I wouldn't call him stubborn or hard headed. He sounds smart as hell to me- he's got you trained. You shake hands, you spin, and I bet he can get you to speak too - and all he has to do is put his paw on you.

Yep, smart as hell.

Ditto with Kelly!
To me, hard headed/stubborn tells me the dog is confused and not completely sure of what your asking from the dog.
To many folks rationalize human emotions in a dog.

Great advice! Thanks everyone!!

Oh my gosh! Kelly, you just had me rolling!!!

 Quote: Cathy Goessman

Oh boy is he having fun with you! Pawing = interaction. It's going to take awhile to undo that association.

Paws on people needs to turn into a pause button. You want a treat? Paw better come off me. Want your dinner? Not while that paw is on me. Petting? Paws on the floor.

If your pup has a solid understanding of marker training maybe you could teach him some paw based behaviors at a time when he's not already pawing you? Once something is put on cue the dog knows that without the cue no reward is coming. Maybe do a foot target/station? Just some ideas to put those paws to work.

I'm eating up this thread with a spoon THANK YOU everyone for posting various twists on very similar advice !!!

In my many decades of past dog ownership, I've always started with a baby pup, and have never had any difficulty being "stern & strict" (not harsh or unfair) with successfully training Basic Respect for Humans 101 -- But now I've suddenly adopted an 18 month old rescue Doberman who puts Super-Glue & Velcro to SHAME in her desparate insistence upon attention, Contact and ENGAGEMENT...

Although my mind knows the right techniques to follow, my heart suffers from "oh, this poor neglected, abandoned little doggie" syndrome that has turned me into a Mushy Pushover which does neither my new K9 companion nor myself much good (SIGH) -- Having admitted this, I've also seen that continually persisting in IGNORING frantic & frenetic Unwanted behavior, while REWARDING calm-quiet-relaxed Desired behavior has been paying off more & more & more Consistently !!! Indeed, she is smart as a whip, and has been quickly learning what pleases me AND also meets her own needs too...

Coincidentally, simply WEARING a "magical miracle" prong collar has likewise Worked Wonders as well -- I never even apply any leash-corrections with it, since just having it ON self-extinguishes 99% of her pushy jumping up, pawing/clawing & rambunctiousness, for whatever reason (Go Figure) LOL ... Oh, and did I mention HOURS of Draining Exercise ???