This past weekend I opened a box set of CDs that would be considers, if left unopened, worth a few bucks in the years to come.  

Since moving back to Texas almost 16 months ago (I grew up here) my parents have given me several things from my childhood that some would consider to be worth some money.  I was quite the collector as a kid.  100s of comic books and 10s of thousands of baseball cards have recently been given back to me.  All neatly packaged in plastic by the 12 year old version of myself. 

The other night I smoked a very expensive cigar that I had been saving in my humidor for a special occasion.  I smoked it by myself, on the back porch, while listening to Buddy Holly songs and drinking Irish whiskey.  Not a special occasion.  Yet, in some ways it was, as I was remembering my brother (who recently passed) and tearing up over stories of our childhood.  

 I don't like sports cars and I prefer my wife over a 22 year old girlfriend.  I am not having a midlife crisis.   I am just shifting priorities and embracing a new perspective.  

Life is not a packaged set of CDs, a comic book wrapped in plastic or a cigar that never gets smoked.  Life is experiencing the pleasure of enjoying those luxuries and memories.  Life is about taking the bubble wrap off of yourself and the things around you and realizing their true value.  

Too often we put aside opportunities and experiences, to only hope that we can cash them in at a later time.  As the years go by, we keep shoving those moments aside in an effort to set ourselves up for a big moment down the road.  In many ways, this is fine to do.  I am not suggesting you go all anti-Dave Ramsey and start spending your retirement fund on "now" experiences.  The mental exercise  here simply suggests that if you tag a potential experience with the words "one day when"...it's time to either pull the trigger on it today or get rid of it.  Believe it or not, there is a lot of undue stress attached to the things that you will never get around to doing.  Items that are set aside for enjoyment often turn into items that bring you disappointment and sometimes pain ( like waiting for a special occasion that never seems to happen).  It's healthy to dream, but at some point you need to move towards these dreams or start to walk away.  

If you are not taking steps towards your goals and your potential experiences are sitting on a shelf-then it's time to do something with them.  Material items can be sold and the gratification of watching someone else spin these things into gold can actually be rewarding.  Don't sell the motorcycle...just start taking the steps to finally getting around to it and make sure you stay true to your timeline and goals.  Much like you would with your career or other life goals, put the ball in motion so you can start to enjoy the process and finished product before your 90th birthday.  

That unopened box of CDs was meant to be heard, comic books are meant to be read, cigars are meant to be smoked, motorcycles are meant to be ridden, goals are meant to be chased and caught and bubble wrap is meant to be popped.  Untouched and inexperienced things will never be enjoyed.  Be an experience and memory collector and not a collector of  "things" (baggage).

You can be successful in life if you do one thing better than most.  Do one thing well and you can potentially write your ticket to greatness.  Even in a world where jobs are consolidated and many of us are asked to do more, people continue to find ways to excel by just doing one thing better than the rest.  

What's your one thing?  

I always preach to others the need to be more than just a one trick pony, but as I look at the entire career playing field, the people who do one thing really well still find a place in the system.  It's that one thing that opens the doors.  That one thing that gets you noticed or  "on the radar".  That one thing that gets you drafted in the first round. 

Professional athletes make tons of money on the ability to do one thing better than most. What can this guy do?  He's a kick return guy who runs a 4.2 40 yard dash.  It doesn't matter what else he can do, since the one thing he can do can't be taught and its better than everyone else.  That guy gets drafted, plays 4-5 times a football game and makes millions of dollars because God blessed him with this tremendous speed. Nobody cares that he might be a terrible person and never calls him mom on Sundays.  He runs a 4.2 40!  He has that one thing (and a bigger house than you).

Take a look at the people around you and I bet you can identify the one thing people from the rest of the group.  They are not "better" than anyone, they just have the ability to focus on one thing while others have to juggle many tasks.  Because they can focus, depending in their work ethic, they can make a tremendous impact in the workplace doing that same thing over and over again. 

