Brain Waves Blog

Batman and Robin. The Avengers. Link and Epona. The Fellowship of the Ring. X-Men. Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Aang, Katara, Toph, Sokka, and Appa.

Y’all. Codebooks used in the research process seem insignificant, straightforward, unassuming ... and frankly ... boring. It’s technical. It’s documentation. It’s nitpicky. You split hairs in it. But guess what? They are, I argue, the most important, essential, and interesting element of a successful, rigorous, and adventuresome research process—especially with qualitative work (research dealing in words and not necessarily numbers). Wondering what in the world a codebook is? Read on.

To Campus Sonar and our clients, data is life. Campus Sonar analysts eat, sleep, and breathe data because it’s the cornerstone of the work we do—the actionable insights our strategist suggests are grounded in tidbits of information that analysts ferret out of the most obscure areas of the interwebz. 

The Tree within the Forest

Some things are meant to be left alone—unchanged and unchallenged. Two grizzly bears fighting, for example. Bread baking in the oven. That cat statue your husband received as a white elephant gift that has green eyes clearly colored on by a toddler but that he has a strange attachment to. These things should be left alone.

Nerdiness is part of Campus Sonar culture. So is innovation.

The Oh sh*t moment.

You know it. 

You’re thinking of it right now, because you know exactly what I mean.