Me and my Social Capital – Reflections of a Data Scientist

Questioning Existing Theories

As an economist by education and a data scientist by profession, I love to question existing theories and find connections and interpretability in problems using experiments and data intelligence. Today, I want to reflect on how to work on your social capital.

“How are you doing today?”

This is a question that has forever haunted me. Not only because I am an introvert and I feel awkward at social gatherings, but I honestly felt that I did not have a cool answer! It is so difficult to initiate a conversation with random people on calls, or conferences or at networking events. As a result of my lack of social skills, I have lost many opportunities to build relationships and fallen prey to miscommunication. However, over the years, I have found my own versions and have slowly adapted to such situations. I have read and gone through gazillions of articles and videos where experts have shown correct body language, eye contact and the exact right words to be used when you face this daunting question during a conversation. But something that I stumbled upon recently just blew my mind away!

Simple always works

It is important that you are aware of your own emotions and feelings. For starters, get comfortable with your own self to become socially comfortable. Keep it simple. Stay authentic. This was a revelation to me and I read lot of books, articles in order to understand further.  Finally, I attempted what I do best. I created an experiment to learn how I am really doing internally and measure the state of my mind.

A measurement question

So let me help you understand what I mean. I structured a measurement question for myself
“How are you doing today?”
This is how it works. Measure yourself on a scale of 1-10 how are you feeling today.
1 being extreme crisis and you have hit the panic button. 10 being you are awesome, there is nothing stopping you!

Reference points to help you gauge your state:

1. Crisis, seek help immediately (support groups, therapy, friends and family)
2. Struggling and I need help
3. Getting unbearable
4. Not able to cope, losing focus
5. Manageable low form, good point to keep tabs on your triggers
6. Average feeling, lean on to positives to pull yourself up
7. You are slowly getting there
8. Quite a good form, you are doing well
9. Exceptional
   
10. You are at your peak

Track Results

The above scale above gives me clarity, direction and helps me identify my plan of action for the day. I have been a 1-2 and now I feel I am a 6-7. There is no need to panic if you find yourself on the lower end of the scale. I regularly try to stay connected, and seek feedback from my close network. Now, question is how do I rate myself? No, it is not based on guesses. Remember, humans are believers of logic and evidence.

The article I read summarizes the below questions to help you get to a rating for your “form” on a particular day.

• How motivated do I feel?
• What are my perceived energy levels?
• Do simple tasks and decisions bother me or they feel easy?
• How well has my sleep been recently (read past 2-3 days)?
• Have I exercised well lately (check for 2-3 weeks)?
• How has been my diet recently (skipped meals, junk food)?
• How purposeful and engaged at work do I feel?
• How connected to friends and family am I?
• How well am I able to manage stress recently? Do I get angry or frustrated easily?
• How relaxed about my finances am I?

Remember this is a guided scale and interpretations could be subjective. Note down results and monitor your patterns for a week to understand your “form”. Keep at it until it is internalized. This daily ritual has helped me stay true to myself and improved my authenticity.

Reflect and share

• Mental health is an integral part of our overall health. And, self-awareness is key to mental health. It is absolutely okay to not be okay all the time. I might not be in my best form today and I am aware of it. It means I have to keep working at it every day.
•  Social Capital is necessary for us to live in communities. No one lacks social skills per se. It is self-awareness that is essential to build as a discipline. Social skill is a projection of your state of mind.

 
Stay inspired. Say hello to the warrior within you!
Sanjana Das

Sources:
https://positivepsychology.com/self-awareness-matters-how-you-can-be-more-self-aware/
https://www.learning-mind.com/excellent-communication-skills-introverts/
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/274655
https://www.inc.com/sims-wyeth/10-reasons-why-eye-contact-can-change-peoples-perception-of-you.html
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/emotional-intelligence-eq.htm