I. Show us an activity you enjoy doing. Tell us how you think it contributes to your personal and professional development.

1. I. Show us an activity you enjoy doing. Tell us how you think it contributes to your personal and professional development.

2. I was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto
Rico, a Caribbean island measuring 170km by
60km. Living in such a small island has
generated in me a fascination for all things
global. In a place that, due to geographic
isolation, can become a social and cultural
bubble, it is important to comprehend the
world is not organized around it – this small
Island is part of a much larger scheme.

3. I’m grateful for the culture and
wonders of the Island I call
home. I enjoy
as a instrument to expand
my horizons. Travel has
been essential to my
personal and professional
development.

4. Through
I get the opportunity to
to new countries, cultures, people, languages,
ways of doing business, friendships and
to new realities, refreshed set of priorities,
challenging scenarios,
different though processes and
knowledge.

5. I have had the opportunity to travel
for pleasure, work and studies.
Wherever the destination may be, I
avoid being a tourist, but rather a
traveller, allowing myself the
opportunity to open my mind to the
ways in which other people go
about their daily lives, realize
people around the world live
differently from me and absorb new
cultures like a sponge, thus
widening my perspective on life and
surroundings.

6. San Lucas
Tolimán,
GUATEMALA
I volunteered on three different missionary trips to the rural town
of San Lucas de Tolimán bordering Lake Atitlán. Served as Spanish-
English translator between villagers and American doctors at the
medical clinic. Taught Spanish and English at the local elementary
school and worked on community construction projects.

7. While immersed in the unfamiliar – in situations I would not encounter at home – leaving
comforts of my usual surroundings behind, I was able to self-reflect and use the experiences
to put my life in perspective. Often times, things that seem as a major dilemma in our lives
become trivial after shifting the paradigm of what is essentially important in life.

8. San Lucas
Tolimán,
GUATEMALA
These have been soul refurbishing trips. Where one realizes
poverty is a reality for many. Basic necessities, such as water,
are luxuries in some countries. Diseases are rampant and
healthcare is scarce.
Year after year, trip after trip, I left Guatemala with a new take
of what priorities should be in life. In many occasions, we take
for granted things that are uncertain for many people – having
food on our table, being able to go to school, a solid roof to
protect our family.
While traveling benefits my personal and professional
development, I want to use the opportunity to travel to lend a
hand and contribute to others’ lives in anyway I can.
The greatest lesson learnt through these trips is that happiness
sprouts from the simplest of things and the most rewarding and
moving sign is seeing children smile.

9. Ann Arbor,
Michigan,
USA
Meeting new people and deepening relationships with those you
already know are some of the benefits of traveling. In search of
better educational and, eventually, professional opportunities, I
had the privilege of attending the University of Michigan in Ann
Arbor for my undergraduate degree.
The move to Ann Arbor came with challenges as this was the first time living away from my
parents, English is not my first language and I had never experienced such frigid winters
before, but I was pushed into independence, personal growth and intercultural development,
cementing lifelong realtionships.

10. Moving to and living in new countries or cities present
different challenges – culture shocks, language barriers,
homesickness, for example – but this is the best way to
learn about other cultures, and everything this word
implies. Waking up and going to sleep in a new home,
getting lost on the subway, having breakfast at the corner
café, cheering the local team is how you completely
immerse and take away what different cultures have to
offer.
Other than Puerto Rico, I have lived in Ann Arbor, New
York City and Barcelona. With moving comes a need to
adapt and be flexible – essential skills in both the
personal and professional scenarios.

11. El Cairo,
EGYPT
Stepping outside of our usual routines is beneficial for our bodies
and spirits. New settings challenge us out of our comfort zones
giving us the opportunity to push boundaries and try new things.
Travel induces empathy and tolerance, it makes us aware and
respectful of other cultures and all this entails – politics, religious
practices, and economic and educational systems.

12. Many times it takes leaving our safe-ground and known surroundings to appreciate
what we have. In the midst of our daily lives we often miss opportunities and
possibilities and come to realize they exist when we look from the outside in.

13. In essence, travelling has long
lasting personal and professional
benefits, making us well-rounded
individuals, enhancing our ability
to adapt and make decisions, and
understanding our position on a
global level.
Unfamiliar places sharpen our
minds, exposing us to new
languages, ways of conducting
business and communicating
ideas, giving us stories to share
with others and polishing how we
relate with people.
Switching gears from autopilot to
experience the wonders of the
World make us catalysts and
game changers. Every skill refined
through travel translates to a
better human being and
therefore, professional.

14. Taking off to new adventures,
landing in new territories,
yearning your homeland and
culture, stepping out of our
comfort zone, pushing
boundaries, adapting to a new
way of life, creating lasting
relationships and starting over
again – travel is the agent behind
this – a tremendous source of
learning.
I look forward to establishing
myself in Madrid in the upcoming
year and embarking on a new
journey that will continue shaping
me personally and professionally.