Last week my dad and brother came to visit me, and it was so nice to be able to show them around Berlin and also travel to a new city together. On Monday we got dinner at a popular restaurant for their unique bathrooms and good food. The bathroom stall door is a one way mirror, so you can see out but no one can see inside thankfully. Tuesday I got to show my dad the fan mile and we watched a little bit of the soccer game with France and Spain. 

I only worked two days last week at my internship because my dad, my brother and I went traveling to Rome. We stayed in a really cute area called Trastevere, which had a lot of cute restaurants, shops and picturesque cobblestone streets. The first day we walked around a bit and saw the Trevi Fountain, and a bit of the Roman Forum. It was kind of overwhelming the amount of history you can experience there just by walking down the street. The next day, we traveled to a little town outside of the center of Rome called Frascati. They are famous for their wine, so we did a pasta making and wine tasting class. I really enjoyed hearing about the history of their city, like how it was bombed during World War 2 and the wine cellars underneath the site of the class was used as a bomb shelter. The next day we had a flight to watch, so we of course went and saw the colosseum before we headed to the airport. Overall, it was a great trip with a lot of amazing memories made. I definitely want to return to Italy and travel to other cities. 

I said goodbye to my brother and dad on Saturday, and had a pretty relaxing rest of the weekend. I went with McKenna to see the Charlottenburg Palace, which is only a 20 minute bus ride so we found it amusing that we waited until our last weekend to see it, and then went to a flea market on Sunday where I got some art work. 

In Germany, I do think the definition of a “successful” employee differs slightly from that of the American definition. I think that because Germany puts a lot of emphasis on work life balance, a successful employee is someone who can work hard and complete all of their tasks, but also knows when to turn off the computer and go home or take a break. Most of my colleagues leave at a reasonable time, around 4pm or 5pm and have a lunch break to break up their day. I also believe that this makes for a more motivated and focused employee, because you’re allowing yourself to step away from work and bring yourself back to reality. It’s kind of like when people say it’s important to take breaks when you’re studying, the same goes for working. I think in America, there isn’t much emphasis on this, and people feel the need to work nonstop for many hours to climb their way to the top, when in reality I think that’s counterproductive. 

Another part of the definition of being a “successful” employee in Germany is to be accurate and precise, especially in the field that I’m working in. Accounting is a very tedious job, and to be a successful Accountant, you need to take the time to make sure that you are being as accurate as possible. This is very similar to America, as the tasks accountants have in America and Germany are pretty similar, and so they both require the same skills and attention to detail. 

I think the biggest differences between American success and German success is the work life balance, and the team versus individual focus. In America, I feel there is a high emphasis on ourselves and what we can do to stand out against our colleagues, and view working as more of a competition on who can make it to the top the fastest. In Germany, I haven’t experienced that, however that could very well be a thing here too. It seems that Germans work well together and don’t try to outshine one another. Especially in my internship, there is a strong community feeling, and there’s always events and activities that are being held to strengthen that community. People are very close and seem to have the company’s best interest at heart. Even I, who has only been there for 8 weeks, have developed strong relationships with my colleagues who have since the first day made me feel welcome and a part of the team.