0:00 The data analytics job market has collapsed and not for the reason you might think. Everybody's blaming AI and competition, but that's not the entire problem. The truth is much worse. And the people at the top, they don't want you to know about this stuff. But here's the crazy part, right? So, even as jobs disappear, beginners are still landing data analyst roles, even remote, by doing something different. The year is 2021 and Google just launched its first data analytics certificate. Learning has changed forever, they say, and thousands of people enrolled to prepare for their new careers. But some people are panicking, saying, "Google, do you realize what you've just done?" And they were right. Because since that day, data analytics has never been the same. Now look,
0:45 Google had good intentions. They launched their course to bring more talent into the field because universities weren't giving people the right skills. So, Google came to the rescue. But then it suddenly went way too far and other companies started to join the game. They launched courses, boot camps, and they all promised to make you a data analyst. The promises got more and more extreme. And at first, it was get a data analyst job in 6 to 12 months if you're good at it. And then it was do it in four months and 3 months without a degree, without experience, without anything, without a brain. And suddenly a niche filled with data nerds became very mainstream. And it brought us to today with tutorials on YouTube how to work 2 hours a day in Bali as a data analyst, working from the beach, earning six figures, living the life
1:32 because everybody now wanted to become a data analyst. But what's the reality actually like? Well, surprise, surprise, people had very unreal expectations. hearing lies about this perfect career for beginners. And here's the first problem, guys. So, remember that everybody has incentives. I'm talking about companies, core sellers, and influencers. And people whose entire YouTube channel is all about analytics have no reason to tell you the truth whatsoever. They're always going to say that data analytics is the best career, that it's the way for success. Even my own videos and partnerships would perform a lot better if I just kept my mouth shut. And that's a problem. But here's the real problem. Okay, so AI has not replaced data analysts, at least for now. Even though you've likely seen a 100 videos talking about AI, and it's always 20 minutes of talking or
2:18 rambling, ending with, "Keep up skilling because I know as little about the future as you do. So, let's calm down, okay? There are still jobs in data analytics. The jobs haven't disappeared." So, why does everybody feel like data analytics is dying? Well, back in the good old days, and these are just made up numbers. Let's say that a 100 people were applying for a job, and the company was hiring three people. That means that 3% of the candidates were getting a job and they were getting hired. These three people are very happy while the others continue looking for jobs. And many of them will eventually find a job, too. But some are going to be really angry. They'll be loud and they'll complain. And even if only 10% are very upset, these 10 angry people will make the most noise out of all these people. The ones with a job are
3:04 already busy working. So 10 people complain and the rest are just silent. So everybody's now thinking that it's impossible that nobody's getting hired thanks to these people. And now imagine today when that number is tripled or more with more than 300 people now applying for the job. There are still only three people getting hired, but there are now 30 angry people. So, yes, the level of competition has tripled. It's been a lot harder than before, and that's a fair thing to say. But people are still getting jobs. The jobs themselves didn't vanish. The competition just increased. And that's the reality. But look, there's another problem, and I hate to break it to you. Most people are not made for data analytics. And yeah, I'm sorry, but somebody had to say it. you might be a great fit yourself, but people should reconsider if they're only doing it for
3:50 the remote job for the other benefits because that was a good incentive when the job wasn't very competitive. But when a job is competitive and when it's entry level and you'll fight for a position against really passionate people, it's going to be quite hard and passion always wins in the end. So, if you do want to become a data analyst and you're ready to go all in to achieve that, then here's exactly what I would do. Number one sounds really simple, but it's quite hard to do in practice. So first of all, ignore all the noise. If you made the decision that you will pursue data analytics, you don't need to read negativity or listen to those complaining. Stop scrolling completely. Block it out and surround yourself with ambitious, dedicated people. Number two is to accept the reality. Right? So while negativity is of course bad, extremely false positivity like we see
4:35 online sometimes is just as harmful. The reality is that it's pretty challenging and that's how it is. You can still do it, but it's going to be much more demanding than in 2019 or 2017. So, accept the reality and be ready to face it with all of your power. And number three is to focus on the basics, but do it better. Learn, build a portfolio, iterate, do it better than before, because it's going to take more than before, and it's still the way to go. You'll just have to do it a little bit more and a little bit better. Getting a certification can also be quite helpful. The risk here is focusing on the wrong certification or thinking that it's magically going to get you a job, which is not the case. Here's how to get a valuable certification. And it should focus on the data analyst role or a key skill like SQL. That's pretty much the secret. It should really focus on something that they're actually looking for. All right. So, where do you start?
5:21 It's quite simple. Company's priority is not how much SQL syntax that you've memorized. It's whether you can think and operate like a data analyst. So, I recommend that most beginners take a general course or a kind of general certification. But there are those that offer both. For example, the Tableau and PowerBI data analysts are very good options because you're going to be focusing both on the core skills of data analytics in addition to specializing in either Tableau or PowerBI. The skills required for data analysts have mostly stayed the same over recent years. But everything's moving to the cloud, meaning platforms like Azure and AWS. So, I recommend using some of these in your project to show some basic proficiency. It's a good way to let recruiters know that you're actually passionate, that you're not just learning the basics, but you're also
6:07 ready to keep up with any changes in the field. And then let's move on to number four. So, it's quite easy to feel helpless, like your career is like a lottery ticket, and there is luck involved, but you can also 10x, 20x, or even 50x your chances doing the right thing. And it's free, which sounds pretty cool. One way is to start a blog in any form, whether it's video, audio, or writing. share your projects and talk about it, for example, on Medium, because 95% are still not doing this. And you're going to stand out from the crowd, guaranteed. Because just think about it, right? What's going to make you stand out if there's a 100 candidates that have a simple portfolio? Could it be your unique dedication to writing a data post once a week? Or your magnificent portfolio that just beats the competition, or your personalized
6:53 letters and your strong networking skills, or some experience that might actually be quite valuable? Whatever it is, find your edge.
