When I started on Medium I was nuts about stats (well, once I had some). But lately it’s been about who, not numbers. I have a list of people [started to fill in, deleted; I’m writing this in a busy airport waiting for the lightning to stop so our plane can leave the gate without everybody dying and messing up AA’s stats, and I don’t want to leave someone out] who give me a feeling of joy when they recommend my stuff, or respond to it; or they post something new; or someone I never ran into before makes a cogent response, I track them down, and I start following someone new.

I’m product, and I’m fine with that. I’m never going to make money on Medium, but that’s not why I joined. I’ve learned new things, and new viewpoints, and I get to interact with some damn interesting people (like you, Devon). So IMHO I’m coming out ahead.