Basic Skills that Should be Taught in High School

• Personal Finance, which would include balancing a bank account, How to shop wisely, and Understanding Credit and Compound Interest (AKA how to not get messed up by credit card companies!)
• Law. This would include Your Constitutional Rights, State, County, and Municipal Laws, Dealing with the police, and Basic Contracts.
• Basic Biology: How babies are really made. How to avoid STD's. Drugs and the Consequences of their abuse.
• Home Economics. (I know it's not new) This should be REQUIRED for everyone. Everyone should know how to cook a decent, nutritious meal, do their own laundry and shine their own shoes.
• Basic Home maintenance: How to unclog a sink. How to fix a leaky faucet. How to Spackle and paint a wall. How to properly clean a carpet. How to hang a picture. How to hang blinds and curtains.
• Etiquette. By this I mean basic good manners, not which fork to use how to wear a tie. I mean How to comport yourself in public with common courtesy and consideration.
• Critical Thinking. How to deconstruct a newscast or article. How to tell if you are being lied to. How to understand what advertising does and how marketers try to influence you.

“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says “I’m Possible”! "-Audrey Hepburn 

Habits of Mind - 16 Essential Characteristics for Success
The Habits of Mind are an identified set of 16 problem solving, life related skills, necessary to effectively operate in society and promote strategic reasoning, insightfulness, perseverance, creativity and craftsmanship.
The understanding and application of these 16 Habits of Mind serve to provide the individual with skills to work through real life situations that equip that person to respond using awareness (cues), thought, and intentional strategy in order to gain a positive outcome.

• Persisting: Sticking to task at hand; Follow through to completion; Can and do remain focused.
• Managing Impulsivity: Take time to consider options; Think before speaking or acting; Remain calm when stressed or challenged; Thoughtful and considerate of others; Proceed carefully.
• Listening with Understanding and Empathy: Pay attention to and do not dismiss another person's thoughts, feeling and ideas; Seek to put myself in the other person's shoes; Tell others when I can relate to what they are expressing;
• Thinking Flexibly: Able to change perspective; Consider the input of others; Generate alternatives; Weigh options.
• Thinking about Thinking (Metacognition): Being aware of own thoughts, feelings, intentions and actions; Knowing what I do and say affects others; Willing to consider the impact of choices on myself and others.
• Striving for Accuracy: Check for errors; Measure at least twice; Nurture a desire for exactness, fidelity & craftsmanship.
• Questioning and Posing Problems: Ask myself, “How do I know?”; develop a questioning attitude; Consider what information is needed, choose strategies to get that information; Consider the obstacles needed to resolve.
• Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations: Use what is learned; Consider prior knowledge and experience; Apply knowledge beyond the situation in which it was learned.
• Thinking and Communicating with Clarity and Precision: Strive to be clear when speaking and writing; Strive be accurate to when speaking and writing; Avoid generalizations, distortions, minimizations and deletions when speaking, and writing.
• Gathering Data through All Senses: Stop to observe what I see; Listen to what I hear; Take note of what I smell; Taste what I am eating; Feel what I am touching.
• Creating, Imagining, Innovating: Think about how something might be done differently from the “norm”; Propose new ideas; Strive for originality; Consider novel suggestions others might make.
• Responding with Wonderment and Awe: Intrigued by the world's beauty, nature's power and vastness for the universe; Have regard for what is awe-inspiring and can touch my heart; Open to the little and big surprises in life I see others and myself.
• Taking Responsible Risks: Willing to try something new and different; Consider doing things that are safe and sane even though new to me; Face fear of making mistakes or of coming up short and don’t let this stop me.
• Finding Humor: Willing to laugh appropriately; Look for the whimsical, absurd, ironic and unexpected in life; Laugh at myself when I can.
• Thinking Interdependently: Willing to work with others and welcome their input and perspective; Abide by decisions the work group makes even if I disagree somewhat; Willing to learn from others in reciprocal situations.
• Remaining Open to Continuous Learning: Open to new experiences to learn from; Proud and humble enough to admit when don't know; Welcome new information on all subjects.

(After Arthur L. Costa and Bena Kallick, Habits of Mind: A Developmental Series, Copyright © 2000)

The Immutable Laws of Marketing – Al Ries & Jack Trout

#1 The Law of Leadership – It is better to be first than it is to be better.

