Hi Michael — I appreciate the engagement here :-)

I’m interested to read your idea that “crucial … to be able to measure it”.

I have a finance background, and have, for a loooong time, prioritised quantification and measurement.

Maybe it’s experience, maybe it’s just a more relaxed approach now, but I’ve “discovered” (realised?!) that measurement isn’t crucial. I’ve come to recognise that the need to measure can deter activities, tasks, effort which would have cumulative and compounding benefits.

For example … writing here on Medium …

Sure, it’s possible to measure and quantify reads, engagement, views etc … and while they’re interesting, they have (in my experience) no bearing on the actual benefit of the writing.

I’m thinking of it as “invisible ROI” …

As I write more, I think more clearly. This can’t be measured, yet the benefit compounds.

Articles, over time, get seen and read by brilliant people. Those engagements, maybe like this one, can lead to entirely unpredictable benefits — joint ventures, clients, new ideas … all invisible ROI.

And all because of the 1%, done consistently.

I’m also starting to think of the 1% activity as “easy not to do” … and the reason it’s easy not to do is, very often, precisely because it’s not easy to see (measure) the effect of doing it.

Thanks for this debate (so far)! — I sense it’s a catalyst for another article!