Is it ever OK to lie on your resume?

by K B , updated on November 3, 2020

This question came up in an interview workshop I ran the other day.

It depends on your definition of a lie.

Below is my questioner’s scenario.

What would you do if you found yourself in this situation?

You arrive in Australia as a skilled migrant. You have skills in project management. You are post-graduate qualified. But you have no idea about how to go about finding a job. So you just apply online, sending off mass applications via Seek. Your English is pretty average as well, so really, nobody will look at you for a professional job even if they thought your experience was terrific.

Giving up on your job search you go and get diploma qualifications at Tafe and find a job managing an internet cafe. You finish your course, your English picks up and you decide to take another shot at applying for a project management role.

But your experience makes your resume look like a dog’s dinner.

If you include all your experience on your resume and you apply for a graduate or entry-level role, you look over-qualified for that role. People will probably ask questions about your time away from more senior roles, and still question your communication skills since your last role was in a cafe, not a corporate environment. If you take your senior roles and qualifications off your resume, you are underselling your skills, you may get the job, but you could end up frustrated and bored.

Here’s what I came up with when I was put on the spot in my workshop….

Option 1. Network with people who work in roles close to the professional position you previously held, and ask their advice on how to break back in, or if they are aware of any short term projects you may take on. Often businesses have tasks/projects rather than fully defined roles. If you think of looking for jobs that need to be done, rather than a job, you can work your way in. That way you build trust. Short term jobs may lead to long term contracts and you are on your way.

Then there’s the path of least resistance.

And that’s where the lie comes in.

Option 2. Delete the overseas experience all together. Apply for entry-level or graduate roles. Your resume will guide the discussion in interview, so if something is not there, the interviewer will not question it. In interview give answers based on the experience you have on paper, although you’ll probably sound more impressive as you can draw on insights from your previous professional role overseas.

I don’t have too much of an issue with the ethics of a lie by omission in this case. I do not give people a full life history when I meet them. My first degree was a ridiculous choice for me. If I am marketing myself I just pick the bits of my experience relevant to the discussion at hand. If you think about it, that’s really what you’re doing in the job hunt.

However…

My questioner may run into a few problems with approach number two. One is that we all have digital trails nowadays. Employers love Google. So he would want to have his online pathway looking pretty pristine. No references to past work and so on.

Secondly, as I mentioned before, there is research out that a bad job is worse than no job. Have a read of the summary here. If you take a job that does not give you the accountability you need, or there are excessive job demands or insecurity, you run the risk of depression. Plus you’ve taken a step backwards, so there’s a potential double whammy:  you’re depressed and have to take a long pathway back to where you really should be. Sound familiar anyone?

Option 3. Audit your skills and preferences and bring your past experience in as support. Apply for a more junior role, but in a company that is growing and does not have a hierarchical system of promotion. You may well move more quickly. You can talk about your time settling into Australia, working casually and studying as part of what defines you. It’s never easy coming into a completely different culture, even if you do know the language. Along the way you will have developed resilience and a thicker skin, at the very least.

Option three is harder than option two. It involves risky conversations and the more of the dreaded one word networking. You’re more likely to get the chance to talk about your past in a positive way, face to face if you network – if people see you as a whole person, rather than just a static and confused piece of paper.

There’s probably plenty more that my questioner could do.

But to lie or not to lie. I’d love to hear your experience or your take – truthful takes of course!

{ 19 comments }

Interview tips – How do you answer “tell me about yourself” in a job interview?

by K B , updated on November 3, 2020

This is one question most people dread, so why do interviewers ask it?

Some interviewers use it to try to make you feel comfortable, while they shuffle through their interview questions to get to what they really want to ask. Some interviewers use it to see how you communicate. Others use it to see how you sell yourself, and whether you have done your research on the role, on yourself and on the company.

To be honest, I think it’s a bit of a lazy question.

It doesn’t put people at their ease. People are generally nervous at the start of the interview, and tend to blurt out whatever comes to mind, even if they have prepared for the question. Then they worry about the impression they make. That nervousness can carry over into the rest of the interview.

So how should you prepare?

First of all, don’t rabbit on too long.

“Tell me about yourself”, will never be the only question the interviewer asks. It’s the umbrella question before they get to the specifics they want to know.  You have, however, only one chance to make a positive first impression. So you want to answer this question in a powerful way.

I’ve recently updated this blog with new examples and tips.

Click through here to find tips and examples to help you answer this question in a way that will make the interviewer lean forward and say “tell me more” and help propel the interview in a direction that you want to take it.

Need to get ahead of the pack for your next interview?

Get our free e-book The 7 Deadly Sins to Avoid at Job Interview!

Deborah Barit wrote this book. She is one of Australia’s leading interview coaches.

To get your free e-book and some of our best interview tips direct to your inbox, simply click on this link.

