If anything is misused it’s a problem. And for every management action there are usually unintended consequences not thought out properly. But once again, the problem isn’t numbers, or goals, as suggested in the title.

I can see what you’re saying, but you’re missing the point. There is no intrinsic problem with goals and measurement. Nor did I say there was one. The problem is focusing exclusively on specific numbers without allowing for other related performance indicators, which might mitigate or negate the impact of reaching a specific numeric goal. This happens all too often and I could site many specific examples from past employers or clients where that was the case. So, the point of the article isn’t that numeric goals are bad, so they should be avoided. The point is not to focus so deeply on a specific numeric goal that one jeopardizes the the larger more important strategic goals of the business. If you miss a specific numeric goal, but find a different way that better meets the strategic goals of the business that missed goal should not be cited as a reason to “punish” the employees, which delivered a desirable outcome for the business.

As for the “danger of food” or even the “dangers of guns”, those are both valid topics to consider. They are not intrinsically dangerous, but they can be dangerous if misused, which is really the case with most dangerous things.

It’s like talking about the danger of food.

I almost always break 400 though and I’ve broken 1GB a few times. So, I could save $5/month, but I have a discount applied to my account, so I’d really only save about $4.25. That’s with me feeling like I’m a fairly light user most of the time. I’ve been looking forward to streaming more content when I get a new iPhone and when AT&T ups the speeds a bit, so I’m not looking to hobble myself before that happens because I don’t trust them to raise the caps before I need more data. So, I’ll kick in the extra few bucks a month as the price of keeping my options open.

Still, I am gonna take a look at my iPhone data usage on my next bill. Because I might be able to get away with that 250 MB plan, which would save me some money. I’m already on a ridiculously low airtime plan (one that’s even lower than the national 450-minute plan they advertise). I don’t live through my iPhone.

If I had a 3G iPad though, I’d want lots of data for that. Especially with the streaming media services that already exist.