Ask the Recruiter

Q. I'm a print journalism student getting ready to graduate in nine months. After hearing the advice from you and others, I decided to purchase a personal Web site for myself. I now own my own domain and server space.

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I plan to put up my resume and clips of my work (written and multimedia), and use it as a way to demonstrate my Web design skills. I also plan to keep a personal blog on there for friends and family, at some point.

My question: Am I getting my money's worth? Is there anything else I could use my new purchase for that would help advance my career?

Entering the Digital Game

A. A domain name and some server space is basically worthless.

What is a blank canvas worth? Almost nothing. It has no significant value until you do something with it.

Joe Grimm

Whether you are getting your money's worth depends entirely on how much more you invest. And I am primarily talking about an investment of time, not money.

The value is in content. All you have purchased -- and it was probably cheap, anyway -- is the doorway onto a digital platform. Now you have to build it.

Play, experiment, invent, create, tear things down and try again. Follow the examples of cool Web sites you find. Follow some free, online tutorials. But stay focused on your content. Find what you have to say or show and then use your purchases to do it.

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Coming Friday: She is working with a recruiter who has now asked whether she has any similar offers from other companies.

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