3304: Untrack: Letting Go of the Stress of Measuring by Leo Babauta of Zen Habits on Intentional Living

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[00:01:04] [SPEAKER_00]: This is Optimal Living Daily, on track, letting go of the stress of measuring by Leo Babout

[00:01:11] [SPEAKER_00]: of ZenHabits.net.

[00:01:13] [SPEAKER_00]: And I'm Justin Malik, your personal narrator, reading to you every single day of the

[00:01:17] [SPEAKER_00]: year to give us both a bit more inspiration, motivation and happiness in our days.

[00:01:23] [SPEAKER_00]: And with that, let's get right to it as we optimize your life.

[00:01:31] [SPEAKER_00]: On track, letting go of the stress of measuring by Leo Babout of ZenHabits.net.

[00:01:39] [SPEAKER_00]: There are a few old management adages that seems to run like a current through our society

[00:01:44] [SPEAKER_00]: powering our work and personal lives.

[00:01:47] [SPEAKER_00]: You can't manage what you don't measure.

[00:01:49] [SPEAKER_00]: And you are what you measure.

[00:01:51] [SPEAKER_00]: And you get what you measure.

[00:01:53] [SPEAKER_00]: And I've fallen for it myself.

[00:01:56] [SPEAKER_00]: At various times I've tracked workouts, miles run, everything I've eaten, every single

[00:02:02] [SPEAKER_00]: work task I complete, progress towards goals, my weight, my body fat percentage, how many

[00:02:10] [SPEAKER_00]: days I've done a habit in a month, words written each day, books I've read, expenses,

[00:02:16] [SPEAKER_00]: earnings, debt, website visitors, ad clicks, tweets, followers and on and on.

[00:02:23] [SPEAKER_00]: Sometimes I've tracked a few of these at the same time.

[00:02:26] [SPEAKER_00]: And I'm not alone.

[00:02:27] [SPEAKER_00]: There are people who track the most minute details of their lives from heartbeats to steps

[00:02:33] [SPEAKER_00]: walked to hours slept and quality of the sleep to email sent as a society we're tracking

[00:02:40] [SPEAKER_00]: and measuring more than ever before.

[00:02:43] [SPEAKER_00]: What's the theory here?

[00:02:45] [SPEAKER_00]: And is it true?

[00:02:46] [SPEAKER_00]: And is it necessary?

[00:02:48] [SPEAKER_00]: The theory behind measuring is that unless you measure something you don't know if it's

[00:02:53] [SPEAKER_00]: getting better or worse.

[00:02:55] [SPEAKER_00]: You can't manage for improvement if you don't measure to see what is getting better and

[00:02:59] [SPEAKER_00]: what isn't.

[00:03:00] [SPEAKER_00]: And to some extent, this is true.

[00:03:03] [SPEAKER_00]: If you measure how many hours you spend writing, it's very possible that that number

[00:03:07] [SPEAKER_00]: will increase simply because you're measuring it more aware of it, more focused on it

[00:03:13] [SPEAKER_00]: and motivated for that number to increase.

[00:03:16] [SPEAKER_00]: If you measure miles run, that number will likely improve until you get injured or burnt

[00:03:21] [SPEAKER_00]: out.

[00:03:22] [SPEAKER_00]: But how do you measure the hills you ran during those miles?

[00:03:26] [SPEAKER_00]: Or the spurts of speed you occasionally threw in?

[00:03:29] [SPEAKER_00]: Or the enjoyment of the view?

[00:03:31] [SPEAKER_00]: How do you measure the great conversations you had with your wife as you did those

[00:03:35] [SPEAKER_00]: runs?

[00:03:36] [SPEAKER_00]: How do you track the ideas you had on the run, the health benefit of the runs,

[00:03:41] [SPEAKER_00]: and the new places you explored?

[00:03:43] [SPEAKER_00]: You could try to track all of these things, but then you'd be tracking 20 things instead

[00:03:47] [SPEAKER_00]: of just miles run.

