Numeric Gazer [ 2025-2027 ]

Lagom is the Swedish concept of "just the right amount." The Numeric Gazer is addicted to the all-time high. But the all-time high is a trap. Aim for "steady." Aim for "boring." A flat line is not a sign of death; sometimes, a flat line is a sign of mastery. The best pilots are not the ones who fly the fastest; they are the ones who land smoothly every time.

I have three practices for the recovering Numeric Gazer. numeric gazer

Goodhart’s Law states: "When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure." Lagom is the Swedish concept of "just the right amount

"I'll just check the numbers to see how we're doing. Data is empowering." 2. The Flirtation (Noon): "Hmm, that’s up 2%. But why is this down 1%? Let me check the hour-by-hour breakdown." 3. The Fixation (Afternoon): You refresh the page. Nothing changed in the last 14 seconds. You refresh again. You are now refreshing out of spite. 4. The Existential Crash (Evening): The number is red. You feel like a fraud. The number is green. You feel nothing, because the green was not green enough . The best pilots are not the ones who

You aren’t tired. You aren’t hungry. You are transfixed . Your eyes are moving, but you aren’t reading. Your fingers are scrolling, but you aren’t clicking. You are staring into the glowing abyss of a dashboard—Google Analytics, a stock ticker, a fitness tracker, or a revenue graph—watching numbers tick up or down by decimal points that have no bearing on your actual survival.

The numbers are servants. We have let them become tyrants.