1. The Skimmer/Dreamer
Interviewer: What an experience! I'm jealous...that must have been an amazing time.
Me: It really was a life-altering and eye-opening experience. I would definitely do it over again.
2. The Motive Seeker
Interviewer: What made you decide to leave your job and go to South America?
Me: Careerwise, I had reached a point where I was ready for a new challenge. It was either going to be a new position here, or I was going to take the plunge and do something completely different. Ever since college I'd always longed to immerse myself in a foreign culture, learn the language and appreciate different worldviews. But there was always something holding me back. Then I reached a point where everything was in order and I had no excuses not to go, so I started looking for opportunities abroad. I kept reading about the great need for English teachers in Argentina, and my language in college was Spanish, so I had a good base to work from. And the more I learned about Buenos Aires, which they call the Paris of the South, the more I liked it. The stars aligned, so I decided to go for it.
3. The Return Inquirer
Interviewer: What made you decide to come back?
Me: I planned to be gone for about a year and time was up, funds were low, and I was ready for the comforts of home again, so the time was right to come back. Although I didn't realize the economy would be quite this bad until I was actually here.
4. The Doubter
Interviewer: Why do you want to go back into pr/marketing?
Me: I always knew I was going to come back to this field when I returned. This is the work I'm passionate about. I enjoy the strategy, the writing, the relationship building, getting results, and I'm an advocate of social media. Some people wonder if I left because I hated my career and wanted to run away from it all, but that's not the case. I always saw it as: life is too short not be adventurous, and my year abroad would be an enriching experience. And that I'd come back feeling fulfilled, recharged and ready to jump back into the the pr/marketing world. And that is what happened, which is why I am here talking to you.
5. The Sarcast
Interviewer: Ever run into [SC Governor] Mark Sanford down there in Argentina?
Me: Haha, no, but it's funny because when they would show the apartment building of his mistress on the news, it looked very familiar, and I realized that I knew exactly where it was, because I used to run by it all the time. I lived in Palermo, the same barrio that she did.
6. The Dullard
Interviewer: [Is apparently not intrigued and asks no follow-up questions]
Me: [This is a total enthusiasm crusher and turns me off to the job because it tells me that the person sitting across from me doesn't find my year abroad worthy of further discussion. Maybe they think I'm not a good little worker bee? Or that I'm hiding something?]
