Ana Luisa's story about work practice experience at ZNI & Erasmus+ life

“If you are persistent you will get it. If you are consistent you will keep it.” - Harvey MacKay
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Hello, I'm Ana Luísa. I’m 20 years old, and I am from Portugal. More specifically, from the Madeira Island, and I would like to share my Erasmus+ experience with you.
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The idea to go on this adventure occurred during the global lockdown period, we all had to go through. At the time, I was not in Madeira, I was on another Erasmus+ adventure, as a student. One day I noticed that the University, I was attending at the time, is advertising an Erasmus+ program, which also offers the possibility to participate in a work practice. This seemed like a great opportunity, to gain some work experience abroad.

Getting to know the world, as well as the work outside of Portugal, and outside of my comfort zone, has always been something that I desired. I decided to come to Maribor, after talking to many of my colleagues, who have already been in Maribor, and had an incredible experience there. I believe that Maribor has a lot of charm as a city, and can offer many possibilities to anyone to develop both personally and professionally.

Currently I am in Maribor, already in the middle of this new adventure. I hope that through it I can grow as a person, strengthen my qualities, and a sense of responsibility as well. We live in a world, which within years will be governed by us, therefore the strong leadership skills are needed, and I think that there is no better opportunity to develop them than through the Erasmus+ project.

I will stay in Maribor until January. In my opinion, an adventure like this puts you to the test. It is an opportunity to grow in many ways (culturally, psychologically, personally) and a time during which you learn to adapt and gain a sense of responsibility. Additionally, I believe it is necessary to have an open mind to face new tasks and new challenges.

I am carrying out different tasks, mostly from the field of administration. Every day I have new tasks, for a new, different purpose. Documents we prepare vary from country to country, and every minute you spend in the office is a new linguistic, professional and even cultural lesson. Even a simple document scan brings new knowledge to me as an intern.At ZNI I also help with the hosting organisation, and I am involved with activities such as tour trips and creating flyers. Working on the ZNI’s social media profiles, is another area that I have been helping with. This is helping me develop my creative side.
 
At the ZNI office, where I currently work, I feel at home. The whole team helps me and they are involving me in all their activities. This makes it easier to be away from home, my family and friends. They are giving me a true work experience, which enables me to develop as worker and as a human being. All the tasks, which are given to me, are a new challenge and a great new lesson.
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