Hot off the press this week is the naming and shaming of Scott Thompson, the Yahoo CEO who lied on his CV claiming to have a degree in Computer Science. Now, we’ve all, at some point in our careers, told a little white lie, stretched the truth or exaggerated our achievements, but when do these go from foolish fibs to full-on fraud and where is the line drawn?
The number of people who lie to future employers is pretty shocking (1 in 5 according to the Daily Mail), and while in the past you have been able to get away with bending through truth a bit and telling tiny fibs, Human Resources pros are keener than ever to weed out the weasels. So even if your moral compass doesn’t keep you from deceit, the fact that employers and HR departments across the country are on to the game should.
There appear to be two camps sitting on either side of this argument. Firstly, those who (like Guardian writer Charlie Brooker) argue that there is little harm in exaggerating the truth and furthermore, underachievers should be encouraged to bridge over their shortcomings. If you are so inclined, you may get away with lying about what badges you were awarded in Brownies or Scouts, but we say: ‘Whats the point?’ If you haven’t done it, earned it or achieved it; don’t claim it! You’re only ever going to get caught, and that my friends is embarrassing, and in the worst case scenario, you could face jail time. As you may have guessed we sit on the opposite side of the fence. One little lie can massively damage your career and no company or boss wants a dishonest employee. After all, anyone willing to tell one big lie may well produce many more, making him a liability to any company.
So where do we see the upstanding people of Britain exaggerating and telling tall stories on their CVs?
- Exaggerating numbers: Fabricating that you made your last company a million pounds or increased sales by 110% might make you look impressive, but don’t forget your new boss will expect the same.
- Increasing previous salary: This may seem an innocent way to try to boost your proposed salary but remember it can be verified pretty easily. If you’ve made it all the way through to negotiating pay, why fall at the last hurdle.
- Lying about technical abilities: You may have fiddled around on Photoshop or learned French when you were in school, but if you claim proficiency and can’t perform; you will soon fall flat on your face.
- Lying about qualifications: GCSE and A level were such a long time ago, who’s ever going to double check? I was only one mark off a 2:1 so whats the difference? Scott Thompson is a case in point. Don’t lie and you won’t get caught.
We know the feeling when you fear you’re not as impressive on paper as you may be in person, or you truly believe you could do the job better than someone with a real degree. Instead of lying, emphasize your genuine strengths, focus on what you can do, what skills you do have.