happen in the organisations where we work and how often is that directly related to how these things are actually communicated?