Declutter Your Data: how to tidy your data environment (1/3)

Close your eyes for about 10 seconds and pretend your data environment is a home. All your data assets are physical objects, including data sets, pipelines, reports, dashboards, data models, segments, attributes, metrics, and more. Imagine what they look like in your data home. Go ahead. This post isn’t going anywhere.

Now that you’re back, did your data home look like this?

Or more like this?

If the second, what do you want your data home to look like? More like the first? Which do you think is easier to find exactly what you need, when you need it, as quickly as possible?

Working with various clients of various sizes, I’ve yet to see a pristine data environment. Every data environment needs a good declutter from time to time. Let’s explore how using Marie Kondo’s KonMari Method as inspiration:

KonMari Method >>> MinData Method

Imagine your Ideal Lifestyle >>> Imagine your Ideal Data

Tidy by Category and Follow the Right Order >>> Evaluate by Asset Type

Focus on What to Keep >>> Focus on What to Keep

Discard With Gratitude >>> Decide What to Do

Give Everything a Home >>> Organize and Catalog

In my next post Get Ready to Tidy, we’ll explore how you want to use your data and what data assets you need to round up as part of the process.