The challenges of looking for a job often motivate us to do things we never thought we would. Usually, this is a good thing: we step out of our comfort zones, make sacrifices, and face tough decisions in order to improve our chances of landing that job.
Sometimes, though, it brings out the worst in us. It can make us do things that we’re not supposed to be doing as professionals, and which we’ll inevitably regret later.
The thing is, it’s not always obvious right away what negative effects these questionable actions can have. So we’ve put together this handy multi-part guide to help you avoid them during your career-seeking.
JUST DON’T: LIE ABOUT ANYTHING IN YOUR PROFILE OR RESUMÉ
A large part of landing a job you want involves selling yourself: discussing to a potential employer why they might want to hire you. Impressing the interviewer, the hiring manager, or a department head involves emphasizing your best qualities while outlining how you can overcome your weaknesses.
When it comes to qualities (good or bad), all career-seekers are a different mix. Some will have more good qualities and few bad ones. Some will have a balance of the two. Yet others will have a lot of weaknesses to address and only a few core strengths.
And even in terms of the kinds of strengths and weaknesses, not everyone is equal. Some candidates have more valuable strengths, while others have strengths that are not always in demand. Some have weaknesses that are not too critical, while others have glaring areas for improvement that will make it very challenging to succeed in the role they want.
Everyone has a unique profile, skillset, and resumé. And your concern is to make yours stand out among the rest. Some of your competitors will be better, and some will be not as good. The challenge is in making your profile seem more interesting than all of them.
That’s easy when you have a lot of great qualities to talk about. You may have the necessary skills, training, certifications, prior experience, and even personality for the job you want.
But when you’re not quite a match for what the employer is looking for, it can get very difficult to sell yourself.
Unfortunately, this is where some career-seekers make a crucial mistake. They start lying about themselves.
They invent qualifications or stories about their experience with similar jobs. They lie about finishing their education or taking post-graduate courses relevant to the position. They lie about their health and other conditions that may affect their capability to perform. Some even have resumés full of altered or doctored information to support their false stories.
This is a route you should never take, because the eventual consequences outweigh the initial advantages.
- Inconsistencies will expose everything. This is especially true for those trying to lie during their application for the first time. Because they try to invent memories and experiences, there will be some conflicting details that an observant interviewer will notice. Even inconsistencies in their resumé will be obvious: dates of trainings or past jobs won’t match up, names of organizations will be incorrect, and previous employers or schools won’t show up in online searches.
- Suspicious information can be verified in many ways. If there’s no available information anywhere about previous employers, schools attended, or trainings taken, chances are they don’t exist. These can be further disproven through physical or technological means, such as visiting a false address or conducting more detailed online searches. Non-existent reference persons, or reference persons who were cited without their knowledge and permission, can also be immediately verified.
- Dishonesty is always a big red flag. Providing false information will always reflect poorly on an applicant. Ask any employer, and they will undoubtedly refuse to hire dishonest people: if applicants can lie about themselves, what else would they be willing to lie about as members of the organization? False information can and will damage the company’s reputation, as well as lead to the loss of potential and existing clients. No employer would ever accept these risks for the sake of giving dishonest applicants a chance.
- Lying about certain personal information can put you in danger. Some job qualifications are set and non-negotiable for a reason. For example, a vacant position lists “excellent working health” as part of the qualifications because it will involve heavy physical exertion. A candidate that has been medically cleared only for lighter tasks due to an existing illness will be put in unnecessary risk if they lie about being fit enough for the job. Some
- Even if a dishonest applicant gets hired, the truth will eventually come out. A dishonest applicant can create a very convincing set of false information about their qualifications and experience. They may even have accomplices that act as their “reference persons”. But if the candidate lies about being able to do things they really can’t, and they get hired because of that lie, they will struggle to actually perform such tasks and expose themselves eventually. And since not everything can be learned on the go, continuous failure to perform can result in disciplinary action or even termination.
As you can see, doctoring a resumé or lying during an interview isn’t worth the risk. The consequences, whether immediate or eventual, will always catch up.
It’s only the easy way out at first, and the longer a career-seeker tries to maintain the lies the more difficult and dangerous it can get.
Instead of relying on false information to get the job you want, make simple and effective improvements to your resumé and practice answering interview questions. Ask your family and friends for help with conducting a mock interview so you can really train yourself to emphasize your best qualifications. With enough practice, you’ll be able to talk about yourself in a way that will impress any interviewer. You’ll also be able to convincingly present your qualifications through your resumé or online professional profile.
And when in doubt, always remember that potential employers respond positively to people who are willing to admit their weaknesses as part of the self-improvement. They will be more likely to hire someone who is honest about their lack of skill or experience, but who is willing to step out of their comfort zone to become skilled and experienced enough. That’s how you convince a potential employer to give you a chance.