2018 Is The Year of Turning Point in My Life

Looking back a year ago from today, I just started my first Data Scientist internship.

So far, so good.

I found my passion in data science, but still I was uncertain if I made the right career choice. I knew what I wanted to do, but still I was uncertain if that defined my life goals.

As far as my clarity was concerned, everything changed and I found my clarity and goals once I decided to go beyond my comfort zone — and all that contributed to the turning point in my life.

Fast forward a year later, there were many personal and career milestones that I have achieved. I share these developments not to list my achievements, but to demonstrate the tangible growths that I have had throughout the year that has brought me to the realization of this quote:

Nothing is Impossible. Because Impossible means I’m Possible.

This post is dedicated to my family, my friends, my mentors, and all of the people whom I had the privilege to meet where our paths crossed, who have been selflessly inspiring and supporting me, be it personally, emotionally or professionally.

1. Writing about My Data Science Journey — Doubts and Triumphs

The very first few questions that came to my mind were: Are my ideas worth sharing? Will my voice be heard? And most importantly, do people care about what I am about to share?

Coupled with the fact that being a second language learner in English, writing always seemed so formidable and never came easy to me. Despite the self-destructive thoughts, I took the leap of faith to write and share my data science learning experience.

A few months after I started writing on Medium, I was blown away by the positive feedback. I received messages and emails from aspiring data scientists and other data professionals across the world on a regular basis commenting on how my articles have inspired and guided them in the data science field.

An attempt originally started with the aim of sharing my struggles, learning experience and takeaways, turned out to be the pieces of writing that have been inspiring, motivating and guiding people ever since.

In the midst of gratitude with all the blessings, Medium named me one of the top writers in Education in its Top Writers list. Beyond recognition and view count, my writing has been featured by Tech in Asia, AI Time Journal and other publications.

I understood and learned that…

There has never been a better time than now to begin publishing and establishing thought leadership.

All these inspiration and experience have taught me one thing — the power of sharing ideas through words.

From writing things I knew best and close to my heart and simply wanted to share with others to adding values to the life of many, this transition has redefined my goals of writing to inspire and guide more aspiring data scientists by sharing my ideas and experience.

Remember the very first few questions that came to my mind before I started writing? Here are the answers to them: Every single idea is worth sharing. Own your unique voice and it will be heard, sooner or later. Be authentic and write to give more, and you will attract your audience.

2. Democratizing Sharing-Learning Environment on LinkedIn

As a millennial who believes in the power of words and that ideas sharing should be accessible to everyone, I am on a mission to make this happen by democratizing sharing-learning environment on LinkedIn, particularly focused on Data Science.

Because every single idea is worth sharing.

In today’s rapidly globalizing economy in the interconnected world, ideas sharing and thought leadership are no longer about a few talking to the many.

Gone are the days when only influencers and celebrities would share their thoughts in discussions.

Therefore, to democratize sharing-learning environment on LinkedIn — if you have been following my LinkedIn posts for some time — I have been initiating discussions about data science on meaningful and important topics (technical and non-technical) that are commonly taken for granted.

The goal is to stimulate more engagements and discussions among data scientists, aspiring data scientists, and other data professionals by sharing own knowledge and experience, best practices, guidance while learning from others at the same time.

I am so happy and glad that this initiative was well-received and supported with the high level of engagement and rich discussions that have benefited many people.

I understood and learned that…

Sharing is the best way to learn. The data science community on LinkedIn is so engaging and supportive of sharing and learning from one another, and I am glad I could be a part of it.

If you like the idea of sharing-learning environment and would like to be a part of it, please connect with me on LinkedIn as I regularly initiate discussions on various topics in data science. Also, if you would like to seek discussion on some topics, please do not hesitate to let me know and I will be more than happy to publish it for the sake of learning opportunities for others.

3. Freelance Projects and Speaking Engagements in Data Science

Being able to utilize my expertise and experience to bring business values to companies has always been something that I am passionate about.

Data is the new currency.

And I believe its significance is so much more than just increasing revenue for companies. It is about bringing convenience and adding values to businesses and the society as a whole.

I am so grateful of the opportunities given to work with various NGOs and companies that ultimately provided data science solutions to them while learning so much more than I could ask for. What is more exciting is that recently I was invited to speak at some conferences!

I understood and learned that…

Communication is key. Talk with clients and stakeholders to really understand their needs and show empathy to their situation. Understanding and framing a problem statement that needs to be solved is very important. Without this foundation, chances are the rest of the data science workflow would be serving the wrong purpose and direction.

Final Thoughts

I hope that this post shows you that everything is possible, as long as you are passionate about it and stay persistent with your actions.

Once I decided to go beyond my comfort zone to pursue something that is close to my heart — my passion, everything changed, my life changed, and that became the turning point in my life.

Remember…

You are much more than you thought what you are capable of. Don’t limit yourself with the boundary drawn by the norm and society.

Believe in yourself and act on it. Fail forward. Never stop learning and keep improving.

What have you learned in 2018? What are some of your major achievements? What are the goals that you hope to achieve in 2019? What are some of the advice you would give to aspiring data scientists? Comment below.

As always, if you have any questions, feel free to leave your comments below. Till then, see you in the next post!