[00:03:50] [SPEAKER_00]: Work is the same way.

[00:03:52] [SPEAKER_00]: You can measure one or ten metrics for productivity.

[00:03:55] [SPEAKER_00]: But does it measure the relationships you've built with your readers or customers?

[00:04:00] [SPEAKER_00]: Or the enjoyment you've gotten doing the work?

[00:04:02] [SPEAKER_00]: Or the things you've learned by making mistakes?

[00:04:05] [SPEAKER_00]: Or the pure joy you've gotten in making someone's life better?

[00:04:09] [SPEAKER_00]: Go ahead and try to measure that.

[00:04:11] [SPEAKER_00]: When you track a metric such as hours or dollars or miles, you're saying that's more

[00:04:18] [SPEAKER_00]: important than all the things that can't be measured.

[00:04:21] [SPEAKER_00]: You put that in the forefront of your head as the thing that must be improved at the

[00:04:25] [SPEAKER_00]: cost of all else.

[00:04:27] [SPEAKER_00]: What about relationships and joy?

[00:04:30] [SPEAKER_00]: Are those less important?

[00:04:32] [SPEAKER_00]: Then there are other problems with tracking and measuring everything.

[00:04:36] [SPEAKER_00]: Number one, it takes time to measure and track.

[00:04:39] [SPEAKER_00]: That's a valuable time you could have spent doing or living.

[00:04:43] [SPEAKER_00]: Number two, it creates a mindset that we must always improve, always measure, always manage

[00:04:49] [SPEAKER_00]: things, always strive for better, better, better.

[00:04:53] [SPEAKER_00]: What about learning to be happy with yourself?

[00:04:56] [SPEAKER_00]: What about focusing on joy and compassion and people you love?

[00:05:00] [SPEAKER_00]: When does the improving stop?

[00:05:03] [SPEAKER_00]: Are we ever satisfied?

[00:05:04] [SPEAKER_00]: Is that the point of living to improve endlessly, to always make things better and never be

[00:05:10] [SPEAKER_00]: happy with where we are?

[00:05:12] [SPEAKER_00]: Number three, it's stressful to measure and track a lot of things.

[00:05:16] [SPEAKER_00]: And it's disappointing if those numbers don't go up or don't go up as much as we'd

[00:05:21] [SPEAKER_00]: hoped.

[00:05:22] [SPEAKER_00]: Number four, we have to choose what to measure and how do we know we're choosing

[00:05:27] [SPEAKER_00]: the right thing?

[00:05:28] [SPEAKER_00]: Why is that thing the only thing that matters?

[00:05:30] [SPEAKER_00]: It's a narrowing way of looking at life.

[00:05:33] [SPEAKER_00]: And number five, it doesn't improve happiness.

[00:05:37] [SPEAKER_00]: It doesn't make us content.

[00:05:39] [SPEAKER_00]: It doesn't keep us in the moment.

[00:05:42] [SPEAKER_00]: I could go on and on.

[00:05:44] [SPEAKER_00]: Measurement and tracking are tools and there's nothing wrong with using them.

[00:05:47] [SPEAKER_00]: I've obviously used them many times and still recommend them to most people.

[00:05:51] [SPEAKER_00]: I just think we should consider whether there are alternatives and question our dogma

[00:05:56] [SPEAKER_00]: and experiment to see what works best for us.

[00:06:01] [SPEAKER_00]: Untrack, another way to work and live.

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_00]: So how do you work and live if you're not tracking and measuring?

[00:06:09] [SPEAKER_00]: My wife Eva asked me this today when we were on our run.

[00:06:12] [SPEAKER_00]: She really wants to keep track of her runs miles and time and pace so she can be

[00:06:17] [SPEAKER_00]: motivated to improve and keep doing it.

[00:06:20] [SPEAKER_00]: I said it's not necessary.

