I've been pondering how I measure my progress. I think it's easy to focus on celebrating the *outcomes* (or *outputs*):

* How much HIVE did my post receive?
* How many HBD did I earn this month?
* How much HP did I accrue?

And, if I'm pulling HIVE (the currency) out of my wallet and off the Hive platform:

* How much HIVE did I "earn" through the blockchain this month that I can use to fuel my life?

![mathieu_stern_1zo4o3z0uja_unsplash.jpg](https://images.ecency.com/DQmdYM6mT1FMAzTWVn5dgHE9SsVqAHJvh3WdTe2McTBjMFU/mathieu_stern_1zo4o3z0uja_unsplash.jpg)[Source](https://unsplash.com/photos/1zO4O3Z0UJA)


Now, to be clear, I don't think we should ignore these metrics, not at all. I think they should be measured, acknowledged and celebrated **but** if we only put our attention there I think we are missing an important set of metrics that could actually boost of all these things.

Those metrics are the **inputs**. 

![mimi_thian_8kda2ijsjcu_unsplash.jpg](https://images.ecency.com/DQmaXPpH8WeZzmY1smMT8q2yQvvv428gwEzqsDYJuGoDJ21/mimi_thian_8kda2ijsjcu_unsplash.jpg)[Source](https://unsplash.com/photos/8kdA2IJsjcU)



On the Hive blockchain, whether you're blogging through Hive.blog or Ecency or Peakd (or another front end interface), the inputs that I think are worth paying attention to and celebrating can be found by asking these questions:

* How many (good quality) posts did I create (and share)?
* How many upvotes did I give out (on good quality posts that deserve my vote)?
* How many (meaningful) comments did I make on other people's posts? and
* How many replies did I write following on from comments on my own posts or other people's posts?

![andrew_neel_cckf4tshauw_unsplash.jpg](https://images.ecency.com/DQmTjYQEvZZKmdrhXYDowUJjE81Bh3dJaUa8JhTejgnHSzg/andrew_neel_cckf4tshauw_unsplash.jpg)[Source](https://unsplash.com/photos/cckf4TsHAuw)



These *inputs* are what are in our conscious control. If we focus on driving these numbers up then the *outputs* will take care of themselves.

---

This post was inspired by watching the notifications from @hivebuzz show up periodically on my posts. It got me thinking about what I'm measuring, where I'm putting my attention and what is the best use of my energy on the Hive blockchain. 

For me it's not just writing posts (which I do totally love doing, after all I am a teacher and a writer), it's also creating connections with other like-minded people who share similar values to myself. And beyond that, it's learning about people who are different from me, whose life experiences and life circumstances challenge me and help me grow as a human being. 

Having a regular way to assess my progress on Hive and be challenged (in a gamified kind of way) to both be consistent *and* get better at the tangible things (like posting decent content and commenting and replying thoughtfully on things that my fellow Hivians have said) help me to do the *less* tangible things like learn, grow and be a better human.

So consider this a shout out to hivebuzz and the project's creator arcange for the small and large ways that this project and your work is impacting my behaviour (and no doubt, countless others') on Hive. 


![hivebuzz_achievements_1feb2022.png](https://images.ecency.com/DQmX4k84XwNaWN3wy2wjkLsQymfUDKCJxSmmG22tWuXtcpH/hivebuzz_achievements_1feb2022.png)*Photo is a screenshot of an automatic hivebuzz notification on one of my previous posts. Taken by me, on my laptop.*