You’ve heard of oops babies, right? This post is about being an oops database manager – in the field, we call them, “accidental admins.” It’s a story about how I made this my career (as early in my career as I am, I really love what I do!) and the values that guide my work.
pivot swivet
In this installment of Dear Spreadsheet Whisperer, we use pivot tables, VLOOKUPs, and a mail merge to send top notch donor acknowledgement letters. Plus, gifs and cat memes!
pain in the ass
Come for the puns, stay for the spreadsheets! I had surgery to remove a cyst, and now I have to use a spreadsheet to track my drainage. CW for discussion of medicine, surgery, and bodily fluids.
it doesn’t have to be this way
A new motto to help us grow technological resilience. An infographic (kind of). A reflection on why this blog is so important to me. A double dose of imagination. And more!
festival of lights (or, sequentially numbering rows in your spreadsheet)
How to use spreadsheets to sequentially number your rows (x+1 or date +1) OR undo it! Come for the gifs, stay for the puns!
#GivingTuesday data roundup
A round-up of data and resources on the effectiveness of Giving Tuesday. TLDR? Looks like GT doesn't have a negative impact on end of year fundraising.
Small is beautiful, but so is scale! Or, how to embrace data strategy and reject underdog-ism
We ought to hold our movement organizations accountable from becoming a mirror image of the status quo. We can do all of that while embracing smart tools, systems, and infrastructure that will enable us to grow. Small is beautiful, but we can't stay small forever.
(re)portable
Imagine your data are stored in a database. When should you save a new report versus modifying a template? How should I tackle a reporting strategy? What kind of winter coat should I buy? These questions are all raised, and maybe answered!
How to save “versions” in Google Drive
How to save multiple versions of a doc in Google Drive... to the tune of "How to Save a Life" by the Fray. Come for the spoof, stay for the tips!
Ifs, Ands, AND Buts
Here's a recipe for how to use Pivot Tables, VLOOKUPs, If Statements, and the Concatenate function to take bigger data sets and manipulate them, saving you TONS of time so you can get back to organizing or putting your feet up. Plus, some lessons on segmentation. And some puns!
