the first big number it’s a simple
question I recently asked everyone from
my classmates to my family members and
now I’m asking you it might seem like a
silly question but there’s an
interesting observation to be made from
its responses from 11 to Google our
perspectives down the line even though a
number will always equal the same thing
it doesn’t mean the same thing to
everyone and that brings up a fatal flaw
in our use of numbers sure the way we
use numbers worse than most the time a
speed limit of 50 miles per hour says
you must drive no faster than 50 miles
per hour but an issue arises wouldn’t we
allow numbers to say things about
ourselves and listen to what numbers say
about other people
these numbers are your salary your GPA
your weight through all of the
statistics that are instead use as
labels and classifications they’re your
defining numbers but because of the
reliability of numbers in all other
cases we often think these defining
numbers will work the same way and
assume they become our identity they
become the way we perceive ourselves and
in turn the way we’re perceived by
others by turning us into statistics
defining numbers make judgment way too
easy if your GP is a 4.0 and mine too
3.2 we draw conclusions about one
another and ourselves wow they’re so
smart why do we even try she doesn’t
even try not only making us judgmental
and self-deprecating defining numbers
devalue what makes us human we viewed
them as the whole picture
in reality they’re just an outline with
seven and a half billion people on earth
there’s bound to be more than one person
fitting a certain set of statistics you
are not the only one with your height
weight age and IQ those don’t come
together to form you until you factor in
your beliefs values opinions flaws
skills and so much more even something
as frivolous as your favorite color help
to really show the bigger picture of
course you can’t have a picture without
an outline so how do we change our
perspective without falling to the other
extreme first you have to accept your
numbers even if you don’t love them you
have to accept them sure if you want to
change your grades or your weight there
are healthy and safe ways to do that but
obsessing over them is far from it other
numbers can’t be changed they’re things
you inherit and have to live with your
whole life there’s no way you can
diminish the importance of defining
numbers in your life if you’re
constantly upset and unhappy with them
of course accepting these numbers is
only the beginning
to prep to properly devalue these
memories you have to challenge them you
have to find numberless facts about you
that really help show the bigger picture
they can be anything a pet peeve a role
model of favorite type of car it doesn’t
matter but I do have some of some advice
on what type of information you might
want to focus on even if you aren’t
particularly aware of it there’s
probably one number you lean toward and
evaluating yourself personally it has
always been my grades especially my
garden
I would find myself checking and
rechecking these grades half the time
with no change and sure it felt great
when the number would go up half a
percent being able to say I did that and
then it falls and you still think I did
that but not with cried or excitement
but disappointment or shame and that’s
no way to see yourself a constant roller
coaster of happy and sad of your own
personal perspective so in stopping I
realized what you had to do the number
that you focus on is going to fall into
one of three categories mind body and
spirit mind is all the information that
focuses on your intelligence
very few people dismiss their GPA or IQ
entirely but focusing on them can be
equally as harmful other people focus on
body which is both your physical ability
like a lifetime or max bench and your
physical appearance like your height
weight and clothes size lastly there’s
spirit this is the least common because
they’re more often subjectively based
and often seem less important but still
things like how many friends you have
how good you are playing an instrument
in your racial composition I’ll fall
into this category so once you’ve
identified where your number falls how
do you counteract it you find other
information that also falls in the same
category so focusing on my grades I find
they’re subjective things that revolve
around my education and intelligence
personally I focus on what type of stuff
I like to study I ignore Spanish I enjoy
history specifically World War two and
sure it’s not like current a constant
macho running through my head but it’s
just a reassuring fact to think of
whatever I’m checking my grades to think
okay yeah the number on the screens a
part of me but so are these seemingly
meaningless
pieces of information of course there’s
more than one number at play on a daily
basis there’s hundreds of numbers that
are affecting you without your knowing
so you need to have more than one
subjective piece of information that you
can focus on because regardless of
whether it’s a number and anecdote or
just a meaningless fact focusing on a
single piece of information is no way to
see yourself you’re so multifaceted and
there’s no way a single piece of data
can summarize that so I ask you again
what is the first big number
but more importantly what’s your biggest defining number thank you
