Positive change is harder to see
Humans are wired to see negative change because we need to protect ourselves; a negative change is seen as a risk and a danger. Positive change is much more difficult to see; there's no risk involved.
Think about it this way: When there's a negative change with your data (e.g., a board member's email address is incorrect), it is a problem, everyone knows about it, and often we rush to fix it. When there's a positive change (e.g., all the board members' email addresses have been updated and are now 100% accurate), we rarely notice, and it's even more rare that we say anything about it.
This is why I recommend that data managers practice database public relations. Because positive change is much more difficult to see than negative change, we have to make a proactive effort to highlight all the positive change going on around us.
Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives
Patience and grace
Patience and grace A past client of mine recently told me: “You inspire confidence and […]
Sometimes you just have to try it and see what happens
Sometimes you just have to try it and see what happens The single greatest key […]
Training and testing
Training and testing I’ve written before that the best form of training follows this process: […]
How to save a “failing” project
How to save a “failing” project It is not unusual for me to receive a […]
How to avoid the “IT black hole”
How to avoid the “IT black hole” Going all the way back to my days […]
The “People” are important!
The “People” are important! I’ve written a lot about people, process, and technology over the […]
Always look for the MVP
Always look for the MVP I first wrote about minimum viable product (MVP) just three […]
The longer you take, the longer it will take
The longer you take, the longer it will take It may sound like a tautology, […]
Data is for action
Data is for action When deciding whether or not to collect a piece of data, […]
Have you shopped yourself?
Have you shopped yourself? I’ve always been fascinated by the “secret shopper” concept. (Maybe it’s […]