This was an eventful week. I got to work from home a bit during the week. I explored Casa de Campo, a very large park during one of my runs. I also discovered some of my new favorite restaurants and dessert spots this week with my friends. This week with our internship program EUSA we went to a masterclass dinner where we made and ate paella and tortilla de patatas, which turned out delicious.
Unfortunately, my phone was stolen right before my weekend trip to Valencia. Phoneless, I still went to Valencia with my friend to escape the heat of the city and enjoy the beach. It was beautiful and the Mediterranean ocean was very warm and comfortable. This was a nice contrast with the brisk cold beaches in the US that I am used to. I can understand the appeal of living in Valencia, because you are able to see similar architecture styles to Madrid, but you have the added bonus of being close to the beach to escape the heat.
This week at my internship I spent a lot of time republishing all of our Spain and Portugal property listings on their respective websites. I also got to visit a lot of different properties with my boss during our apartment viewings with potential clients. That is definitely my favorite part of my internship because it has allowed me to learn a lot about Madrid and the different neighborhoods, as well as their variety of affordability and architecture styles. Although Madrid is mainly apartments, I have gotten to see some very beautiful townhouses as well.
In terms of soft skills that I am developing while in Spain, I believe that confidence has to be one of the main ones. Moving countries and learning to navigate not only a new area but language and culture inevitably lead you to increasing your confidence. I have also increased my confidence as I become more comfortable in my internship with my assigned tasks and software that I have to use every day. I had always thought of sales as an intimidating field, but the more time that I work in this job, the more I have learned that I am interested in sales and its very active part in growing a business. This has increased my open mindedness to trying new things even when they are intimidating or if I am questioning whether or not I will enjoy it, because I will never truly know unless I try. Additionally, I have become more confident in asking questions when necessary and communicating as one of the team in my second language. This confidence has allowed my language skills to grow because I am getting in a lot more practice with speaking rather than letting fear get in the way.
Another soft skill that is being developed is my sales and communication skills. I gave my first tour on my own last week and gave another today. They both went well! However, I definitely think that it takes practice in developing your communication skills in order to become a better and more confident salesperson. It is also important to be very knowledgeable in your field as well to enhance your confidence.
In terms of hard skills, I have learned a lot of different types of software and websites that are used in the everyday sales operations. I use a website called Lusha for lead generation by searching for the contact information of different employees of specific companies in order to further out B2B sales network. I use the Microsoft Dynamics CRM in order to view and manage the contracts and information of our current clients. I use Idealista to publish new property listings. Lastly, I use HubSpot to add new contacts to our network. Getting comfortable with all of these different tools is important for me because I will now have hands on experience using software that is commonly used in sales and marketing . I have enjoyed my experience in sales so far, and may potentially look for a job in sales once I graduate, so this experience will help me a lot in my future job search as well as within the job itself.
My growing knowledge of Spain and its culture as well as these skills that I am developing have allowed me to navigate cross cultural situations well. I am able to ask clarifying questions as well as use this knowledge to understand different mannerisms, attitudes, and ideas here. I am viewing everything as a learning experience and the more I have an open mind, the more I am able to truly connect with people here and understand their way of life and values.
Hasta luego,
Julia
