Dustin Henderlong • What I’ve Learned: 2011 Edition

What I’ve Learned: 2011 Edition

re: Marriage - I married someone who is on the same page as me when it comes to life’s big ticket items. Before you walk down the aisle, make sure to tackle these topics. God may not seem that important right now, or where you live, or who you voted for, but these things will come up at some point. Don’t let them be deal-breakers, and if they are, better that happens sooner than later.

re: Work - You’re trading a great deal of your time on Earth for a paycheck, get the best deal you can without sacrificing your integrity. Someone out there will pay you what you’re worth to do the thing you love.

re: Art - Absolutely everyone needs an artistic outlet. It doesn’t matter what form your expression takes, just make sure that it does regularly take shape. I’ve fallen deeply in love with taking photographs. I purposely shoot in RAW so that I’m forced to sit down and process my photos before I can post them. Labors of love are awesome.

re: Challenge - Standing on top of Longs Peak was something I thought about every single day for several years. It was the most challenging thing I’ve ever done, but I proved to myself that I could do it. Sure, it was crazy scary at times and super dangerous, but how do you know how strong you are if you never test yourself?

re: Change - Mimi’s last day at Threadless is 1/4/2012. We’ve worked together for almost four years now. As my friend Jake put it, I’m now the Lone Wolf in Boulder. I’ll miss working with Mimi, but I’m happy for her. It was insanely difficult for her to leave this extended family that Threadless has become for us, but sometimes you have to leave the best job you’ve ever had to take on a new challenge. Onward and Upward.

re: Family - I married into an awesome second family. Mimi’s cousin Sig Steiger lives in Boulder and goes to CU. He’s almost exactly ten years behind me in life, and that’s allowed me to share my extra decade of experience in a way that seems to matter. It’s great to distill your successes and failures into stories that can be anecdotally passed down to someone who can benefit from them. I always wanted a little brother. Turns out I just had to wait until I was 28 to get one.

re: Travel - My bucket list is full of places. The more you travel, the wiser your soul becomes. I wear a watch that Mimi and I purchased in a small town on the Amalfi coast in Italy. Not a single person in the town spoke English. Taking away familiar comforts is a great reminder of just how small our daily bubble is. Just go, already. (take pictures when you’re there)

re: Friendship - I’ve found that there is a direct correlation between the number of friends I have and the heavy sense of failure I feel when I realize how many people I’ve lost touch with. Relationships take work. Put in the time. <- (also a New Year’s resolution of mine)

re: Recording Life - A few weeks ago I read the final blog post of a woman who died of cancer. It shook me up. I’ve been keeping this blog updated consistently for over 3.5 years. If I died tomorrow, you could click here and see it all in a matter of minutes. I like that. I like that the last few years aren’t in a dusty shoebox under my bed, or on a series of thumb drives in my desk drawer. They’re right here, for anyone who cares to look.

Thanks for looking and have a kickass 2012.