It's all numbers.

I just recently found out that one can clap up to 50 times for an article. I clap for stories I enjoy. Since I learned about the fifty clap thing, sometimes now I’ll give five, maybe ten. I don't think I've done more than that.

Bloated numbers lead to an undeserved sense of achievement, while the opposed can lead to a false sense of failure.

If only 10 people clapped (but 50 times each), did I really succeed with my story? I don't think so.

Now, if 500 people clapped (but only once), my story was, indeed, a success.

I know this feeling. Before I found out about the fifty clap thing, I saw one of my stories with a really high number of claps compared to a previous one. I was ecstatic until I realized that it was only a few people clapping. And, that was really, really deflating.

So, I'll no longer pay attention to claps on my stories. I’ll still clap for stories I like—maybe five or ten—because I want the author to know I enjoyed his or her work. It's not that I don't want to give more. I just don't see the purpose. Whether it's one clap or fifty, I still like the story the same.

I get the idea of a range, but maybe it should be a one to five or one to ten—fifty just seems extreme and misleading.

Now, for myself, I'll pay attention to fans of the story, instead of claps, to gauge the reactions to my stories and for how many people I've intrigued—If a person claps once or claps fifty times, it is still only one fan.

:)