Learning – Sarah Noonan

Celebrating Wins from a Year-Long Career Pivot

I hoped that in launching and cultivating an online presence, I would establish benchmarks to speak to in conversations with potential hiring managers and clients.

Coming up on a year ago, I launched this site as a professional showcase and narrative framework. My intentions were manifold: I was navigating the depths of a career transition and eagerly seeking to highlight the value I could offer new industries and organizations. Feeling trapped in the classic career changer’s paradox of “needing experience to get experience,” I hoped that in launching and cultivating an online presence, I would establish benchmarks to speak to in conversations with potential hiring managers and clients. Perhaps even more important, I craved to carve out an environment in which to process my questions and fears. Writing has always served as an outlet for me, and having previously been involved in building audiences around digital stories, I found myself itching to revive those creative flows. While the journey since I first clicked Publish and irrevocably unveiled my aspirations into cyberspace has often been challenging, upon reflection I’m inspired by the successes I have achieved and how these motivate me to continue forward:

Joining the Publio Team

I joined the marketing services firm Publio in February, and am closing in on eight months with the company. I first connected with the organization while completing a content marketing program they facilitated last year. Following the course, I maintained connection to the core team through our local coworking community, and even piloted the company’s own Publisher’s M.O. Masterclass in its development stages. I wrote and published two blog articles based on these experiences, and I’m thrilled that this current opportunity has evolved. Currently, I’m developing an analytics framework for the company and contributing toward multiple internal and client-facing campaign initiatives. I hope to extend my role with the company over the coming months while supporting its growth and business development.

Circulating Long Form Content and Thought Leadership

In addition to discovering new work opportunities, another goal has been to share my perspective through written analyses and reflections. I have developed these ideas into three original pieces, available here and the popular online blogging site Medium. These articles have collectively amassed thousands of views, and in February I achieved a Medium follower count surpassing 100 readers, qualifying me for the site’s Partner Program and the ability to earn revenue for articles I publish on the platform. I plan to continue writing and exploring the potential to monetize my work through the Partner Program and other avenues available.

Extending My Skills and Expertise

A final aspect of my professional aspirations has entailed enriching my knowledge base and technical abilities. I’ve previously written about my experience completing online coursework encompassing topics within computer science, data analytics and online marketing. Since then, I’ve finished additional courses in areas including Snowflake Data Warehouse Fundamentals, dbt Fundamentals and DataCamp’s Understanding Cloud Computing. Each course bridges new connections from previous learning and builds clarity surrounding the optimal combination of skills and technologies I wish to employ in my career. Up next: I’m looking at Google Analytics and Google Data Studio as I seek to better understand visitor traffic on the Publio website to maximize prospective customer reach.

Looking Ahead

It’s been an active year of expanding my skill sets, professional knowledge and platform proficiency. I express my sincere thanks for the support of my network, including colleagues, friends and family, in this journey. Over the coming weeks and months, I’m excited to see where this exploration continues to lead and share my discoveries with you. Should you wish to share your goals and wins with an empowering community, I’d love to hear what you are working on and see how I can help promote these initiatives. Let’s keep each other striving and excited to pursue our passions each day!

Reflections on a Year of Self-Guided Learning

lightbulb — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

During 2021 I invested much effort toward self-guided learning. Propelled by objectives to explore new career avenues and free time the COVID pandemic provided, I sought to enhance my skills in programming, data science methods and technologies and marketing techniques. As I proceeded in discovering affordable resources and compiling these into a custom curriculum, I often found my time working through these materials to be a high point of my day, even forgoing evenings of Netflix to complete tutorials well into late night hours.

By the end of the year, the set of courses I’d completed was quite extensive and I found it enlightening to chronicle my learning journey into the following list, organized by topic and inclusive of links to the source materials. I encourage you to review the course pages and share your feedback on resources you’ve found helpful in your own learning!

Principles of Programming and Computer Science

Prior to delving into any specific platform or coding language, it can be helpful to gain an understanding of the underlying logic powering each of these tools. Technical and non-technical users alike can benefit from developing an intuition of how technologies they interact with daily function and operate, and these are some great primers with which to start:

Principles of Data Science and Analytics

I wrote in a previous post about these courses offering a conceptual overview into data science and analytics, available here. The materials will be valuable to anyone seeking insight from the expanding network of data points intersecting all components of our lives:

Python for Data Science and Analytics

In July I completed a course in Python for Data Analytics as part of the Southern Connecticut State University BioPath Bootcamp Series. The course was offered free and open to all through a joint initiative of Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven Innovation Collaborative and CTNext. I highly recommend following universities and nonprofits within your community for offerings like these which are cost-effective and provide opportunities to build connections within fields of interest. The bootcamp’s synchronous learning environment provided the support necessary to overcome preliminary obstacles in my independent learning, enabling me to move forward with more advanced courses like those in Dataquest’s Python Basics for Data Analysis series.

Marketing and Web Analytics

Grow with Google and Content Marketing Programs, TechFWD Digital Skills Navigator, Stamford Partnership

Like Python for Data Analytics, I found both TechFWD offerings through a community development organization, writing about my experience with the Content Marketing program in this previous post. The Grow with Google series provided a helpful complementary perspective, particularly where the courses’ materials aligned with a focus on search engine optimization and organizing online content for prime traffic and visibility.

