And I’m home! My time in India was incredible, but it’s also nice to be home. After another 24 plus hours of traveling, I made it back to my home and to those that love me. While a part of me wanted to stay longer in India, I did feel a sense of relief being back in familiar territory and in a place I felt extremely safe in. Reminiscing on the trip, I’ve learned more about myself as well as about leadership overall. Now that I’m home, I’ll try to verbalize some of the things I learned in this blog post. As a bonus, I’ll also include my thoughts on our visit to New Delhi and the Taj Mahal! 

Going into the trip, I felt I knew myself pretty well. I tend to be a very calm and level-headed guy, love the outdoors, and I’m physically capable of keeping up with whatever the group wants to do. And throughout the trip/ during the 10-day trek, I think I upheld those character traits. One of the biggest things I learned about myself in terms of leadership is the importance of observing your team to make informed decisions. This was not something I’d always do, usually preferring a team member to directly tell me their preferences instead of having me infer them based on their actions. While I still prefer the direct approach, I recognize that that’s not always the case and I need to be prepared to be a better observer. The trek showed that this observation skill may not be one of my leadership strengths, but that doesn’t mean I should ignore it. It’s crucial that I’m aware of my weak points and can work on them where needed. While I may have lacked on observing my peers, I do feel I was was observant of the nature/environment around us. As the pace setter of the group, I was always scanning to see where the path went and even the best pathing to and in the path. So what I think I need to do is prioritize observing my peers inherent preferences.

Another thing I learned which I think I mentioned in a previous blog post, is how different people (including myself) can we react very differently to the same stimuli. It happened on a few occasions where some people got very upset while others seemed unfazed to the same thing that happened to the group. I had never really thought about it prior to the trip, but I think it’s vital to keep in mind when making decisions and performing actions. Especially in a leadership setting where your decisions can have significant impact on those you lead. 

For the last couple days in India, the group spent time in New Delhi and Agra visiting the Taj Mahal! While in both places it was extremely hot, that didn’t stop us from having a great time. In New Deli, we spent time visiting an outdoor market selling all sorts of goods from textiles to jewelry and books. There were so many people! It must have been hundreds of people crammed into a relatively small space with dozens of vendors as well as people walking around selling goods. While at times it felt kind of pushy, it was still very interesting to see what it was like. Plus, we got some really good food at a southern Indian restaurant right across the street from the outdoor market. Agra was equally hot but also extremely interesting and beautiful. The first day there we visited Agra Fort, an impressive structure used to defend emperors and facing the Taj Mahal. It was very interesting because of the variety of religious motifs displayed in the architecture. Then on our final day in India, we went to the Taj Mahal! It was incredibly beautiful and a very impressive architectural feat. I also really appreciated having a guide there with us who could give us the history of these structures and point out small details I likely would have otherwise missed. Overall, I think the end of the trip was a great send-off and we definitely ended on a high note. 

There’s only one blog post left to go! See you in a bit.