question I recently asked everyone from
my classmates to my family members and
now I’m asking you it might seem like a
silly question but there’s an
interesting observation to be made from
its responses from 11 to Google our
perspectives down the line even though a
number will always equal the same thing
it doesn’t mean the same thing to
everyone and that brings up a fatal flaw
in our use of numbers sure the way we
use numbers worse than most the time a
speed limit of 50 miles per hour says
you must drive no faster than 50 miles
per hour but an issue arises wouldn’t we
allow numbers to say things about
ourselves and listen to what numbers say
about other people
these numbers are your salary your GPA
your weight through all of the
statistics that are instead use as
labels and classifications they’re your
defining numbers but because of the
reliability of numbers in all other
cases we often think these defining
numbers will work the same way and
assume they become our identity they
become the way we perceive ourselves and
in turn the way we’re perceived by
others by turning us into statistics
defining numbers make judgment way too
easy if your GP is a 4.0 and mine too
3.2 we draw conclusions about one
another and ourselves wow they’re so
smart why do we even try she doesn’t
even try not only making us judgmental
and self-deprecating defining numbers
devalue what makes us human we viewed
them as the whole picture
in reality they’re just an outline with
seven and a half billion people on earth
there’s bound to be more than one person
fitting a certain set of statistics you
are not the only one with your height
weight age and IQ those don’t come
together to form you until you factor in
your beliefs values opinions flaws
skills and so much more even something
as frivolous as your favorite color help
to really show the bigger picture of
course you can’t have a picture without
an outline so how do we change our
perspective without falling to the other
extreme first you have to accept your
numbers even if you don’t love them you
have to accept them sure if you want to
change your grades or your weight there
are healthy and safe ways to do that but
obsessing over them is far from it other
numbers can’t be changed they’re things
you inherit and have to live with your
whole life there’s no way you can
diminish the importance of defining
numbers in your life if you’re
constantly upset and unhappy with them
of course accepting these numbers is
only the beginning
to prep to properly devalue these
memories you have to challenge them you
have to find numberless facts about you
that really help show the bigger picture
they can be anything a pet peeve a role
model of favorite type of car it doesn’t
matter but I do have some of some advice
on what type of information you might
want to focus on even if you aren’t
particularly aware of it there’s
probably one number you lean toward and
evaluating yourself personally it has
always been my grades especially my
garden
I would find myself checking and
rechecking these grades half the time
with no change and sure it felt great
when the number would go up half a
percent being able to say I did that and
then it falls and you still think I did
that but not with cried or excitement
but disappointment or shame and that’s
no way to see yourself a constant roller
coaster of happy and sad of your own
personal perspective so in stopping I
realized what you had to do the number
that you focus on is going to fall into
one of three categories mind body and
spirit mind is all the information that
focuses on your intelligence
very few people dismiss their GPA or IQ
entirely but focusing on them can be
equally as harmful other people focus on
body which is both your physical ability
like a lifetime or max bench and your
physical appearance like your height
weight and clothes size lastly there’s
spirit this is the least common because
they’re more often subjectively based
and often seem less important but still
things like how many friends you have
how good you are playing an instrument
in your racial composition I’ll fall
into this category so once you’ve
identified where your number falls how
do you counteract it you find other
information that also falls in the same
category so focusing on my grades I find
they’re subjective things that revolve
around my education and intelligence
personally I focus on what type of stuff
I like to study I ignore Spanish I enjoy
history specifically World War two and
sure it’s not like current a constant
macho running through my head but it’s
just a reassuring fact to think of
whatever I’m checking my grades to think
okay yeah the number on the screens a
part of me but so are these seemingly
meaningless
pieces of information of course there’s
more than one number at play on a daily
basis there’s hundreds of numbers that
are affecting you without your knowing
so you need to have more than one
subjective piece of information that you
can focus on because regardless of
whether it’s a number and anecdote or
just a meaningless fact focusing on a
single piece of information is no way to
see yourself you’re so multifaceted and
there’s no way a single piece of data
can summarize that so I ask you again
what is the first big number
but more importantly what’s your biggest defining number thank you
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