Filter Coffee # 181

On Moving the Needle

I was quite pleased with the ‘likes’ of my short story ‘House Guest’. I feel encouraged to write stories intermittently. Let me share a couple of comments I got:

• Shereyar Vakil made this cryptic remark: “We can choose friends but not relatives who feel entitled to be hosted. Their mantra is “maan na maan mai tera mehman” (like it or not I’m your guest)”

• Radhika says: “You relate stories well. The topic you have chosen is about the violation of boundaries.” If I may add to it, a new branch of law called ‘Space Law’ is becoming quite popular. Perhaps, the kind of guests I wrote about should know the meaning of space, if not the law.

The Republic Day was just a couple of days ago. Please see my post on R-Day and other matters: 🔗https://mrprasanna.substack.com/p/filter-coffee-030

⌚ Move the Needle

I overheard a lady telling someone, “Nothing has changed. I needled him and still, the needle hasn’t moved.” It was clear to me that the lady was reporting ‘status quo’ despite some nudging.

Is there a difference between the two expressions, ‘status quo’ & ‘needle hasn’t moved’? It would appear so. But in reality, they are not used as synonyms. If a matter has been stagnant and no decision has been taken on it, one could say ‘the needle hasn’t moved on the status quo’.

‘Move the needle’ is an expression that refers to an action that is powerful or significant enough that the impact of that action is felt, and that the action itself will not go unnoticed. When you ‘move the needle’ you’re making a noticeable impact.

It is not uncommon for a case in the court to be stuck at the bottom of the list. When it stays there without any sign of it moving up the list, we would say the needle hasn’t moved. The same can be said of a file caught in the red tape or a matter that no one is keen to decide. You could say that the needle hasn’t moved when you find a relative with a serious medical condition making no progress.

In our colloquial language, we don’t see this phrase featured often. People find it easy to say ‘status quo’ rather than say ‘the needle hasn’t moved’. But I believe the phrase can be handy in business, politics, sports or any other field where matters haven’t progressed.

The idiom is believed to have originated in the early 20th century. ‘Move the needle’ is to adjust a gauge or a meter to get a different reading or adjust the performance of equipment. The simplest example is that of setting an alarm clock or moving the needles on the clock face to show the correct time. If the needle doesn’t move, you will know that the clock has stopped working. The phrase, in a positive sense, indicates a change or progress. If the needle hasn’t moved, it indicates that something is at a standstill.

It is also believed that this phrase may have originated from the sewing industry, where the needle is used to stitch fabric. The position of the needle is adjusted as required to make a change in the design or pattern. Overall, this idiomatic expression is now widely used in various contexts to describe an improvement or a change. 

The expression ‘move the needle’ is said to come from music recorders, specifically from the classic Vu meter analogue recorder, which measured audio with a needle. If the sound was too soft and quiet, the needle wouldn’t move at all and if the sound was loud enough, then it would move the needle to indicate that recording is taking place.

Whenever someone ‘moves the needle’, it means that whatever action they have taken, it was significant enough that other people will notice the fact that the ‘needle has moved’.

In business, the phrase is used to indicate the success or failure of an initiative. The needle refers to, metaphorically, the current status of business. Certain initiatives are taken, as a result of which the turnover and profit see a growth. The needle is said to have moved to indicate the benefit the business had from those initiatives. If, on the other hand, the initiative is unlikely to deliver the desired result, that initiative is junked, stating that ‘it doesn’t move the needle’.

The phrase is of relevance even in the context of one’s grades. If a student is putting a lot of effort into getting a higher grade and a private tutor is also engaged to aid in his progress, yet the grades remain unchanged, one could say that all efforts to move the needle failed.

We are aware of the movement of stock prices on the exchange when scrips are traded. Some stocks are off-loaded because the needle hasn’t moved for a time, and it is unlikely to move. Some stocks are bought because you see the needle moving, or you have reasons to believe that the needle will move, indicating a surge in the price of that scrip.

When something or someone has attained the maximum potential and there is no scope for further improvement, moving the needle may not yield any result. We can see this happening when we bargain with a shopkeeper. He quotes a price, and you want it for less, and he quotes another price and eventually, you move the needle to a point when the shopkeeper refuses to sell at your price. This is a case of both parties moving the needle backwards and at some stage, the deal is either struck or it fails.

If you have been successful in moving the needle backwards, it may not be seen as moving the needle, which is considered a positive action in most contexts. But that doesn’t mean that it cannot be used negatively. Getting something at a reduced price is a positive action in so far as you are concerned.

In negotiations of any kind, there is a tug-of-needle-war. Each party wants to move the needle to its advantage and at some stage of the negotiations, the tug is so equal that it results in a stalemate. I suggest you read my post 🔗https://mrprasanna.substack.com/p/filter-coffee-108.

Driving a hard bargain can be counterproductive, and it is better to move the needle to the extent that would result in a win-win situation.

In competitive sports, like athletics, moving the needle means achieving better timing. The needle on the stopwatch indicates whether your timing has improved or not. Interestingly, the needle has to move backwards, indicating better timing. In sharp contrast, in weight lifting, the needle moves forward with each incremental weight till a person lifts the maximum weight.

A stand-off is when the needle ends up moving a bit to and fro, but eventually stands still, indicating a deadlock. This happens often in joint ventures when there is a tug-of-war between unrelenting partners with diverse and incompatible agendas. One can relate this to irreconcilable differences between couples, leading to separation. Stubbornness is another trait that refuses to move the needle.

This post may seem a bit heavy as compared to the past ones, and you may find that I have moved the needle too much. But if you give the phrase some thought you will realise how, wantonly or unwittingly, either we are pushing someone to get something or we are being pushed by someone to concede something. The needle always points to something that we need or something someone else wants from us, and we move it accordingly.

Let me end this with a nice quote:

What's done is done. What's gone is gone. One of life's lessons is to keep moving on. It's okay to look back and think of fond memories but keep moving the needle and go forward. - Anon

Please write in and let me have your comments. Do take good care of yourself and keep moving the needle to make things better, for yourself and those around you.

Until next week, Ciao!