# Hello world

> Why I built a personal website: an excuse to tinker with Astro, and somewhere to write that isn't LinkedIn.

By [Tom Bennet](https://tombennet.dev/) · 5 Aug 2023 · 1 min read

The last few years have been wild.

After nearly 8 years at the agency Builtvisible, I left in 2020 to join Wise (then known as TransferWise). I was hired into the SEO team but now head up Marketing Platform, an engineering team responsible for marketing data infrastructure. It's been a busy time at Wise - we had a domain migration, a rebrand, and an IPO in quick succession.

I also became a dad in 2021 (in the depths of COVID), and again in 2023 - just a few months ago. Here I am with sprog #2:

![Black-and-white photo of me on a sofa, holding my newborn against my chest.](https://tombennet.dev/_astro/me-and-baby.CUeTjYAR.webp)

Me and little dude.

So, why am I posting here? Because I've only gone and indulged in that most foolish of pastimes and **built a new personal website**. In short, I wanted:

1. **to tinker with [Astro](https://astro.build)**, my new favourite static site generator. I've built sites with Hugo for years and still like it, but after experimenting with alternatives like [Eleventy](https://www.11ty.dev/) I stumbled upon Astro. I can't remember the last time I found a piece of web tooling so intuitive and enjoyable.
2. **to have a professional online presence beyond LinkedIn**. I'm lucky enough to have a good job at a profitable company, working on a product I believe in. But even so, seeing friends being laid off left and right makes me uneasy. For that reason I decided to start writing here, which I find a far more appealing prospect than posting there.

Thanks for dropping by!