Typically, you plot your course for the day as a series of targets to be hit and completed. Typically, this is not how the day evolves. At first, this makes you sad, but then you think of all the new events that popped up which are now more targets for your basket and you are glad.
In the world of databases, the data that you collect is also not straight forward--rarely does it fit neatly into the forms we create and lots of information gets lost as a result.
My programmers have always referred to the n dimensional
database structures. Basically, information can link sets of facts infinitely. For example, when a sales database captures a sales transaction it links sets of facts to
the customer such as date, type of transactions, items in transactions, maybe even
all the customer search requests that led to the transaction. A great
explanation by Mike Whitehorm describes how this works very clearly in database expert article.
Now, while I go to walk my dog in Union Square I try to think n dimensionally. What sets of data are created by my encounters with a few dozen strangers everyday that tell my story? If you google n dimensions, with the exception of Mr. Whitehorn, you will be awash in mathematical theory--Euclidean space, hyperspheres, multiple dimensions, string theory... The model that represents all the different facets of relationships that develop from a contact is not a construct that can be easily applied to a two dimensional flowchart, it is spherical and it is not fixed. If you bring in the arena of quantum physics, interactions are more complex than we even realize. Next time you network and exchange business cards, watch the firework explosion of data bits.
The potential of data collection overload may seem overwhelming, but it is also very exciting because it makes you have to look at the potential of each piece of the puzzle as it applies to your business or your personal life. When it comes time to redo that member database and you feel limited by its contents and think about data strategy--go beyond the power point presentation that you were going to make, past the excel spreadsheet, think greater than filemaker, and, hurrah, don't even worry about access---think in n dimesions. Data, like life, need not be linear or 2-dimensional and neither does your business strategy. When you see the ball twirling in your head, call your programmer and create your vision.
