Seth’s Blog to Mine

As I was reading through Seth’s Blog, I came across a short post that made a big impact on me.

Something as simple as a couple words about a comfort zone made me stop and really think.

We are always saying “leadership is stepping out of your comfort zone”. I thought to myself, do I really challenge myself to do that every day like I should? Not just getting a different bagel at Einstein Bros Bagle’s every Tuesday and Thursday after GEO 105 with a friend or talking to different people more often, but really challenging myself.

So I thought more about how I can push myself out of my comfort zone every day.

I am starting a new goal to be better every day and it’s to do at least one thing out of my comfort zone every day. I don’t know what I am going to do each day, but I hope it pushes me to be a better person and make gain more experiences.

Sometimes Leaders are Followers

When I think of a good leader, I think of one that can also be a follower. I would not be where I am right now if it weren’t for the people who I follow. I have learned from them and strive to be as great of a leader as they are. This may sound cheesy, but ever since I was younger I always looked up to Oprah Winfrey. My mom watched her televisions shows when I was younger, I always heard great things about her, and she was always trying to make a positive impact on the lives around her. Yes, she is wealthy and can afford to give everyone a new car, but she is giving back. I strongly believe that even if she was not wealthy then she would give as much as she could. I strive to give more and take less. She leads by example which is a great leadership trait to have.

Others are motivated to follow Oprah because of her dedication to be the best version of herself and give back to the community. She always has a positive attitude and we never hear negative things of her in the media. On top of that, she is very intelligent about the choices she makes. Many young adults grew up knowing who Oprah and aspiring to be like her in their futures.

I admire that Oprah is always is setting new goals, learning as a leader, and giving back. She is someone that people enjoy watching as well as look up to. Her leadership has affected me because of the examples that she has set. She is nationally known for her television show, personality, and wealth. She wouldn’t have any of that without who she really is. I aspire to grow to be a leader who does not lose sight of the important things in life even if I become famous or wealthy. I will always try to take a step back and look at the big picture and not get caught up in the little things of life. Overall, she has made me want to be a more positive person,

Class Protocol Reflection

Through our psychology course (PSY 100L) I learned that how we are leaders is all in our brains. That can be from being born with traits, learning them on the way, or a mixture of both. There is different stages in our lives where we develop different parts in our brains that makes us the leaders we are today. Outside the course material in the class, my cohort learned how to study as a class a make lectures more enjoyable. If it wasn’t for random dancing and singing before tests, then I think the stress would have overcome me.

In our debate course (COM 267L) I learned a lot about how to make people think a certain way and how to express why the way I believe is the correct way actually is. I also learned how different methods of argumentation are used to make the other person look bad instead of supporting my case. Over all, I learned that I need to be able to back up my side with facts and show the other side why my side may be the better option. We debate in our everyday lives and I feel as this is a very valuable class to have. We got to debate against other students in our cohort which got really interesting. We laughed and gasped at each others’ debates but over all bonded while doing it. We could not get that from just a normal debate class.

Overall, I am glad that we got to take these courses as a cohort. We learned that we can’t always have each other there in every class, but for the classes that we do we have valuable resources. I hope to make even a small portion of the connections in my other class as I do these leadership offerings.

First Semester Volunteer Experience

Packing food with Leadership Safari

During my Leadership Safari experience, my group got to package non perishable food to send to a food bank. It was fun to have our group work together for a great cause.

Orientation Volunteer

During Safari, I got the chance to volunteer to swipe cards and guide traffic into the Freshmen Orientation pt 2. It was cool that I got that opportunity right from Safari and as a bonus I got a free t-shirt!

Crop Walk

As a part of Barnes and Robbinson Hall Council, I got to go door to door in each dorm collecting money to donate to Isabella County’s Crop Walk. I didn’t raise a ton because I only had the chance to go to college residents, but it’s better than nothing! Plus, I got to meet many residents around the community.

Spooktacular

As a part of Resident Hall Assembly’s Sober in October events, I got to volunteer with the Spooktacular in Robbinson’s Residential Dining Hall. I managed games that were played to win prizes, helped decorate, and helped clean up after the event.

K-12 Facilitation

This has been by far my most favorite volunteer experience that I have ever done. Two different times, I got to connect with students from high school’s around Michigan and facilitate leadership challenge activities. I got to watch the students grow from not communicating to laughing and having inside jokes. It was such an amazing experience to watch and be apart of. These students inspire me to be better everyday.

Tutoring

A lot of people don’t like algebra but I have a love for it…what else can I say? I have had the chance to get to know friends of friends who have needed extra one-on-one help with their MTH 105 and MTH 107 classes. Not only did I get to help them, it reinforced the basic algebra skills in my head so I could apply them more often in my calculus class.

Connections Conference

Being a Leadership Advancement Scholar, I got the opportunity to travel to Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City, MI during my first semester. This was my first formal conference I have ever attended. In the past I have been to conferences where we got to dress in crazy costumes or all out in school spirit. Here I got to dress up and learn how to present myself professionally. I went to sessions that I felt I needed to improve my leadership style the most. I attended a session that was about how to manage time and add more to my plate effectively, how to include people in the group once I’m in it, and how to perform well in a job interview. Over all the point of the conference was to make connections with people around campus. I got the chance to meet people and see mutual friends! It was very interesting to see how everyone is connected in some way.

One of my roommates and I at the Connection Dinner.

Two of my Alpha Sigma Tau sorority sisters and I.

A friend and fellow Leadership Advancement Scholar from high school and I.

In addition to going to sessions to improve personal development, my LAS cohort had the chance to bond in our own sessions, rooming with one another, and going to the waterpark. We know that we are far from perfect, but we also know that each one of us will put in the effort to improve and become the best that we can be. We see room for improvement instead of the bad and we see inspiring in the good. I couldn’t imagine sharing this experience with a different group of individuals. (Side note, I won the Connections Instagram Challenge and got a Leadership Institute cup. I couldn’t be more excited).

My Leadership Advancement Cohort!