[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":44},["ShallowReactive",2],{"wp-\n  query GetSiteData {\n    gen-{}":3,"wp-\n  query GetContentByUri($uri:-{\"uri\":\"\u002Fthe-journey-begins\u002F\"}":26},{"data":4,"extensions":21},{"generalSettings":5,"menuItems":7,"posts":9,"pages":15},{"title":6},"Daniel Bateman",{"nodes":8},[],{"nodes":10},[11],{"id":12,"title":13,"slug":14},"cG9zdDo3","The journey begins","the-journey-begins",{"nodes":16},[17],{"id":18,"title":19,"slug":20},"cG9zdDo2NA==","Home","home",{"debug":22},[23],{"type":24,"message":25},"DEBUG_LOGS_INACTIVE","GraphQL Debug logging is not active. To see debug logs, GRAPHQL_DEBUG must be enabled.",{"data":27,"extensions":41},{"nodeByUri":28},{"__typename":29,"id":12,"title":13,"content":30,"date":31,"posts":32,"seo":36},"Post","\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I’ve journaled a lot recently. I find it \u003Cem>mindful\u003C\u002Fem> – though I mostly use it to track what I’ve eaten. It’s not helped me make better decisions yet, but I’ve always found food is a great way to unlock memories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think I’m going to use this blog as a space to jot down my thoughts on the industry, but these things tend to be pretty organic so we’ll see what happens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who am I?\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That’s not meant in a existential way but for you as the reader. I’m guessing if you’re here you know I’m Daniel Bateman, but I’ll offer up a short background.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I’ve been in web development (predominantly WordPress) since 2014. I started working for a three-man band on the Isle of Wight, I completely blagged the job. I’d taught myself the basics over 6 months and tried my luck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My boss then knew I didn’t know my stuff, but he took a chance because, “you maintained eye-contact and seemed enthusiastic” his words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since then I’ve worked mostly in-agency with a brief stint in FinTech. Mostly in the South early on, but the longest position was with Brixton based Spaced Digital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003Cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"http:\u002F\u002Fblog.local\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fdan-683x1024.avif\" alt=\"A photo of me in Brixton taken for Spaced Digital (2021).\" class=\"wp-image-14\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1;object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"http:\u002F\u002Fblog.local\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fdan-683x1024.avif 683w, http:\u002F\u002Fblog.local\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fdan-200x300.avif 200w, http:\u002F\u002Fblog.local\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fdan-768x1152.avif 768w, http:\u002F\u002Fblog.local\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fdan.avif 939w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \u002F>\u003Cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A photo of me in Brixton taken for Spaced Digital (2021).\u003C\u002Ffigcaption>\u003C\u002Ffigure>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They sadly went bust at the start of 2026. I was of course made redundant and so I decided to do the thing I’d been putting off out of fear for a long time – going freelance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It’s been a journey. I have it in my head most of us make the decision to go freelance and then plan for it over a year or two. Spend some time building a network and then jumping into it when we know we’ve got some clients. \u003Cbr>I’ve less jumped and more nose-dived into it! It’s been tricky managing networking and trying to make a living at the same time but it’s been very liberating, if scary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can find my work \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fdanielbtmn.xyz\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\u002F\u002Fdanielbtmn.xyz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Today’s desert island disc is, The Partisan by Leonard Cohen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Ciframe allow=\"autoplay *; encrypted-media *; fullscreen *; clipboard-write\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"175\" style=\"width:100%;max-width:660px;overflow:hidden;border-radius:10px;\" sandbox=\"allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation\" src=\"https:\u002F\u002Fembed.music.apple.com\u002Fgb\u002Fsong\u002Fthe-partisan\u002F185985710\">\u003C\u002Fiframe>\n","2026-08-14T16:39:24",{"audioUrl":33},{"node":34},{"mediaItemUrl":35},"http:\u002F\u002Fblog.local\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fthe-journey-begins.m4a",{"title":37,"metaDesc":38,"opengraphTitle":37,"opengraphDescription":39,"opengraphImage":40},"The journey begins | Daniel Bateman","","I’ve journaled a lot recently. I find it mindful – though I mostly use it to track what I’ve eaten. It’s not helped me make better decisions yet, but I’ve always found food is a great way to unlock memories. I think I’m going to use this blog as a space to jot down my […]",null,{"debug":42},[43],{"type":24,"message":25},1787925194828]