How Business Analyst's Brain Works!

Good Day everyone!!

Today I will start by asking you "What is Business Analysis?". Let's change it a little, What do you think is "Analysis?".

Here is a nice quote on this.

In my words, I will put it like this.

Breaking complex scenarios into smaller pieces, observe them, then come up with new knowledge.

The practice of this will make you a good analyst. Put business and technology to it, then it will make you a Good Business Analyst. A Good BA's brain is seasoned by practicing this day in and out. Every day you will encounter complex business problems, which make you think in these steps. Currently, there are different modeling techniques such as BPM, Use Cases, Activity diagrams, Sequence Diagrams, Customer Journey Maps, and Personas, You name it. This will give you a framework to work on this practice, to break, observe, and come up with knowledge. And makes us think. The more challenging the project is, the more you start to think harder in this manner. Hence we, the BAs, are the thinking machines of the team.

Things you should consider!

However, some of the BAs use their brain in the wrong manner. Sometimes when you try to do an analysis, you tend to become critical. As mentioned earlier after breaking down into smaller pieces you need to observe well before coming up with new knowledge. This is the juice of Analysis.

Do not come up with what's coming to your mind as soon as you break down the problem. Most of the BAs tend to open their mouth in a meeting on the first thing they see in a problem. Hence does not go into the practice of observing. You need to observe well. And also be unbiased. Because biases to what you believe will make you come up with the wrong observation, hence the wrong output. Use different perspectives, be open to the problem, and practice clarity (Which I will come later in the article).

Everyone is an Analyst

Take a barber, when he was given a task (Problem!) to cut hair, he analyses the picture into small pieces, he differentiates your head into different areas. Then come up with the best cut for the requirement and context of the area. Building the bigger picture by smoothly combining all together to come together.

If you think clearly, everyone is an analyst. A carpenter who analyses the wood and comes up with a finished product. A salesperson who analyses customer preferences and comes up with a unique pitch to suit the customer, A marketing person who analyzes the market trends and behaviors through data to come up with campaigns, or a student who tries to understand the lesson and absorb it into himself to come up with good questions at a lecture. All are analysts. Analysis is a vital function in humans that sustains life at all levels. This is one of the fundamentals of life.

In our case as Business Analyst our job role had designated us with this fundamental function. So are you good at it?

If done correctly BA is a High IQ Machine!

The human IQ comes with the same mechanism I stated at the start of this article. Breaking a complex problem into simple pieces, Observing them, and coming up with new knowledge. If a person is better with this practice, that person is having a high IQ. If you check the Raven 2 questions which is the global standard for IQ, you will see problems in this nature. It doesn't need knowledge in maths, biology, or physics, it's a master of this brain function who can ace a Raven 2.

So we all know that practice makes you better. The more you practice the process of analysis properly in your day-to-day work, the better your IQ can become. Because for a BA it is a daily task. So embrace that challenge with enthusiasm and work your mind through it. The way you see things will become clearer day by day. So you will be like Mary (In the below picture) the high-IQ protagonist of the movie Gifted who is a high-intelligence 7-year-old. In your case having the same kind of elevated view over your team's work, making good products come to life.

You are an important node in human advancement because going forward you can use your well-oiled analyst brain to solve real-world problems or become a founder of a company from which the next human breakthrough will come. As we know technology is the new fuel for the advancement of our civilization. Having an analytical brain from a technological background you are destined to do some amazing things for the world and the future. So BA's get ready in your shoes!! Preparation starts now. 😉

Think about your Wellbeing

When it comes to going through analysis in all the steps, it's not easy. You need something very important to help you with this practice. That is clarity. Clarity of mind is the key to everything. That's why monks and rishis spend their time of life on meditation. Because the more you see things clearly, this practice becomes easy for you. And you will be able to go deep into a problem and observe the pieces with clarity. That's how even Buddha was able to decipher the meaning of life, the root cause of suffering, and the reason behind it paving the path to Nirvana.

So in our rushed projects, deadlines, and stressful work times, this will be impossible. But if you want to become the best try to give this a chance. You can start by having a good 8-hour daily sleep. Then eating a healthy diet with good nutrition, especially berries and types of nuts that can improve brain health can be a start. Even you can do some cardio exercises and yoga. Try to make it a routine to get the best results. This can balance your brain hormones helping good brain function.

With that, I will be wrapping up today's article. I hope you understand the mechanics of how a Business Analyst's brain works and the serene science behind all of the human functions that sustain life. And why you are an important node in the dynamics of human advancement.

Wish you all Happy Holidays!! 👋🏻🎄🌟