Let's imagine that you've been chosen as a speaker at your local high school's commencement ceremonies.

It's not so far-fetched, you've been the beneficiary of a few years of hard knocks, it's likely that you have developed some rules to live by.

So if you had to pare them down to just five choice pieces of advice, what would you offer to young people who will soon hit the mean streets with their whole lives ahead of them?

I asked a few people this question, some friends and family, and got some good responses. One of my brothers who has children that have already graduated, had the following suggestions;

1. Be honest

2. Be friendly to many, a friend to a few.

3. Do the best job you can at what you do

4. Ask for help - you'll likely get it

5. Be generous - it comes back to you.

These sound a bit like regurgitations from a Dale Carnegie book, but they're still good words to live by, so thanks, Bro.

My high school buddy, Doug had some good ones too. He has one fairly fresh grad, and one soon-to-be, and so I'm sure the subject has been on his mind;

1. What ever you do in life, do it well. There is no reset button.

2. Don't ever give up on your dreams and ideas if they are reasonable to you. History is full of examples of successful people who failed again and again until they got it right.

3. Don't confuse your career with your life. Choose a career you love, but also love your life.

4. Don't ever forget the Golden Rule. Practice it in your dealings with everyone you meet.

5. Never stop learning, listening to other's points of view, and setting new goals for yourself.

Another brother forwarded that "Wear Sunscreen" speech that circulated the entire Internet a few years back.

It turned out that that piece, originally titled, "Advice, like youth, probably just wasted on the young" was written by Chicago Tribune staff columnist Mary Schmich back in '97, and was so well received that it was repeatedly posted, printed and even made into a music single, which subsequently was parodied mercilessly.

Schmich received a lot of attention after she was finally determined to be the author of the poem-like column, and the following years, she wrote a book based on that column called "Wear Sunscreen."

Interestingly, she is also the current writer of the long-running newspaper comic strip, Brenda Starr, as well as a competent rag-time piano player.

I think it's worth paraphrasing at least five picks from Mary Schmich's lovely prose piece, along with my thoughts in parentheses;

1. Don't worry about the future...worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. (She nailed this one, don't you think?)

2. Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. (Excellent!)

3. Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone. (Painfully true.)

4. Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

5. Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth. (Perfect.)

I would be remiss if I didn't offer some of the tips I've learned over the years, so here goes:

1. Graduation day is a good day. Your family is very proud of you. Now is a great time to ask them for some money.

2. If at first you don't succeed, just do what your mother told you.

3. Be nice to nerds, there is a very real chance that you will eventually work for one.

4. Never ask a barber whether you need a haircut.

5. Don't feel bad if you forget a few things you learned. As the renowned poet W.H. Auden famously penned, "A professor is someone who talks in someone else's sleep."