Ratfink is Always Funny, Data Are Always Changing

My 6-year-old son and I are reading the Sideways Stories from Wayside School series, and there’s a poem in the book that goes:

My favorite color is pink.
John is a ratfink!

My son laughed so hard at this poem that he could hardly breathe, which reminded me of how much my brother and I loved it (and calling each other “ratfinks”) over 30 years ago.

Some things never change.

The Comfort of What Doesn’t Change

After this year of massive AI shifts—some already here and others on the horizon—I’m comforted by things that don’t change. Morgan Housel’s book Same as Ever echoes this sentiment by exploring how patterns in human behavior, emotions, and decision-making remain consistent, shaping predictable outcomes in an unpredictable world.

Jeff Bezos suggests that businesses should focus on what won’t change. He once said:

“I almost never get the question: ‘What’s not going to change in the next 10 years?’ …You can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time. … In our retail business, we know that customers want low prices, and I know that’s going to be true 10 years from now. They want fast delivery; they want vast selection.”

What Won’t Change for My Clients

So, what three things are going to stay the same for your customers?

The 3 things that will always stay the same for my clients (which, if this includes you—thank you!) are:

  • You want data as quickly as possible.
  • You want data you can trust.
  • You want the most current data available.

Fresh Data Is Coming Soon

Speaking of current data, the U.S. Census Bureau is releasing their 2023 demographics on December 12th. We’ll be as busy as elves processing it and plan to have the new data available for purchase or download before our long winter nap from December 23rd to January 3rd.

Keep an eye out—I’ll email you as soon as it’s ready!

What’s Your Take?

If you have questions about the 2023 data—or if you want to share what’s never going to change for your customers—just hit Reply. I love reading your responses.

Being Human by Speaking Plainly

While talking with a client recently, I said:

“This dataset has all the 101 data you need for your project.”

Bravely, the client asked me:

“What does 101 mean?”

I could’ve kicked myself. “101” refers to introductory college classes, but not all of our clients have been to college. I should’ve said “basic” or “most popular” data.

What Being Human Means to Me

I was mad at myself for using “101” because my favorite Cubit value is:
“Be human.”

To me, being human means:

  • Speaking plainly—no jargon like “101 data” or “synergizing across verticals.”
  • Saying “basic” when you mean basic.

Owning Mistakes and Doing Better

Luckily for me, “Be human” also means owning your mistakes and trying to do better.

This month, I’ve reviewed our reports for jargon and simplified them. For example:

  • Changed “Mean” to “Average.”
  • Updated “Single female householder with own children” to “Single mom households with kids.”

Two New Improvements to Radius Reports

Beyond removing jargon, my partner, Anthony, made two additional improvements to our Radius Reports:

  1. Revised PDF Design
  • For County and State Population Projections.
  • Now, you can tell at a glance if your area of interest is predicted to grow, hold steady, or decline.

2. Revised Excel Design

  • Added percentages and radius projections
  • Design improvements

A Kind Request

When I mess up again and use jargon in the future, please call me out—with kindness. That would be so human of you.

Your ‘Desire Path’ to 2024 Population Projections

While jogging around Town Lake in Austin, Texas, I noticed the city constructing a formal path right next to a worn dirt trail that everyone naturally walks down. Since Anthony vetoed my plan to buy a drone for the perfect aerial shot, here’s a less-than-perfect phone photo instead so you can see what I’m talking about.

These two paths reminded me of a park design concept called “desire path planning.” Planners build the park, wait a year to see where people naturally walk, and then lay down the official paths right over those worn areas. Instead of guessing, they employ patience and a bit of humility in observing where people instinctively go and follow their lead. Brilliant, right?

Inspired Action: Bringing Desire Path Planning to Population Data

Inspired by this, I’ve decided to take a similar approach with population data.

For years, I’ve told you that Census data takes time to collect and process, which means it’s a year or two behind. But I’ve noticed that the demand (Google searches) is for 2024 population data.

And I get it. In a world where:

  • You can get groceries delivered to your door in an hour
  • You can summon a stranger to drive you across town in minutes

Why shouldn’t you have 2024 demographics in 2024?

Introducing 2024 Population Projections

So I’ve used the latest (2022 or 2023) Census data along with simple projection methods to estimate the 2024 population for zips, cities, and counties.

You can now find these 2024 population projections on our state-demographics.com websites.

How to Use:

  • Check out the data for your hometown.
  • Look up your county.
  • Search for your zip code.

Just select your state and then search for your geography of interest. Let me know what you think!

A Note on Refinement

The projections aren’t perfect yet—especially for zips with major boundary shifts—but like those patient park planners, I’m releasing this concept to the world and will refine it based on feedback and observations (in the least creepy way possible, of course!).

Final Thoughts

I love the concept of desire path planning and wanted to share it with you in case it sparks a solution for your own business.

Thanks for reading!

And as always, I’m here to answer any demographic questions you have—whether it’s about the 2024 projections or the official 2023 Census data release coming in December.

