Pharrell Williams - Leading By Example With Recycled Clothing

By Tom Hasker, Associate Partner, Lighthouse International

When you believe in something you dedicate your life to it... and you know this is what you want to do. It starts with a feeling, and you make sure that one way or another you can make it happen.

This is what Bionic Yarn founder Tyson Toussant did. In an interview with SHFT he says;

"Once I understood what it could do, and what I could do to make it a bigger thing in my city, I decided that this is what I'm going to dedicate my life to."

Once you have found your purpose and you know what difference you want to make, then the opportunities begin to arise. Meeting Pharrell Williams was one of those opportunities as he brought 3 clients to Bionic Yarn from day 1. The main driver for both men is the integrity that comes with making recycled products real and cool.

Throughout the interview with SHFT above and in the interview with CNN featured in Wednesday's 'Top Stories', (below) Mr Williams states what he believes is key...

"...to put your money where your mouth is."

Bionic Yarn and G-Star Raw are doing exactly that. They are backing their own product and showing that recycling waste into new materials and product is not just a theory, it's a commercial fact. Bionic Yarn is changing the fashion industry with their product in the same way Tesla are changing the car industry. Not by lobbying or working just on theory, but by actually making a practical and successful difference.

What are the lessons we can learn from Bionic Yarn founder Tyson Toussant, Pharrell Williams, Tesla founder Elon Musk and The Ocean Cleanup founder Boyan Slat. Mr Slat approached the same problem but from the other direction - how to clean up the oceans?

Legends Take Action

This is what legends do. They take action based on years of dedication to the causes they believe in. Knowing what it is that they want to achieve is crucial, because when it gets hard you need to know why you are doing it. Like going to university and dedicating your life to learning a subject, the late nights and long hours take energy that can only come from a deep place of service and meaning.

Legends Build A Team

It takes time, but they bring together the right people, who can then make the changes in the world that all these legends mentioned above want to see. Finding and inspiring the right people is the crucial step, and it means that everything else becomes a reality. Without this cooperative work, there is no substance to an idea because no-one can achieve anything significant on their own.