Don’t be perfect. Make something.

I discovered Dustin's story during a tough week. I was overwhelmed. Watching his journey from broke to product site owner of the popular RetroSupply.co, was staggering and exactly what I needed to hear. There's parts of his tough period that were uncannily similar. He was in a startup without a normal wage. Initially I thought he had around $30k of debt (slightly less than mine) but rewatching his story, it racked up to $50k (slightly more than mine). Dustin's story has touched a really raw part in me. Hearing how he had the bravery and tenacity to start Retro Designs under this kind of pressure, has undoubtedly been a factor in getting back on my feet after dealing with a work-life melt down.

He shares with a level of honesty, that's at times beautiful and searing. 5 years before RetroSupply's success, Dustin was in a start up earning $0 and having frequent thoughts about whether he even cut the grade as a designer. His father had passed away, he was living at his grandmother's and drinking. Just hearing about this, and the times I was under crazy pressure, plus consuming a lot of alcohol, made me realise even in extreme situations, you're not out on your own. My heart was melting as his story unfolded.

The tipping point came when he found out his wife was expecting their baby girl. He describes this moment as being 30 seconds of joy, followed by the weight of responsibility setting in, and realising where things had landed with work, debt and drinking playing into this. One of my favourite moments was this huge realisation, "sometimes when you're desperate, you do really crazy shit. I didn't care what designers thought anymore. I really cared about providing for my daughter." Hearing that, for me, was like someone unlocking a huge amount of freedom, creativity and dare I say, permission, to just stop hanging back. My question became, how does creativity solve the problems I have… a big debt? Feeling on a hamster wheel with clients? Not knowing how I would provide for my old age? Difficult questions, but ones surely creativity + bravery could tackle head on.

Thank you sooo much, if you get time to read this today @thisisdustinlee 🙏🏻🧡💛