Reflecting on New Zealand and my time in the country, New Zealand is one of the nicest countries I’ve ever been to. My first impressions of the country consisted of me being in awe of the landscape and noticing the hospitality of the locals and this impression has not changed, but has grown. Moving from Auckland to Wellington to Christchruch and then to Queenstown really opened my eyes on how amazing and drastically different these cities are to each other. Moving from the north island to the south island reminded me of going from a place like Hawaii to a place like Colorado. It was amazing to see the country go from palm trees and beaches to mountains and valleys. What I learned about business in New Zealand is that a majority of companies and people are very laid back and really care about the wellbeing of their workers. When we arrived in the country, there was a holiday for Christmas and the New Year that lasted multiple weeks and companies actually gave the option if their employees wanted to show up to work or not. When it came to being profitable, I noticed how some of the companies didn’t care necessarily about making the most money, it was all about being happy with the work they are doing. A sheep and dairy farm that we had the opportunity to visit mentioned that they could make way more money if they mechanized their processes, but the owners were fine with getting their hands dirty and were more satisfied with that so they chose to not make as much money in order to be happy with their work. Another major thing I noticed was that most businesses and the whole country alike really care about the environment. A few of the businesses we visited actually decided to implement a plan to go zero carbon by 2030 and have already made substantial strides towards that goal in a matter of a few years. Overall, the businesses and individuals that we encountered all care about the wellbeing of each other and the country more than making loads of money and I believe that’s why New Zealand seems like a happier country compared to others.
