Relatively speaking, numbers are easy.
Anything we can assign a discrete value to and track over time is inherently easier to quantify than that which defies easy calculation.
The more challenging, less concrete things in life are tough to pin down for this very reason.
We can easily get a sense of our financial standing by looking at how much money we have versus how much we had yesterday… or in contrast to how much someone else is.
Most things aren’t so simple.
Take happiness, for instance.
On a day to day basis, only we know how happy we feel. Our state might be expressed externally and influence how we interact with the world, but it’s experienced internally.
If it was possible to calculate exactly how happy we are, we would be the only ones qualified to do it. Because no one else has the same first-hand experience (the critical data) of our condition, no one else is in a position to make an accurate judgement.
And just as we’re the only ones who know how we feel, we can’t know how someone else feels.
All we have to go off is what they tell us & what we observe. Two limited sources of information that may or may not reflect reality.
This is a problem because we crave certainty.
Uncertainty – the kind that’s created when we lack ways to objectively assess our condition – needles at us, demanding rectification.
So, with this pain in tow, what do we do?
We dismiss the things that are hard to quantify in favour of proxies we can work with.
Bodyweight – or weight lifted in the gym, or miles run – as a proxy for health…
Wealth as a proxy for success…
Follower count as a proxy for credibility…
Emotional intensity as a proxy for importance…
These measures are fine in a vacuum. Ultimately, it’s all data – the lenses we view it through matter less than the simple act of considering the things worth considering in a way that’s aligned with our desired outcomes.
But they’re not conclusive. And they’re definitely not substitutes for the things they’re meant to measure.
As soon as we start treating proxies as the thing that matters (rather than viewing them as just another tool), we’re primed to lose our way.
Pursuing better numbers and higher scores for their own sake is a road to ruin.
Conflating health with bodyweight or achievements logged shrinks a complex, multi-facet aspect of our experience to a narrowly defined set of activities that we may or may not succeed at… and even if we do, we’re not guaranteed the thing we actually care about. A full, vibrant life.
Taking wealth as the ultimate measure of success sets us up to fail in all the ways that matter. Because the boundless pursuit of more – free of constraints or guiding rationale – can take people to dark places.
Assuming follower count is a reliable indicator for credibility leads to expert voices being drowned out in favour of what’s popular.
Each measure is useless when it’s achieved without regard to the substance underneath.
Rather than getting lost chasing arbitrary standards, we’re better off focusing on the things those standards are intended to measure… And designing systems to bring them closer, in a way that fits into our bigger picture.