I’ve owned this domain since 2008. I originally purchased this domain with the intent of expanding Paleolithic Films into a professional video production service. But, considering that I was just 16 at the time; I still had a lot to learn before this could become a reality.
This website remained a testing ground, I used it to publish class projects, blog my thoughts, host podcasts and general experimentation. I recognize that if I hadn’t purchased this domain 8 years ago (at the time of writing this), I would not have learned about web development and marketing.
You do not need to know the reason you’re doing something. You just need to do it. Learn something, for no reason at all. That’s what I did with this site. I’ve struggled for many years to decide what the point of it was. Needless to say, my old high school history teacher is doing the same.
His blog exists just because. Now I won’t reveal his actual name, I think that’s the point of having a pen name. But, in the process of writing his posts, I’m sure he’s learned a little about web development and maybe about himself. I know I learn about myself each time I write something out.
The name of this website came before there was an actual purpose for it. And after some thinking I’ve decided to turn it into an unabridged portfolio. I already have a few portfolios online, but I go through periods where I don’t think my work is good enough to be published; so I take some pieces down.
If you’re always taking your work down and replacing it with something new; you’ll forget how you got to now. Remembering the journey is just as important as the destination. This site helps me remember what it was like to run around with a Hi8 camcorder. It reminds me that I wasn’t always this polished as an editor as I am now. Makes me appreciate my skills a little more.
An unabridged portfolio also helps prove that I have the years of experience I claim to have on my resume. In some cases, it makes me mindful that I’ve been selling myself short. That’s the real reason to create one. When you look at your resume and give yourself credit for 2 years of video editing experience, when you’ve been editing videos since you were 16; you do a little math and realize it’s been 10 years!
How about that, 10 years of X or Y. This is what my work used to look like, this is what it looks like now. What a difference between the two. That moment when you realize this is the moment you recognize the importance of an unabridged portfolio. Besides that, you’re learning how to maintain a website and perfect your SEO.
The reason I am writing about this process is simply to improve my skills as a writer. I installed a plugin that scores the density of my paragraphs and the complexity of my word choices. I have some work to do in both departments.