I think my first week at the Data School has gone well. It has been fun meeting everyone and really getting immersed in Tableau and visualisation. Looking at everyone’s viz styles and comparing them with my own, I feel like my vizes are quite utilitarian and I am keen to make them more visually appealing.
That said, it has been an intense week, full of quick vizes, presentations, special guest visitors, sketching challenges, and installing and getting our heads round a lot of new software!
Highlights/Key Takeaways
- Keep notes/annotate. Track the decision-making process, make notes as to why.
- Sketch before going into Tableau (after exploring the data).
- Know when to stop.
- Remember to show context of the data.
- Iterate, iterate, collaborate.
- Chart is the start, rather than the end. Chart raises questions, and Tableau is able to answer the questions raised by the chart, and the one(s) after that. Tableau is about the analytics rather than data visualization.
In summary…
There have been plenty of opportunities to get out of my comfort zone, particularly with the week culminating in presenting my application makeover online and a karaoke session! Bring on week 2!