[00:06:22] [SPEAKER_00]: Let's take the example of a mother or father.

[00:06:25] [SPEAKER_00]: Do we measure all the activities we do as parents so we are

[00:06:28] [SPEAKER_00]: motivated to improve and keep doing it?

[00:06:31] [SPEAKER_00]: Do we measure hugs given, time spent reading to kids,

[00:06:36] [SPEAKER_00]: time spent preparing meals for them, fixing their boo-boos,

[00:06:40] [SPEAKER_00]: taking them to the playground or park, playing catch with them,

[00:06:44] [SPEAKER_00]: helping them shower or get dressed, teaching them a new skill,

[00:06:48] [SPEAKER_00]: snuggling or lazing around together and so on.

[00:06:52] [SPEAKER_00]: No, we just do all of that and more.

[00:06:54] [SPEAKER_00]: Why?

[00:06:55] [SPEAKER_00]: How is it possible to do all of that without the motivation of tracking?

[00:07:00] [SPEAKER_00]: Well, it's simple.

[00:07:00] [SPEAKER_00]: We do those things because we love them and we love our kids.

[00:07:05] [SPEAKER_00]: We're also motivated to learn more about being parents to see if there are

[00:07:08] [SPEAKER_00]: better ways of doing things not by the measuring and tracking,

[00:07:12] [SPEAKER_00]: but because we love being parents and we want to be good parents.

[00:07:16] [SPEAKER_00]: No tracking needed.

[00:07:18] [SPEAKER_00]: What about running?

[00:07:20] [SPEAKER_00]: Can we run for the joy of it?

[00:07:21] [SPEAKER_00]: Aren't we motivated to do it because we love ourselves?

[00:07:25] [SPEAKER_00]: And who cares if we run more miles or not?

[00:07:27] [SPEAKER_00]: That's an arbitrary goal that really means nothing.

[00:07:31] [SPEAKER_00]: Just run because it's super fun for the enjoyment of nature

[00:07:35] [SPEAKER_00]: and great views, for the simple but boundless pleasure of a

[00:07:39] [SPEAKER_00]: conversation with someone you love.

[00:07:41] [SPEAKER_00]: What about work?

[00:07:43] [SPEAKER_00]: Are we going to all of a sudden stop doing anything because it's not measured?

[00:07:47] [SPEAKER_00]: I say no.

[00:07:48] [SPEAKER_00]: I've been working for a little while now without tracking anything

[00:07:51] [SPEAKER_00]: and lo and behold, my work goes on.

[00:07:55] [SPEAKER_00]: I do it because it gives me joy.

[00:07:58] [SPEAKER_00]: I do it because I love all of you and would keep doing it without pay.

[00:08:02] [SPEAKER_00]: And even if whatever numbers I decided to measure went down the tubes

[00:08:06] [SPEAKER_00]: and into the netherworld, that's why we do things

[00:08:09] [SPEAKER_00]: not because we want numbers to get better.

[00:08:12] [SPEAKER_00]: The numbers are meaningless, arbitrary, limiting, narrow

[00:08:16] [SPEAKER_00]: and without heart.

[00:08:19] [SPEAKER_00]: Do for the love of doing, for the love of others.

[00:08:22] [SPEAKER_00]: That's unmeasurable and profoundly life changing.

[00:08:31] [SPEAKER_00]: You just listened to the post titled

[00:08:33] [SPEAKER_00]: Untrack, Letting Go of the Stress of Measuring

[00:08:36] [SPEAKER_00]: by Leo Babata of Zenhabits.net.

[00:08:38] [SPEAKER_00]: I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:08:41] [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you to Leo.

[00:08:42] [SPEAKER_00]: This one reminds me of an article I narrated earlier this week talking

[00:08:46] [SPEAKER_00]: about how you have to do what works for you

[00:08:49] [SPEAKER_00]: because you're gonna hear different ideas all the time.

