I Wrote 472 Data Science Articles in 2 Years. Here are My 3 Takeaways.

I wrote my first article on January 28, 2020. Since then, I have published 472 articles on Medium and you are now reading the 473rd one.

My initial goal was to support the job hunting process by having content that showcases my knowledge and skills. After some time, it turned out to be a side hustle. In addition to the monetary rewards, learning new tools and concepts was another motivation for me to keep writing.

If you are working or plan to work in data science, be ready for learning continuously. Data science is still evolving and new tools or concepts are being introduced frequently. Thus, having a strong motivation for learning is worthwhile.

I have learned a lot of tools and topics in this two-year journey of writing. I strongly believe that it made me a better data scientist in many different aspects.

In this article, I would like to share my 3 takeaways from this journey. I think they will be helpful for you if you have a passion for writing about data science or any other topic.

Learn it very well

You must have heard or read it several times that the best way to learn something is to teach it. I have experienced it myself.

I always study by taking notes so writing to learn has always been in my life. Even if I read a book to learn something, I try to write what I understand with my own words.

However, writing for yourself and for others are two very distinct things.

When you write for explaining a concept to an audience, it must be clear and concise. The sentences should follow a logical order to build up a structure. Otherwise, the reader might get lost halfway through the article.

If you give too much detail, you might lose the reader as well. Besides, details sometimes make it more difficult to understand the main topic. On the other hand, not giving enough detail results in failing to explain the topic.

Last but not least, you need to be very careful not to make a mistake. When you make a mistake in your own notes, you are the only one who is affected. However, when you make a mistake in published content, you will misguide your entire audience.

There is only one solution to satisfy all these criteria in your writing: learn it very well.

Learn it very well so that you minimize the chance of making a mistake and maximize the number of readers who understand the topic.

This is what I have experienced. As I keep writing on a tool, a concept, or a theory, I realize that I learn it very well and start mastering it.

Consistency

It takes a decent amount of time, energy, and effort to write consistently and frequently for two years.

It seemed difficult at first. I needed to spare time to write in the evenings or on the weekends because I also had a job.

However, after writing consistently for some time, it became a kind of a habit. I started to enjoy writing. Seeing the increasing number of followers, views, and reads was a blessing.

Moreover, it helped me develop self-discipline.

If you plan to work in the field of data science, be ready for learning continuously because data science is still an evolving field. As I improved my self-discipline, it became easier for me to keep learning. As a result, I performed better at my job.

The benefits of self-discipline can easily be extended to other areas in life. For instance, I got better at completing things on time. I used to procrastinate a lot but knowing that I need to spare time for writing each day motivates me to finish things on time. I have become a more systematic person.

Network

I’m quite sure that most professionals who decide to make a career change and work in data science face the same challenge: it is difficult to get your first job.

The main reason is not having prior job experience that proves your skills and knowledge in this domain.

Building a network of professionals who work in data science is efficacious in overcoming this challenge. However, it is not easy to build a network without being in the domain.

Writing consistently for two years helped me build an audience. I have gained lots of followers on Medium and LinkedIn. My articles have been shared on social media by very popular publications such as Towards Data Science.

When I look at myself two years ago, I see an aspiring data scientist who tries very hard to get a job interview. Now recruiters reach out to me for job opportunities.

I think that having an audience of professionals in the data science ecosystem helps me get noticed by recruiters and hiring managers.

Creating consistent content with a decent level of quality helps build an audience which is an efficient way of building a network.

Starting a data science blog was one of the best things I have done. It provided me with lots of benefits and opportunities. It started off to support me in job hunting but grew to be a passion.

If you are writing on Medium or elsewhere, let us know what motivates you and what are the rewards.

It is a demanding task to write consistently and I would also love to hear what you do to keep on writing.

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