Many podcasters look for ways to measure success. The most common, and possibly most validating, is monitoring statistics such as subscription downloads, web downloads and plays through an online player. For each download we can track the country of origin, date, day of week, time, and frequency of downloads. These numbers can be used to create pretty graphs — many of which are generated automatically — and software tools allow us to chart trends.

Despite all of this amazing technology, we are still unable to measure how much of each episode was listened to and whether or not the listener was actually engaged in the program when they listened. Measuring this level of engagement sounds like having the ability to generate a podcast consumption box score. Oddly, it’s the level of engagement that makes the most difference.

It’s easy to become addicted to the numbers and overlook the personality and purpose of the podcast, and the community which it serves. I know that Andrea and I have spent various periods of our “podcasting careers” refreshing the stats pages of our sites on a very short cycle. That was until recently when an upgrade of the Podpress player caused a problem that could only be overcome (bypassed, if you like) by disabling the stats collection function.

Try taking a step back from following your stats this week. Use the extra time to read a book, relax, or (if you’re like me) work on additional creative projects (podcast or other). If you make it to the end of the week, see if you can make it to the end of July and then to the end of the summer. Since stats historically decline over the summer, it’s probably best for your ego to ignore them now, anyway. If you still need your stats at the end of the summer, find a compromise between obsessing and ignoring.