An application is basically self-marketing and that includes advertising (the word is already in the application). As we all know, there are certain tricks involved in marketing. Nobody is perfect. Therefore, it is important to divert attention from the less beneficial personality traits and stages of life. Especially the CV, which most HR managers look at first, is often a gap filled with a joke that has not been fulfilled at all. Or give a position a slightly higher responsibility than was actually the case. Where do tricks end in the CV and where does lying or even infringement begin?
Where are the most common tricks?
A study investigated this question some time ago. Candidates mostly allow themselves a little lie or imposture (ok, sometimes also gross untruths) on the following points:
Is cheating okay?
That depends. Good answer not? No seriously. Depending on what is being cheated on, the potential employer may bring you wrong. With certain cheats, it becomes simply uncomfortable if they are discovered.
Skills & Competencies
If you trick you concerning professional skills or leadership experience, you can be charged with imposture. If the employer does not do this, however, you can also expect a termination.
Degrees
We do not recommend falsified master’s degrees or apprenticeship certificates. This gives you the impression of a forgery of documents, which can now definitely no longer be stamped as a minor offense.
Language skills
There is no penalty for tricking language skills, which are not necessary for your preferred position. But still: If the lie is noticed, I don’t want to be in your skin. And anyway, why should you even write down the untruth in this case?
Gaps
Covering up gaps in your résumé is generally not a bad idea. Simply leaving them out and not mentioning them or even replacing them with an imaginary job does, however.
What if my résumé looks just average for all the truth? Work on the packaging! A praline just like that on a kitchen counter doesn’t look delicious. But if you put it in a pretty box, tie a bow around it and write it down with variety, everyone wants to eat it. And: you are ready to pay a lot for it. So make sure that your CV gets noticed positively (!) When it is on the table of HR managers.