Looking for a job can be nerve-wracking and frustrating, especially as your search lengthens and you find yourself in financial trouble. When you reach this point, it might be tempting to throw a few white lies on your resume – things that won’t necessarily impact your job performance but might get you an interview and offer more quickly.
Here are 4 reasons why you should not succumb to this fear:
You Could Be Asked to Perform the Impossible
Let’s follow the story of George, a clerical worker looking to get invested in a new company.
When creating a new resume for his application, George decided to embellish his skills. Rather than admitting he was only fluent in English, he claimed to be fluent in both English and Spanish. Because he was applying for an English-speaking position, George assumed the issue would never come up at work.
After being hired for his depth of experience and impressive skillset, George enjoyed his new position for eight months. Until, one day, his employer called him into a private meeting.
In the meeting, his employer said, “We’d like to improve our communication with customers by teaching everyone in the clerical department basic Spanish. Since you’re already fluent in the language, we’d like you to be our tutor. You start tomorrow.”
This story is, unfortunately, more common than you think. Never, ever claim to be capable of something you aren’t on your resume. It can easily come back to haunt you.
Your Potential Employer May Conduct a Background Check
The vast majority of employers conduct background checks before hiring a new employee. While a criminal background check won’t expose your white lies, a simple phone call to your previous employer will. To reduce the danger of litigation, your background check company should be able to guide you through the screening procedure.
Lies Have a Tendency to Snowball
Once you’ve lied yourself into a hole, you can only escape with more lies. Soon, you’ll find yourself spewing a heap of white lies, hoping to throw your employer off-track when you fear exposure.
This isn’t how to maintain a professional composure at work and can even get you blacklisted from entire industries. The easiest way to avoid this problem is to never lie in the first place. If you can’t get hired on your own merits, consider changing tactics, finding assistance, or growing your skills.
You Can Lose Your Job
By far, the worst side effect of lying on your resume is getting fired. Once your supervisor or employer is informed of your dishonesty, there’s a very good chance you’ll be shown the door – not necessarily because your job performance was affected, but because you can no longer be trusted. Even the best working relationships can be destroyed by this seemingly innocent misstep.
Even worse than getting fired, you’ll be forced to explain to new potential employers why you were fired, leading to further distrust and a damaged reputation.
At Star Staffing, we understand your need for a well-paying, reliable job. Our experts are here to assist in pairing you with the right company that match your current skills. We often have access to positions you’ve never even considered! Contact our experienced team to learn more.