In data analytics there are 3 stages 1. Pre work 2. The work 3. Post work Almost all content produced is about #2 - the work. While this is critical, without being competent in the other areas you will severely limit your impact and enjoyment of working in data analytics.
What is pre work? Pre work includes things like requirements gathering, prioritisation, and expectation management. It may even include a rough plan on how to approach the particular project or piece of work. This is important because it allows you to fundamentally understand the problem, meaning you can work around any blockers that arise end stilled up at the desired place. It also allows you to apply your effort to the places that you think have the biggest impact. All while keeping your business partners up to date with timelines and progress
What is the work? This is everything hands on tools collecting and slicing and dicing data to creating visualisations. Excel, SQL, GA4, BigQuery, Snowflake, pandas, tidyverse, duckdb, powerbi, D3, spark etc are all included in the work. The process of turning data into information and wisdom.