Notch count is a powerful metric. It drives men like GDP drives capitalist economies. But the problem with having only one metric is that it can easily be gamed. If all you care about is notches then just sleep with a bunch of ugly girls. If all you care about is GDP then just allow easy credit and massive government spending. That is the danger of any number that becomes the whole game. Once people start chasing the score instead of the result, the score gets stupid.

You’ll notice that the most used metrics are ones that are measurable, objective, and easily tracked over time, even if they have serious downsides. The Dow Jones Index measures stock price but not consumer satisfaction. Unemployment data does not measure the quality of work or the level of underemployment. GPA may judge memorization and test-taking ability instead of innate intelligence. Notches do not measure a girl’s look, charm, personality, wit, or sense of humor.

Because notch count is not standardized to the man’s appearance or to the quality of the notches, it’s a number that has a weak to moderate correlation to actual game. It’s more valuable when used as a means of encouragement—to push a man out in the field where he can rack up experiences essential for developing tight game. The intense competition among friends that a notch count introduces also serves as motivation. A guy who wants to keep up has to get better, whether he likes it or not.

Another benefit of the notch count is that a man who values them pursues girls he is not truly interested in, which has the end-result of building up his bedroom skill. This is something that his future serious lover will appreciate, just like how every man appreciates a woman’s ability to give an excellent blowjob. The metric must remain a metric, a guide to progress, and not the end result.