Publisher’s M.O. Masterclass, Publio

I was offered the chance to pilot this course developed by a marketing services firm I connected with through the TechFWD Content Marketing program (whose curriculum they also facilitated). Their masterclass builds upon that curriculum (available free via HubSpot and Semrush academies), introducing their signature “North Star” methodology and providing templates for applying concepts from both courses toward participants’ own unique business objectives. It was great having the opportunity to navigate the course in its development stages and provide direct feedback to be incorporated into its subsequent iterations.

As we begin a new year, I look forward to continuing my professional learning and chronicling my journey accordingly. I invite you to join me in thinking through your own educational goals and work toward achieving these in 2022!

Continuing the Learning Journey: Navigating the TechFWD Content Marketing Program

One of my intentions in writing is to showcase valuable resources I’ve discovered within my own professional development. For the first of these features, I compiled a list of recommended online courses for those interested in fostering understanding of data and programming. This next post highlights my experience completing a sequence of content marketing coursework through a program offered within my community earlier this year, whose material you can access free courtesy of providers HubSpot and Semrush Academies. Happy learning!

HubSpot inbound methodology framework — The inbound methodology pioneered by HubSpot and outlined in its Academy coursework.

My professional journey has led full circle toward arenas of digital content development explored previously in my career. As I’ve sought to focus on opportunities within marketing and consumer analysis, I’ve realized a need to refresh my knowledge of how such domains have been and continue to be shaped by online platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the countless others that continue to emerge. Like many fellow Millennials, I was an enthusiastic early adopter of social media, but a combination of security concerns, polarizing content and overall fatigue led me to largely abandon these channels in subsequent years. As I’ve re-entered these online spaces with professional intentions, I’ve sought to do so with the guidance of best practices for navigating these often murky waters.

It was with these aims that, upon learning of a month-long Content Marketing program provided free by my city, I jumped at the opportunity to complete the four-week curriculum outlining the inbound marketing framework and its applications within social media, email campaigns and search engine optimization. The material covered is available free via the HubSpot and Semrush Academy platforms, and I highly recommend it to anyone working in or seeking to work in these arenas. If the thought of completing four courses feels overwhelming, start with HubSpot’s Inbound Marketing course to develop a conceptual framework, then focus on corresponding material related to the tools and techniques most aligned to your current specialty, interests and/or goals. You can even complete an exam at the end of each course to earn credential-enhancing certifications.

The coursework was immensely beneficial for the knowledge gained, much of which I’ve utilized in developing this site. The TechFWD program provided added benefits of a shared learning environment and opportunities to network and build relationships, and I hope communities worldwide will launch similar initiatives and find this perspective valuable in pursuing such endeavors.

Getting Started with Data Learning Resources Online

Desk with laptop — Photo by Negative Space on Pexels.com

Since beginning my education in data management and analysis as a graduate student, I’ve realized the value in continually expanding and updating my conceptual and technical knowledge within this evolving field. While this has often seemed an intimidating and overwhelming process, I’ve discovered an incredible range of free and low-cost resources available for compiling a comprehensive learning plan aligned with one’s professional interests and aspirations. Following are a selection of courses and tutorials I’ve found helpful in my journey and would recommend to fellow data practitioners and students:

Data Science for Everyone, DataCamp

This free course is a great primer on the data life cycle from raw form to insights able to inform strategy and decision making, outlining the roles each type of data professional (data engineer, data scientist, data analyst, business analyst and business intelligence analyst) play in this process. I would recommend anyone interested in a data-related career take this course to identify which stage(s) of the data transformation process appeal to them most so they can focus their learning and career development on the appropriate concepts and technologies accordingly.

Data Science for Everyone can be completed as either a standalone course or component of DataCamp’s Data Literacy Fundamentals skill track. It’s also a great primer on the DataCamp platform, a fun and intuitive learning tool. Should you find yourself interested in a premium membership upgrade, use this referral link to sign up and your registration will support operation of this site.

Data Analytics Basics for Everyone, edX

Like DataCamp’s Data Science for Everyone, edX’s IBM-developed Data Analytics Basics provides a full overview of the data life cycle, delving into specific processes and tools you will likely encounter along your professional journey. The course is well-designed whether completing in full (a verified certificate of completion is available for $99) or focusing on specific content. The course also serves as the foundation for several IBM professional certificates available through the platform.

Welcom e to Codecademy, Codecademy

Once you better understand the data transformation process and have identified areas of interest for further learning, it’s possible you will be learning the fundamentals of coding for the first time. Fortunately, there are many great beginner-friendly coding tutorial providers available. This Codecademy course provides a great overview on what to expect when learning through the site or those of similar providers including DataCamp and DataQuest. It also segues nicely into the Learn How to Code course which further introduces the concepts central to multiple programming languages used in the data life cycle.

Workshops, Short Courses and Full Bootcamp Immersives

Following your mastery of the basics of data literacy and programming, you may discover your interest in pursuing these concepts further through a full certificate or “bootcamp” experience. Such programs are available in a variety of formats and price points from providers including traditional colleges and universities, premium memberships to websites including those featured in this article and the increasingly popular intensives offered through companies like Springboard, Flatiron School and FullStack Academy. Of these providers, I find General Assembly offers an especially rich range of introductory and advanced content, along with informative career panels sharing the perspective of seasoned data and tech professionals able to provide guidance on how they navigate the continually evolving field. I recommend bookmarking the company’s schedule of upcoming events, many of which are offered on a recurring basis at a free or nominal cost, as these sessions provide a great opportunity to network, learn directly from peers and mentors and evaluate whether more extensive learning experiences are a fit given your interests and goals.

These are just a few resources I hope are helpful in your data education and professional development. Share your thoughts in the comments section following this post. I’d love to learn what you’ve discovered in your own data exploration!