I suppose there just may not be a better way to do it. Numbers. That is the only solution.

When you are born, they weigh and measure you. Then your parents tell all your friends and family the numbers, and they are very proud. Low numbers, beyond the acceptable range on either side, indicate a problem. Did your mom smoke crack? Was your dad addicted to hamburgers? What is wrong with you? Why are you so small? Why are you so damn big? 2 days ago you were a fetus, now you got all this.

When you go to school, you are given grades. If you do well, the number assigned to your success is high, and low if you do not. You did not pass because you got a 69. Had you gotten a 70, you would be a winner, but you didn't so clearly, you are a loser. You were not in the acceptable range of numbers that indicate success. If you are lucky enough to go to college, again, numbers indicate your success, and seemingly nothing else. Your grade is the ONLY thing that really matters here. You might make 4000 new life long friends, and have the most amazing experiences of your life, but since you did not achieve a high enough number, you are just not good enough.

When you get a job and you go to work, you are given an annual performance evaluation. If your assigned number is not in the acceptable range, you eventually will lose your job. If you are in the low end of the acceptable margin, you get to keep your job. Lucky you. If you are on the high end of the number scale, they give you more money. You can show up every single day,work as hard as you possibly can, and if your number is not high enough, you do not get more money. It is as simple as that.

In today's world, the numbers you get assigned to you, by other people, represent your success. Is this the only way to be successful, to get a higher number assigned to you than other people? Yes, it would appear that way.

Good luck with all that.