"YourCabService, this is Maya speaking, how may I help you?"

"51st Avenue, please."

"Your name and Number, Sir?"

"John. 03244534."

"We'll send you a unit right away. It's KCP 343. Thank you for using YourCabService. Have a nice day."

"You too."

"Evening Mr. John. I'm Steven, at your service. Where to?"

"9th Lennox Street, please."

"Sure."

"9th Lennox Street. That'll be 27 dollar and 50 cents."

"Here's 30. Keep the change."

"Thank you sir. Have a good evening."

Notice how many numbers mentioned in that short conversation above? Has it ever occurred to you that every aspects of our lives are defined, driven, and even more, dictated by numbers?

Numbers, as Wikipedia.com defines, are mathematical objects used to count, measure and label. Numbers were created to state quantity, to measure quality and to label both. Numbers, either affecting or contradicting, are essentials to every living being in this planet. Numbers have grown deep within all areas, even affecting their very fondations. As stereotypes, rules and habits flow around, numbers become ideas, standards, guidelines, and of course, judgements. 

Everyone had their experiences with numbers. But somehow the more years add up, the more numbers have taken over what's right in society. Numbers have grown into what I like to call ridicule perceptions, planted in each and everyone's mind. Numbers have become these concrete for impossible standards, leading to emotional escalation regarding self-doubts and social anxiety. Numbers have become this permanent fear and irrational rationality, of which people must look up to in order to fit in.

Numbers are created by people, used by people, yet they also formed people. Numbers exist in every areas possible; guiding, judging, decepting, informing, and dictating, all at the same time. Areas like age, finance, physical and education have the likelihood of those very doings. For example, beauty is measured by range of size 0 until 4 and height of 5'6" until 5'11". Wealth is measured by how many growing investments one owns, how fluctuative a company's stock is, how many Lamborghini parked in one's garage, how many digits one makes per year, and so on. Wisdom and expertise are measured by how many years one spent on learning and growing. Brains are measured by how well one does in school, how high one's GPA is, how many researches one did, and so on. Popularity is measured by how many people know someone, how many friends are in his/her circle, even worse how many instagram followers one has. The saying of "Focus more on quality rather than quantity," becomes a big fat lie when looking at the reality nowadays.

Plato once said, "A good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers." So here's the catch. So what if one is size 12 with the height of 5'3", making 3 digits a year, has only 4 close friends and 227 instagram followers. Numbers are meant to do just that, to state-measure-label, but does one really have to live up to those numbers set and demanded by society? Does society really have to misuse numbers by creating such standards and neglecting the fact that variety does exist within the numbers themselves? More importantly, if we ever existed beyond those range of numbers, do we perceive ourselves as what's wrong in society? Does society really have to belittle us? Numbers are just numbers, perceptions are what changing them. Unfortunately, society percepts everything. Using numbers, they create perceptions among standards and dictate people to live by it. Society is what's wrong, and numbers are just to blame.