Here’s what happy readers said about the e-book and interview tips:

“Deborah Barit is a very smart lady…She is good at figuring out what an employer is looking for. It’s like she has ESP,with her help in preparing, I found no surprises in a recent interview and I was prepared for every question….” Cathy, Leichhardt, NSW

“Because I read so many of your posts, I feel as if you were my personal employment coach. I start my new position in two weeks. I had so many obstacles to overcome and each day you posted a solution to my dilemma and how to improve my search. Thank you so much for your input and PLEASE continue to do what you do!”

Click here to get access to the e-book.

{ 15 comments }

Job seekers – Are you in invoking the law of subtraction in your job search?

by K B , updated on November 3, 2020

You all have probably heard of the “Law of Attraction.”

We are naturally attracted to attractive people not meaning necessarily movie-star quality people but the people whose personalities brighten a room, the person you naturally call when you want to chat, and the person you enjoy spending time with on a regular basis. [click to continue…]

{ 5 comments }

Job interview tips: how to sell your examples in a behavioural interview.

by K B , updated on November 3, 2020

One of the biggest questions I hear from my clients is “how do I sell myself in interview?”

One of the biggest mistakes people make in interview is to think that selling themselves requires chest beating.

Behavioural interviews have been popular for years. Mastering how to present your examples in a behavioural interview will do half the sales job for you – without you actually having to tell the interviewer how terrific you are.

Here’s what I mean.

In a behavioural interview, you need to give a specific example – for example, a person, time, project, task or thing you did. You structure your answer with the situation/task, the action, and the result.

A good behavioural interview starts with self-awareness: that is you understand what you said or did that made you successful in the example you choose to present.

Many people fall down here because they just tell the interviewer what they did. However there is no point just launching into an example or just providing detail about what you did. You also need to tell the interviewer why this particular task was meaningful for you and the challenge associated with the task.

Think about:

–  why you are presenting that example?

–  what was at stake, in the project or completing the task?

–  why did you personally find the task challenging?

–  what did you feel like when you were confronted with that situation?

To sell your examples you need to pick examples that are vivid for you, and tell the interviewer why this situation was challenging for you.

If you give that context to the interviewer they are more likely to think every action you took after that was “amazing”.

Also important is that you present examples where you were really proud of what you did.

This makes it easy to remember the convincing detail. There is a huge difference in your body language if you talk through something you were proud of achieving, rather than just going through the motions or trying to second guess what you think the interviewer wants to hear.

Give the interviewer all the detail around the challenge you faced, combined with your face lighting up when you talk through your example and they’ll start to be sold on you.

No fake superlatives needed!

Need to get ahead of the pack for your next interview?

Get our free e-book The 7 Deadly Sins to Avoid at Job Interview!

Deborah Barit wrote this book. She is one of Australia’s leading interview coaches.

To get your free e-book and some of our best interview tips direct to your inbox, simply click on this link.

Here’s what happy readers said about the e-book and interview tips:

“Deborah Barit is a very smart lady…She is good at figuring out what an employer is looking for. It’s like she has ESP — with her help in preparing, I found no surprises in a recent interview and I was prepared for every question….” Cathy, Leichhardt, NSW

“Because I read so many of your posts, I feel as if you were my personal employment coach. I start my new position in two weeks. I had so many obstacles to overcome and each day you posted a solution to my dilemma and how to improve my search. Thank you so much for your input and PLEASE continue to do what you do!”

Click here to get access to the e-book.

{ 5 comments }

Cover letter tips: selling what matters today

by K B , updated on November 3, 2020

The worst part of any job search is being unemployed. The second worst part is writing a cover letter. Writing about ourselves is an uncomfortable process. We don’t talk ourselves up in ordinary conversation, so having to write about how great we are can be a challenge.

Though cover letters can be difficult to craft, they are an important part of any job application. You have to gauge your audience, determine your selling points, and use appropriate language. Follow these tips for writing a cover letter that will be successful today.

Do Your Research

To “sell yourself”, you have to know who that potential employer is and what they do. Do your research. With the internet at everyone’s fingertips, there is no reason a job hopeful should be uneducated about the job or company they are applying to. Figure out what the position you are applying for is exactly and inform yourself about the company. Demonstrate that you know who you are addressing and that you are truly interested in the goals, mission, and objective of that company within your cover letter. Try to display that you have done your research in your cover letter. This will establish that you are truly interested in the values of the company. This will display to the employer that you are proactive, motivated, and capable of self-initiative – three very important qualities in a successful employee.

Be Concise

A cover letter is very much like an advertisement. Any successful commercial gets its pitch out there in less than thirty seconds. Keep this in mind when you are crafting your cover letter. Be brief and to the point. There is no need for fluff. You want to explain to the employer who you are and why you are the person for the job quickly. In many ways, our tech dominated lives have helped us to craft things in a way that is clear and to the point. With text messaging and Twitter, we have grown accustomed to expressing ourselves in limited spaces. Use this knowledge to your advantage. I’m not saying that your cover letter should sound like a long list of Tweets from your Friday night. However, use your ability to write short and concise thoughts in your cover letter.

