About ten years ago, I wrote an article titled “Information is Blood” (https://bit.ly/44EYStr). At the time, I was expressing a deep conviction: that information is the lifeblood of individuals, organizations, and even nations.
Looking back now, I believe that article was prophetic.
With the benefit of time, growth, and deeper exposure to the digital world, especially in data-related fields, I now see things more clearly. What I was referring to then wasn’t just information. It was data. Pure, raw, flowing data. The real lifeblood of our world today.
Let me explain.
Data Flows Like Blood
In the human body, blood flows through vessels, delivering oxygen and nutrients to every cell. In the digital world, data flows through pipelines, APIs, and networks, carrying intelligence to systems, dashboards, decisions, and strategies.
When this flow is healthy, the organization is healthy. But when data becomes blocked, leaked, duplicated, or corrupted, the effects are just as serious as a blocked artery or infected bloodstream.
Data Health Reflects Organizational Health
We can learn a lot about the human body through a blood test. In the same way, the health of any system, whether it’s a company, a government, or a community—can often be diagnosed by examining its data.
Data anaemia: When there’s not enough data to make informed decisions.
Data obesity: When there’s too much irrelevant or unstructured data, with no clarity or purpose.
Data poisoning: When bad data enters the system, biased, false, or malicious.
Data sepsis: When errors and inconsistencies spread, affecting the entire organization.
These are real challenges. And just like physical health, they require attention, intervention, and care.
Data Cleansing Is Digital Medicine
When the body is sick, we take action—detox, treat, and protect. In the same way, our data needs:
Audits to detect issues
Cleansing to remove duplication and errors
Standardization to ensure balance and consistency
Governance to prevent recurrence
No business or institution can afford to operate on contaminated or stagnant data. Clean data is healthy data.
Preventive Culture Is Strategic Health
The best way to protect your health is to prevent sickness. The same applies to data.
Organizations that thrive in today’s world build a data-first culture, with:
Clear ownership of data at all levels
Literacy programs so everyone understands its value
Monitoring systems to catch errors before they spread
It’s not just about having data. It’s about respecting it, protecting it, and using it wisely.
Healthy Data Enables Smart Decisions
Once your data is clean and flowing, the real magic begins.
You understand what’s happening (descriptive).
You learn why it’s happening (diagnostic).
You can predict what’s coming (predictive).
And you know what to do next (prescriptive).
That’s how data transforms organizations—from reactive to proactive, from functional to intelligent.
Conclusion
Looking back, I believe my earlier conviction still stands, only now with deeper insight:
Data is blood!
Treat it that way.
Let it flow. Keep it clean. Guard its pathways. Learn from it. And always remember, what flows through your system determines your strength, your vision, and your future.