From Freaking Out to 29 Solutions: Access Your Beginner’s Mind with AI

As a long-time soccer fan, I got a big kick (ha!) out of cheering on the US women’s soccer team to gold in the Olympics earlier this month. Surprisingly, rugby was my favorite Olympic event to watch, partly because I didn’t know any of the rules or strategy. Watching rugby reminded me of how fun it is to be a beginner – something I don’t do enough as an adult.


Rugby and Beginner’s Mind

In Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, Shunryu Suzuki says:

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.”

He emphasizes the importance of maintaining an open and receptive mindset, even as one gains expertise.

🙋‍♀️ This is me! Having run a small business for the past 15 years, I tend to dismiss ideas too quickly, especially if I tried them in the past and they didn’t work then.

When I’m working through a problem and want to access my beginner’s mind, I’ve been using ChatGPT. Here’s a real prompt from this past month.


Prompt Example with ChatGPT


Prompt:

I’m a small business owner, and one of my websites has had a 28% decline in users since March 2024.


Instruction: You are my SEO assistant, and your job is asking questions to help me figure out a prioritized list of things to check and changes to make to recover this traffic. What’s the first question you’d ask?


ChatGPT’s Response:

“Have you reviewed your website’s Google Search Console data to identify any significant changes in search impressions, clicks, or errors starting from March 2024?”

In less than a minute, I’ve gone from freaking out—“OMG! This website has had a 28% decline in traffic. I have to fix this NOW!”—to concretely defining the problem and digging into a tool with data that can diagnose the issue accurately.


Insights from Data Analysis

And digging into the data – always more helpful than freaking out – showed me that this website’s impressions hadn’t changed. So that means that Google is still serving our website, and we weren’t impacted by a recent Google algorithm update, which was my first assumption. Instead, the data showed that the number of people clicking on my website is down. And with a bit more digging, this decline is likely due to Google’s new AI summary display. With this darn good guess that’s backed up by data about what’s causing the problem, I can go back to my beginner’s mind to come up with 29 different ideas to address this problem, some of which are admittedly terrible, but one of which is likely to work.


Question for you: Do you have any problems in your business that you could approach with a beginner’s mind?


Quick Update from Cubit


TL;DR: Radius Reports will now be emailed to you only, rather than being both emailed and available for download on a webpage.


Why? We use Shopify to deliver radius reports, but Shopify has removed the functionality that allowed us to link to your custom radius reports on a webpage. My partner, Anthony, is working on an alternative method to link to your reports post-purchase. If you need help locating your radius reports, please reach out to Diana or me.

Thank you for reading, and here’s to tackling challenges with a fresh perspective!

Richest Zip Code In Your State

Introduction: Find the Richest Zip Codes in Your State!

Curious about the wealthiest neighborhoods near you? Cubit Planning’s IncomeByZipCode.com now provides updated lists of the wealthiest zip codes in each U.S. state, drawing on the latest Census data. This free, annually updated resource allows you to explore income trends across the nation and see how your area compares.

Our updated data is the perfect tool to stay informed about economic demographics in your state. Check out the wealthiest zip codes for your state below—there may be a few surprises!

Explore the Richest Zip Codes Across the U.S.

Whether you’re interested in learning more about wealth distribution in California, New York, Texas, or any other state, IncomeByZipCode.com has you covered. Here’s a quick look at the richest zip codes across all states:

Each state’s data is carefully updated to reflect the most current Census information available. Find out how your community ranks and explore how zip code income levels shape the economic landscape.

If you have any suggestions to make this resource even better, we’d love to hear from you! Simply reach out to us with your ideas.

Self-Improvement Tip: Should You Have a Personal Board of Directors?

Taking a page from thought leader Shane Parrish’s Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results, which he stole from Jim Collins, let’s explore a unique concept: developing a “personal board of directors.” Just like a corporate board advises a business, a personal board of directors can provide you with mental models and behavioral guidance to help you navigate complex decisions.

These advisors don’t have to be alive or directly accessible; they can be historical figures, modern innovators, or thought leaders whose philosophies resonate with you. Building your personal board can be a powerful tool for growth. Here’s how:

1. Choose Inspiring Exemplars
Select people whose values, actions, and habits align with the person you aspire to be. For instance, do they show resilience, creativity, or wisdom? The goal is to choose people who “raise the bar” and challenge you to become a better version of yourself.

2. Emulate Their Mindsets and Actions
Practice adopting their approach to problem-solving by asking, “What would _____ do?” This step helps cultivate the attitudes and skills you admire in them.

Your board doesn’t have to be flawless in all areas. Instead, seek individuals who embody skills or dispositions that you want to nurture. For example, Jason Cohen, known for his thoughtful approach to business and startups, and Steven Dubner, celebrated for his curiosity and boldness in asking tough questions, could serve as inspirations.

Do you have a personal board of directors? Let us know who’s on your list; we’d love to hear and learn from your perspectives!