Redefining The Numbers Game
A humane way of playing the Numbers Game
Let’s admit it: We humans are obsessed with numbers. Governments mostly pay attention to problems when they see stats, corporations mostly value you if you can show your growth in numbers, we mostly value ourselves if we manage to nail different kind of number games: Be it weight loss or calories count or the number of likes on your Social Media update. But the problem with being obsessed with the Numbers Game is that we forget that there is a human involved and every human being matters. In most societies, rape becomes a problem only if the stats show that a large number of people have been raped: But every rape survivor is a human being whose world has been drastically affected! Even if one woman/man/ non-binary person is raped, it IS a moral issue! In some societies, brutal and unfair laws still exist because they “only” affect a minority. Hence, the Numbers Game is cruel and inhumane in many ways. It’s pretty clear that we are obsessed with numbers. However, if we cannot escape the Numbers Game, can we atleast redefine it?
Let’s say that you want to change your sedentary lifestyle and get fitter. Now, the conventional Numbers Game would be to get on the weighing scale and measure yourself by the kilos you have lost. While this is one of the ways by which you can measure your improvement, there is another humane way as well: How about installing an app that counts your steps everyday? I started doing this since the beginning of this month and I have been feeling positive ever since! At the end of the day, when you realize that you have walked 8000 odd steps, you will feel mighty proud!
Similarly, instead of having a goal of reading X number of books this year/month, why don’t we have a goal of reading X number of words everyday? Instead of writing 1 article a day, redefine the Numbers Game by measuring it in words. If you compare, 1000 words look more appealing than 1 article. This way, the numbers look attractive and you get into the habit too! The idea is to choose a Game where the numbers look more.
So, how are you redefining your Numbers Game?