Track Your Channel’s Growth

 Track Your Channel’s Growth

Managing a streaming channel involves juggling many elements. While various statistics are available, they only provide a limited view of your performance. You can see who watched your stream, how often they commented, and which games are most popular. These metrics are useful, but they represent just a fraction of the overall picture.

So, how do you measure your personal satisfaction with your channel over time? In earlier posts, like "Increasing your stream’s impact by making changes,"  we suggested maintaining a checklist of both major and minor improvements for your channel. This practice is crucial for keeping your content polished and engaging. However, through my streaming experience, I learned that monitoring your progress on a broader scale is equally important. In this entry, we will guide you on how to regularly document your channel's development.

The anxiety of the unknown

If you've been following The Streamer Framework, you'll know we are all about quantifying everything. I ensure that nothing on my channel is left to chance. My daily schedule is meticulously organized on a calendar, stream issues are logged on a checklist, and my pre-show setup routine remains consistent. Tasks become more manageable when illuminated. When left unrecorded, they wield power over you because anything unseen feels daunting. This principle is comparable to the suspense in horror movies, where the unknown is always the most terrifying. Before the monster is revealed, it could be anywhere, lurking in the shadows. But once it's on-screen, while it may be gruesome or violent, it's never as terrifying as imagined.

The same applies to streaming. When ideas and experiences remain in your mind, you lack a clear view of the big picture, leading to repeated mistakes. However, when you document and define them, you take control. Like the creatures in ALIEN or JAWS, your streaming challenges may still be challenging when exposed, but they lose their paralyzing fear.

Chronicling progress involves more than just jotting down fixes; it provides a snapshot of your current mindset. What aspects of recent streams do you enjoy? Where do you need improvement? Which moments stand out the most? By periodically reflecting on your channel's progress, you'll realize it's not merely a time capsule but an ongoing learning journey.

Learn Streaming on Your Own

The concept of chronicling progress is something I strongly believe in. Over the past year and a half, I've been emphasizing this, as you've likely noticed. In each new blog post, these entries document all the triumphs, failures, discoveries, missteps, and course corrections made while building my streaming channel. Although the format may vary, I consistently dive into subjects where I've made mistakes, succeeded, or gained insights from my time in this space. I connect my streaming experiences to various aspects of life, including books, movies, music, and personal anecdotes. Spending time writing about my channel yields a finished Streamer Framework entry at the end of each week. Through this process, I not only document my channel's progress but also gain valuable insights into its development. It's interesting how writing fosters a deeper understanding; by articulating my experiences, I begin to form clearer insights for myself. You may have noticed that I often revisit subjects in subsequent entries, diving into more specific details. This is because writing helps me uncover new insights about these topics. With each entry, I gain a deeper understanding of my channel's evolution, from past actions to present strategies. This includes grasping the impact of different iterations of stream concepts and refining my viewpoints on chat interaction. Ultimately, the process of documenting my streaming journey is as enlightening for me as it is for the readers.

Write Down Your Thoughts

Let me emphasize: you don't have to dedicate a lot of hours to writing every week, nor do you need to share what you write. Your writing can be as short or as broad as you like, and they don't have to be seen by anyone but you. The key is committing your thoughts to writing, which is where you'll reap the true benefits.

Starting the writing process can be daunting, so if you're unsure where to begin, try using this template. Set aside just ten minutes once a week, whether it's during your lunch break on Friday, right after a stream, or on Sunday before the work week begins. The important thing is consistency. When you sit down to write, answer these three questions:

• What aspects of your streams went particularly well this week?

• Think of an example of something that didn't go as planned.

• Describe an interesting moment from your stream, whether it was positive, negative, humorous, or exciting.

Your writing doesn't need to be polished or grammatically perfect. Just write down the above questions/statements and answer them truthfully. If you maintain this routine, you'll start to see your channel from a broader perspective. You'll better understand the mechanics of your streams and be more adept at identifying areas for improvement through honest self-reflection. Acknowledging your strengths will also boost your confidence in the content you produce.

Final thoughts

Chronicling your progress might seem too simple to be effective, but it can make a significant difference. You may think that spending only 10 minutes a week won't bring the same benefits as spending several hours, but even small time commitments can be powerful. For example, in fitness training, taking a few minutes after each workout to note what exercises you did, what felt challenging, and any progress made can greatly improve your fitness journey and highlight areas for improvement.

Similarly, taking a few minutes each week to document your stream progress can be incredibly beneficial. Write down what went well, what didn't, and any memorable moments from your streams. This practice helps you see your channel from a broader perspective, identify areas for improvement, and build confidence in your strengths. You might find that the best teacher is yourself.