How many things do you count in your life?
Counting is a fascinating exercise. I’ve found that it perpetuates itself.
Do you count things mostly for yourself or do you count them so that you can share what you’ve counted with other people?
As I said before, the act of counting is self-perpetuating. This means that counting creates an expectation in your mind.
I’m sure you know the thing about expectations and what happens if they’re not met, right?
I’ve found that counting also puts me into a scarcity mindset by default. I count because I want to make sure there’s enough.
As an introvert with a young family, an example of something I used to do, is count how many hours of “me time” I was going to get on a given weekend and judge if that was “enough” to help me feel recharged.
Counting focuses your mind on quantity. Where does quality fit in? Can quality be counted?
Counting is a useful way to measure progress. It also opens the door to comparison.
Consider the things you’re counting and ask what it might feel like to count less things.
p.s. If you have six more minutes, this post pairs well with two others: Comparison and Quality.
