Give thy thoughts no tongue,
  Nor any unproportion’d thought his act. 
  Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar;
  The friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
  Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel;
  But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
  Of each new-hatch’d, unfledg’d comrade.  Beware
  Of entrance to a quarrel, but, being in,
  Bear ‘t that th’ opposed may beware of thee. 
  Give every man thine ear, but few thy voice;
  Take each man’s censure, but reserve thy judgment. 
  Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
  But not express’d in fancy; rich, not gaudy;
  For the apparel oft proclaims the man.

* * * * *

  Neither a borrower, nor a lender be;
  For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
  And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry. 
  This above all:  to thine own self be true,
  And it must follow, as the night the day,
  Thou canst not then be false to any man.

William Shakespeare.

HOW DO YOU TACKLE YOUR WORK?

It would be foolish to begin digging a tunnel through a mountain with a mere pick and spade.  We must assemble for the task great mechanical contrivances.  And so with our energies of will; a slight tool means a slight achievement; a huge, aggressive engine, driving on at full blast, means corresponding bigness of results.

  How do you tackle your work each day? 
    Are you scared of the job you find? 
  Do you grapple the task that comes your way
    With a confident, easy mind? 
  Do you stand right up to the work ahead
    Or fearfully pause to view it? 
  Do you start to toil with a sense of dread
    Or feel that you’re going to do it?

  You can do as much as you think you can,
    But you’ll never accomplish more;
  If you’re afraid of yourself, young man,
    There’s little for you in store. 
  For failure comes from the inside first,
    It’s there if we only knew it,
  And you can win, though you face the worst,
    If you feel that you’re going to do it.

  Success!  It’s found in the soul of you,
    And not in the realm of luck! 
  The world will furnish the work to do,
    But you must provide the pluck. 
  You can do whatever you think you can,
    It’s all in the way you view it. 
  It’s all in the start you make, young man: 
    You must feel that you’re going to do it.

  How do you tackle your work each day? 
    With confidence clear, or dread? 
  What to yourself do you stop and say
    When a new task lies ahead? 
  What is the thought that is in your mind? 
    Is fear ever running through it? 
  If so, just tackle the next you find
    By thinking you’re going to do it.

Edgar A. Guest.

From “A Heap o’ Livin’.”