#2 The Law of Category – If you can’t be first in a category, set up a new category you can be first in.

#3 The Law of Mind – It’s better to be first in the mind, than to be first in the marketplace.

#4 The Law of Perception – Marketing is not a battle of products, it’s a battle of perceptions.

#5 The Law of Focus – The most powerful concept in marketing is owning a word in the prospect’s mind.

#6 The Law of Exclusivity – Two companies cannot own the same word in the prospect's mind.

#7 The Law of The Ladder – The strategy to use depends on which rung you occupy on the ladder.

#8 The Law of Duality – In the long run, every market becomes a two-horse race.

#9 The Law of Opposites – If you are shooting for second place, your strategy is determined by the leader.

#10 – The Law of Division – Over time, a category will divide and become two or more categories.

#11 – The Law of Perspective – Marketing effects take place over an extended period of time.

#12 – The Law of Line Extension – There’s an irresistible pressure to extend the equity of the brand.

#13 – The Law of Sacrifice – You have to give up something in order to get something.

#14 The Law of Attributes – For every attribute, there is an opposite effective attribute.

#15 The Law of Candor – When you admit a negative, the prospect will give you a positive.

#16 The Law of Singularity – In each situation, only one move will produce substantial results.

#17 The Law of Unpredictability – Unless you write your competitors’ plans, you can’t predict the future.

#18 The Law of Success – Success often leads to arrogance, and arrogance to failure.

#19 The Law of Failure – Failure is to be expected and accepted.

#20 The Law of Hype – The situation is often the opposite of the way it appears in the press.

#21 The Law of Acceleration – Successful programs are not built on fads, they’re built on trends.

#22 The Law of Resources – Without adequate funding, an idea won’t get off the ground.

“Don’t count the days, make the days count.” – Muhammad Ali

 

6 Dimensions of “Eudaimonic Well-Being" - Aristotle

• self-discovery;
• perceived development of one's best potentials;
• a sense of purpose and meaning in life;
• investment of significant effort in pursuit of excellence;
• intense involvement in activities; and
• enjoyment of activities as personally expressive.

Two of our success coaches have master’s degrees in education and have had several years experience motivating young people to succeed by collaborating with local businesses and governments. They have planned over 100 different activities to stimulate a student’s positive attitude and create an interest in entrepreneurism and the grit and wherewithal needed to persevere in business and in life.

Sustainability activities include volunteering at food and clothing drives, beach cleanups, organic farming, measuring water quality.

Healthy living habits such as juicing, growing your own organic food in garden towers, making bokashi, making a worm farm, learning about aquaponics, building a tiny home, food security, dancing.

Learning activities that will help students master logic models, the scientific method, how to make decisions, mastering critical thinking skills, mind mapping, enhanced reality, virtual reality.

Learning about the law. Students will learn constitutional rights, state, county, and municipal laws, and basic contracts.

Home economics. Students will learn how to cook a decent, prepare nutritious meals, do their own laundry, clean a house, unclog a sink, fix a leaky faucet, properly clean a carpet, etc.

Etiquette. Students will learn to comport themselves in public with common courtesy and consideration.

Simple Formula for Living

• Live beneath your means.
• Return everything you borrow.
• Stop blaming other people.
• Admit it when you make a mistake.
• Give clothes not worn in 3 years to charity.
• Do something nice and try not to get caught.
• Listen more, talk less.
• Every day, take a 30 minute walk.
• Strive for excellence, not perfection.
• Be on time.
• Don’t make excuses.
• Don’t argue.
• Get organized.
• Be kind to kind people.
• Be kind to unkind people.
• Let someone cut ahead of you in line.
• Take time to be alone.
• Reread your favorite book.
• Cultivate good manners.
• Be humble.
• Realize and accept that life isn’t fair.
• Know when to keep your mouth shut.
• Go an entire day without criticizing anyone.
• Learn from the past.
• Plan for the future.
• Live in the present
• Don’t sweat the small stuff.
• It’s all small stuff.

These activities and habits will help students become cultural and business ambassadors. The students will write and explain how the activities and processes have made an impact on their lives. Based on Sterling Scholar Award.

