K The Ken Bradbury Foundation

← Speeches & Workshops

February 2008

Payson Teachers

Ten commandments for dropping the stress so you can serve…. This is a smorgasbord … take what you like and leave the rest.

  1. Thou Shalt Not Rehash the Negative Let the past remain just there..in the past…and don’t bother the rest of us with it. Corrie Ten Boom “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorry, It empties today of its strength.”

  1. Realize that no matter what happens to you today, YOU are still the one who determines how the day will go.

  2. If life’s bumming you out, chances are you aren’t giving enough of yourself. This is the opposite of what the self-help books preach.

A. Sweitzer: “The only ones among you who will be truly happy as those who will have sought and found out how to serve.” If life is bumming you out because you’re asked to give so much, give more.

  1. Collect Interesting and enthusiastic people

Tony Compello “Five years from now you’ll be pretty much the same as you are now except for two things: The books you’ve read and the people you’ve met.

architect Johnstone: (Charlie Rose show) 90 years old. Hottest place in hell for whiners and complainers ..... “If life were 100 times longer, there would still excuse for every getting bored by it.” Cultivate friends who are not bored by life.

  1. Don’t get so busy with the important things in your life that you forget the important things in your life. People are the important “task” you have today…your kids.
  1. Choose carefully whom you try to please.
  2. Lighten up....

I sent this plan to the State....NEW SIP..No reply. --Minus 10 points if your athletic facility is at least 40 times bigger than your special ed room --tour classes..2 points for every smile seen in class... --minus 10 points for every hour paperwork takes away from teaching time. --deduct 20 points if school still serves peanut better sandwiches with chili... no reason but it makes as much sense as the rest of the SIP --School earns 100 points for every teacher who’s been there for over 10 years...says something about the school --double school’s points for every parent who comes to the school for anything other than a ballgame or to complain. --1000 points for every teacher given the boot because they couldn’t teach. Now THAT would give you a score that told you something about the school.

LIGHTEN UP.... ....go barefoot more often ....turn off the TV some night and pull taffy. ...eat nothing but ice cream for a whole day. ...wear underwear backwards...will break into uncontrollable giggles for no reason every time you think about it. ....walk up to biggest grouch you know and say “I just want you to know that I feel great!” It’ll throw them off all day. ...do some serious coloring ...start teaching to succeed instead of fearing failure... ...break the dress code occasionally. Your own, not the schools. .....McDonnald’s “Have a nice Day” Why? … plan an all-out attack on your most serious behavior problem..bother them with affection, with attention, with love.. cause some real trouble in their life. (Kidnapping kids at camp)

3 things in life are real...WHEN YOU’RE BORN, WHEN YOU DIE WHEN YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN A CHILD’S LIFE.. in everything else...LIGHTEN UP.

  1. Don’t take yourself too seriously.. chances are, no one else does.

  1. Start living in the present.

  2. If you have faith, use it. It’s not against the law for you to use whatever faith you have. Please....please, drop the chains of stress and worry that you hang around your neck. No one in your entire community makes a greater impact on our future. Keep it up. Please. Please.

Next year, don’t hire a long-winded speaker like me. Sit in small groups and talk about these things… Your favorite teacher… describe them. Your fondest memory of last school year. A current student who inspires you. One skill that would make you a better teacher. Other than vacations, paychecks, and weekends, the best thing about your job. An Adams county teacher whom you admire.

Encourage each other. There are enough forces working against us…let’s not be one of them. If the kids are the hope for tomorrow, then you are the hope for our kids.

Have a great finish to your year. It really is your choice.

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