I can’t believe we’re halfway done! Today marks the beginning of my fifth week at my internship, which is honestly crazy to say, as I feel like just yesterday I nervously arrived to my office building and now I walk in like I’ve been there for years.
This past week was not very eventful. It was a pretty average week at my internship, as I’ve gotten into a routine with my responsibilities. However, on Friday I had the opportunity to visit one of the sites that Sirius owns and take a self defense class. The instructor of the class was a man from London with a military background who now owns a self defense company. The class was more aimed towards women, as the sites that Sirius owns are sometimes in not so safe areas of Berlin. The first half was spent walking around the site and learning how to be cautious and aware of our surroundings, and the second half was more physical, and we were instructed on what to do in various different situations. It was very instructional and I’m grateful to have had that opportunity as I do plan to live in big cities for the majority of my life, and they’re not always the safest.
During the weekend, me and my friend went to Potsdam to visit the palaces. It was a quick train ride and we walked to all of the beautiful palaces, and I felt like I was a princess. We were there for a couple hours, but soon got pretty tired and headed home. Working 40 hours a week has definitely taken a toll on me and my energy levels! I do think it’s become an adjustment but I do think it’s important to still get out and do things, even if I am tired and would rather just lay in bed.
At my internship, I’ve learned a great deal of both transferable skills and technical skills. For one, I’ve learned a lot about communication skills. I think that with the language barrier, it has become one of the most important things in my day to day life to practice listening and communication effectively. My supervisor speaks English, however it is obviously not her first language, and she struggles with translating certain accounting concepts in English. That being said, being able to actively listen to what she is explaining to me, and use context clues to infer what is being explained is crucial. Additionally, because English isn’t anyones first language, It’s important for me to choose my words wisely and effectively communicate so that I am easily understood. Another transferable skill that I’ve been developing is my ability to adapt to uncomfortable and unfamiliar situations. Not only have I never worked in a professional setting like I am now or been an intern, I’ve never lived in a foreign country that speaks a language that I’m unfamiliar with. All of these things have brought and will continue to bring challenges, but I’ve overcome these challenges by being flexible, open minded, and having learning agility. Because I’ve been in these extremely unfamiliar situations, the next time I’m a new employee or intern, I will have the skills and knowledge to adapt to the workplace and new responsibilities that I am given.
In relation to technical skills, I believe that I have learned valuable knowledge on specific accounting and finance tools. At my company, we use a software called SAP, which is a very common accounting software. At first, I was unfamiliar, only having worked with it in one lab in a course at Pitt. However, after a week of using it, I felt like I had developed a proficiency with it. I’ve definitely made mistakes and had to fix those mistakes, but I believe that making mistakes is crucial to the learning process, and I am confident that I won’t make those same mistakes again. Another finance tool that I’ve used is a program called S-Firm, which is basically just an online banking system. I’ve used it mostly every day and learned how to navigate it. SugarCRM is another software that I’ve become familiar with, which basically helps businesses keep track of their customer’s information.
Working in Germany has definitely been an adjustment, but having specific global competencies such as cultural awareness, open mindedness, and flexibility has made the experience a lot easier to adapt to than if I didn’t have those skills. When coming to a different country, there is the inevitable cultural differences. Being able to navigate that is crucial, and also makes adapting to the culture easier. I’ve learned so much already, so I’m excited and curious to see what these next four weeks bring.