                              Napoleon Hill's

Critical Thinking Skills

• Analyzing - Separating or breaking a whole into parts to discover their nature, functional and relationships. "I studied it piece by piece" "I sorted things out"
• Applying Standards - Judging according to established personal, professional, or social rules or criteria. "I judged it according to..."
• Discriminating - Recognizing differences and similarities among things or situations and distinguishing carefully as to category or rank. "I rank ordered the various..." "I grouped things together"
• Information Seeking - Searching for evidence, facts, or knowledge by identifying relevant sources and gathering objective, subjective, historical, and current data from those sources "I knew I needed to lookup/study..." "I kept searching for data."
• Logical Reasoning - Drawing inferences or conclusions that are supported in or justified by evidence "I deduced from the information that..." "My rationale for the conclusion was..."
• Predicting - Envisioning a plan and its consequences "I envisioned the outcome would be..." "I was prepared for..."
• Transforming Knowledge - Changing or converting the condition, nature, form, or function of concepts among contexts "I improved on the basics by..." "I wondered if that would fit the situation of ..."

Preparing for an Interview

https://www.glassdoor.com/blog/guide/words-to-use-in-an-interview/

The Paradoxical Commandments by Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

© Copyright Kent M. Keith 1968, renewed 2001

6 B's by Gordon B. Hinckley

1. Be grateful
2. Be smart
3. Be clean
4. Be true
5. Be humble
6. Be prayerful

“I think it is possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary."   - Elon Musk

Desired Outcomes for 21st Century Learners

• 7C’s of Transformational Learning and Component Skills
• Critical Thinking & Problem Solving-Research, Analysis, Synthesis, Project Management, etc.
• Creativity & Innovation-New Knowledge Creation, ”Best Fit” Design Solutions, Artful Storytelling, etc
• Collaboration, Teamwork & Leadership-Cooperation, Compromise, Consensus, Community-building, etc
• Cross-Cultural Understanding-Across Diverse Ethnic, Knowledge & Organizational Culture
• Communication & Media Fluency-Crafting & Analyzing Messages & Using Media Effectivel
• Computing & ICT (Information and Communications Technology
• Fluency Effective Use of Electronic Info & Knowledge Tools
• Career & Learning-Self-Reliance Managing Change, Lifelong Learning & Career Redefinition

A culminating activity will be held to honor and recognize students in an 'Ambassador of (your local region)' competition.

The outcomes will include their complete digital portfolios, letters of recommendation, resumes, and a new sense of confidence and accomplishment.

Compare the above chart with living in a box truck, with 20'x20' farm, learning online, etc. Almost zero expenses.

Some of our favorite heros who are making positive impacts:

CharityWater.org - Scott Harrison

EZGro Garden - Larry Johnson

Green Bronx Machine "The outcome is more important than the income..." - Stephen Ritz 

Ma'o Organic Farms - Kamuela Enos

Kamuela Enos’ vision for his community of Waiʻanae on West O‘ahu considers his deep regard for ancestral values, as well as an appreciation for contemporary innovation. He serves as director of social enterprise at MAʻO Organic Farms, a non-profit that aims to connect Waiʻanae youth to the land, while fostering in them workforce and life skills.   - from pbshawaiiorg

JoeBerardy.com - Joe Berardy Business Coach 

Virgin - Richard Branson

Twinkle Borge, leader of Puʻuhonua O Waiʻanae.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50k2nyVWde8

A courageous innovator who is making a difference in solving homelessness in Hawaii.  I decided to make one of her quotes my mantra: “You give someone kuleana and bam—you wake up their mana”.

Be the reason someone smiles today 

How Will You Measure Your Life?  - Clay Christensen 

Brigham Young University Hawaii - President Eric Shumway

Elon Musk - Business magnate, industrial designer, and engineer

We are confident that these activities will increase our students’ GPA, will increase their desire to take college Advanced Placement and AVID courses, that they will take ACT or SAT tests multiple times, and as a result, will help them qualify for college scholarships and will facilitate their chances of being accepted into the college of their choice.

These experiences will also help YES Education students to prepare for business and idea competitions (“Empower Your Dreams” and “Great Ideas”) held each year by the Willes Center for International Entrepreneurship at BYU-Hawaii University. Or collaborate with a BYUH Enactus team.

Sample implementation plan for Green Entrepreneurship's 'Focus on Your Future'.