studying & starting own website?

Debt_Robot

Hi,

Any advice is deeply appreciated with an issue I have.

Since the final year of uni and up and until the MA I just started this week, I have been working on creating a website that features articles about careers in the media industries. I have a little background in publishing as I made my own mini-magazine, publishing 75 copies in final year.

I have registered a domain name and I have already collated some articles for the site. I have got the point where I feel so passionately about the website and I was about to find web hosting for it but since I started my MA this week, I feel quite subdued and low about the website.

My MA is in journalism and I just feel like my idea is all of a sudden rubbish and that it won't work. I don't know why I feel like this all of a sudden but I feel like it will not succeed.

I think I am being negative which is bad but being surrounded by all these high achieving people on my course has made me worried, what if I spend all this time doing the site and then nothing comes of it?

My hope is that it will be a must-read destination for anyone who is looking for a career in the media and anyone who wants to change tack in their media career. I do already have some great interviews with publishers who have started their on magazines etc which I am proud of but I feel distinctly average compared to the other students on the course who all got Firsts and I just got a 2:2.

Should I continue working on the website anyway and try and make a go of it? It is not online yet as I am working on the design and getting web hosting. I was hoping to launch it in November 2008.

I am doing it because I am passionate about publishing and more specifically about helping people with jobs and careers. But it may not be good enough.

Has anyone out there ever felt this way about their extra-curricular ideas? I have to go to the another day at the induction week today but I would be so happy to hear any advice today when I come home.

Thanks for reading.

Rickton

Hi,

For the last few months, i have been trying to launch a website design company to service small local businesses in my area. I finished my degree a year ago, and i am working full time in an admin role while i try to find a suitable position to start a career. The website company was to subsidise my income and make use of a hobby i had.

However, not having an in depth technicaly knowledge of proper scripting languages, i am never going to be able to develop fully functional dynamic websites the likes of which i am able to charge ££££'s for.

I had big ideas, making some local websites, learning more, getting better, making bigger sites, and eventually starting a proper fully fledged business on which i could concentrate entirely, but it just hasnt happened.

I still intend to set up my web design company, and will hopefully stop scrapping my portfolio sites that i come up with, but not just yet!

The main bit of advice i can give, is that i have learnt that these things take time, if you stick at it, you learn something new every day, and you can be suprised how effective the information you can gather in a week for example can be.

Just stick at what you are doing, work hard, and keep your head up, things will fall into place!

Emily_Hall08

I think if you're passionate about it, don't even consider quitting. You will learn even more through your MA so your website and advice within it will only get better. You may find your launch delayed or that you have less time for it because of your course - make sure your website doesn't mean that your dedication to your MA suffers.
Good luck!

Debt_Robot

Thank you both for replying with your advice.

I will press on ahead and despite the challenges, I am going to work hard at it. It is better than having regrets, right?

Cheers!

pandora205

As a potential user of such a website in the past (my daughter was applying to study Broadcast Journalism at Uni) I think your site is a great idea. We had to spend hours looking for industry standard accreditation details, 'best courses' from newspaper tables, background about the locations etc. not to mention preparing for the very challenging interview days. Are you going to include all that in your site?
It would also have been useful to have read (or heard if you are using video clips) current students views, seen some practical examples of work, work destinations etc. Oh yes, and work experience - suggestions for this for would be careers in the media too.
How about a questionnaire to help students decide what they want to study too? Many seem confused between more theoretical degrees and vocational qualifications. The courses are very different.

Good luck with your website. I'm sure there'll be a demand for it. Perhaps you could contact media studies departments in 6th forms to let them know it exists?

bobbiely

Your website sounds great and I'd probably use it for the articles on publishing as I'm desperate to get into the business but even careers advisers have no idea how you break into it other than work experience. My friend just started her MA (on African literature) and feels the same way as you because all the other students hace nice little backpacking and volunteer stories (some even have wives and families alongside the amazing lifestories!) where they travelled round Africa, and she's one of the those with a BA first (she's clever, I hate her too ).

With this website, your CV is going to look miles better than someone who sat in a library and did nothing extracurricular. Maybe even try an email to Martin about his experiences on TV and how he got into moneysaving journalism?

Debt_Robot

pandora & bobbie, thank you very much for your useful comments. I am hoping to make the site as a sort of portal to help people with their careers, namely publishing and other industries.

I want it to help people with articles so they can achieve what they want. I just need to make it work and create it now. It is always hard trying to start something when you want it to succeed no matter what.

Thanks again for your thoughts.:T

bitsandpieces

One more thing to remember is that - even if the site doesn't work out as planned initially - you can learn a lot from this: things going wrong can be a very useful learning experience. And there's always the option to redesign the site, add new content, etc. if it doesn't generate the desired results to start with...

Of course, it might take off from day one - but, even if it doesn't, it could still pay off in the long run.

Debt_Robot

Thank you bitsandpieces for the encouragement.

I think you are right; I suppose what stops so many people is the fear of failure and we all have it in us. I will overcome this.

I will keep you all posted if you are interested.

Cheers again :beer:

simpywimpy

It's a natural trait of creative people such as yourself to question their abilities. Have faith in your obvious talents. You have passion and drive by the sounds of it and a very good sounding business idea so go for it. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Ali_Hale

Hey Debt Robot,

I so often have the same feelings as you about things I'm passionate about -- usually my writing (both fiction, non-fiction, stuff for my own sites, stuff for other people's sites). I've just started an MA in creative writing and my confidence has taken a nose-dive -- I keep thinking I'll be rubbish compared to everyone else.

But I know, deep down, that my writing IS good (because I've had objective feedback from clients and readers telling me so). And I know that I tend to get over-perfectionist about my pet projects (my Alpha Student blog is my latest), and sometimes I need to just get over myself and get on with it!

One tip that really helps me is to try to assess my work, and my skills, as though I was judging a friend's writing and abilities, not my own. I realise that I'm way harder on myself than I am on anyone else. It might work for you.

Good luck with the site, it sounds like a fantastic project. Do you have a link to it yet? I'd definitely be interested in having a read!

Best,

Ali