How to Become a Data Analyst.

The Complete Guide

Introduction
We live in an era where tech is fast becoming the order of the day, and with this, the world is going
digital, everyone or device is somehow connected or has access to the Internet and what this entails is
that the world is constantly generating data.
Data is a collection of facts which makes almost no sense unless it’s then converted to
Information, which is an organized group of data which people can make sense of.
People and systems need to be put in place to collect, manage and analyze this Data, it’s a dirty
job but someone’s got to do it Hahaha. Well this is done by people called Data Analysts and this article is
going to be sort of a complete guide on who data analysts are, what they do and how you can also
become a data analyst.
What is Data Analysis?
Data Analysis is the collection, transformation & organization of data in order to draw conclusions, make
predictions & Drive Informed Decision making.
The terms data analytics and data analysis are used synonymously, but there’s a bit of a
difference between the two.
Data Analytics: Refers to the overall process of data management (Collection, storage, organization, and
analysis). It includes the tools used to deep dive into data as well as those used for data storytelling
(Visualization).
Data Analysis: Focuses on the process of transforming raw data into useful statistics, information, and
explanations and this is going to be the main aim of our article for today.
Is Data Analysis Hard?
Hmm good question, Well Data Analysis isn’t Hard but I don’t want to say it’s easy also, the concept of
Difficulty is dependent on you (in other words its subjective and can’t be generalized as hard or simple
for everyone). Some People have a natural Affinity for Mathematics and Statistics so they might find it
much more easier or at-least to an extent than others but with determination, willingness, time and
practice you can be a pro also. Personally If I was asked if Data Analysis is Hard I’ll say No, in fact it’s a lot
of fun and you’ll see the reason why as we progress.

Who is A Data Analyst?

Like we have said in the Introduction, a data analyst is a super hero who although doesn’t wear a cape
saves the day using their analytical skills, fast thinking, decision making skills and a ton of other skills to
help Companies, Organizations, Businesses, Firms and People make well informed decisions, using
Historic & Real Time Data, Data Analysts solve a lot of the world’s problems.
You reading this article are also a data analyst, even though you might not have realized it yet,
How? You might ask. Well As a person in your everyday life you are constantly collecting Data, analyzing
this data and then make informed decisions using the data you had earlier collected all this done
without a computer of some sorts. As a kid you must have taken different variety of Ice Cream flavors
(Data) now you’ve processed each of these flavors and chosen which ones you like and which dislike,
even created a table of preference to decide your top 3 flavors (Analysis and Data Driven Decision
Making). We make tons of decisions just like this analogy in our everyday life and this makes us all Data
Analysts and we already have most of the skills to be a data analyst.
Tasks of a Data Analyst
Data Analysts handle a lot of tasks such as collecting, transforming & organizing data. Data
Analysts work with 2 main types of data, which are:
1. Quantitative (Numerical, Quantifiable) Data: Just as the name implies, it deals with
numbers, percentages and statistics data analysis – data that can be expressed as quantity.
It is usually structured data that is pre-formatted and fits neatly into the columns and rows
of spreadsheets. It responds close-ended questions like “How many?”, “how often?” and
“how much”?
2. Qualitative (Textual) Data: Deals with data that describes something and is expressed in
words, it is also known as unstructured data because it has no format or pre-configured
design, qualitative data allows us understand the “why” behind numbers and statistics, and
provides insights into behavior and patterns.
Data analysts use the following Methods of Data Analysis to get their work done

1. Text Analysis: combines statistical and textual analysis methods to extract and classify
information to perform further analysis
2. Data Mining: The process of detecting anomalies, patterns, and relationships to predict
outcomes.
3. Statistical Analysis: involves exploring and presenting huge amounts of quantitative data to
detect trends and patterns
4. Diagnostic Analysis: Tries to understand “why” something happened
5. Predictive Analysis: Uses historical data to make inferences about future events
6. Prescriptive Analysis: This turns all the data that we have and then turns them into actionable
information to bring solution to a problem.

What tools do Data Analysts Use?

Data Analysts use a wide range of tools and software depending on what type of analysis or step
in the analysis cycle they are working on, we’ve got software and tools for cleaning, sorting,
transforming, collecting, storing and also visualizing data. As a data analyst you will use one or more of
the following tools in your data journey;

i. Microsoft Excel
ii. Google Sheets
iii. PowerBI
iv. Tableau
v. SAS
vi. RapidMiner
vii. KNIME
viii. Apache Spark
ix. Qlik
x. Zoho corporationSisense
xi. Minitab
 xii. SPSS
xiii. Splunk

How to Become a Data Analyst

With all that’s been said, I’m sure you’ve began to think about how you can
become a Data Analyst, well you’re in luck because that is what we are going to
talk about now.
Becoming a data analyst is quite a long journey, but once you’ve got zeal
and determination, you’re all good to go. There really isn’t an actual roadmap but
we can atleast guide you on what milestones you need to cross in order to
become the data analyst of your dreams. Personally, my first tip is always to
create a Github-hosted portfolio that you can use as a professional calling card,
up next I would recommend you start off with a spreadsheet software like
Microsoft Excel or Google sheets. You can download a sample dataset anywhere
on the web, there are a lot of open source data available to everyone on the
website (data.gov). Spreadsheet software offer you a ton of tools and you are
able to do a wide range of data analysis processes, all you need to do is learn to
use formulas, charts and also take it a step further by learning to use the Data
Analysis Add-in. Once you are satisfied with your capabilities with spreadsheet
Software.
Next up, you should move on to learn how to use actual Data Visualization
software such as PowerBI or Tableau, learn to build dashboards and create
amazing visualizations. After that you can take a step into Programming in Data
Analysis by learning SQL, Python and R, these are the basic programming
languages you need to become a data analyst. Lastly I recommend connecting
yourself and by joining communities and social media platforms which will help
you grow and enable you meet likeminded people you can rely on when you get
stuck whenever you’re working on a project
FAQ
1. Do I need to be a mathematical/statistical genius to become an analyst?
Ans. No! you do not, all you need to get started is the zeal and enthusiasm to learn
and maybe I bit of basic knowledge in Math and you’re all set to go.

2. Is there a definite roadmap to become a Data analyst?

 Ans: There is no definite roadmap to becoming a Data Analyst but there are some
key milestones you have to cross when moving towards your goal of becoming a
data analyst

3. I am bad at Numbers but I want to become a data analyst, is this an

achievable goal?
Ans: Yeah it is very much an achievable goal, in the data field there are tons of other
jobs you can do without necessarily doing a lot of math but basic knowledge of some
sort is required

4. What do I need to become a data analyst?

Ans; Becoming a Data Analyst requires you to have Knowledge in Mathematics/
Statistics, Database Management and a few Programming Languages such as
Python, Structured Query Language, etc.

Conclusion
Hopefully if you’re seeking to enter this field, you are passionate about data. In addition to
sharing your portfolio, you should join Communities and network with pros and fellow newbies
in data analytics. Learn to use Spreadsheet software as a data analyst and sharpen all your skills
used in both quantitative and qualitative analysis. Start Working on projects and in no time I
promise you’ll become a pro and natural at data analysis.
I hope this article has been quite enlightening, and you’ll be able to start your analysis
journey.