After months of searching for a new job, you make the decision to exaggerate, albeit a little, on your resume. The only one that stands to suffer professionally is you.
Honesty is the best policy and avoids missed opportunities.
Career coach Alex Simon suggests allowing your credentials to speak for themselves and make it clear you are willing to learn additional skills. Simon asserts that cover letters are the best place to make your case, “Hiring managers are more open to people with transferable skills these days, meaning you don't have to necessarily have direct experience in a field to be employed.”
Not getting hired is only one consequence and the tip off the proverbial iceberg.
Unfortunately, many job seekers sell themselves short or mislead employers about career aspirations. Instead of telling the truth, they are more concerned with meeting the preferences of the position and do not want to appear as lazy, without ambition, or overly enthusiastic. Terach says, “job seekers fear the consequences that honesty would yield.”
Matthew Rosen, human resources director for Schiller International University in Largo, Florida says, "It’s going to be discovered. If it gets discovered, or when, there will be no chance you’ll get that job. Who’ll hire someone who’s lied to them?”
Tailoring your search to target jobs that align with your qualifications will increase your chances of finding a suitable position.
Looking for a job, especially one that fits into a career path is a job in itself. Nevertheless, the short term exhaustive effort should not offset making a decision to deceive an employer into hiring you. There could be long term repercussions. Indeed, it is more likely that if you are hired, the position may literally require the skills and requirements you are lacking and then how do you explain deficiencies? As marketing tools, resumes as job applications represent the slippery slope of how much to gloss over versus the potential outcome of getting fired for lying. In addition, there is a good chance that job seekers have online public profiles that contain previous employers and list skills and credentials. Consequently, Stephanie Anderson, marketing communication strategist for LinkUp, says, “It's far less likely a candidate will be bold enough to inflate their creds.”
The job market is highly competitive, which has forced some people to embellish skills or experiences. Dave Davis, hiring manager and CEO at Redfly a specialist digital marketing agency, states their company’s latest round of hiring took four months yet “was a complete disaster and candidate after candidate came in and was found to have lied on their resumes.” Davis also says, “Hiring managers were not born yesterday. A single question is enough to catch you out on a lie. It causes an embarrassment and an awkward situation for everyone in the room.”
Honesty is the best policy and avoids missed opportunities.
Career coach Alex Simon suggests allowing your credentials to speak for themselves and make it clear you are willing to learn additional skills. Simon asserts that cover letters are the best place to make your case, “Hiring managers are more open to people with transferable skills these days, meaning you don't have to necessarily have direct experience in a field to be employed.”
Not getting hired is only one consequence and the tip off the proverbial iceberg.
Deceiving an employer into hiring you for a job may be the result of a desperate and futile job search, but lying on a resume has long term consequences. Joseph Terach, CEO with Resume Deli elaborates that small lies may go unnoticed, but you may end up in a dissatisfactory position and hurt your career. However, big lies, such as nonexistent employers, will negate your chances of getting the job.
Unfortunately, many job seekers sell themselves short or mislead employers about career aspirations. Instead of telling the truth, they are more concerned with meeting the preferences of the position and do not want to appear as lazy, without ambition, or overly enthusiastic. Terach says, “job seekers fear the consequences that honesty would yield.”
Matthew Rosen, human resources director for Schiller International University in Largo, Florida says, "It’s going to be discovered. If it gets discovered, or when, there will be no chance you’ll get that job. Who’ll hire someone who’s lied to them?”
Tailoring your search to target jobs that align with your qualifications will increase your chances of finding a suitable position.
Looking for a job, especially one that fits into a career path is a job in itself. Nevertheless, the short term exhaustive effort should not offset making a decision to deceive an employer into hiring you. There could be long term repercussions. Indeed, it is more likely that if you are hired, the position may literally require the skills and requirements you are lacking and then how do you explain deficiencies? As marketing tools, resumes as job applications represent the slippery slope of how much to gloss over versus the potential outcome of getting fired for lying. In addition, there is a good chance that job seekers have online public profiles that contain previous employers and list skills and credentials. Consequently, Stephanie Anderson, marketing communication strategist for LinkUp, says, “It's far less likely a candidate will be bold enough to inflate their creds.”
Related Articles
Stay Informed
Get the best articles every day for FREE. Cancel anytime.