The number 13 has an image problem 😉

Friday the 13th

And I think we should talk about the image problem with the 13. 😉

Because let's be honest:

The number itself doesn't really matter.

It appears after the 12th.
Before the 14th.

For now, there's nothing more to hold against her.

And yet, at some point, someone decided:

Tough. This 13th one.

Ever since then, she's been carrying that image around with her.

Hotels skip room numbers.
Some buildings don't have a 13th floor.
And when Outlook goes down on a Friday, quite a few people somewhere are thinking:

Of course. Today.

Yet culturally speaking, it's not even clear-cut.

Elsewhere, the number 13 actually has a good reputation—and other numbers have to take on the role of bringing bad luck.

That's why what fascinates me about it isn't the superstition at all.

But something else:

How powerful stories can become when we tell them often enough.

About Numbers.

Above ground.

About other people.

And sometimes about ourselves, too.

"That's just the way he is."

"I'm just not good at it."

"It never works for me."

"It's always been that way."

And at some point, we stop asking ourselves whether the story is actually still true.

Number 13 could probably tell you a thing or two about that.

If numbers could sing. 😉

Maybe that's why Friday the 13th isn't such a bad time to take a look:

Which story do I actually believe to be true just because I've known it for a very long time?

And if anything went wrong today:

Maybe it was just Friday.

Maybe it was Microsoft.

But I'd give the 13 a pass for now. 😄