"Learning Tools for Positive Thinking"
From The "Original" Mike SmithThoughts and Rhymes that help them stick
Looking for tools to strengthen social and personal interaction skills? Check out these thoughts and rhymes.
– the “Original” Mike Smith
Thoughts to Work With
Thought 1:
MAKING GOOD PERSONAL DECISIONS
Deciding not to decide is a decision to let others make those choices for us but it does not relieve us from the responsibility, so it is usually best to decide to decide. That process is how we grow. Life is about growing, regardless of age.
Help When You Need to Decide
If it’s neither fattening nor illegal and it morally ok
And it won’t hurt anybody or anything in any way
And if you might learn a thing or two you didn’t know
And in the moment of the doing find a better way to go
Just jump right in and give it all you’ve got
You might have a good time and even learn a lot!
Thought 2:
Handling Fear of Failing
We all think we fail from time to time and many of us believe it is not a good thing.
Yet, it is a way we learn the most. Fear of failing is one of our biggest “hold-me-backs.”
F.A.I.L.I.N.G is an acronym in life and learning both
It’s Find An Important Lesson Inviting Needed Growth!
FEAR NOT! LEARN A LOT!
Thought 3
Building good relationships
We are all creatures of habit who talk to ourselves. We have a lot in common regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, or religion and we must communicate to make it work.
That’s Not What You Think I Thought
It’s not what I think and it’s not what you think.
It’s what I think you think and you think I think
that tends to cause us to think what we think, we think.
I think.
And have you noticed that what we think others think
often turns out to be wrong
’cause they don’t think about what we think
their thinking all that often or that long.
So maybe it is good advice to talk with them
and hear what they think.
THEY’RE thinking just to make OUR thinking clear!
Thought 4:
Words matter because we learn and think based on our understanding of words.
It works like this:
Onboard Chip
There is inside my very head a chip programmed by things I’ve said.
It records my every thought and deed and forms my every wish and need.
Habits learned and burned into the chip create what I can do.
My vision filters through a glass, made from memories of my past.
In daily choices my chip seems to limit me to my past dreams.
It blocks new things that come my way and leaves me with my yesterday.
But, at last, today I see, I am in charge of the chip in me.
And since I program that chip of mine, I can change ME anytime.
I can decide to reprogram and build a better WHO I AM.
Here’s a thoughtful little tip – You too have an on board chip.
Choose your thoughts and words with care,
the future YOU is building there.
(Watch your mouth, watch your mind!)
Thought 5:
Our Thoughts Determine our Destiny.
How Things Work
The WORDS we often THINK and USE Create our THOUGHTS and ATTITUDES,
that build the ACTIONS from which we CHOOSE, to FORM the HABITS so HARD to LOSE,
HIGHLIGHTING the CHARACTER others see and THEY decide to let it be,
and thus is BUILT our DESTINY.
Your words matter. Choose them well. They define you for the world!
Thought 6:
WE ARE SOCIAL ANIMALS– Our success will be earned by what we learn and how well we collaborate with others. Our social skills ARE VITAL to our future regardless of age. Our face and eye contact are BILLBOARDS of who we are. Remember: CHOOSE TO SMILE! “Your face is your fault.” It only takes 21 days to make it a good habit. Watch how your smile helps others to smile back, opening doors to build a successful experience. It’s amazing!
Smile
I know it isn’t easy when things look bleak and dark
To curl your lips and tell your eyes it’s time for them to SPARK!
But SMILING on the outside will warm your inside so
Your SMILE will make another smile and then two smiles will glow
So, through life’s troubles ride, behind a smiling face.
Just SMILE and pass it warmly on, you’ll make a better place.
Thought 7:
There are many different cultural greeting norms in many different countries. In the USA, the fist bump or handshake is usually the tradition, so be aware of where you are and how to best demonstrate you care and respect the local traditions.
Pointers for Meeting New People
Always smile, establish good eye contact, as you begin your fist bump or handshake. Offer your name as you extend your hand and ask for their name. Tip: If you want to remember their name, make sure you use their name at least three times in the rest of this contact.
Here is how to greet them:
- When you read their name tag or hear their name, make sure you say it correctly when shaking hands or fist-bumping.
- In the first conversation be sure to use their name in some comment like: “Well, NAME, it is nice to meet you.”
