About Tim Gaunt
I think one of the hardest subjects to write about is yourself, I know some people can talk all day but finding something interesting and relevant to write is, well, difficult but here’s my (first) shot.
First and foremost I am a developer, it’s what I love doing and I get a real buzz from creating something new. Secondly I own and run The Site Doctor –a West Midlands based web design and development company.
Contact Details
Tim Gaunt
Owner
The Site Doctor
68 Campbell St
Brockmoor
Brierley Hill
West Midlands
United Kingdom
DY5 3YD
timgaunt@gmail.com
+44 (0)121 31 45 374
A Little History
I’ve been involved in web development for many years now, I originally setup a company called WebTech Web Design (WebTech Web Design on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine) with a friend Rich Davies, it wasn’t a high earner by any stretch of the imagination but it gave me a much needed insight into the world of business –and left me wanting more!
I met Stacey Shapcott while she was studying for her final year in Accounting and Finance at Plymouth University in 2001. Stacey is from Birmingham originally and wanted to move back on completing her degree which is how I came to decide to move up to the Midlands –more specifically Birmingham.
As WebTech Web Design only had a small number of clients and was in need of some form of restructure Rich Davies had gone off to university etc) I decided that it would be best to close it down and start again when/if it was right in the future.
After moving up to Birmingham near the end of 2001 I got a job working at the University Hospital of Birmingham NHS Foundation trust (UHB) (what a mouthful!) where I managed Galaxy -a theatre (surgery not acting) Information System from iSoft (who were Sanderson Software and then subsequently Civica at the time) across the two sites (Selly Oak and the Queen Elizabeth). I worked the role for 18 months while I was working out the finer points of The Site Doctor. Before taking the leap from full-time employment to full-time self-employment I had to work both jobs to ensure I was meeting the targets I had setup (see: Business Start-up Advice). It was a pretty tiring period but as I’m still going it was clearly worth it!
I officially left the UHB in April 2003 to run The Site Doctor and I can honestly say it’s been one of the greatest experiences of my life –some of the best (and worst) times. If you want to know what’s happening with The Site Doctor, check out the main site –at the time of writing this it’s being re-designed so hopefully it’ll be complete by the time you’re reading this.
As for how I got to where I am now, ignoring the hard work and element of luck, I feel I owe much of where I am to two people –Stacey my lovely fiancée who has supported me throughout no matter what, simply always wanting what was best for us and also for having the foresight to see that it really could work. Stacey was also one of the prime instigators in making me “take the leap” and for that I thank her dearly. The other person is a dear friend of mine, Paul Rose. Not only has he let me (perhaps unknowingly!) post numerous photos of him on my photo album to drum up hits on the site, but he has also been a great support and advisor to me for many years –I think it’s going on over 10 years now! I truly believe that if it wasn’t for Paul’s input over the years I would have gone off the rails a long time ago.
I can without a doubt attribute most of where I am now to Paul (and that is a good thing atm!) as when setting out, he offered a sensible ear and many wise words of advice, which was very reassuring seeing as there were many people advising me not to do it as it was “a big risk” etc. More than that, I would say Paul is entirely to thank for Stacey and I meeting and so putting me in a position to even consider running my own business as he talked through the option of not going to university with a very open mind. Had I not had that input during my year off I honestly believe I would be in a very different place to the one I am in now.
The Mug Shot
What’s with my avatar* (a.k.a. the mug shot)? Well it was just some fun! A while ago when we were down in Cornwall Mum had just bought a new fire glove (we’re still running on coal down there) and while working with the fire I picked up my mug and had a sip. My good friend Dean happened to be around and thought it was most amusing I was drinking from a small mug with a large glove –hence the mug shot!
The new mug shot is thanks to Stacey –I’m a great tea drinker, I drink at least 6 mugs of tea a day so when she saw this HUGE mug she had to get it for me! Check out the stats on the mug
*A graphical image of a user used in chat applications intended to make the computing environment a more friendly place.
Where you can find me
My Friends Network
My Professional Network
About the blog
This blog's template is adapted from the design by Arcsin "Beautiful Day" you can download the original template from Open Web Design. The blog is running on an adapted version of newtelligence dasBlog 1.9.6264.0 and I'm sure I'll continue tweaking further until they launch a new version.
Many of the icons featured on this blog are from the FamFamFam silk icon collection v1.3 which have to be one of my favourite icon sets ever.
The Site Doctor host and manage this blog so it's worth giving them a shout, The Site Doctor is a West Midlands based web design and development company that I run, if you would like more information about The Site Doctor, please visit the website at www.thesitedoctor.co.uk
I'm affraid I'm a firm beleiver in self-promotion so I'm going to use this blog as a form of promoting myself and my business web design and development company The Site Doctor so apologies if the links are obtrusive but I’ll try and ensure they’re subtle –but hey, there’s nothing like pimping yourself a little eh Doug ;)