Have you ever looked at somebody’s career and thought, “That must be the hardest job one earth,”? You’d be surprised to know how much people in these “hard” careers enjoy what they do. If you ask most people enjoying their jobs, they did not get there by chance. They worked and made sacrifices to be where they are. Most importantly, they were passionate about getting where they are and did not let opinions sidetrack them. 29-year-old Aishah Newson from Santa Monica is just a month shy of graduating with an MS in Information & Data Science from UC Berkley.
While most women would shy away from such a career, Newson knows this is where her heart belongs. However, it wasn’t handed to her. She has had to work for it and find herself after going through many careers to settle for the one that feeds her curiosity.
Data Science Is Not an Impossible Career
Newson speaks about the most common myth people have about her profession. She says, “Most people think it’s really hard to get into data analytics or data science. If you just consistently practice the skills and find some good people that you can build relationships with and mentor you along the way, then you’re good to go.”
Sure, data science seems like an impossible task, but have you tried putting in the work. You cannot stand on the sidelines and claim that it is hard when you’ve not even tried it. This applies to all careers. Many young people have lost focus on what they want to do with their lives because they’ve been told that their careers of choice are hard or not for them. You can’t know how well you will do in a career unless you make the deliberate decision to go after what you love and give it your all.
When Aishah Newson decided to pursue a degree in Information Science, she knew she had to do extra to make it in the industry. As she studies, she has continuously tried to create a name for herself by freelancing and consulting. She says, “I’m currently working for myself doing data analysis, modeling and visualization work. I must say though it’s a wild adventure and I am really enjoying it. Most importantly I am learning a shit ton along the way. Once finishing up school, I hope to continue to grow my consulting business and eventually bring on other data analyst to scale even more.” She has set clear goals for where she wants to be and is working tirelessly to get there.
Aishah Newson on Confronting Your Fears
Fear of failure is the number one factor that holds people back from pursuing their careers. Just because someone tried and failed doesn’t mean that you will fail too. Be daring enough to conquer your fears and learn from them. If you fall, rise and try again. The journey to a successful career is never easy, but with consistency, hard work, and determination, you will reach the heights of your career and enjoy the fruits of your hard work.
Aishah Newson encourages young people in her profession and urges them to be willing to learn from failure. She says, “Don’t be afraid of failure. Working in this field is a forever learning journey.” Data science is an ever-evolving career because technology keeps on changing. If you want to succeed in your career, you must stay up to date with the changes and map out a plan to achieve your goals. Always have an insatiable curiosity for new things. Newson says, “The field is always evolving. There are always new technologies coming out and if you are not curious about them or always willing to learn, I think it could be a challenging road.”
Aim For Client Satisfaction
Like in any career, your client’s satisfaction with your services determines how far your business will go. Your client is your employer, and you must always satisfy their needs to convince them to stay in business with you. Keep up with the changing needs in the industry and always accommodate the changes your clients want in your services.
Most importantly, have a game plan to help you meet your client’s needs. You can learn something from Newson’s model. She says, “When taking on new projects I ask A LOT of questions up front. I want to fully understand the goals of the client & also ensure that we’re a good fit for each other because sometimes you’ll be working together for quite some time. From there I create a road map for what they want and when they want. I also map out for myself how I imagine I will be able to tackle their data needs. After that I get to work & begin executing the plans I’ve mapped out.”
No matter what field you are in, you’ll never know how good you are until you give it a try.