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        I grew up watching Sesame Street and one of the popular games to play on the show was one of these things is not like the others (video clip).  I would take pride in being able to spot which item was different than the others.  Poor "Mattrix", I was an easily amused little boy.

        Any ways, the point is that one thing is not necessarily like the other.  The "thing" that I am referring to is you, your hobbies or even your profession.  Below are two examples that I will use to clarify what I mean; hopefully.

Example #1: Music
        My buddy, started a band (Launch Day) and is playing their first live performance tomorrow.  I attended their practice session last night and was promoted to honorary sound man.  I was manning the soundboard, twisting and turning knobs like I knew what I was doing.  I was clueless.

        One of these things is not like the others.  I looked like I was in the band as their sound man, but I was unqualified and slowed things down.  The only common ground between me and Launch Day is that I enjoy their music.

Example #2: Making Money
        I recently started trading options with the goal to provide a secondary source of income.  Also, I enjoy the thought process of discovering and setting up a trade.  I use StockTwits to help me learn.  I closely follow what Steve Place and Adam Warner have to say about options and options volatility.  Sometimes I will trade using a thesis they have proposed.

        One of these things is not like the others.  I may feel like I am an options trading professional when I read and chat with these guys and others on StockTwits, but I am not the same.  The only common ground between me an these traders are that we trade options for fun and income.

The Point Is...
        1) Understand your position when you trade stocks or options.  Are you a professional and can manage risk?  Or are you not like the others and enter a trade with no exit strategy?

        2) Understand your role in life.  The people that you interact with.  Are you really like the others?  Or are you pretending to be?  Perhaps your energy and efforts should be redirected to more productive endeavors.
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To Make a Short Story Shorter
        Be inspired.  The gravitational pull from being inspired will propel you forward.

The Slightly Longer Version
        In June 2009 I was diagnosed with a torn meniscus and had surgery to repair my knee.  I thought for certain my running days were over because for the next twelve months I struggled to heal post surgery.  I felt defeated and discouraged because my doctor told me that it was okay to run, but when I did my knee would swell up which caused pain.

        This summer I read the book Born to Run and I have since felt inspired.  The author, Christopher McDougall, creatively captures your attention and tells a great story about a hidden tribe, super athletes and the greatest race the world has never known.  I encourage you to find something (or someone) that inspires you.  You will become a better person for it as you are propelled forward towards achieving greatness.

My Inspiration
        I am inspired to run barefoot.  It reminds me of being a kid and how I used to love running barefoot in the grass.  Feeling the wind blow against my face, I thought I was the fastest kid in the world.  Today, I am injury free and have not had swelling in my knee since I started running barefoot.

Related Links:
1) Market Shrinkology: Dr. Phil Pearlman discuss the psychology of the book Born To Run.
2) The barefoot running debate
3) Barefoot Ted: one of the characters in the book Born To Run.
4) Video of Christopher McDougall explaining the reason he wrote Born To Run.
5) Video to learn how to run barefoot (by Lee Saxby).

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From IMDb:

It Might Get Loud tells the personal stories, in their own words, of three generations of electric guitar virtuosos The Edge (U2), Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), and Jack White (The White Stripes).  It reveals how each developed his unique sound and style of playing favorite instruments, guitars both found and invented.

The entire film was enlightening but there was one point that brought the whole movie together for me.  About an hour and fourteen minutes into the film The Edge said:

Clarity of vision.  What you have been looking at from the wrong angle and not seeing at all.  You labor.  You sweat.  To see what you couldn't have seen from that other perspective.

He was describing a managed forest and how, from one angle, it looks like a mass of tree trunks.  However, when you round the corner all of the trees instantly become organized into rows and you have clarity.  This was the point in the movie when each guitarist discovered what their unique sound was and shared their discovery with their band mates.

This film left me inspired and motivated to discover my own "unique sound" in life.  Do you know what your unique sound is?
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