Why a website? Why a blog?
Writing about something forces you to think about it a little more deeply than you usually would just pondering a topic inside your own head. Seeing your own words in front of you helps you realise that a thought is elevated above throwaway musings and into something that has more substance. That’s not to say everything ever written here or anywhere else needs to be something profoundly insightful, quite the opposite. Writing can help to separate a thought from your ego and allow you to be critical of it without attaching it to your self-worth. This means that you can progress much more easily without pride becoming overly interfering.
So, the purpose of this website is three-fold.
Provide a single place for me to show my portfolio work and my thoughts on changing careers into the world of tech and all things data.
Somewhere to reflect on what I am doing with data. That could be anything from looking back and expanding on passion projects to finding gaps in my knowledge or even producing some guides to solidify my skills. You never know how well you understand something until you have to explain it to someone else.
To get stuff out of my head.
Minds are a messy place and we pour and produce more information into them at will, often far past any point where we can operate effectively. We might even notice this only makes it another thing we think we didn’t do right, galvanising the mental slave master to keep going till the wheels start to come off and we burn out.
Having a website lets me put data and career changes into a container that can be put down when I want and I know I can come back to it. It stops the subjects of data science and data analysis, topics which I love, from becoming an infectious plague that stifles and robs any joy from them.
I write this blog for myself. It’s a tool to help me figure out where to go, and to see where I have been. If someone happens to wander along and enjoy it too, then awesome!