Hi,

Recently, I started to put some scripts together and run them against a Kaggle dataset. I decided to train my skills on an unseen dataset. Training keeps me sharp, and I need it to complement my skill set. For the last 2,5 years, I struggled in a small team with NLP problems, where I worked mostly on engineering tasks. My understanding in this area is not where I wanted to be. And on top, I follow this natural human process called forgetting things. For example, I definitely can’t write all relevant stochiometric formulas of the chemo-lithotrophic denitrification by memory. This was very important during my Ph.D. When did I start to forget relevant information? It’s funny to think back. 🤷

Anyway, the next question is about handling my training process. Should I put my training on this page and make it generally accessible to the public or not? Public presentation adds some pressure, which I like. Based on the pressure of a possible evaluation, I will put more effort into my training. So, I will add some descriptions to the code and try to understand it. Also, I stop lying to myself by copy-pasting the solutions from others. Copy-paste rarely works when you need to describe the solution. On the other side, why should I add my poor code/understanding in public? There is the fear of not being good enough. What if my knowledge is outdated, shallow, or just wrong? Especially as a career switcher, this is problematic. I worked through MOOCs and read many books, papers, blogs, and code lines. Learning took me countless hours, but my knowledge always felt shallow.

In my opinion, this is not necessarily bad when you don’t know specific information. Knowledge changes over time, and everyone has full-time work and social life. Staying up-to-date is hard work, and forgetting nothing seems impossible. It is more valuable to evaluate the process of approaching a problem. The first part is honesty. What do I know - where are my weaknesses - which area needs my attention? If you are not honest with yourself, you can’t learn. Afterward, when you are clear about your knowledge, you can specify your gaps and try to close them. In my view, the learning process is the most valuable professional trait. That’s the main reason why I will add my training here:

Thank you for your attention.