This morning I came across this short post by Seth Godin that very briefly talks about the time we are in related to the use of data. Not just in the arts but world wide.
https://seths.blog/2021/10/shift-your-tech-time-horizon/
Personally, over the past few years I resonate with the “discomfort” of pushing through the challenges of getting "ahead of the curve” when it comes to using data to gather insights not just about the past but making helpful predictions about the future.
Based on our conversations of the past few years I suspect that many of us here in analytic Coffee are on a similar path.
What are some of the ways you are pushing through the “discomfort” of getting much better at using data to support yourselves and your organizations?…
I’m not really talking about the technology here. I’m really asking more about the personal work. Learning, building technical skills, building confidence, establishing a personal voice when it comes to the data, finding opportunities to apply these skills, knowing that you are delivering value.
For me part of this process has been analytic Coffee, but there have been other steps. What steps are you taking?
If you are willing to share we might find some common useful themes.
I agree with you. I suspect for me that a lot of the discomfort is the midnight to 2am webinars and group sessions, learning and engaging with people with different knowledge at odd times, and upskilling myself on things like headless CMS and static v dynamic web design. Most of it is because I don't have an off button and I can't see the fuel gauge, but a larger part is that in order to make the future leap across the divide I need to 1) upskill and 2) create a support network.
analytic Coffee is grand because there was a need there and in the face of uncertainty you created a space that filled that void. Kudos. There are other places we can do that as well. But also agreed that it is developing your own voice and thoughts about things like tech, and data and CRM, things that make it make sense to you and help you communicate it to others.
It's important to create an environment where that learning is possible. Where are your SQL, js or R skills coming from and who is there to guide you. Where are you mentors be they Instagram infographic analytics from Michelle Rial or the weekly "storytelling with data" eDMs. Who are you a mentor to in return.
Interesting stuff