Why keep a scorecard for others rather than keeping one for yourself?
Whether we know this or not, subconsciously we keep a scorecard for ourselves. And there are two types of scorecard, one is the outer scorecard and the other one is inner scorecard.
These terms are not actual psychological phrases or something which I have come up with. I bumped into this theory while reading The Snowball, a biography of Warren Buffet. He explains how whatever he does is being maintained in his inner scorecard, without keeping a track of outer scorecard.
Now what do these scorecards mean?
Maintaining an outer scorecard means being concerned by how the world sees you and think of you, and then acting according to that. On the other hand, inner scorecard is something which you maintain for yourself, without thinking much about what people will be thinking of it.
Sadly, being a social animal, most of us brought up in a way which has pushed us to keep an outer scorecard. For continually seeking community acceptance and social validation we do things which we think will be perfect in the eyes of others even though they might be hollow from the inside, leaving us unsatisfied. It’s always about how the world is seeing you and then acting accordingly.
Even as a kid you had to perform good in school, because that is the scorecard which was looked upon and not how you much have actually learned. This theory is more acute for nations which do not fall under the developed countries category. The education system is built on marks, and not learning. That being the case, when such an idea is being planted at a tender age, you cannot expect the perspective to change in the later stages of life, rather it would only get more prominent.
The extensive interference of social media in our lives has taken this to completely new heights. No matter how boring or dull the day might have, it has to look to happening on Instagram or Snapchat. Not just that, some people only do things so that they can later on share that experience through photos and videos on those social networking sites. Experiencing has lost its importance and that’s because the inner scorecard holds little or even zero significance in most cases.
You would be happy by rather being known as the most happening person, than actually having a happening life.
Little do we realize that if we start maintaining an inner scorecard, it will automatically translate into boosting our outer scorecard as well (in case you need to keep it). And what better example to validate this idea than Warren Buffet himself. He was never concerned if the world will look at him as the greatest investor ever, but whether he was the greatest investor ever, even if the world thought of his decisions to be stupid.
It’s your life, then why keep a scorecard for others rather than keeping one for yourself?
Originally published at medium.com