As a fledgling blog I tend to look at posting like a blank piece of paper, terrified. That is all until I make the first mark then I realize, I know what I am doing. It must be the same thing for blogging…right?

Repurposed Goods (RG) is a company that I started back in 2009. It’s goal is to promote the use of discarded material in order to manufacture and sell a line of repurposed products. For those that don’t know what “repurposed” means, it is basically recycling with the intent of usage. For example, take an old mason jar. People have been ingenious with these, making them water glasses, tea light candle votives or in my case a change and pen receptical.

Since the act of repurposing is a rather personal activity, RG has been promoting and supporting the DIY (do-it-yourself) industry with the development of the Pallet Adirondack Chair (PAC) guide. It was created from a need for outdoor seating and a want to teach others how to do the sale. With a lack of materials and a need for wood, the best source of material in the international arena was pallets. With these two goals, build a PAC + make it as universally understandable as possible, a graphic heavy, IKEA-esque, accessibility assistant guide prevailed. The guide teaches people how to tear apart a pallet, choose the best wood, cut it down and reassemble into a PAC. Simple tools and a easy to follow visual instruction has made this guide popular worldwide, from New Zealand and New York to old but great England.

If you are interested in seeing what is up with Repurposed Goods, head over to www.RepurposedGoods.com or hit me up. I can talk for days about repurposing things into new design.

More RG info / news is bound to follow! I have recently signed up for a PulleyApp download account to supplement the Etsy store I have been running for a few years. The + about PulleyApp, instant email of the PAC PDF to buyers = immediate satisfaction of the purchase!

In the past I have made a ridiculous number of semi-obtainable but easily forgettable New Year’s Resolution. I can remember as a kid having a resolution to eat more broccoli (I now have a great roasted garlic broccoli recipe!). More recently I have postulated that I should floss my teeth daily (so far so good this year!). This year I have decided to make 3 resolutions that revolve around a change of habit and thought. The idea is that everything else will fall into place if I work towards these goals.

Become Financially Independent

I have always dreamt of becoming financially independent but it about time I make this a reality. I am to a point in my life where I’ve realized that my family time is much more important and valuable to me than my unorganized and unstructured work time. I need to start figuring out my own path in design that is more streamlined than the way I currently work. Whether it is with my current job, Repurposed Goods or any of my other ventures, something will hit this year.

Work Out Daily

Work outs do not have to consist of hours of physical exertion. When I was a decathlete at USC I worked out 25-35 hours a week depending on the meet schedule. I was practicing and working out for an defined goal then, whereas now, I need to focus on maintenance. It can be simple things like push-ups, sit ups and stretching when I wake up / before bed. When time allows, go all out and I will consider it a treat, not a burden. Maybe this can work into my first triathlon.

Schedule Me / Family time

I can’t count the number of times that we have driven right past Rock City on the way to Knoxville from Atlanta. It is just sad, I want to see Rock City damn it! We also have passes to cultural places around the city, great city parks and plenty of friends that would love to BBQ in the backyard. I need to get back to putting things other than meetings, deadlines and interviews on the calendar. That being said, Rock City will happen when it warms up, April or May. More scheduling to come!

Control (noun) : The power to influence or direct people’s behavior or the course of events.

Thanksgiving is usually the time and place to give thanks to what we have. It is masked by a day of eating turkey and watching  football. Here is the catch for me, I don’t like turkey and quite don’t care to watch football, thus my time from Thanksgiving through Christmas is spent focusing on family and friends. I am somewhat embarrassed to realize that the holiday season is the largest catalyst to this “thankful” focus. It isn’t my own doing but that of my environment that makes me notice the distance I have between myself and my family and friends. I would like to think that I am in more control of myself than my surroundings are but at this particular point in time, I feel that I am not. This needs to change, now.

So, what does Control have to do with Carnegie & Breedlove?

On a recent drive from Atlanta to Knoxville I grabbed my first Audible book, “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. Long story short (as I am not finished with the book and have some homework to do), Hill was tasked by Andrew Carnegie (Carnegie Steel) to research how and why people were successful at attaining their goals of riches, fame, career pursuits or spiritual being AND share his findings with the world. One of Hill’s principles that is currently top-of-mind is auto suggestion, the practice of repeating positive thoughts in order to influence your subconscious mind and behavior. Yes, on the surface it sounds hokey, but repeating anything over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again will produce a results that you have intended. Flapping your arms around everyday will not make you fly, it will give you sore arms and showcase your ignorance of physics. The process of informed positive repetition is a KEY to control.

Breedlove is in reference to the viral video and tragic story of Ben Breedlove, an 18yr old kid that recently passed away on Christmas from his 4th heart attack. His short but full life story was told on hand written note cards for the world to consume. Breedlove’s story reminded me that control is not always in my hands and maybe that the control I am able to reign in should be grabbed now and used wisely. I can’t control time but I can control me.

My take away, do my “Think and Grow Rich” homework today and re-evaluate what I desire so that I can start start taking positive steps towards that goal. I promise to post a follow up soon. -sD

Bucket List Items #1 : Start a bucket list (I am starting small, just wait. It will get crazy.)

Love and bruises,

Shelton