Career Concepts logo (white)

4 More Reasons Not to Lie on Your Resume

When you see your dream job posting, but don’t exactly meet all the qualifications, it may be tempting to stretch the truth, maybe even tell a “white lie” on your resume.

This is absolutely a temptation you should resist. Not only is lying on your resume unethical, it can also have negative effects on your career. Consider the following four additional reasons why you should not lie on your resume.

One lie often isn’t enough

If you are missing one skill or are just a few classes short of earning a degree, you may be tempted to just go ahead and say you have that skill or diploma. A big problem with doing that is it leads to more lies.

That initial lie could get you past the resume screening process, but eventually you’ll have to talk about your lie in the phone interview; or avoid talking about it – which is lying by omission. Then, the charade continues during the in-person interview. If you end up getting the job, you must keep pretending, possibly to the point where you need to use skills that you don’t have, but said you do.

Unnecessary stress

Once you tell a lie, there’s a constant risk someone will find out the truth. Worrying about being discovered leads to added stress that you don’t need in your life.

During the job interview, you’ll have to worry about responding to questions for which you don’t have answers. If the company contacts your references, you’ll then have to worry about them exposing you as a fraud. Even if you get hired, you will bring with you the added stress of working without having all the essential skills.

Getting caught in a lie is embarrassing and could have serious legal consequences. With stakes like those, you’ll be taking on a lot of stress and you really don’t need to do that to yourself.

You can get fired

If your supervisor discovers you did lie on your resume and then extended that lie over the course of weeks, months or years, odds are quite good you will be fired. It may not matter if you had an otherwise great relationship of did a fantastic job. You cannot be trusted, and any good relationship is built on trust.

Then, you must start job hunting once again, but this time you’ll have to talk about why your past supervisor fired you when speaking to potential employers. You can always omit the position from your resume, but that means having to explain the gap in your work history.

Finally, you might not be eligible for unemployment insurance benefits since you were fired for breaking employer guidelines.

It’s a reputation killer

Many industries are tight knit communities and getting fired for lying on your resume could seriously damage your reputation within an entire industry. Also, it could cut off a large chunk of your professional network.

At Career Concepts, we work hard to connect talented professionals to the best job opportunities for their career. If you’re currently looking to take the next step on your career path, please contact us today.

Blog published date

May 16, 2018
Share this blog
Categories

Career Concepts Blog

Business employees engaging in a meeting
19 Mar, 2024
Learn essential strategies for setting clear and realistic expectations in the workplace. Enhance communication, productivity, and team dynamics effectively.
HR manager talking to an employee
05 Mar, 2024
Explore the essential functions of HR. From talent acquisition to employee development and support, uncover the pivotal role of human resources.
Share by: