Personal Growth
Before I attended the Summer Europe Seminar, I was not an outspoken person and heavily relied on making plans and lists. I was reserved at the beginning because I didn’t know anyone else. After traveling with IBS, my family and I noticed how I grew personally and professionally.
I was definitely out of my comfort zone and also had to go with the flow of things. I was in a group of 26 students where we all had to give some input and come together to make decisions. Can you imagine how long our discussions were to make simple decisions like where to eat dinner? We had to learn how to work together and how to trust one another on traveling across town to sight-see or eat at a specific restaurant.
Professional Growth
The company visits are the main events in every seminar. We were able to visit some well-known companies such as BMW, Swarovski, and Lloyd’s of London. Visiting the various companies gave us insight on how to interact with professionals. I had never visited a company that functioned so professionally like Lloyd’s of London. It was inspiring to see how everyone that worked at Lloyd’s of London interacted with one another.
I also learned how to dress for various occasions. Although every company visit was a business event, some companies require business formal attire while others allow business casual. This also allowed me to learn the difference between business casual attire in Europe vs. the U.S.
Unexpected Growth
Finally, I never thought that I would gain so many great friends from traveling with IBS. When you are traveling with a group of people for three weeks, you have a lot of time to learn about each other. I’ve made some of the closest friends I have during this seminar. We have even visited each other when our universities played each other in football.
I could not have asked for a better group and I assure you that you will feel the same about yours! I traveled to six countries with a group of strangers that ended up becoming a second family and I could not have asked for anything more from the experience!