[00:08:52] [SPEAKER_00]: Not just from this podcast, but from friends, family,

[00:08:57] [SPEAKER_00]: coworkers, videos, books, it never ends.

[00:09:01] [SPEAKER_00]: And this is yet another example where we've definitely heard something

[00:09:04] [SPEAKER_00]: that it's a good thing to track our finances or exercise.

[00:09:08] [SPEAKER_00]: And then here comes an author pushing back.

[00:09:11] [SPEAKER_00]: So what's the answer?

[00:09:13] [SPEAKER_00]: Well, I've been personally tracking every penny in and out of my life

[00:09:16] [SPEAKER_00]: since 2010.

[00:09:18] [SPEAKER_00]: It's a long time.

[00:09:19] [SPEAKER_00]: And I've learned some interesting things in all that time.

[00:09:22] [SPEAKER_00]: First, it morphs over time.

[00:09:25] [SPEAKER_00]: So for instance, back in 2010,

[00:09:27] [SPEAKER_00]: I had no clue how much I was spending.

[00:09:30] [SPEAKER_00]: I didn't know if I was positive or negative every month.

[00:09:32] [SPEAKER_00]: I wasn't consciously spending.

[00:09:34] [SPEAKER_00]: Things were a bit more automatic

[00:09:36] [SPEAKER_00]: and I didn't realize how quickly it was all happening.

[00:09:39] [SPEAKER_00]: My goal then was probably just to have more money

[00:09:42] [SPEAKER_00]: than I did the month before.

[00:09:45] [SPEAKER_00]: Years later, the awareness has become much more ingrained.

[00:09:49] [SPEAKER_00]: I don't look at it every single month and check

[00:09:51] [SPEAKER_00]: am I positive or negative this month?

[00:09:54] [SPEAKER_00]: I could have stopped tracking,

[00:09:55] [SPEAKER_00]: but actually enjoy now because it actually serves a purpose.

[00:09:58] [SPEAKER_00]: It makes tax time way easier.

[00:10:01] [SPEAKER_00]: And for me, that's what it all comes down to, purpose.

[00:10:05] [SPEAKER_00]: Are we tracking something because we think we should

[00:10:08] [SPEAKER_00]: and is it helping in some way?

[00:10:10] [SPEAKER_00]: The problems he mentioned are fair

[00:10:12] [SPEAKER_00]: and could be true for you.

[00:10:13] [SPEAKER_00]: Maybe it doesn't bring happiness.

[00:10:15] [SPEAKER_00]: Maybe it is stressful to track.

[00:10:17] [SPEAKER_00]: Maybe it takes too much time.

[00:10:19] [SPEAKER_00]: All good things to think about.

[00:10:21] [SPEAKER_00]: For me, tracking my income and expenses for this long

[00:10:24] [SPEAKER_00]: creates less stress long term for me

[00:10:27] [SPEAKER_00]: because I find it super easy now

[00:10:28] [SPEAKER_00]: after doing it for so many years.

[00:10:30] [SPEAKER_00]: It's like a second nature thing to me.

[00:10:33] [SPEAKER_00]: So again, do what works best for you.

[00:10:36] [SPEAKER_00]: I recommend trying to track things like finances.

[00:10:39] [SPEAKER_00]: You can learn more about what I use to track money

[00:10:41] [SPEAKER_00]: at oldpodcast.com slash track.

[00:10:44] [SPEAKER_00]: But listen to yourself and see if it's truly helping or not.

[00:10:49] [SPEAKER_00]: And with that, thank you for being here.

[00:10:51] [SPEAKER_00]: I've only been able to keep doing this

[00:10:53] [SPEAKER_00]: with you coming back to listen.

[00:10:55] [SPEAKER_00]: Have a great rest of your day.

[00:10:56] [SPEAKER_00]: I'll be back tomorrow where you're optimal life.

[00:10:58] [SPEAKER_00]: I'll wait.