The second to last week in Stockholm has been very eventful. We spent the last weekend traveling to Helsinki, Finland on the Viking cruise line. I was very surprised to learn we were going to travel via a cruise ship and didn’t have super high expectations going into it but I really enjoyed the trip overall. We went to a spa and sauna once we arrived in Helsinki and it was an interesting experience. I’ve been in a sauna before, but it was an electric one and while they still get pretty hot, this sauna was on another level. It was a wet sauna, and it was intense. The other people would pour water onto the rocks and the room just continuously got really hot. I lasted only about five minutes before I had to go cool down.
Once we got out there were two types of swimming pools, one was a natural pool connected to the lake beside the spa and then a normal chlorine one where people were doing laps. It was cool being able to experience a traditional type of sauna and then afterward we went to a flea market nearby. There were so many hand-crafted goods and delicious things to eat throughout the market. Afterward we spent the rest of our time exploring the city and walking around. I loved exploring another city and comparing it to Stockholm.
The rest of the week has been spent in the office creating marketing content for the marketplace. When I was initially researching work culture in Stockholm, the communication scale was defined as more low-context, meaning there was very clear and concise communication and directions. While I feel this is the case the majority of the time, there is still a decent amount of ambiguity with instructions. Back at home, I feel like directions are typically given very plainly and then if I have further questions I ask to gain a deeper understanding. At my workplace in Stockholm, I will be given a task, or an idea is thrown out, but sometimes there is little clarity in what exactly they want done. There will also be little clarification on a deadline or what they want included in something like an Instagram post about a specific brand for example.
An example of how this dynamic has led to miscommunication was during my third week. The previous week, my supervisor gave me the task of completing the weekly newsletter which went well and was fun to do. The following week, she checked in with me on Thursday and asked if the newsletter for that week was completed which left me a little nervous because I wasn’t aware that she wanted me to complete it every week. This was a time should’ve clarified and asked if this was a task I was regularly responsible for. She didn’t get upset with me or anything and I was able to finish the newsletter on time, but I was a little stressed about it at first. From then on I understood the newsletter was a regular task for me to do and was able to plan accordingly moving forward which was helpful when it came to time management related to my other tasks.
Usually, it’s a lot of trial and error when this is the case. I ask a lot of questions when I’m unsure about directions and then will ask for feedback as I go through a task. I find this helps me get clarity on what they’re looking for but still allows for some freedom in my position. I think they do things this way because they are a smaller company and do not have as much time to walk me through tasks. More importantly, I feel they do this so I become more comfortable working independently. This experience has helped me feel more independent in a professional environment and strengthened my self-trust when it comes to working on projects. It has also improved my communication skills since I have to make sure I’m checking in and asking questions when I feel I need guidance. Moving forward, I feel confident working on a professional project by myself and putting my own spin on things because I’ve received positive feedback from doing so in this position. It has also been nice to collaborate and get feedback on my projects and has ultimately led to better content creation on my end. Although my experience with communication styles has been different from what I expected, this has been helpful to be more flexible as I navigate this new experience.
