To improve my dashboard and visualization skills, I rely on a few key tools and projects. These resources help me stay organized, find inspiration, and practice new techniques — all essential for growing as a data professional.
2. Tableau Public / Power BI Community Gallery
Use Case: Finding inspiration and learning from dashboards built by others. These websites are great resources when you’re stuck designing a dashboard layout or simply lacking motivation. Looking at other people work might spark something inside you, who knows ! Personally, I saved a list of dashboard with interesting charts or techniques to references back to.
You’ll find dashboards on just about every topic—from sports and finance to pop culture and even art. Many are built by data professionals and passionate hobbyists who truly understand the ins and outs of Tableau or Power BI, often pushing the tools beyond what you’d think is possible. Links:
3. Work out Wednesday
Use Case: Skill-building through hands-on challenges based on real dashboard specs.
Workout Wednesday is a weekly community challenge that gives you a visual goal and asks you to rebuild it using your own data skills—whether in Tableau or Power BI. The goal is not just to replicate the look, but also to understand the underlying logic, calculated fields, interactivity, and layout structure.
Each challenge will absolutely get your brain into gear. You’ll encounter some of the most creative and “hackiest” techniques—tricks you’d probably never know if you were working by yourself. It’s simply a simple and easy way to expand your toolkit and see how others approach the same problem from different angles.
- Table calculations
- Parameter actions
- Complex DAX measures
- Custom formatting and layout tricks
Whether you’re preparing for an interview, building confidence, or just trying to improve, Workout Wednesday is a safe and structured space to level up.
Links:
Tip: There are often more than one away to reach the answer, check other people works to learn about other method as well.
4. Makeover Monday
Use Case: Makeover Monday is a weekly data visualization project where someone will post a chart (often requires more work) along with its original dataset.
What I love about this initiative is that it gives you a bite-sized chunk of data, where you can focus entirely on interpretation, visual strategy, and communication.
Additionally, Makeover Monday also gives you the opportunity to build your dashboard portfolio, share work with the community, and get feedback—all using real-world datasets.
Link:
5. Figma
Use Case: Designing dashboard layouts, collaborating on visual ideas, and UI prototyping.
I’m still new to Figma, but it’s already proven useful. The real-time collaboration and simple interface make it perfect for planning dashboard UX and trying out color schemes or layouts.
The basics are quick to pick up, and the real strength comes when you explore its components system and design libraries.
Honorable Mention: Notion
Use Case: Personal documentation, storing code snippets, task management, and yes—even securely saving things like my bank PIN.
Notion has become my second brain. I use it daily to keep track of SQL snippets, Tableau how-tos, learning notes, and even quick meeting summaries. The flexible structure allows me to build wikis, databases, and linked notes in one place.
It’s intuitive for beginners, and as your workspace grows, you can explore more advanced features like linked databases and automation.
Final Thoughts
No matter where you are in your data journey, having a mix of practical tools and community-driven projects can accelerate your growth. From capturing ideas in Notion to tackling weekly challenges like Workout Wednesday and Makeover Monday, each resource offers something unique. The key is to stay curious, keep experimenting, and most importantly, enjoy the process
