The current job market is oversaturated and tricky to navigate. Resumes, references, and an appropriate online presence are all factors employers investigate before making a hire.
The first of these, resumes, is where most applicants’ chances are slashed. One person shared a secret hack to make sure their resume did not fall through the cracks—lying.
Sharing from a fake account, the original poster (OP) told the Anti-Work community on Reddit how they manage job searches. “I don’t want this associated with my actual socials,” OP prefaced before diving in.
They Job Hunt Regularly
OP jumped from job to job a lot. They do not believe in staying with any employer longer than a year. “Why get a 25¢ raise from a job when you can go somewhere else and earn $2 more,” they wrote, “plus I don’t like when places get too comfortable having me around.”
While job hopping can provide financial benefits, it comes with a major drawback. Employers view frequent job changes as a red flag. It is often better for companies to retain the same employees than constantly train new ones. High turnover can get expensive.
OP learned this lesson the hard way. At an interview, a potential employer made a comment about the number of places OP worked. Realizing the setback their job-hopping had, OP decided to get creative with their resume.
They Found a Loophole
“I have the fortune of having worked at a place that is now closed down,” OP told readers. Future employers would not be able to contact any of the staff at OP’s former job.
Taking advantage of this loophole, OP expanded the amount of time they worked at the closed business. “Now, instead of 8 jobs in the last 8 years,” they told users, “I have worked at my first job for a year, the closed place for six, and my current job for one.”
The result? Potential employers look at OP’s resume and see someone able to commit to a position and grow with a company.
OP applied to a “high-end place” with the doctored resume. The hiring staff was impressed. Sticking with a company for six years, especially through the COVID-19 pandemic, made OP a desirable new hire. During the interview, OP told the team, “I want another place I can spend that kind of time in.”
OP got offered the job that very same day. “Going to lie on my resume forever,” OP finished in their post.
Social Media Users Reacted to The Post
Users added their resume cheats and advice in the comments. “If you are going to be dishonest, on paper or even in an interview—make sure you cannot be called out [or] caught lying,” one user wrote, “If you know, 100%, you can get away with it, go for it.”
Most users agreed that writing whatever on a resume is fair game so long as a person is prepared to defend that resume in an interview.
Another Redditor shared their strategy for covering up job hopping—lying by omission. “I’ve worked in the restaurant industry for 20 years. After a 5-year stint at a notoriously popular and abusive restaurant, my tolerance for b***s*** went to zero. I hopped around for a while, often leaving abruptly and getting a job the next week. So I wrote a resume without any dates, just chronological order and… my most impressive jobs. Worked like a charm.”
A second restaurant worker, this time a manager, added how they would tell employees always to list them as a reference, and they’d provide a glowing review.
One commenter wrote about how they adjusted gaps on their resume when they noticed they weren’t getting any interviews. “The first thing everyone asked about was the gaps. No one was willing to take a chance on me. So I decided to leave off the job between both gaps to make it look like a longer career break. Immediately started getting interviews and landed a job within a couple of weeks.”
Can It Be Justified?
People seem to make their own judgment call when deciding whether to lie on their resume. However, a top comment warned against certain kinds of dishonesty: “Do not be dishonest, under any circumstances, about qualifying credentials which are required to do a job that could put people at risk.”
Whether or not you choose to lie on your next resume, happy job hunting, and good luck!
This article Finding a Loophole to Get Hired: “Lying On My Resume Was The Best Decision I Ever Made” was produced and syndicated by TPR Teaching. We do NOT condone lying on your resume. This article is written for entertainment purposes only and should not be construed as advice. Reddit source.
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