Before starting my internship abroad, I would’ve described my leadership style as fairly structured and task-oriented. I focused on being organized, dependable, and efficient, someone who takes initiative, keeps things on track, and makes sure work gets done. I saw leadership as stepping up, setting the pace, and being responsible for outcomes. While I understood the importance of teamwork, I associated leadership more with individual effort and accountability than with emotional intelligence or cross-cultural communication.

That approach worked for me in most of my academic and group project settings in the U.S. I liked taking control of a situation, especially when things felt unclear or disorganized. I thought being a good leader meant being the one who speaks up first, gives direction, or takes on the most responsibility. But now, after a few weeks working and living in Spain, I’ve started to see leadership differently. This internship has challenged me to think less about being in charge and more about connecting, adapting, and teaming up with others especially in a cross-cultural context.

One of the first things I noticed in my host country’s work culture is how much emphasis is placed on relationships. In the U.S., my past leadership experiences were often about maximizing time and efficiency. Here, I’ve found that conversations, rapport-building, and informal check-ins are just as important as getting the task done. At first, that threw me off. I wasn’t used to coworkers spending extended time chatting before meetings or taking long lunches together. I thought that time could be better spent being “productive.” But over time, I realized that building trust and connection actually makes collaboration easier and more effective. People are more willing to support each other when there’s a foundation of mutual respect and familiarity.

This challenged me to rethink how I approach leadership. I started asking myself of it is better to push through a task quickly, or to slow down and make sure everyone’s on the same page? Is leading about giving answers, or is it about asking the right questions and listening carefully to others? In many ways, this shift has helped me become a more flexible and emotionally aware at the job. Instead of focusing just on tasks, I’m learning to focus more on people.

Another way my internship has helped me grow is by putting me in situations where I have to lead myself, especially without clear instructions or step-by-step directions. Here, I’m often given a general goal or idea, and it’s up to me to figure out how to move forward. That’s very different from what I was used to, where supervisors often laid out exact expectations. At first, I felt a little lost, but I realized that being a leader sometimes means creating your own structure and taking responsibility for the outcome, even when no one is watching or directing you.

I’ve also had to take initiative in ways I hadn’t before like reaching out for feedback, asking for clarification when something isn’t clear, or offering to help on extra projects. That might seem like a small thing, but it’s helped me build more confidence in my professional voice. Instead of waiting to be told what to do, I’ve learned to step up, even in an unfamiliar environment. To me, that’s another form of leadership from the individual sense. Taking ownership and contributing value without needing a spotlight or formal title.

What’s been especially eye-opening is seeing how leadership plays out in different cultural contexts. In Spain, leadership seems less hierarchical and more collaborative. People respect authority, but they also expect leaders to be approachable, honest, and team-oriented. That’s something I admire, and something I want to carry with me into future roles. I’ve learned that being a leader doesn’t always mean being the loudest or most assertive person in the room, it can mean being the most thoughtful, consistent, and empathetic.

Through this experience, I’m becoming a better leader by learning how to adapt to others’ styles, communicate across cultural lines, and lead with curiosity rather than assumptions. I’m realizing that leadership isn’t about having all the answers, but about being open to learning and helping others grow too. Whether it’s through small actions like checking in with a coworker, or bigger steps like proposing an idea for a project, I’ve learned that influence and leadership can show up in many different forms.

Overall, my time abroad has expanded my understanding of what it means to lead. It’s helped me move beyond a narrow view of leadership as control and efficiency, and toward a broader, more human-centered model based on connection, initiative, and mutual respect. I still value organization and structure, but now I see those as just part of the picture. Real leadership, especially in global contexts, is about listening, adapting, and bringing people together. And that’s the kind of leader I hope to continue becoming.