GRIP, Internships Abroad La Paisa: Working With Family

GRIP: FinTech in Medellin 

Beginning from my first day of work, my time here in Colombia has been nothing short of surprises. From the vibrant lights to the bustling clubs, I have witnessed within two short weeks how unique and energetic the city of Medellín truly is. However what has by far stood out the most are the people – the Paisa, as they call themselves. As soon as I touched down in Medellín and began the drive to my accommodation in the city, I was immediately met with sheer kindness and curiosity. My driver spent the hour-long car ride asking every detailed question he could think of about my life, my family, and my interests. What is your family like? Who do you live with? Why did you come to Medellín? Where are you working? The list went on and on. But instead of my usual annoyed reaction to a million questions at 11 pm, I grew more comfortable, energized, and excited about what I had in store for the next two months. There was an odd feeling of home in these first few moments as I remembered the flood of questions when I came home from school this past semester. My driver cared, he was genuine, and it was as if my arrival in Medellín was his way of welcoming me to his family.

Needless to say, this did not stop short once I got out of the car. The same welcome and extension of community hit me even on my first day of work. In Medellín, I am working for an early-stage drone delivery service company called Aerialoop. With very little prior experience within the startup scene or with my assigned market analysis and carbon footprint modeling projects, I was feeling rather intimidated before starting; yet, all of my concerns were immediately wiped clean when the office embraced me and my fellow interns with open arms. Our entire first day was spent getting to know more about each other, and as you might’ve guessed, the questions were flowing. By the end of the day, I knew my boss had three kids, lived in Miami for six years, completed his first engineering internship with Aerialoop’s CEO, amongst a list of other fun facts, and he knew the same about everyone of us. We finished the day with a group meal at a local restaurant where we got our first taste of authentic Bandeja Paisa, a traditional Colombian meal originating from the Antioquia region. The day left me with a refreshing realization that Colombians operate on a completely different wavelength, one prioritizing relationship, support, and community. In Medellín, business is done between friends rather than associates, there is ample time for leisure outside of work, and people exude such happiness.

As I write this blog post, I am now two weeks into my time here in Medellín. I am fully into the swing of things at work, just about fully acclimated to the city, have established an amazing group of friends, and feel at home as ever. Although it has only been two weeks, I have learned so much from the people of Medellín and am eager to bring this experience back home. If I can emphasize one takeaway, I urge those in the US to reconsider why we move at such speed, why we leave so little time for the formation of relationships, and how a shift in our approach to the corporate world we’ve created might even drive better performance and happier lives.