What if what can’t be measured, matters?

How does the plant push its way up from the ground and through the crack in the concrete?

Simple. Through slow, gradual, persistent pressure.

With growth so small that it can’t even be measured. But because of the plant’s struggle for life, its will to reach the sun, its thirst for the joy of movement, the concrete eventually yields.

The secret is, the farmer has to scatter enough seeds so that one eventually takes root. It’s a numbers game. It’s probability.

People plant, nurture and cultivate every day, trusting the process to bear fruit, but also knowing that most of the seeds are not going to make it, and that’s okay.

This illustration from the plant world is a useful way to think about all forms of growth. Whether you’re building a project, a brand, a company, a movement or a community, the power of slow, gradual, persistent pressure cannot be underestimated.

Playing the long game is not sexy, popular or rewarded by mainstream culture, but that doesn’t make it any less effective. I’ve had the chance to build many things, both in my work as an entrepreneur and an employee. And let me just say, it’s as rewarding as it is frustrating.

Because one of the challenges of doing growth work is, the powers that be demand measurement.

How many unique users do we have today?
What’s our traffic increase year over year?
Did we increase our inbound lead flow compared to last quarter?
When will our share of market surpass the competition?

These are all legitimate questions. They support the classic management maxim, you can’t improve what you don’t measure.

But it’s funny, I’ve had entire meetings dedicated to reviewing metrics on growth, and sometimes, even when we do look at the numbers, they still don’t tell the whole story.

People still aren’t satisfied. Because the data don’t necessarily speak to the totality of the growth experience.

Truth is, not everything that matters can be measured, and not everything that is measured matters. And in a world that’s addicted to the certainty of black and white, this grey area is difficult to accept.

Have you ever seen one of those stunning time lapse videos of a sunflower growing from seed to full flower over a period of four or five months?

It’s only one second of growth per day, but once you zoom out and view the totality of the process over five minutes, the cultivation appears effortless.

That’s the way we have to think about growth. Rather than obsessing over the nuances of the incremental numbers and ignoring our holistic picture of success, we simplify our metrics.

Did the plant push its way up from the ground and through the concrete or not? Does this thing we’re growing feel better off than it was before? And is there more or less fulfillment than last year?

If the answer is yes, then we did it. We won. Let’s crack on.

But if not, then perhaps our will to reach the sun wasn’t prolific enough.

Are you underestimating the growth potential of slow, gradual, persistent pressure?