What is the most important tool you own?
This is a tough one for me. There are plenty of great options to choose from. My table saw? I love it. I use it all the time. The TIG welder is always the go-to, versatile, and practical. My cordless impact driver has become irreplaceable. I also use a computer more and more these days. It's hard to argue with the value added there. All these tools help me do quality work, and it's safe to say that I would not be nearly as productive without them.
But when I think about it, my humble tape measure is my most important tool.
It should have been obvious. I carry some form of tape with me almost everywhere. It's impulsive at this point. What’s so important about a tape measure? It doesn’t make me faster or more productive. It doesn’t do any actual work at all. What it does is give me information, and that information helps me do the job right. A tape measure (or any measuring device, for that matter) gives us a reference from which to make decisions…
And making good decisions is ultimately what we are after.
When we measure the distance from here to there, with that information, we can decide how much material to buy, where something should be located, or if part A will fit into part B. Without that information, we are just guessing, which is not a smart way to build anything. They say, “Measure twice, cut once.” That's because when you finally decide to cut that piece of wood, if you don’t have good information, you could come up short. (Or long, either way, it's no bueno!)
The equation is simple, good information = informed decisions.
If accurate measurements are valuable to me in my work, I wondered if there were other measurements in my life I should be paying attention to. It turns out there are a lot. Need an example?
How about a Sphygmomanometer? (Feel free to Google it, I had to!)
A sphygmomanometer is that inflatable cuff the nurse puts on your arm that measures your blood pressure. It restricts the blood flow through your arm and then slowly releases the pressure. This tells the nurse the maximum amount of pressure in your artery as your heart is pumping and the sort of ground state pressure when your heart is at rest or between beats. This is better known as Systolic and Diastolic pressure. I don’t need to be a medical professional to realize this is an important measurement. Every time I stepped foot into a doctor's office, someone slapped that cuff on my arm and jotted down the numbers they squeezed out. That was the doctor’s tape measure.
She was measuring me, and I wanted to understand better what those measurements meant.
Every visit to the doctor began by measuring my blood pressure to get a picture of the overall health of my circulatory system at the moment. However, she was also recording it in my file so that she could compare one measurement to another for a deeper, more accurate understanding of my health over time. It's like the difference between the climate and the weather. Checking the weather in the morning can tell you if you should grab an umbrella before heading out the door, but referencing the climate data for the past fifty years can tell you if you should reconsider purchasing that beach house. One can keep you dry, the other above water. The point is that measurements matter. They matter a lot. It doesn’t matter if it's a piece of wood, the weather, or your well-being. As the adage says, we need to measure more than once. When I finally understood the real power of taking measurements, I began to look for ways to collect, integrate, and eventually automate my personal data.
Enter the fitness tracker.
It’s no secret to those close to me that I am what you would call an “early adopter.” I like gadgets and am usually ready to jump at any opportunity to try out a new tool or device. Primarily out of curiosity, but some dopamine is probably involved as well. So it was no surprise that I suddenly had one on my wrist when the fitness tracker craze hit the scene. Early on, they mainly tracked your steps, but the functionality didn’t take long to expand to other personal measurements. I got an Apple Watch about six years ago, and I have been wearing it every day since. It measures my steps, exercise, and calories burned. I have years of health and activity data at my disposal. Like my tape measure, my watch (and other devices) is valuable to me because it helps me collect information, and that information allows me to make informed decisions.
It doesn’t matter what you use, taking measurements is the first and most crucial step.
The health data I collect routinely helps me make better decisions about what I eat, how I sleep, if I need to exercise more, or even if I should see my doctor. I wouldn’t think of getting into a fabrication project if I didn’t have detailed measurements to work from, so why would I accept any less regarding my health and well-being? I’m astounded by how long it took me to realize this. There are many tools available that allow us to measure many aspects of our day-to-day lives.
If you are not tracking the metrics of your life (or health) in some way, I encourage you to start.
If you're wondering what tool is right for you, that's personal. The best tape measure is the one you will use, so don’t fuss. Find something in your budget that is user-friendly. Then get measuring! With some data to draw from, valuable insights can be gained, and better decisions can be made regarding our health and well-being.
I don’t know about you, but when it comes to this one life, I don’t want to come up short.
Measure on!