- Finally, as you are leaving the conversation use the name again to say good-by: “Hey, NAME, it was …”
For the best handshake: Face each other SMILING, directly extend your right hand as you reach to grip their right hand. Turn the exposed area between your thumb and fore-finger (webby) slightly to the left, clutching each other’s hand and grip firmly but not too firmly. Make sure you are looking face-to-face and eye to eye. Shake hands up and down two or three times. Then let go. Maybe with a “Nice to meet you!” Remember, this is a greeting, not a contest!
Remember:
Today is the single most educational experience of your life…
until tomorrow!
Self-talk tips:
Make Good Choices Right Now!
In life we are constantly mentally choosing our next action or reaction. We choose from words or phrases that are either negative or the positive. Our emotions can often interfere with our judgement. To avoid negative choose your preferred path now before you are in stressful situations. Here is a beginning list. Review these choices and make the positive ones part of your actions instead of reactions to life’s situations. Build a bigger list A.S.A.P.
The Positive (+)
Always smile if possible
Look for what is good
Offer a hug
Always count to ten
Walk away
First listen to learn
Look for the humorous
Seek to lift up
Act towards a goal
Look for solutions
Look to support
Look for blessings
Be calm
Look for lessons
See positive change
The Negative (-)
Show no emotion
Look for what is bad
Be prepared to hit
Emotionally blow up
Move to attack
Speak only to impress
Look for what hurts you
Seek to tear down
React without thinking
Look for problems
Look to condemn
Look for pain providers
Be angry
Fear failing
Try to stay the same
Follow-up Questions
Pick a few.
- Who controls what we say to ourselves? Can what we say to ourselves be controlled?
- Are we creatures of habit? Can we change a habit?
- Name three good habits and two bad ones?
- What things do humans have in common? See how many we can list.
- Do we really have choices about our attitudes?
- How does that “words to thoughts to attitudes to actions to habits to character to destiny work? Is that about reputation?
- Why should we smile for 21 days? Does it do any good? Why or why not?
- Are we each really unique? What makes us so since we have so much in common?
- How is THIS day the single most important educational experience of your life?
- What role do we each play in our own continuing education?
And, if you want to change your world…
…learn why and how words matter!
Check out Mike’s presentation Things You Need to Know About Words
Rhymes for Reasons
In Support of Thoughts by The “Original” Mike Smith
It's Not What You Think I Thought
It’s what I think you think and you think I think
That tends to cause us to think what we think, they think.
I think. Don’t you?
And have you noticed what we think their thinking
Often turns out to be wrong.
‘Cause they don’t think about us all that often
Or that long.
So maybe it is good advice
To talk with them to hear
What they think they are thinking
Just to make the thinking clear.
Not Know'n
Not know’n stuff you should, can bring you to no good
But as a general rule, you’ll be twice as big a fool
For know’n that you know, stuff that just ain’t so.
My Creed
Today I’ll do those countless things that others will not do
So that tomorrow I can choose from things they cannot do.
You see, I am the only me there is and now what I must do
Is be the best ME I can be by what I choose to do.
Of Decisions
One can choose TO DO a deed, and TO LIKE that doing done
Or TO DO a deed and HATE that doing, but that’s not really fun.
And some can choose NOT TO DO the thing, and TO LIKE that choice they say.
While others choose NOT TO DO the thing, and NOT TO LIKE it “that a way.”
So from the four, we each must choose, as down life’s path we go
TO DO or NOT, TO LIKE or NOT, as by now I’m sure you know.
Do yourself a favor here, CHOOSE from the LIKING two.
CHOOSE “DO” or “DON’T” but LIKE the CHOICE, You know IT’S UP TO YOU!
And so with your CHOICES thus defined, your task is simplified.
But deciding not to CHOOSE my friend, is clearly to decide
So make the best of what you CHOOSE. The CHOICE to you must fall.
Best of luck in what YOU DO, YOU have the FINAL CALL.
Failing
“Failing” is an acronym for life and learning – both
It’s Finding An Important Lesson Inviting Needed Growth.
So, set out in life, my friend, to see what you can learn.
For the timid soul so seldom gets, what the braver soul doth earn,
By fearing NOT the “slings and arrows” of fortune in outrage,
And bravely stepping out in life, to turn another page.
By boldly going where few have gone with head held high and straight,
To face their fears and learn new things, while the timid sit and wait.
Wait not! Risk Wisely! Learn Much.
Onboard Chip
There is inside my very head
a chip programmed by things I’ve said.
It records my every thought and deed
and forms my every wish and need.
Habits learned and burned into
my chip create what I can do.
My vision filters through a glass,
made from memories of my past.
In daily choices my chip seems
to limit me to my past dreams.
It blocks new things that come my way
and leaves me with my yesterday.
