We present a summary of the splinter session “Sun-like stars unlike the Sun” that was held on June 9, 2016, as part of the Cool Stars 19 conference (Uppsala, Sweden), in which the main limitations (in the theory and observations) in the derivation of very precise stellar parameters and chemical abundances of Sun-like stars were discussed. The most important and most debated processes that can produce chemical peculiarities in solar-type stars were outlined and discussed. Finally, in an open discussion between all the participants, we tried to identify new pathways and prospects toward future solutions of the currently open questions.