Sell What Matters

When writing a cover letter many people try to list every job advantage they have to offer. While it is important to inform your potential employer what your abilities are, you should let much of this happen within your resume. In your cover letter, only discuss the qualities you have that really set you apart from your competition.

While many cover letter articles may suggest you leave this information out, I highly recommend advertising your technological experience within your cover letter. More and more, employers in every area of the professional world are seeking job candidates that can keep up with new technologies and are competent with computers and social media. Use this to your advantage. Take the time to pitch your social media, internet, and computer skills in your cover letter, so that you communicate that you are active in modern technologies. This will demonstrate not only that you are capable of learning new things, but also that you are confident and aware of current social interests.

While cover letter writing can be challenging, it does not have to be impossible. Take the time to craft an effective and precise cover letter that will display all of your best qualities relating to that specific position. Your cover letter is your first introduction to your potential employer. And, though it is a horridly tired phrase, first impressions are important. Use the technology available today to sell yourself on the job market and within your cover letter.

Mariana Ashley is a freelance writer who particularly enjoys writing about online degrees. She loves receiving reader feedback, which can be directed to mariana.ashley031 @gmail.com.

{ 2 comments }

Something better than a holiday?

by K B , updated on November 3, 2020

Is there really anything better than a sun soaked island retreat holiday? Well as the saying goes, a change is as good as a holiday!

What does this really mean though? Sometimes change can be scary, daunting, unnerving and totally exhausting. Last time I checked, holidays were relaxing, fun, adventurous, peaceful and restful. So it led me to ask the question, why is it that someone can come up with this quote and yet most of us find that there is always a reason for not making a change? Why do we find it hard to actually stick to change even when we know that it’s probably the right thing for us to do?

If you are reading this and thinking, yeah, that’s me, then ask yourself one simple question, ‘What is most important to me?’

This will be the first important step for you to determine whether what you are doing or attempting to do in this case, is in fact aligned to your values. Your values are critical to your success in ensuring that when you decide to make a change which you know will enhance your success, fitness, happiness etc, you will stick to it and succeed with results beyond your wildest imagination. This is where the famous quote comes into its own.

We only ever decide to change because something in our lives is not working for us, therefore it does make sense that if we make a change then it will lead to a more fulfilled life. The issue is that some people change, for more money, for a thinner body or for better relationships!. These are general goals and can be to non specific to truly align to our values.

Let me give you a good example of this. For years I struggled with losing 5-10 kilos, I had never been a truly large person but I always seemed to be on a diet,  starting at the gym and generally finding it hard to make a solid commitment to lose the weight and be satisfied. Now, I could argue that if I had been truly happy with myself that I would not have this issue in the first place. I would reply that the two are definitely linked, being happy with self and looking after self go hand in hand. However, I also realised that my goals were not based on my values.

I was not fat, so the motivation was not necessarily going to be there for me day after day, month after month based purely on having a flat stomach and a thin waist. Having said that I was always extremely thrilled to lose a couple of muffin top friends during my dieting regimes. When I looked deep within, what motivated me was actually based on the type of foods I was eating and the moral issues associated with this as well. I became a vegetarian and stopped eating processed foods altogether. I find it much easier to stick to a weight I am comfortable and exercise regularly as my body is healthy and I lots of energy.

It is essential to work out what your true motivation is behind every change you decide to make to give yourself an easier road with sticking to the change. When you have worked out what’s important to you and what you want to change, then look at why you want to change. This will give you your motivation. One thing that I always stress to clients, is that change should never be based on what others want or need from you. Change must be based on values that are your own. It’s not enough want to stop drinking for example, for family members.

Take ownership for the changes that you agree to as well. If you want results, you need to take the time to work out what will work for and what just doesn’t cut it for you. If you keep attracting the same partners for example and can see that under the definition of insanity, you would possible need a straight jacket, then sit up and take notice. If you choose not to change, then you will continue to attract the same partners. However, if you acknowledge that what you have been doing is not serving you, and that you are going to continue getting the same outcomes, change will come a lot more naturally. The desire to change must be owned first. The steps of how to change and what do will come next. You don’t need to be perfect, just try something else.

When you are putting a change in place which is based on your values and it sits well with you, the change will ultimately be better than a holiday because you will be living your life true to yourself. There is nothing more motivating and appealing than that, even if it is daunting and scary and there is not a palm tree or cocktail to be seen, you will end up far happier!

Emma Driscoll

Emma is Owner and Founder of Coaching Combinations, a HR and career development consultancy. Visitwww.coachingcombinations.com.au for more information.

 

{ 0 comments }

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →