Having the black lanyard, I get to do Global Quest in the morning and Disney park in the evening. Global Quest was a scavenger hunt in EPCOT, in which each team was given an iPad to track and solve the tasks together.
I had a great team as our diverse dynamics that bounce around each other. Some are quiet while others are talkative, making it efficient to work on challenges and make decisions together. My leader E was fantastic too – she taught me a leadership lesson that I want to take note of today. So you know how Florida is hot as hell and you could literally forget that you just drank water 5 seconds ago because your body feels exhausted and dehydrated when you’re outside for too long? Yep. That was exactly what happened. We were very tired of the heat and of running around, trying to answer as many questions as we could. So, we decided to take a quick lunch and would catch up on the tasks right after that. Little did we know, lunch was designated to be from 1 to 2pm and the app will freeze for an hour to ensure that everyone took the break. That basically meant we overspent our time for lunch and cut off the time for the mission ourselves. Facing the situation, E regrouped us to make decisions on our game plan. We then reviewed the leadership board and saw that we are 400 points away from the winning team. We knew that it wasn’t worth it to aim for something unrealistic, so we just decided to stop competing and enjoy the park for the remaining time. We went to the aquarium to see the manatee and did a fun little Nemo ride. I have been to the aquarium many times, but it was still mesmerizing to be surrounded by deep blue water and fish. E decision to change the plan taught me the importance of pivoting the strategy to adapt to the situation. If we were to continue with the original plan, I bet our morale would not be very high and the trip wouldn’t be as memorable. I’m glad that E supported us to make the switch and make this activity as fun and meaningful as it should be!
Another highlight of the day is my new friends. The whole friendship was so random, since I knew each of them from different EY social events and I just linked them up altogether. Two were from SPIN 23, one from the Global Quest in the morning, and a few from the networking sessions at the conference. We made the effort to meet and hang out at the park together. We had to leave a little bit late – 5 PM, but with the genie pass ( $15 only), we were able to do most of what we wanted. The only con was the pouring rain at around 7 PM, though it couldn’t stop us from doing the indoor Caribbean ride and ordering dinner for pickup. It was an awesome strategy to cope with the rain, except that when we came back to the restaurant, all the tables were completely filled. We also had a big group, so we couldn’t just squeeze in anywhere. Then, I decided to do some friendly talk with other interns from EY, who were almost done with their meal and were about to leave. I knew that EY people are very supportive of each other and if I say it kindly, they would understand and help us out. Everything worked out just fine – I made 2 more new friends and sat down to have dinner with them. We talked about being an international student, working at EY, and the differences between India and the US.
And I guess now I should share my opinion about my first Disney visit! I think Disney World was truly magical. Especially the fireworks show. We were lucky to be so close to the front – we saw the faces of every character, the fireworks, and the storyline. I told LT that I wouldn’t mind if we miss the fireworks, since we saw the best one on 4th of July already. But I would regret it very much if we had missed it, because this show was vastly different from any others; it fulled my eyes for 20 minutes straight. I could feel the ups and downs as the good and evil characters showed up. The effects and the music too, they blended well together, making the show a holistic experience.
I ended today at midnight and went straight to bed. I know tomorrow will be long and I can’t believe that I was already so close to the end of this trip!
Trang "Tee" Nguyen 