After reading endless blogs from previous data schoolers, exploring Tableau and getting through to the interview. It was a huge accomplishment to be 1 of 8 to get the call from Carl (Head Coach, UK) to say I would be joining DS41! I had a month before I embarked on my journey into the world of data and I was feeling so excited! This blog is an ode to myself to reflect on what my data dreams were to the reality of being the new hire rookie in a data realm full of experts.
Like many other applicants, I did not have a data background and naturally felt like I had a huge gap to fill, almost that I had to play catch-up due to my lack of concrete experience. For context, I studied Biochemistry at University and always saw myself eventually progressing in science research. Neuroscience was my favourite module, simply because the brain is so complex! My natural curiosity always pushed me to dig deeper, I loved the challenge of being presented with an unanswered question and having to investigate further, really analyzing the results for it to be an insightful discovery. However, the lab wasn't for the weak, I struggled with the repetitive experiments and constant obstacles before I even had a chance to draw something insightful from the data I was collecting.
It hit me, that the part I truly enjoyed was the analytical process of taking something complex and deriving something important and insightful and that science isn't the only field that brings that quality out in me. It was a small eureka moment for me, that 'scientist' did not represent all my qualities. It was then that I really took the time to assess everything I loved about myself after I graduated to find a career that lit up all my qualities. Can you take a wild guess as to where that landed me?
As I established I knew I wanted to use my analytical mind! Secondly, I knew I had a visual eye, and wanted to find a way to combine my analysis with a creative output. Lastly, I always surround myself with other people, I wanted to continue to communicate my ideas and have a career which allowed me to constantly adapt to new people and concepts. All in all, a data analyst consultant blended all these skills together! Taking complex data to find key insights, visualize the data that is accessible for others to understand, and ultimately discuss and present this to other people.
It was scary making a big career switch from what I thought I would become. However, I quickly learnt that everything I was doing before the data school made me a great candidate to learn data and I am really happy with where I am. A key concept in Neuroscience is that information is encoded in connections between neurons. It's kinda acting as my mantra for this new path into data, knowing that as I am learning I am connecting ideas that were already in me, helping me build a stronger mindset.
So if you ever feel out of depth, or feel like a complete newbie, just remember that you were hired because they saw all your individual qualities. Learning at the data school is a part of the process of building those connections between all those qualities so you can be a data expert.
For whatever point you are at in your career, hang in there and believe in your abilities! I hope you enjoyed hearing my story and I wish you the best in your own data journey.
Numa.