Carlos Rivas was a student in El Salvador when he competed in the 2012 EO Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA). After earning a spot as a finalist, he traveled to New York City to take part in the Global Finals. He didn’t win the global competition that year, but Carlos went on to participate in GSEA in a variety of roles—first as a special guest in the 2013 finals, then as a jury member in the 2015 semi-finals in Thailand and, most recently, as a jury member in the 2017 semifinals in Germany.

Carlos says he was inspired to become an entrepreneur so that he could follow his passions and rely on his own hard work. He also hopes to make an impact on the world. Today, he considers one of his goals is to become an EO member.

We caught up with him to discuss how he looks back on GSEA from a few years further in his entrepreneurial journey.

What company were you running when you competed in GSEA?