Cohort Analysis
Sometimes I find myself daydreaming and thinking back to the groups of friends I’ve been a part of over the years. My high school buddies. My college buddies. The group of friends I made in Delhi or New York.
It’s fun to think about who I was at that point in my life. What version of me those people met. Looking back in that way reminds me of what has always been true about myself and also helps me see areas of growth. What is true today that wasn’t true then?
Weirdly enough, this feels similar to what’s called a Cohort Analysis. It’s a common tool in SaaS businesses that looks at a group of customers who have similar characteristics as a way of understanding their experience with your business.
One of the best characteristics to examine is the date a customer first purchased your product. So you ask yourself- what is true about all of the customers that signed up in May of 2022? What about May of 2023? What’s different amongst those groups? What was true about my offering in 2023 that wasn’t true in 2022?
Of course over time you’d want to see that cohorts were spending more and churning less. This would be a sign you are delivering more and more value to your customers.
I don’t usually think about my friendships in this calculated way. And I don’t exactly run a subscription business either, but there are definitely things I’ve learned from applying this lens to my personal and professional life.
I have clients that started with me 5 years ago, that I still work with today. And I have newer clients that I started with this year. What was true when I started my coaching business? What is true today?
5 years ago I was passionate about working with people to overcome their own personal and professional challenges. That is still true today.
AND, today I have over 1000 hours of coaching under my belt. And so what I bring to a new coaching engagement is very different from what I brought 5 years ago.
It’s often hard to zoom out. To remember where you came from and how much has changed along the way. Just thinking about my business in terms of cohorts has helped me realize how much progress I’ve made.
Similarly as a friend, I’ve been thinking a lot about how I show up for friends these days. What’s true about my new friendships that isn’t as true about older friendships? How have I grown? What have I learned from new friends that I can share with older friends?
Admittedly, it’s a little bit silly to smoosh cohort analysis and friendships together, but in doing so I am feeling really grateful about my friends - old and new. And my clients past and present.
What evolution does this lens help you see in your personal or professional life?