I almost permanently blinded myself—maybe even killed myself—once during band rehearsal in college.
For two years, I played lead guitar and backing vocals in a rock band with one of my best friends and two other great dudes. We used to rehearse in the singer’s basement, crammed in with amps, cables, and a drum kit that always needed rearranging.
One night, while the drummer was fiddling with his setup between songs, I spotted a metallic handheld device on a shelf next to me. Out of boredom—or maybe just dumb curiosity—I picked it up.
Now, I didn’t grow up in a house with many tools around. We had screwdrivers and wrenches, but that was about it. So I didn’t know what this thing was at first. After fiddling with it a bit, I convinced myself it was a staple gun.
Of course, I wanted to test my theory. And what better way than to aim it at the hard concrete basement floor and see if a staple would shoot out? So, without hesitation, I squeezed the handle with my guitar-picking hand.
Nothing happened. It wasn’t loaded.
Thank goodness.
Because less than half a second later, the bass player screamed:
“DON’T DO THAAAAAAT!!”
That’s when I realized the terrifying truth: I’d been holding the thing upside down. The muzzle was aimed squarely between my eyes, less than two feet away from my face.
If it had been loaded, a four-inch staple would have fired straight toward my face at God knows what speed. Maybe it would’ve blinded me in one or both eyes. Maybe it would’ve punctured my skull. Maybe worse.
All because I was bored. All because I couldn’t sit still for 30 seconds during a rehearsal break.
The memory still makes my stomach turn.
And it reminds me of the market.
When things are slow, when price action feels dull and boring, it’s easy to reach for action. To put on a lazy, risky trade just to feel alive again. But sometimes that little hit of boredom relief can end up being the one that blindsides you—or worse.
So the next time you’re tempted to pull the trigger on a trade just for the sake of doing something… remember the staple gun.
It might be the end of you.
Sean McLaughlin | Chief Options Strategist, All Star Charts
