Preface
I've never seen myself as particularly “techy” or “good at math.” To be honest, I never enjoyed math, and if you'd asked me even a few years ago if I had any interest in learning how to code, I would've laughed at you. So how in the world did I go from that to writing this book about becoming a data analyst? Perhaps I should start with some context, because I find that the more I connect with others in the data community, the more I see my story reflected in theirs.
In the United States the phrase “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is usually synonymous with both “What do you want your identity to be?” and “What career do you want to have?” I grew up thinking that what I did for work had to be my entire personality. I was never quite sure what I wanted to “be.” I was a natural caretaker and wanted to be seen as empathetic, and I've always loved spending time with kids. I also knew that I love spending time outdoors and going on adventures regularly.
This led to the natural conclusion that I should become a teacher or maybe a wilderness therapist. Well, after some time dabbling in teaching I realized that it was not the path for me. So after discovering the joys of nature‐based occupational therapy with children, I decided I knew what I wanted to “be,” and I signed up for my master's degree a few months later.
Fast‐forward a couple of years (and many thousands of dollars later), and I was more burnt out than I'd ever been. Unfortunately, a perfect storm of circumstances ...