I once worked with someone who had very basic skill sets for his title.  As far as his job was concerned, there wasn't anything that he brought to the table that several other people in the building couldn't do or possibly do better. Yet, the one thing he did very well was motivate people.  He climbed the career ladder based on his ability to convince people that they could take over the world.  People believed in him because he made them believe in themselves.   He made a very good living off of motivating others.  That was his one thing. Great military generals do this  same thing every day.  

I am certainly not suggesting that you find your one strength and ride off into the sunset doing that same one thing for the rest of your career.  There are people who read this blog who know that they fall into this one thing group.  All of us have one skill or characteristic that stands out.  Sometimes they stand out for the right reasons and sometimes they stand out because, quite frankly,  we suck at everything else. 

Identify your one thing.  Make sure it is a positive and put it forefront in what you do.  Showcase this skill/characteristic and make sure, without coming across as bragging, that your employer or customers are aware of it.  This is the door opener for you and most likely the thing that will get you noticed. Just keep this in mind, depending on your source for stats, the average playing career of an NFL player is 6 years.  What will happen to the guy, who only knows how to run fast, after his career is done?  What other skills did he add to his arsenal in his 6 years in the NFL?  Maybe he learned how to catch passes or tackle others?  Maybe he learned to call his mom on Sundays?  

Identify your one thing.  Make it kick ass and stand out.  Share it with the people you deem important enough to know what skills/characteristics you posses.  Use it to climb the ladder and lean on it when you need it.  Also, take the time to pick up a few other helpful skills along the way so that your one thing doesn't become a crutch.  Above all, make sure you don't become obsolete because of your one thing.  

Be known for something...and call your mom on Sundays. 

Too often, we say no for the sake of saying no. I m just as guilty as anyone when it comes to this and looking back (thanks hindsight) I might have missed out on some pretty cool experiences.  I try to live life with few regrets and constantly look to move forward.  You cannot change what has already happened, but you could certainly change your course by saying yes today.  With recents events in my life, I have decided to open my mind and time to saying yes more often to things where I would have traditionally said no.

Years ago, Jim Carrey did a movie called "Yes Man".  The basic storyline was that after he went to see a motivational speaker, he ended up saying yes to everything.  Through these experiences, it opened up doors and experiences in his life.  The overall message of the movie was better than the actual movie.  There's a consensus that Jim Carrey hasn't done anything great (minus Jenny McCarthy) since Dumb and Dumber.  

In an episode of the Big Bang Theory, Leonard and Penny both ask Sheldon his advice on if they should go on a first date.  If you watch the show, this was the episode that made references to "Schrodinger's cat".  In short, without explaining the theory, you need to say "yes" or "open the box" to a new experience in order to determine the unknown outcome. 

How often do you just say no for the sake of saying no?  "Hey, come hang out tonight" is usually answered with the words "I would, but I got this thing".  That "thing", more often than not, is just laziness or a desire to not expound the energy that is required to perform the task you are being asked. We all say no too often.  

If you want to change your life, experience new things and break free of your day to day rut, you need to "open the box" or say "yes" when you would traditionally do the opposite. 

I'm not Tony Robbins.  I am not writing this in an effort to be the worlds next motivational speaker (perhaps a reality show idea?).  I am also not suggesting you throw logic aside for the sake of "yes", because we all know that that's not a truly healthy decision. Theres no need to wake up tomorrow, try drugs for the first time a break a few commandments for the sake of saying yes.  When suggesting yes, that doesn't mean that you change who you are or start a new life.  Just be open to saying yes.  I too will struggle with this.  

I suggest starting small.  When the server at the restaurant asks you if you want the spicy version of the dish, unless you have a true digestive issue, say yes.  When that co-worker asks you to go have a beer after work-say yes.  When presented with a challenge that you feel will be overwhelming, instead of tapping out-take it on head first. Yes. 

We will never grow personally or professionally unless we agree to do things that require stepping upside of yourselves.  Like I said before, self restraint is healthy, but don't use it as the crutch that prevents you from experiencing life and growing.  We all need to honestly examine the things that we deem our "line in the sand" beliefs and break down those limiting boundaries.  Stop drawing the line for the sake of drawing the line.  

You will find, with saying yes, that your life will be open to new and exciting story lines.  let your accomplishments and memories be your punctuation...not the word no.