The dominant paradigm for success is that of a quantitative measure.

Inculcated with this worldview by an industrialized education system, we unconsciously measure success by ‘how much’ is achieved. We don’t consider this is only one way to measure success. Without even realising it, we take quantitative success to be success.

What if we measured success qualitatively?

What if instead of asking ‘How much…?’ we asked ‘What kind of..?’

Our focus goes immediately to our experience and the ramifications of the results, as well as the journey of producing those results.

Sure, I could make a few million doing that, but would I enjoy the work?
Sure, I could capitalize on that market, but what good would it do for the world?

Collectively, we are tunnel visioned for quantity. Many people spend day after day, obsessively striving for quantifiable results. They do it so much so that they become blind to the wider indirect impact of those results as well as their own well-being. They suffer burnout and the world faces the wrath of their care-less-ness.

The drive for success, I believe, is innately human.

If we want a world where people care more about the ramifications of what they create – and where people experience greater joy in the work that they do – then the first thing we need to do is move the balance for our measure for success from quantity to quality.

To do this, we must diversify our questions:

Quantitative Success Questions
– How much of X will feel successful to me?
– How much success will doing X bring?
– How much impact will X success have?

Qualitative Success Questions
– What kind of X will feel successful to me?
– What kind of success will doing X bring?
– What kind of impact will X success have?