Making research around my idea for sustainable clothing and following recommended Instagram accounts that are supporting the cause, I decided to trust the social media algorithms and follow accounts that it suggested me. First one – very useful, some great stats and information on sustainable clothing. Second one – very interesting, giving guidance how to upscale your clothes. Third one – ahh.. looks like the same idea to mine. Let me double check? Yes. The website just fully explains my idea – all my thoughts in this area, gathered, structured, organised, simplified, written in a nice and understandable fashion (pun intended), as if someone just scooped them out of my mind and put them there.
What followed was a very emotional moment for me. A blend of feelings coming and going, trying to be rationalised. Not trying to fit within any psychological framework – there were three major stages I went through:
- Shock & disbelief: Not-in-a-nice-way wow! Is that actually happening for real? What are the chances that someone somewhere came up with exactly the same idea and did exactly (90% similar) execution to what I was prototyping..
- Self-blame: I should’ve done it earlier, I should’ve started working on it, as soon as the idea came out and not postponing it.. I’ve read somewhere that the universe is planting idea seeds, but if not act upon, they’re just being planted somewhere else.. Not a firm believer in this understanding, but cannot not think about it..
- Acceptance, gratitude & huge relief: Having had that idea for a while, there was constantly something in the back of my mind that it’s my duty to realise it. It gave me so much pressure that when I finally saw it alive, I was very grateful that someone made it real – they dared to be persistent and follow it and that just freed me.