T is for Transitions

For the past year, I’ve been heavily involved with PyLadies Chicago as a co-organizer and ChickTech Chicago as the Lead of Mentorship and Volunteer Initiatives. It’s been exciting to be involved with the launching and growth of these organizations, but like all things it’s time to move on.

Over the past year, I’ve been working on a professional services startup (dsfa) aimed at providing data science services to small business and community organizations. It’s a cause that I truly care about and want to push forward. But the truth is, over the past year my business hasn’t grown because I haven’t dedicated the time to it. Startups are a two way street, you get back as much as you put in, and I haven’t put in enough.

So I’m departing from my leadership roles with PyLadies Chicago and ChickTech Chicago to put more energy towards my startup. With renewed energy and more focused passion, I hope to accomplish my goals and build a meaningful business.

But I also don’t want to depart the Chicago tech community. It’s been an awesome network and I am so proud to be around so many awesome people. That’s why I’m organizing the PyData Chicago community. It’s another cause that I care about and want to grow. As you can tell, I’m very excited about making data science more accessible to the masses.

I’m looking forward to what the future brings, both for my business and for the Chicago data community. Good things are brewing!

If you’re interested in chatting with me about dsfa or PyData Chicago, feel free to reach out on Twitter or via email.