This week started off slow as I was quite sick after my Belfast trip from last weekend. I took it easy and rested for most of this week to make sure I was recovered before going to Amsterdam.
On Friday night, my friends and I flew to Amsterdam! Once we landed, we were met with the beautiful architecture. The houses looked like doll houses and the infrastructure of the city was very bike-centric and calm. After getting checked into the hotel, we got ready to go out. Our hostel was in Zaandam, a smaller area outside of the city. There was a nearby centre filled with bars and restaurants. We stopped by the centre to grab food before going into the city. We ended our night with karaoke at a bar and it was so much fun!
The following day, we woke up early to board a canal tour! The boat took us through a scenic tour and informative tour of the city. Our tour guide gave us a background on the architecture and a brief history of how Amsterdam came to be what it is today. Cheese with mustard and were served on board, but I am not a cheese person so I just ate two cups of mustard. As weird as that sounds, the mustard was surprising delicious and had a more complex flavour profile, making it hard for me to put it down. After the boat tour, we got breakfast and it was so tasty. I got a chicken salad served with a side of egg and bread.
The group separated and my friend Virginia and I were left alone to navigate back to our hostel. We struggled to decipher the Dutch signs in the train station and hoped that we boarded the correct train. This ended up turning into a 3 hour journey as we unsurprisingly got lost and rode the train 2 hours in the opposite direction (oops!). We were on the countryside surrounded by fields as we hopelessly watched our location deviate further and further from the route we were supposed to be on. In that moment, all we could do was laugh at our terrible navigation skills and wait to get off at the next stop. We boarded the correct train initially, but I stopped checking our location and we missed our stop and stayed on the train far too long. For our second attempt at getting back our hostel we boarded another train to get us back to the city centre. After a long and unplanned adventure, we finally returned to the hostel at around 10pm. Following a short nap, we got ready to go out and (of course) find another karaoke bar.
On our final day, half of the group went to the Van Gogh Museum and the other half went to the Rijksmuseum. I unfortunately couldn’t get tickets to the Van Gogh Museum, but the Rijksmuseum was a such an informative experience. It included over 8,000 art pieces that told a story of Dutch history from the Middle Ages to present day. I was still able to see a few Van Gogh pieces, so I’m glad we were able to get tickets to this museum!
After a couple of hours of walking around the museum, we went to a nearby breakfast place called Cosy! The entire restaurant was ran by the owner who took our orders and cooked the food without any help! We were so impressed by the efficient service and the even better food. Most of the group got Dutch-style pancakes. The pancakes had a crepe-like texture and did not disappoint!
Then, we walked around a park and headed over to the Sunday Market. It was a long line of stores selling souvenirs, clothing, food, and flowers. I got a tulip themed tote bag that I’m so excited about! After shopping around the market we had an extra hour to walk around the city and do (even more) shopping before having to leave for the airport. We went into a clothing store, a chocolate store, and most importantly a tea store! As a huge fan of matcha, I was loured into a tea shop called Paper and Tea by a worker handing out matcha samples. I ordered an iced matcha latte and it was so flavorable and delicious. That was the perfect end to the trip as we walked back to the hostel and got ready to leave.
Amsterdam was my final international trip and I’m so grateful I had the opportunity to go and learn about a new culture! I would definitely love to come back and take my time exploring the city. We were pressed for time during this trip and there is still so much I wanna see and do! Now, I’m looking forward to winding down and continuing to explore Ireland in my final two weeks here.
Internship Reflection: Leadership Skills and Style
Prior to starting my role at AllGo, I lacked a strong sense of self, confidence, and independence. Working in security without direct oversight has improved my decision making and self-reliance. I now have trust in my experience and knowledge to make judgement calls on compliance checks. I still have easy access to communicate with my supervisors through Gmail chat, but I find that I am reaching out less than I was initially because I am gaining familiarity with the KYB procedures and I am also gaining confidence in my ability to navigate uncertainty using problem solving skills. In leadership roles, it is important to trust yourself to make the best decision for yourself/your team. Independence and confidence are the backbone of self-trust. The ability to stand on your own and rely on yourself builds confidence. I now have confidence my competency and problem solving skills. I plan to transfer my increased confidence and independence to future leadership roles when making key decisions and motivating a team.
Though I’m not in a leadership position at AllGo, I’ve had the privilege of observing strong leadership from our CEO Gary and my supervisor, Katie. During my first week at AllGo, Gary led a time management session where he discussed his personal journey with stress management and different strategies he has developed over the years. One key lesson I took note of was Gary’s digital organization. His inbox had less than 20 emails and various folders. His Google Calendar blocked out every hour of his day to a T. He stressed the importance of maintaining focus on one task at a time to avoid jumping back and fourth between multiple tasks and losing efficiency. I have often struggled with feeling overwhelmed by long to-do lists and attempting to complete multiple tasks simultaneously. Gary reminded us that he is quite busy, but remains calm and tackles one task at a time. Organization and stress management are crucial elements of effective leadership. Taking on more responsibility can be stressful and unnerving, but focusing on what you can control and self-regulating makes it all possible. Gary inspired me to clean up both my school and personal inboxes to minimize clutter and improve my access to specific emails. I have used Google Calendar throughout college to plan my days and I plan to continue this into next the next academic year.
Katie, one my supervisors demonstrates direct communication and positive reinforcement. She directly addresses any concerns with a clearly written message in our group chat, but also lets us know when Gary is happy with our progress. The ability to tell others when they are making a mistake can be jarring for some leaders who are passive, but I believe it is best to address concerns as soon as possible to mitigate any further harm and correct mistakes. In previous roles, I have worked with passive aggressive leaders who outwardly express their frustration or disapproval with subtle signs of negativity. This was often stressful for me as I could not pin point the exact root of the issue, but I knew my actions were contributing to their frustration. Katie is very patient and takes the time to explain any mistakes we make and what future steps we can take to avoid repeating the same mistake.
In future leadership roles, I look forward to emulating Gary’s organization and stress management and Katie’s direct communication. I’m so thankful to have a healthy and organized working environment facilitated by strong leadership at AllGo!
