I sadly only have one more week left of my month-long internship in Lisbon, Portugal! My time here has exceeded all of my expectations. I have learned about my interests in the HR field and have developed many new skills. My supervisor focused a lot on my training and taught me many important skills and databases used. He taught me and I even used LinkedIn learning as well. Time here has changed my perspective on time. I have gotten used to the more laid-back lifestyle here, opposed to my fast-paced life in the States. I enjoy sitting with my coworkers at lunch, and I am not just focused on getting back to work or stressing over not getting something done. I initially was intimidated by the directness of all of the people, but I have honestly begun to appreciate that in the workplace. This has helped me to fix any mistakes right away and be more efficient.
At work, I got to sit in on an interview and ask questions in english to test the candidates English proficiency. Even though conducted in Portuguese, I still picked up on the informality of the whole interview. Both the candidate and the main interviewer were very laid back, I even was the one who dressed the most professional! I wonder if interviewing like this a lot is less stressful than the formality, we usually bring into it. Also, I wonder if this informality is because I work at an IT firm where most people work virtually. Lastly, I found differences in how I interact with my boss. My boss is very informal with me, he even told me to stop calling him ?sir?. Everyone in the office is seen as equal no matter their role. Even as an intern, I have felt like a part of the team, and I am so grateful for that.
The photos attached are from a work party I attended. It consisted of decorations, eating traditional Portuguese food such as snails, dancing to Portuguese music, and take home plants for everyone in the office.