But, at last, today I see,
I am in charge of the chip in me.
And since I program that chip of mine,
I can change ME anytime.
I can decide to reprogram
and build a better WHO I AM.
Here’s a little thoughtful little tip –
You too have an on board chip.
Choose your thoughts and words with care,
the future YOU building there.
(Watch your mouth, watch your mind!)
To Do or Not To Do
So, here’s a plan that helps me when I find myself in doubt.
I ask these simple questions and the decision jumps right out.
If it’s neither fattening nor illegal and it’s morally “OK,”
And if no thing or no person could get hurt in any way,
And if I just might learn a thing or two I did not know,
And in the process of the “doing find a better way to go,
Then I decide to jump right in, and give it all of me.
For in that “giving” I find the new “who I choose to be.”
But if the answer’s “no” to any question that I ask,
I don’t allow peer pressure to make me perform a task.
Because I know the “who I am” knows better than the crowd
And following my good advice will make my loved ones “PROUD.”
How Things Work
The WORDS I often THINK and USE
Create my THOUGHTS and ATTITUDES,
and build the ACTIONS from which I CHOOSE,
to FORM the HABITS so HARD to LOSE,
HIGHLIGHTING the CHARACTER others see
and THEY decide that THAT is ME,
and THAT is all THEY LET ME BE,
and thus is BUILT my DESTINY.
Your words matter. Choose them well. They define you for the world!
Can't Yet
It’s not the goal that I will see
for I determine what will be.
If I by accident forget
and say “I can’t” then it’s a bet
that I will quickly add a YET!
There’s nothing here that I CAN’T do.
I know my dreams can all come true.
“CAN’T YET” IS WHAT I CHOOSE TO DO!
Smile
I know it isn’t easy when things look bleak and dark
to curl your lips and tell your eyes it’s time for them to SPARK!
But SMILING on the outside will warm your inside so
Your SMILE will make another smile and then two smiles will glow.
So through life’s daily ups and downs show forth a smiling face.
Just SMILE and pass it warmly on, you’ll make a better place.
Number One Rule for Success
When Life seems like a minefield, choices full of do’s and don’ts;
Punctuated now and then with various wills and won’ts
And you’re looking for THE ANSWER, ‘cause you know it’s up to you
It isn’t always easy, it might hurt a time or two
But it’s really very simple. DO WHAT YOU SAY YOU’LL DO!
Get To
Seldom do we have a choice in what life sends our way,
But what we choose to see in it, now there we have a say.
When life is getting tedious and your future’s looking bleak,
Give your attitude a jolt through the words you choose to speak.
Changing HAVE TO’s into GET TO’s is what it’s all about.
Creating what the future holds by how YOU talk things out!
Life's Not Always Just Nor Fair
Now here’s a little truth I’ll share, “Life’s not always just or fair.”
You’ll have your ups and downs, that’s true, but staying down is up to you.
So if you’re knocked about a bit, stumble and fall but never quit.
Stand back up, that’s what you do ‘cause staying down is up to you.
Face the forces of despair and smile them down without a care.
You are in charge there is no doubt, success is how YOU work things out.
So “fair” or “not” is not the fret. It’s what you do with what you get.
The message here is always true, “It’s not what happens. It’s what you do.”
Blaming
Pointing the finger of blame requires the curling back of three.
Its nature’s way of pointing out the blame must rest with me.
Now that is not a bad thing as you can plainly see.
For if the blame is mine alone so must the credit be.
KC's Prayer
Thank you, God, for this great day
And all the things that came my way.
And with tomorrow’s coming light
Help me to always do what’s right.
Please help me walk in happy shoes
And learn from every path I choose.
The lessons that are there for me
To be the best me I can be.
So when I lay me down to rest,
We’ll know I’ve done my very best.
Good Enough
All too often “good enough” is where the “weak hearts” stop.
It keeps the very best of them from rising to the top.
“Enough” implies just getting by and “good” falls short of best.
So “good enough” is average stuff and seldom meets the test.
But you don’t have to settle there. You have what it takes
Push yourself to do your best, it’s how you get the “breaks.”
Remember that the choice is yours and you alone choose either
Those who shine are those who know that “good enough” is neither!
Rhymes for Educators
In Support of Thoughts by The “Original” Mike Smith
I Teach!
To know or do one thing well,
You know is really neat;
But someone has to TEACH you,
If the odds you’re going to beat.
We have heard it since forever,
And through time it’s stood the test:
When the challenge is to master,
Learn only from the BEST!
But if the Master masters
And had not the skills to teach,
All that they learned
Is left beyond our human reach.
