My time out of the country has changed my perspective in a multitude of ways. Although I was only gone for two weeks, I feel I have grown a lot as an individual and a professional. Seeing how businesses function with a different government system and business culture really opened my eyes to other perspectives. In Sydney, we toured the Cochlear manufacturing facility, and it was super interesting to see how involved the government is in business matters. We also went to meet with PWC and learning about IFRS differences was really interesting to me. I also loved learning about the culture at PWC, which is making a difference in the world and doing things ethically. When I start recruitment for PPA I think I will now have more of an interest in networking with PWC because of my great experience. I think the most shocking thing was how different the mentality is in Australia. Workers get a paid 25 days off every year which they can stack year to year, along with free healthcare and public transport. The trade off though is the high cost of living, as we were told houses start at an average of one million dollars.
I think the biggest lesson I learned was that I am capable of doing anything I set my mind to. I have always been a person that likes to stay in my comfort zone, so I am so glad I took a leap and tried something new. I met so many great people and experienced another culture which has really opened my eyes to the way other people live. I think sometimes we get so caught up in our own bubbles and forget how big the world really is. Now, I would love to travel more and maybe work internationally in the future.
