It's time for end of year fundraising, so you export your data for volunteers, but then gifts come in and spreadsheets need to be refreshed. How do you handle the spreadsheet chaos? Meet my friend Ryan and how they can use good documentation to streamline this very confusing situation! Plus, some good puns!
save me from Outlook calendar
outlook calendar is the absolute worst!, a rhyming poem.
consistency is everything
What does cookie decorating have to do with spreadsheets? Consistency of course! Come for the Royal Icing recipe and stay for the tips about standardizing your data.
know one nose it all
A treatise on mystery, learning, and shame. A joyous reflection on NPSP Day Philadelphia. And a spreadsheet tip you might not know you needed.
Do you learn from your mistakes?
What is a mistake? Let's use the etymology to learn some lessons about mistakes and spreadsheets. Plus, puns and a recommendation for learning more.
mixed messages
On one hand, data skills are impossible to learn (and we blame the individual). On the other hand, companies tell us that advanced coding skills are easy to develop, 1, 2, 3! How can these be true at the same time? Who benefits from these messages? It's classic capitalism doublespeak: make non-data people feel insignificant and intimidated, then sell us a solution to our problem. I call BULLSHIT on these dynamics and offer 8 tips for wrangling a sloppy spreadsheet that you can use right away!
how spreadsheets can make you a better mentee
There's certainly plenty of resources about how to be a mentor, how to pick a mentor, or why to seek out mentorship in the first place, but what about tips about how to be a good mentee? Here's a spreadsheet I use to keep track of mentorship commitments and make sure I show up as a good mentee!
online to offline
Online-to-offline digital organizing is all the rage, but what about online to offline spreadsheets (aka printing)? If you've ever struggled to print Google Sheets, this tutorial is for you. Come for the gifs, stay for the tips!
dreamfierce
What started out as a post about Dreamforce took on a shape of its own as an ode to my dear friend, Ryan.
al chet for database admins
We are in a period of reflection and atonement in the Jewish ritual calendar, so here is an Al Chet (collective confession) for the sins we, as database administrators, have committed. Add your own in the comments!
