Dear Rachel,
Earlier this year I quit my job and accompanied a friend to Australia, where she was headed on a six-month work assignment. It was the chance of a lifetime, and I knew I'd regret it if I didn't go play tourist. It's been a blast, but now it's almost time to return home, and I need to start my job search. How do I explain this gap on my resume without making it into too big a deal? I'm glad I went, but I don't want to hurt my job prospects in the future. Sign me Media Planner Down Under

Dear Down Under,
I’m not the first to say this: Honesty is the best policy.

Tell the truth just as you’ve explained it to me to whoever asks.

From your note, I’m gathering you are young and not long out of school, which is the ideal time in one’s life for going on adventures such as yours. Lord knows, in a few years odds are you’ll have a family and a mortgage and a job that demands lots of time and commitment.

An adventure might well be a night out for dinner.

You won’t be able to pick up and leave as you’ve done, so enjoy it while you can. I’m sure years later you’ll look back and not ever regret going off as you have.

As for when you return and begin looking for a job, the most important thing may well be how you left your last job. Did you give proper notice? Did you leave on good terms? Will your last boss speak well of you?

When you start going on interviews, you will run across some people who will treat your six-month adventure as a mark against you. They will ask all sorts of questions, implying as they do that you are a less-than-responsible adult.

Don’t worry about those people. You don’t want to take a job at an agency with people like that in charge of hiring. It’s probably not a nice place or a fun place to work.

You want to find a place where they treat your adventure for what it’s been, asking questions about what you did in Australia and what the people were like and why it was such a rewarding experience.

The fact is, most places that hire young people accept the fact that many of them will leave within a year or so, either to take another job or go back to school and try another line of work.

What they’re looking for is good workers who bring energy and imagination to the job.

That you’ve had your adventure almost works to your favor. You can make a good argument that you’ve gotten the wanderlust out of your system and are ready to pursue your career in media in earnest.

So enjoy the rest of your time in Australia and leave the job concerns to when you get back.