So you are driving on the highway and see a milepost and wonder what’s the purpose of the sign. By definintion, the milepost marks a particular mile from a fixed commencement point.

What if we decided to count the number of mileposts instead of looking at the mileage number on the sign? Would the number of signs really be relevant to you? Probably not…

Everyday we track things that have no personal significance to us. The challenge becomes making a connection of the stat with the improvement. If you are trying to be a better putter on the golf course then you would count the number of putts you take each round. If you are trying to become a better runner then you would look at how fast your run is and/or distance ran.

Another distinction to know is the pursuasive intention of the vital factor. Will it be used as a punishment or reward?

Put the human ego into the mix and you find pricinct bosses pressuring cops to report fewer actual crimes to manipulate crime statistics or car salespeople selling more cars at less profit when it’s the end of the month.

The invention of the microchip has empowered measurement to degrees that can be unmanagable.

Focus on what inspires you and measure it!