By Adrienne Erin
Online Career Tips, Contributor
One of the most daunting and stressful stages of life is when you are searching for a new job. The job hunt is rarely enjoyable, particularly for recent graduates or anyone who has been out of work for a period of time. The process can be especially difficult if you feel that your qualifications are not up to par with the position you want. As this continues, it can be tempting to start, sometimes unintentionally, lying on your resume. However tempting, this is a practice that might end up hurting you in the end.
Common White Lies
Often times, individuals may include “white lies” on their resume without even realizing it. Other times, you are fully aware of the fluff that you’ve added to your job history, such as saying that you’ve mastered Excel when you haven’t touched it in a year. For example, maybe you interned at a company that sells drum scales, but you found yourself doing the same work as an associate and figured you might as well list that as your title instead of “intern.”
Whatever the case may be, it is important to recognize some of the most common lies found on resumes. This will allow you to take another look at your current resume in a different light. Common resume lies include exaggerating dates to mask employment gaps, overstating job titles, fabricating academic credentials, elaborating job responsibilities and achievements, claiming sole responsibility for team results and even conjuring up fake employers.
Consequences of Lying
Again, if you have been searching for a job for some time, lying on your resume doesn’t seem like a bad idea. You know you need to present the best version of yourself, so why not exaggerate just a little about your title to stay ahead of the pack? After all, isn’t everyone else probably doing the same thing? If you don’t, maybe you’ll unfairly fall behind.
Unfortunately, the consequences for including false information on your resume are typically not worth the temptation. At the very least, your employer will do some research and catch your lie before they even bring you in for an interview. However, the lie could be carried much further. If you are in a current position and can’t seem to perform your job responsibilities properly, your employer may get suspicious and take another look at your resume. If they find a lie, you will not only likely lose your position, you could face legal trouble.
How to Fix It
So, you have an interview lined up next week and just now realized you’ve included a white lie on your resume. Or even worse, you have been in your job for some time and you come to the same realization. If you are still in the hiring process, it is important to take action right away. If you have a clear lie on your resume, be honest with the hiring manager. It will be much easier to have your application dismissed than risk getting caught in a lie and ultimately fired, which would take you back to square one.
If you are in your current job and feel guilty about your resume, you have two options. You can either come clean to your manager, while presenting ways to make up for the discrepancy. Or you can hope that the lie will never be discovered and won’t impact your position. Ultimately, the ethical decision is up to you.
It is best to always stay truthful. Although the job hunt is a grueling process, there are ethical ways to securing the right job for you. Remember that you can explain your past positions without embellishing them and ultimately the right job will fall into place.
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