Why “Medium Data”?

I look at buzz words with skepticism. They somehow simultaneously mean too much and nothing at all. Big Data is squarely in that list.

I was working one day when it suddenly hit me: I spend all my time working with medium data!  It’s data that’s not too big (I imagine that’s a reality reserved for places like Amazon), and it’s not too small (where you can do everything you want with Excel and a Pivot Table).

A quick google search revealed not too much conversation around Medium Data, and viola, here I am.

Let me introduce myself:

My name is Nate (aka, the Medium Data Guy) and I am currently a Senior Data Analyst at a SaaS company in the Pacific Northwest.  I’ve undertaken a unique and winding path to end up where I am: analyzing a sea of Medium Data and loving every minute of it.

I didn’t discover my passion for data until I got into the working world, and quickly realized that there wasn’t an easy path to become an analyst.  Everyone I talked to became an analyst through a different path.  There was no specific degree to go get, no particular certification to attain.  They all told me “Just start doing it and convince someone to take a risk on you.”

Talk about a challenge!

What will you find on this blog?

I intend this to be multipurpose, covering topics like:

• • Analytics Learnings & Lessons
  • Advice for Aspiring Analysts
  • Analytics Skills & Tools
  • Industry Updates & Thoughts

It’s become clear to me while frequenting r/datascience and r/businessintelligence that there is a huge demand for advice and thoughts on what it takes to become an analyst.  The next question that comes up is invariably “OK, where do I go now?”

With a few years under my belt I’d like to share what I’ve learned and add knowledge here as I learn it, and I hope it’ll be valuable for you too.