"I think the key to serenity is understanding which metrics are important, which ones are self-inflicted, and which ones add value."

So very true! I like your thinking on this.

It's also important to check the "ruler" from time to time. What are we measuring against? For instance: My home garden can never equal one where the owners hire a gardener monthly. Can it be better than it was a week ago? Yes. So I can only measure against myself, not against the neighbors' yards.

Much of my life I've made the mistake of measuring myself, my successes, failures, and my possessions against those of people who were entirely out of my league.

I must stop doing that, and it's hard!