Life goes by pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.  - Ferris Bueller

I remember watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off and thinking, wow, this is a life lesson.  Not that you should play hooky and manipulate friends into doing everything your way.  But remembering that life is short, and it's important to enjoy it. I was in college when I first saw it, but I couldn't help thinking that it should be required viewing for anyone intending to climb a corporate ladder.

Since then, I've been open to using any experience or source as a potential learning lesson or inspiration. It doesn't matter if the overall quality of a product, service, or experience, there may be a gem of a lesson in it. 

Ferris Bueller had several of them, from the life philosophy, to the concept of being so uptight you can turn charcoal into diamonds (and that making me think that's a waste of energy just to get one tiny little diamond). 

What does this have to do with anything?  Well, I gave my talk today about Blogging as a Job Seeker Tool, and someone asked about what to talk about in their blog.  I just sent off a list of potential topics and things to springboard from to the group, that included everything from sharing CAR stories (Challenge-Action-Results), expanding on one's elevator pitch, to using seemingly unrelated things, such as a post I did ob networking ettiquette by way of a rascally cat. 

Some inspiration can come from lofty ideals ("Principles only mean something when you stick by them when they're inconvenient" - The Contender).  Science Fiction is a good source, too, because it takes us out of our comfort zones and into unfamiliar worlds where fundamental truths stand out ("I thought, 'what if life *were* fair, and all of the terrible things that happen to us came because we really deserved them?' Now I take great comfort in the general unfairness and hostility of the universe."  - Babylon 5).  the Project Management Podcast talking about Britney Spears the Project Manager (and making good arguments about that, too). 

So when was the last time you allowed yourself the luxury of finding an unconventional inspiration towards your profession, your attitude, your life? Inquiring minds want to know.