'The Distracted Company'

I'm Ethan Fazekas, creator of 'The Distracted Company'. This adventure has been a long time in the making.  It all started a few years ago. I suffer from mental health issues; anxiety, depression, panic attacks. A while back I was having a really bad day. My anxiety was really bad and I couldn't sleep. My mind was going a million miles an hour in a million different directions. I couldn't focus, I couldn't relax, I was in a really dark place. But at about 4 o'clock in the morning, I was exhausted but couldn't fall asleep, I was sitting at my desk in my room and I just started drawing. Out of nowhere, or maybe somewhere, I doodled a stickman with a staggered line crisscrossing back and forth across the head.  The stickman represented me, or anyone else for that matter, and the crisscrossed line represented my thoughts, anxieties and 'Distractions' flying around inside my brain.  I showed my sister the next day and she thought the design was really cool. I thought to myself "Maybe one day I could make a company and my stickman could be my logo".

Over the next few years I would go back to that stickman drawing and dream about starting my own business. I had no idea how to do it, but I still dreamed of doing it. 

After trying a few different jobs over the next couple of years, I wasn't happy. I couldn't find anything I really liked. On a suggestion from my dad I went to see a gentleman that gave me a whole bunch of questions to answer. I answered them all honestly and sent them back to him.  He compiled them and when I went to see him the surveys came back with something I had never realized.  He said my aptitude and personality pointed me towards business, sales and entrepreneurship. On the way home my dad and I talked and he asked my what I thought about what I'd been told. I said it made sense. So he asked me what was I going to do with it? I said "Maybe I'll get a job selling cars. I love cars and I know I could do well." Surprisingly he said, "Sure, you could do that, but, is that really what you want to do?" I said, "Selling cars isn't easy." My dad said "No it's not, but why wouldn't you try something that you've wanted to do for a while now?" "What do you mean?" I said. "What about starting your own business? What about this idea you've had for a while now? Your stickman logo? Why not give that a shot? It's been your dream for a while now."  I said I'd think about it and over the next few days I thought long and hard about whether I should give it a shot. Of course my anxieties were going crazy. What if I can't do it, I have no idea how to start a business. What if I can't sell anything and don't make any money? What if I screw it up and lose everything? What if I make a fool of myself? But, then I thought, what if I can do it? What happens if I never take a shot at it? I'd probably regret it for the rest of my life. I talked to my mom and dad and they told me they'd support me 100%. 

So, I decided to start 'The Distracted Company', to help show people that if they're going through the same things as I am that they're not weird, that they're not abnormal and that they're not alone. I thought if I could put something out there, I could show people that suffer from mental health issues, like me, that there are other people like you out there and by wearing a Distracted Company item they could show the world that they own their 'imperfections' and aren't ashamed or afraid to let the world know "I'm not perfect but I am AWESOME!' And for people that may not suffer from mental health issues, or if they know someone who does, they can show their support by wearing a 'The Distracted Company' clothing item.

So with the support of my family and friends I'm going all in. 

Now, along with telling the world how awesome you are, I'm also putting my money where my mouth is. I pledge to donate a portion of the profits from every single item I sell to mental health research and treatment. Because, like you, I own my imperfections, but I want to one day help everyone like me, to never have to suffer through another bad day.