Small actions become big wins
I've written before about how data accretes, the idea that over time, we accumulate more and more data that becomes increasingly useless over time.
While this is a never-ending challenge of data management, another truism is that small wins accumulate over time. In other words, one of the ways to combat the accretion of data is to continually and consistently work at keeping the data clean.
What I see too often is a one "big push" effort every couple of years (or longer!) to clean up the data. The result is that, for some short period of time, the data is clean, but for most of its life, the data is pretty messy.
Instead, get into the habit of weeding the garden. Take small actions every day or every couple of days, to keep the accretion of data at bay. Over time, small actions turn into big wins.
Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives
We’ve always done it that way
We’ve always done it that way A couple of weeks ago I wrote about approving memberships, […]
Are you sure it doesn’t do that?
Are you sure it doesn’t do that? Even after 20 years of consulting, I’m surprised […]
Be grateful
Be grateful As Thanksgiving approaches here in the US, I’m reminded of two words: Be […]
Do you really need to approve them?
Do you really need to approve them? I often joke that the very best (because […]
Negativity bias is why we need database PR
Negativity bias is why we need database PR I’ve written before how cognitive biases can affect […]
A system change requires a culture change
A system change requires a culture change By its very nature, when you introduce a […]
Where is that data?
Where is that data? This is what data management nirvana looks like: When the question starts with […]
Be deliberate, but act quickly
Be deliberate, but act quickly Be deliberate, but act quickly. These are my words of […]
Why associations don’t like the “S” word
Why associations don’t like the “S” word A couple of weeks ago I asked my […]
The “S” stands for “Standard”
The “S” stands for “Standard” In a conversation with a past client, we were discussing […]