ZOD: There's too much to learn
ZOD: There's too much to learn
Zen of Data Science #2
Welcome to another issue of The Zen of Data Science!
I’m experimenting with the format, so feel free to let me know what you think.
Thanks for reading, and lets get started.
Big Idea
I wanna let you in on a little secret…
You’ll never know everything when it comes to tech.
Every day there’s a new technology, a new tech stack, a new tool, or a new feature…
It never ends.
But it’s not about knowing every tool or programming language...
It’s about learning quickly.
Learning enough to build whatever is being asked of you, and learning it fast.
If you’re good with Python, do you need to be an expert in SAS and R? No, of course not.
But if your company needs a report updated that uses R,
You should know enough (and have enough google skills) to figure it out and make the update.
If you use Tableau, but your company wants something in Power BI, you should be able to quickly get up to speed so you can build that dashboard.
The true skill is being able to learn new skills FAST, which is why I love meta-learning (more on that in a future issue).
If you wanna spend your entire life and all your free time trying to learn every new tool under the sun… good luck.
Better to build a solid foundation, and then develop the ability to quickly pick up new skills.
So get good with SQL, and Python or R (your choice).
Understand what makes a good visualization/dashboard.
Learn how to problem solve.
And most important learn how to learn
Do that and you’ll be unstoppable in this field.
What I’m Learning
This week I’m hard at work wrapping up my Master’s degree so not much extra code practice for me until I’m done (end of August!).
I’ve been finding time to read “The Practicing Stoic” though. I’m almost done and can’t recommend it enough.
It’s helping me find more peace and satisfaction in my work, and my life, and who couldn’t use a more tranquil mind?
Zen Quote of the Week
“I judge you unfortunate because you have never lived through misfortune. You have passed through life without an opponent—no one can ever know what you are capable of, not even you.”
- Seneca
A reminder that the struggle you’ve gone through, or are going through, is what makes you strong.
Don’t ever feel bad for struggling.
An easy life would be more of a curse than you think, because only in difficulty can we know ourselves.
Something Interesting
The average attention span of a goldfish is 9 seconds.
The average human attention span is 8 seconds…
If you’ve even made it far enough to read this you’re an anomaly… good job 👏
But in all seriousness, we need to fight to get our attention back… More on that in a future issue.
Feel-Good Finds
I recently picked up a “The Five Minute Journal”
I love the morning gratitude practice, and the fact that it only takes a few minutes to complete.
You don’t really need to buy one of these though.
Just grab any notebook and start your day by writing three things you’re grateful for.
Do that every day, and you’ll start to focus more on all the things you have to be grateful for. That’s where the magic happens.
Thanks for reading!
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If you enjoy what I write here, I think you’ll enjoy that too.
See you next week! 👋