Another week finished here in Dublin, and more great experiences that have come from it. As time is winding down, I have already begun to look back at some of the things that I have done in Dublin that I will remember for the rest of my life. And while those experiences are obviously very important, something that I have noticed that I should do more of is also appreciate the little things. A great example of this is something that I did during my break from work over the week. Instead of running straight to the market to grab a sandwich, I decided to skip eating and just take a stroll down the main parts of Centre City Dublin (don’t worry, I was not that hungry!). I took this walk by myself and did nothing but look around and just take in the area around me. It was in that moment that I realized that I need to just stop and take in everything around me at certain moments. I know that sounds cheesy and overused, but it is honestly true, and it is hard to see the truth in it until you have a moment like that yourself. Dublin is an incredible city, one that suits me way more than the bustling cities of Pittsburgh, New York City, and Philadelphia. Trust me, I love those three cities as much as anyone else, but Dublin just has this much more relaxed atmosphere that these cities do not have. That atmosphere suits my personality way more than the American cities, and I feel like I have not appreciated that enough while I have been here these past five weeks. My walk allowed me for the first time to just fully relax and allow the city atmosphere to take over me. While I do enjoy being in America and in American cities where there is so much life and hustle, it is very nice, especially for someone like me, to be in a place where rest and relaxation is appreciated on a much higher level.

My intro paragraph does relate to the question posed as well. I have always found that my leadership style is much more relaxed than most people. I am not one to boss people around. Instead, I figure out tasks that everyone needs to do in order to contribute fairly and equally and give those tasks out, but I do not hound people to do them and I especially do not give them a set way of completing the task. Like I said before, I am a very relaxed person who tries not to take many things very seriously, and this bleeds into how I act when I am both leading and being lead. I believe that my time in Ireland so far has taught me to pretty much continue the way I lead with a few tweaks. My boss is also extremely relaxed as both a person and a boss (and that is probably why we get along so well!) so when he is leading the group he always tends to not interfere with our work once we all have started our tasks, but he is also always willing to help. In comparison to myself, that is very much like the way I act when I am in charge. One thing that he does much better than me in this leadership position however, is that he is able to become that strong leader when the time calls for it. If something needs to be done immediately, he will make sure it is done immediately. He is very aware of what is important and should be prioritized, and what can be waited on. I think this is a very important trait for a leader to have, and I do want to start using this trait when I am in a leadership position as well. I believe that a great leader should show both strength and relaxation when the situations are suited for each, and my boss has mastered both sides of this while I have only mastered one side. When I come back to the United States and to Pitt and try to implement this into my leadership ways, I want to try to emulate my boss, because he has honestly showed me how a leader can be great without ever having to be mean or bossy. You just have to focus on what is important, and let everything else work itself out, because in the end it always does.