Out of her comfort zone
“COMFORT is the enemy of achievement” – that was the key takeaway Nur Aliya Fariha had from her nine- month internship with the Franz Josef Glacier Guides and Glacier Hot Pools’ Customer Service teams in New Zealand.
Coming down from Malaysia to New Zealand as part of the education partnership between Kolej Yayasan Saad ( KYS) and Queenstown Resort College ( QRC), Aliya was keen to participate in an internship that would enable her to learn more about adventure tourism.
To do so, she knew she had to break free from her “safety bubble” and venture out of Queenstown where most of her friends were based.
“I arrived in Queenstown in July 2015, during winter. This means that most adventure tourism operators at that time were looking for interns or part- timers who knew how to ski or snowboard. Since I had no experience or skills in either, it was quite hard for me to look for a job in Queenstown.
“That was why I had to branch out and started applying for jobs all over the South Island. I eventually landed an internship opportunity with the Franz Josef Glacier Guides and Hot Pools’ Customer Service teams in Franz Josef – but it is an eight- hour bus ride away from Queenstown,” Aliya shared.
It was initially hard for her to adjust to life in Franz Josef without her friends, but when she met people from different cultures and her language skills quickly improved from speaking English at all times, she knew she made the right decision.
“Being part of the Franz Josef Glacier Guides and Glacier Hot Pools’ Customer Service teams allowed me to witness first- hand what goes on behind running an adventure tourism business. During the internship, I was heavily involved in the processes of making reservations for visitors interested in the glacier walks and hot pools.
“As part of that, I also had the opportunity to meet these visitors, give them briefings before they embarked on their glacier walks and hot pools adventure and even had the opportunity to be a pool supervisor for the Glacier Hot Pools. The briefings allowed me to step out of my comfort zone and interact with people from all walks of life.
“I must say, it wasn’t easy initially having to communicate with people who speak various languages in different accents, but such experiences have taught me a lot and have given me a lot more confidence,” said Aliya.
This built- up confidence has allowed Aliya to be more self- assured when speaking to people about her culture and where she comes from.
On her free days, Aliya seized the opportunity to engage in activities not often found in Malaysia, including horse riding, taking scenic helicopter flights above the glaciers and going to wildlife centres to learn more about the kiwi birds.
“I’d also spend time with friends and go for walks on the many public tracks. To familiarise myself with Franz Josef and the glaciers, I’d also take the opportunity to go on familiarisation trips or tours around the town. These tours helped a lot during my stint at the front desk of Franz Josef Glacier Guides,” she said.
Overall, the people she met and what she learned from them was the most enjoyable part of her internship. “My colleagues and I worked as a team throughout my internship. We’d always go the extra mile to motivate one another to ensure the business ran smoothly each day. I learnt to not judge a person on first impressions as everyone is different and has his own stories. It takes a team to build a successful adventure tourism business.
“If there happened to be any mess up in an operation, it wasn’t only one person’s fault, there was shared responsibility. That’s one of the things I’ll remember most from this internship and I hope that one day, I’m able to practise this mantra and also use the communication skills that I’ve gained in Franz Josef in my career,” Aliya shared.