New Country + New Job = A Lot of Ambiguity

Just about everyone dislikes the feeling of not knowing the answer to an important question or how to make future plans. Ambiguity is a uniquely anxiety-provoking experience. One of the biggest challenges I faced during my abroad experiences was working with ambiguity. Dealing with ambiguity means an individual can effectively cope with change, handle risk and uncertainty, can shift gears comfortably and can decide a course of action without having the total picture.

Working in a foreign institution, especially one as big as the European Parliament, can be overwhelming. Through discussion with my peers, I know they felt the biggest factor we felt was keeping us from performing our best was the lack of knowledge we had about the inner policies and structures of our MEP’s offices. During the first few weeks of our internships, we would second-guess our decisions or falsely believe we understood something when we did not. Grow Leaders explains that these feelings are common with ambiguity in the office. This can lead to lower work performance of employees if the proper steps are not taken.

During my internship, I was asked to write briefing papers or review legislation on topics I had never heard of before. Blissfully unaware of what laid ahead of me I did not think too much about it at first. One article of legislation I dealt with regularly was the European Social Fund, a policy meant to improve employment opportunities, strengthen social inclusion, fight poverty, promote education, and skills and lifelong learning. However, when I was given my first assignment on ESF, I did not know what to expect and questions started to plague my mind. Was I researching the right European Social Fund? Did my boss mean the current ESF or the ESF budget for the next seven years? These questions can paralyze a person in an ambiguous situation. I worried that I would consistently second-guess myself and never feel fully convinced I was doing my job.

However, as time went forward and I was completing more tasks, I learned better deal with ambiguous situations and assignments by cultivating a more resilient mind. Like I discussed in a previous blog, I found social interaction and engagement with others helpful in getting new ideas and feeling less isolated in the situation. Dealing with this ambiguity also permitted me to ask my bosses more questions about the assignment when I felt like the assignment was obscure. Soon, I found myself better able to change tasks quickly, become more independent in research assignments, and effectively cope with large amounts of information.

By immersing myself in a different culture, I developed valuable life skills needed for personal and professional growth, including dealing with ambiguous situations and adaptability. Working in such a large institution can be overwhelming. Before my internship, my exposure to the structure of the European Union was limited to the short book we read over winter break. I knew even less about Belgian or Maltese culture. Although I am still working on my ability to work unexpectedly circumstances, my internship at the European Parliament taught me to handle risk and uncertainty while boosting my communication skills.

I think our time in Brussels and the abrupt ending of our program taught me how to sharpen my decision-making skills and better deal with ambiguous situations. When President Trump implemented the European travel ban and the CDC raised Belgium to a warning Level 3, it was yet another ambiguous situation that needed to be solved. My internship and study abroad experience has taught me that ambiguity is a part of business life and many situations I will face will lack clarity but by taking a step back and identifying the cause of uncertainty, I can manage the ambiguity and successful work with it.