For my weekly update, I got to visit some of my family that lives in Manchester. It was something I was hesitant to do at first because I had to get up at 5:00 am on a Saturday. However, I am so beyond glad that I went. It was amazing to be able to visit the UK for the first time and see England. A few of the highlights of my trip, besides meeting my family of course, was getting to see the city and stopping by Gregg’s for sausage rolls.
This upcoming week will be my final week in Ireland. I cannot believe how quickly time has flown! I also cannot believe that my senior year at Pitt is now just right around the corner. This experience has been an insane highlight of my time at Pitt. I have learned a lot about Ireland and a new industry as well.
Since this was my first internship, I definitely tried to focus on finishing all of my tasks at a certain standard. This showed me a key point of success at work. People will always be happy when you put forward quality work. It is important to distinguish between something that requires a large amount of effort and a straightforward task. The straightforward or smaller tasks are the victories you keep for yourself. For example, finishing a slide deck on entertainment options. It is an expectation that the work will be done correctly much like the United States.
Success is mainly focused on showing up with the right mindset and a willingness to learn. It is important to acknowledge mistakes when they happen and be open to constructive feedback. These qualities make a successful employee because you can improve everyday. There is always something new to learn if you are willing to.
If an employee is super rigid and not open to change it restricts success. Work is done much more efficiently and better when people can freely collaborate. It is important for that reason to raise questions or comments when you have them. The worst case scenario is that I ask a basic question or suggest something that may not be the best fit. However, not saying anything could prevent me from fully understanding something or helping to improve a project.
Another characteristic of success in my industry is being heavily detail oriented. In the event planning industry, there is a lot of information that needs to be coordinated properly. Organizing hotels, planning activities, building evening dinners, and more requires a lot of attention. Lead project managers frequently have to contact the clients to make sure everything is matching to what they expect. This means numbers and timings are always being adjusted. Therefore, one needs to stay on top of what restaurants and activities are being booked when. It is necessary to format detailed workbooks accordingly so no information is lost.
The mentality surrounding success in the United States and in Ireland I would say is very similar. Both countries focus on highlighting big achievements while setting an expectation that other tasks should simply be done well. This does not mean that they go unnoticed. It just means that they will not warrant as much attention as finishing a major project.
In the United States it is also incredibly important to be open to new perspectives. It sets the foundation for how you interact with team members. Moreover, learning new skills at work is always a possibility whereas soft skills like communication are harder to change. I believe for this reason successful employees are not just knowledgeable about their industry. In both countries, there is a strong need to have soft skills that can positively impact client relations and work within the team.
Being detail oriented in the United States would definitely not come as a surprise either. Employees need to be precise about the work they do in any industry. For example, no one would spend money on a marketing campaign if it was not carefully planned. The campaign would need to have a clear source of funding and a way of improving company profits. All steps which would require detailed research.
The long and short of it is that being successful is a dynamic and an ongoing process. There is not one path to success and success is not fixed. It is necessary to define success for yourself. I think the most important aspect of success is being happy to take ownership of the work you put forward.