The moral of this story,
You know my friend is true:
Those who can must teach
While those who “can” just do.
And those of us who have those skills
To HELP those young minds reach
Have got to stand and tell the world:
YES! I’M PROUD I TEACH!
– THE “ORIGINAL” MIKE SMITH
Yes, I'm Proud I Teach!
To know or do one thing well,
You know is really neat;
But someone has to TEACH you,
If the odds you’re going to beat.
We have heard it since forever,
And through time it’s stood the test:
When the challenge is to master,
Learn only from the BEST!
But if the Master masters
And had not the skills to teach,
All that they learned
Is left beyond our human reach.
The moral of this story,
You know my friend is true:
Those who can must teach
While those who “can” just do.
And those of us who have those skills
To HELP those young minds reach
Have got to stand and tell the world:
YES! I’M PROUD I TEACH!
– THE “ORIGINAL” MIKE SMITH
That Little Spark
What a shame that most, seldom (if ever) get to see
That little spark, you know the one, the one you shared with me.
When I was just beginning and I knew I knew it all,
You moved the “mats” and weaved the nets to break my every fall.
You pushed me to learn, in spite of me, the things you knew I’d need.
So carefully the rows you plowed and planted there the seed –
To build that kind of person who’ll learn and think and see
The PROMISE IN TOMORROW – to do and strive and be,
To be that special person you knew was locked inside
And freed by you because you cared and worried, worked and tried.
I know it wasn’t easy. Doubts? You must have had a few.
Thank you for persisting. I owe so much to you.
Because of you I’m striving in what I do and say,
To share that precious little spark – the one you gave away.
“Spark sharing” works! Pass it on!
– THE “ORIGINAL” MIKE SMITH
The HeARTist
You, as an artist, mold a bold new way
Using all you do each day
As you expose the things that matter –
By your actions – not your chatter.
You take small bits of LIVING clay
And help them form THEMSELVES each day.
Your talents, experience and skill
Come together with THEIR will,
And from this union there is wrought
A person strong – or strong not.
The ideas, concepts, skills and dreams
You impart (it surely seems)
Will mold those persons in your charge
to think small, or to think large.
You never know who’s sitting there,
Those young people in your care.
But their minds – when by your thoughts expanded
Will produce the FORM demanded,
And help them shape what they will be
Forever after, don’t you see?
When your work exudes enthusiasm,
You can often bridge that chasm
Between the generations here found
And provide a place where thoughts abound!
It’s from your guidance they will see
A better world as it COULD be,
And like the potters and the clay,
You will be ONE with them that day:
Forever after in their lives
A small piece of YOU survives.
Just as your mentor YOUR heart shares,
a piece of you now shines in THEIRS!
– THE “ORIGINAL” MIKE SMITH
For the DifferenceMaker
You picked us up when we were down
You smiled when all went wrong
You stayed beside us when we failed
You taught us to be strong.
A thousand things you did for us
I’m sure you’re unaware
But know, because you showed us,
We, too, now help and care.
You are always a giver
While we sometimes just take
You are a special kind of person
And what a difference you make.!
In this life there are teachers, mentors and
DifferenceMakers. You are a DifferenceMaker!
– THE “ORIGINAL” MIKE SMITH
The Clay
I took a piece of plastic clay
and idly fashioned it one day.
And as my fingers pressed it still
it moved and yielded to my will.
I came again when days were passed;
the bit of clay was hard at last.
The form I gave it still it bore,
and I could change that form no more.
I took a piece of living clay
and gently formed it day by day
And molded with my power and art –
a young child’s warm and yielding heart.
I came again when years were done;
it was a man I looked upon.
He still that early impress bore,
and I could change that form no more.
– AUTHOR UNKNOWN
Princes and Kings
Isn’t it strange how princes and kings,
and clowns that caper in sawdust rings,
and common people, like you and me,
are builders for eternity?
Each is given a list of rules;
a shapeless mass; a bag of tools.
And each must fashion, ere life is flown,
A stumbling block, or a Stepping-Stone.
– R. LEE SHARPE
I'm Average
I don’t cause teachers trouble; my grades have been okay.
I listen in my classes and I am in school every day!
My parents think I’m AVERAGE; my teachers think so too.
I wish I didn’t know that ‘cause there’s lots I’d like to do.
I’d like to build a rocket; I have a book that tells me how.
Or start a stamp collection, but no use in trying now.
Since I learned I’m average, it is plain for me to see,
there is nothing special I should expect of me.
– ANONYMOUS