Don’t Learn Python (Learn This Instead)

Aug 08, 2024

Dear Future Analyst,

I've got some sad news….I don't think you should learn Python 😭

Now don't get me wrong. I love Python. It's my favorite data tool. And it's absolutely incredible.

But here’s why you shouldn’t learn it πŸ‘‡


It just takes a long time to get good at it.

Things like Power BI or Tableau are just much easier to get good at, much quicker.

Personally, I think you can get to proficiency in one of these BI tools in about a month. But I think it would take around 6 months to feel the same level of comfort in Python.

Simply stated: it’s 6x harder to start in Python than something like Tableau

Why is Python so hard to learn?

  • It’s hard to install
  • It’s programming & programming is hard
  • You can do infinite things in Python

πŸ“Š Is Python in demand?

And even if you’re thinking, “Avery, I’ve got this. Trust me. I can learn Python.”

I would reply, “Well do you realize that 2 out of 3 data analyst jobs don’t even mention Python anywhere in the JD?”

In fact, for entry-level positions, that number is probably closer to 4 out of 5.

For the data on this, watch today's YouTube video.

🐍 Still going to learn Python?

If you want to delay your job search by 6-8 months, just so you can apply to an extra 1 out of 5 jobs….then go ahead. But that’s not what I would do. And it’s not what I suggest to all my Data Analytics Accelerator students.

If that’s the choice you make, here’s what you should know & in what order:

βœ… Variables

βœ… Print statements

βœ… Mathematical Operations

βœ… Functions

βœ… Loops

βœ… IDE's

βœ… Libraries (the big ones in data to know are Pandas, MatPlotLib, Seaborn, Plotly, and NumPy)

βœ… Read in data w/ Pandas

βœ… Descriptive analytics w/ Pandas

βœ… Filtering w/ Pandas

βœ… Data visualization (I like seaborn the most for getting started)

 

I explain this whole concept in a lot more detail in today’s YouTube video.

<< Watch it here >>

Of if you’d rather listen, here’s the podcast link.

Upskill Smarter, Not Harder,

Avery

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