When I first discovered Tableau I didn’t realise how big it was and definitely didn’t realise there was such a thing as the ‘Tableau Community’. Once I got myself on Twitter a few years ago and started to follow other Tableau users I realised how much I had been missing out on. Before this I had spent the first couple of years of my Tableau journey mainly googling my way through and relying on the contacts I had made at the annual Tableau conferences that I attended.
I am absolutely sure if I had known there was a whole world of Tableau fanatics out there that were always willing to support others I am positive I would have accelerated my learning. With that in mind I was keen to share my top tips to any Tableau newbies out there.
Number One – Get yourself on Twitter!
If you not already I would highly recommend joining Twitter and following the Tableau community and initiatives. This has been an absolute game changer for me. I was always sceptical about being on yet another social media platform to connect with ‘friends’ and follow celebs. So I don’t do that; I only use Twitter for work related content and stick to following data people (or NHS people).
I love twitter because it doesn’t take long to scan through posts and grab some quick ideas. Again this is a great way of expanding your network and learn from others.
Number Two – Register and attend your local Tableau user group
The user groups are a perfect place to connect with other Tableau users (at all different levels), learn new tricks, discover new features, and ultimately create an amazing support network for you to call on.
https://usergroups.tableau.com/ will help you find your local one, and make sure you subscribe to ensure you don’t miss out on the next one.
I co-lead two user groups here in the UK and absolutely love being involved in these – read my previous blog to find out why https://dataliciously-ella.blog/2019/04/15/reflections-of-a-tableau-user-group-leader/
Number Three – Start participating in the Community initiatives.
One of the originals and one of the best is #MakeoverMonday; it is a great way of improving your data visualisation skills at same time as practicing your Tableau skills. Where else could you get free constructive feedback from some of the best people in the industry?!
There are loads of initiatives that you can get involved in if you are really keen to push yourself:
#WorkOutWednesday: http://www.workout-wednesday.com/
#SportsVizSunday: https://www.sportsvizsunday.com/
#Ironquest: https://sarahlovesdata.co.uk/tag/ironquest/
#ProjectHealthViz: https://vizzendata.com/projecthealthviz/
There is also a new initiative set up by Sam Parsons (@SParsonsDataViz) if you looking for feedback on your own data viz. All you do is tweet your data viz and use the hashtag #datafamfeedback to reach out to the Tableau community for constructive feedback.
Number Four – Check out the YouTube content
YouTube is a brilliant place to find technical tutorials or videos to help with data viz best practice. Check out the Tableau Conference Recordings from 2019 – loads amazing videos you can watch at your leisure with a multitude of topics for different skill levels and different data roles. Just subscribe to Tableau Software and quickly see all the content.
Number Five – check out the many Tableau blogging sites.
There are loads of Tableau and data viz bloggers – I recommend subscribing to Tableau Bites (https://tableautraining.co.uk/resources/tableau-bites/). Steve Adams does a fantastic job of pulling together loads of useful content from the best of the web to save you time!
Bonus Tip – why don’t you sign up and get yourself a Tableau mentor to help encourage you along the way http://www.mentoringmeetup.com/
I hope you find these tips helpful!
Good luck with your Tableau journey
Thanks for reading my blog
Ella
Dataliciously Ella 