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December is national read a new book month.  To celebrate this fun tradition, we are going to share some book ideas for you to enjoy over winter break. Here are some suggestions from avid book readers around campus. Enjoy 🙂

Holly Lorenz – Residence Education and Housing Services

What book do you suggest for Michigan Tech students?:

These felt like reading the Harry Potter books all over again but if the enemy were the magical school the students were sent to and the main character was an unknown nobody who couldn’t make the friends they desperately needed to survive. *Note: it DOES end on a cliffhanger in the second book and you’ll have to wait almost a full year for the next and final installment.

Reading Buddy: Yuppsie

Liz Fujita – Electrical and Computer Engineering

What book do you suggest for Michigan Tech students?:

Reading Buddy: Milano

Advice:

At the end of the day, don’t let anyone gatekeep your reading. I think sometimes there is pressure to read “good” books – classics, or books that are popular in the moment, or ones that are on so-and-so’s book list – and that if you don’t read those things you’re “not really reading anything worthwhile.” Do not let this attitude fool you! Reading is valuable, no matter the genre, the medium, the story.

Ashley Eschbach – Residence Education and Housing Services

What is your all-time favorite book?:

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

This is my favorite book because it is about the choices that we make and how those choices can shape and haunt our futures. In all of his books, Hosseini takes the reader to Afghanistan and really explores the culture and traditions. Some major themes that I made it enjoyable to me were friendship (and what it means to be a friend), guilt and redemption. The Kite Runner is not the happiest of stories but stays with you for a long time.

Erin Eberhard – Graduate Student

What book do you suggest for Michigan Tech students?:

The Lost Apothecary – Sarah Penner

It is a mix between present day and traveling back in time. So you have a main character going through problems in the present day and trying to deal with that by exploring mysteries of the past.

What is your all-time favorite book?:

Harry Potter Series – JK Rowling

Honestly, these are the books I return to the most. It is like returning to a familiar world when I go back to read them and the nostalgia of remembering reading them for the first time. I get lost in the wizarding world every time.

Last Thoughts:

Reading is the best! Escaping into the world the book creates in your head has been a way for me to get through grad school.

Leadership – what a buzzword. It’s a skill you might list on your resume, but what does it actually mean? Ask five different people, and I can almost guarantee that you will get five different answers. Maybe they will point to similar traits of a leader – integrity, determination, competitiveness, courage. Then again, perhaps they won’t. Someone else might say charisma, empathy, and self-control – all of which could oppose the other traits listed. You see, while we talk about this grand concept of “leadership,” we also know that it can vary based on the person. We likely will all identify Greta Thunberg, Jeff Bezos, and Angela Merkel as leaders. However, their values and their personality characteristics certainly differ. So what does leadership mean? How do you develop leadership as a skill? I invite you to come find out.

You recently received an email introducing you to the LeaderShape Institute. As explained, the Institute is a four-day immersive retreat focused on leadership development. It’s not a standard leadership retreat, though. The unique thing about LeaderShape is that it embraces the idea that leadership is not any one thing or that you have to hold a particular position or title to be a leader. At the Institute, you will take self-assessments to identify your leadership strengths and characteristics. You will participate in team-building challenges to experience the benefits of trust in relationships. You will work with a small group of other students and a mentor to discuss your values and reflect on your priorities. And, throughout the entire process, you will develop a vision – a bold change for the future in your community, group, cause, or organization back home.

Ultimately, leadership is about impact – how you generate that impact and where you want it to occur is up to you. The choices you make every day could be demonstrating your leadership skills, or they could be holding you back. The LeaderShape Institute is your opportunity to take time away from the routine and structure of life as a student to reflect on the decisions you are making, and perhaps, choose to lead boldly in a new direction.

LeaderShape this year will be held January 4-7th, 2022, at the Ford Center in Alberta, MI. Thanks to the support of donors, the program costs just $100 per student attendee – a cost that can be further subsidized by sponsorship here on campus. If you want to establish your definition of leadership, build confidence in the traits that make you a strong leader, and create a vision for the impact you want to have on the world – apply today: https://leadershape.org/Applications/Apply/3963.

Not ready for a week’s commitment? Come get acquainted with leadership here on campus in other ways! Throughout the academic year, Student Leadership and Involvement offers a rotating selection of leadership development opportunities – most notably, our HuskyLead series. There is still one event left for this semester! Join us tomorrow, November 16th at 4:00 PM in the MUB Superior Room to learn about the Campus Resources You’re NOT Using and check back soon to our HuskyLEAD webpage for a complete list of our spring events.