For those transitioning careers, how do you know when is actually enough to start applying?
I am a DA and have been trying to pivot into DS, and I feel messy.
One week I’m reviewing hypothesis testing and A/B testing. Then I switch to Python and sklearn projects. Then I read interview posts and suddenly feel like I should be doing more SQL, more ML theory, more product case practice, maybe even LeetCode. At this point my prep has started to feel less like a plan and more like me rotating between topics hoping it somehow adds up. I do have a good analytics foundation already from work (as far as I'm concerned), so I’m not starting from zero. I’ve also been using Claude and Beyz coding assistant sometimes when I get stuck or want to sanity-check my thinking on coding and model-related questions. But I still can’t tell whether I’m building real readiness or just staying busy.
How did you decide you were ready enough to apply? Was there a small set of topics that mattered much more than the rest?