Cumulative Metric

A cumulative metric adds values from the start of a period up to each point in time, so the line only rises and never falls.

This shape suits quantities with a ceiling or a target: monthly event quota consumption, quarter-to-date revenue, or total installs to date. Its problem is that it always looks optimistic; a cumulative chart keeps rising even when daily growth has halved, which hides the decline. The information lives in the slope, not the height, so the daily or weekly series has to sit beside it. One practical note: a flat stretch means zero activity, and that is the one signal this view shows clearly.