  The $1/N_c$ power countings for baryon decays and configuration mixings are
determined by means of a non-relativistic quark picture. Such countings are
expected to be robust under changes in the quark masses, and therefore valid as
these become light. It is shown that excited baryons have natural widths of
${\cal{O}}(N_c^0)$. These dominant widths are due to the decays that proceed
directly to the ground state baryons, with cascade decays being suppressed to
${\cal{O}}(1/N_c)$. Configuration mixings, defined as mixings between states
belonging to different $O(3)\times SU(2 N_f)$ multiplets, are shown to be
sub-leading in an expansion in $1/\sqrt{N_c}$ when they involve the ground
state baryons, while the mixings between excited states can be
${\cal{O}}(N_c^0)$.
