Expansion and contraction

I understand that Buckminster Fuller, an American architect and thinker, said that phenomena are either expanding or contracting, and I find it interesting to think and feel whether I am expanding or contracting at any given moment in myself, my work, my business, and many other things. 
This is even more interesting because it can be observed both in the aggregate and in the smallest, most subtle details that I focus on. 

Of course, just as with breathing, there is no good or bad either way, but rather a pairing of the two.
However, I try to be a little careful because there are times when I want to expand, but I unknowingly end up contracting, or I expand when I intend to contract.