The first impression you get when you step foot in any foreign country is ?wow, this is different.? After a while, especially in a largely English-speaking country like Portugal, you find that you adapt to the differences very quickly. A week into the trip, I had already gotten used to the way people greet each other, how the coffee is made, and that you actually have to pay for water in a restaurant when you order it.
You come to appreciate the more relaxed culture of Portugal when we are used to a fast-paced, high-stress environment in the US. From the perspective of a business student, you might feel slight confusion or frustration at the more holistic view of businesses when you?re used to being handed financial statements or company reports. It really emphasizes the cultural differences that go beyond behavioral customs that are essential in doing international business.
There are also many lessons to be taken from people who create companies out of ideas that we, as Americans, might consider too ?out there.? Long-term investments, spanning even decades-long, are not unusual to see here, whereas in the US we typically tend to look to make a profit as soon as possible and are more short-term focused. Not only that, but they make an effort into prioritizing sustainability in most of the companies we visited. ?Sustainability? is a buzzword that we see thrown around often in American companies for brownie points, so to see it taken so seriously here is comforting.
Studying abroad challenges you to think differently than you normally would, in an entirely different setting, while still having fun and making new friendships. I?ve learned a lot from the companies that we have visited, but I have also learned a lot from our fantastic professor and from my lovely peers that I am very lucky to have met.
