Fifteen-year-old Ricky lives in Aspiring, a town that's growing at an alarming rate. Ricky's growing, too — 6'7&”, and taller every day. But he's stuck in a loop: student, uncommitted basketballer, and puzzled son, burdened by his family's sadness. And who's the weird guy in town with a chauffeur and half a Cadillac? What about the bits of story that invade his head? Uncertain what's real — and who he is — Ricky can't stop sifting for clues. He has no idea how things will end up . . .With sunlight, verve and humour, award-winning writer Damien Wilkins brings us a beguiling boy who's trying to make sense of it all.
“Hall shows us the surprising power of words—tools we can use to shape new thoughts and beliefs—to help us change.” —Spencer Johnson, #1 New York Times–bestselling author We live our lives word by word—to build our relationships, to convey our points of view, to object to wrongs done to us or to others, to comfort our children and our friends. We also use the wrong words—sometimes unknowingly—and get ourselves into situations we’d rather not be in. As Stephen R. Covey points out in his introduction: Words sell and words repel Words lead and words impede Words heal and words kill Kevin Hall discovered the deeper power inherent in words after a fateful encounter with a wise shopkeeper in Vienna. When that led to an introduction to an esteemed etymologist residing in a senior home, Hall embarked on a project that changed his life, and has since changed the lives of thousands of readers. Discover the eleven words—as well as the secret word—that when used correctly, can light your path to the lifelong success you deserve. “Aspire has the power to help individuals and teams focus on their true purpose and reach their best and highest aspirations.” —Richard Paul Evans, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Christmas Box “Aspire is one of those truly great books that changed my life. Kevin Hall is right up there with Og Mandino and Napoleon Hill.” —Bob Proctor, teacher in The Secret, bestselling author of You Were Born Rich
Few books have ever made their presence felt on college campuses—and newspaper opinion pages—as quickly and thoroughly as Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa’s 2011 landmark study of undergraduates’ learning, socialization, and study habits, Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses. From the moment it was published, one thing was clear: no university could afford to ignore its well-documented and disturbing findings about the failings of undergraduate education. Now Arum and Roksa are back, and their new book follows the same cohort of undergraduates through the rest of their college careers and out into the working world. Built on interviews and detailed surveys of almost a thousand recent college graduates from a diverse range of colleges and universities, Aspiring Adults Adrift reveals a generation facing a difficult transition to adulthood. Recent graduates report trouble finding decent jobs and developing stable romantic relationships, as well as assuming civic and financial responsibility—yet at the same time, they remain surprisingly hopeful and upbeat about their prospects. Analyzing these findings in light of students’ performance on standardized tests of general collegiate skills, selectivity of institutions attended, and choice of major, Arum and Roksa not only map out the current state of a generation too often adrift, but enable us to examine the relationship between college experiences and tentative transitions to adulthood. Sure to be widely discussed, Aspiring Adults Adrift will compel us once again to re-examine the aims, approaches, and achievements of higher education.
Inspirational guide to finding angels and feeling the joy they bring, by looking at the beauty of art, music, poetry, and nature, and seeing the goodness that exists in all people.
"Aspiring Academics is a set of essays designed to help graduate students and early career faculty get started in their careers in geography and related social and environmental sciences. Rather than viewing faculty work as a collection of unrelated tasks, Aspiring Academics stresses the interdependence of teaching, research, and service and the importance of achieving a healthy balance in professional and personal life. Drawing on several years of research, the chapters provide accessible, forward-looking advice on topics that often cause the most stress in the first years of a college or university appointment." "Aspiring Academics also features a companion website offering dozens of activities that can be used in workshops, seminars, and informal gatherings of graduate students and faculty. Written in a spirit of collegiality and sharing of support, visitors to the website can participate in discussion forums and contribute their own resources and tips for others."--Jacket.
This guide to mystical practice incorporates thinkers and seekers from all the major religious traditions, arguing that union with the divine is not the privilege of any one religious tradition over others.
Architecture comes in many shapes and sizes. The Aspiring Architect is an activity book that allows students to investigate architectural history, design, games, and geography. Design your own floor plan. Learn about Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. Locate amazing buildings building around the world. The Aspiring Architect is a fun way to explore the World of Architecture.
Teaching Language Teachers: Scaffolding Professional Learning provides an updated view of as well as a reader-friendly introduction to the field of Teaching Teachers, with special reference to language teaching. By taking a decidedly Sociocultural perspective, the book addresses the main role of the Teacher of Teachers (ToT) as that of scaffolding the professional learning of aspiring teachers. Each of the eight chapters deals with a particular view of this scaffolding process, from understanding and reviewing the learning needs of aspiring teachers, to designing and delivering courses and materials, observing teachers, teaching online and engaging in continuous professional development. Authoritatively written, though accessible to newcomers to the field, this book will prove to be an invaluable addition to the library whether you are a seasoned teacher educator, a new coordinator, director of studies, supervisor or teacher trainer.
You may not hold a position of leadership or think of yourself as a leader. But if you want to create, change, or impact the world around you—even in a modest way—then you're guided by a leader's impulse and shaped by a leader's principles. You are an aspiring leader. But the fact is that you've come to this role at a time when leadership—like everything else—is rapidly changing...and too many leaders are addressing the problems of today and tomorrow with the style and substance of yesterday's leadership. We need an update. In The Aspiring Leader's Guide to the Future, Clay Scroggins (author of How to Lead When You're Not in Charge) explores nine new principles of leadership that will help leaders adapt to a changing world and work culture, such as: Today's leaders lean into vulnerability. Today's leaders develop relationships primarily around trust. Today's leaders celebrate the successes of others. These may seem like counter-intuitive principles, but they provide a new way forward for leaders and teams and will prove versatile in the event of change and durable in the face of conflict. With humor and a pastor's candor, Clay will show you why the old ways need updating and what developing new leadership skills could look like for your future. To be clear, the author of this book does not know the future. If he did, he would have used his talents on sports betting or stock trading. What he does know is that yesterday's leadership axioms are today's myths and what that means. The way forward requires an understanding of the past, a conviction of what's at stake today, and a vision for how different tomorrow will be. You don't have to be a young entrepreneur with big dreams or someone looking to land a leadership role just to be considered an aspiring leader. You are one now. And by developing your skills for the future, you can become today's version of a leader worth following.
