The conversation 1

When you’re applying for a job, do you think it’s OK to slightly exaggerate on your CV?

I think it’s a terrible, terrible idea to even slightly exaggerate because I think it will always come back to hurt you.

I think being as honest as you can.

I think it doesn’t matter if you, if you can’t do something if you say ‘I’m willing to learn, I’m a good learner, I, like, I have these skills, I’m really open to learning some new ones’.

But to go into an interview or write on your CV,

I can speak, you know, a very average amount of French when you don’t know anything, that...

You might find yourself in a situation where you’ve wasted their time and you’ve just made yourself look really, really silly.

I think it’s a terrible idea and I would feel really uncomfortable.

I’d say I’m quite an honest person so, if I can’t do something, I’ll just say it.

I’ve definitely exaggerated on a CV!

I think you have to be − I mean, I would still consider myself an honest person and I’m not going to say I speak fluent Chinese when I don’t.

But I think I’ve done it when it wouldn’t be an essential skill for the job, maybe just to pad.

Well, not even pad things out because I’m talking very small exaggerations here, but, where it’s more for the optional side of things − just to make it look a bit more... like...

I might put a language on there that, I can read a postcard or I can understand an airport announcement, but if you asked me to actually speak it... but I wouldn’t do that if I knew the job was going to require me speaking that language because, like you say, you’re going to be potentially in a very awkward situation if that ever comes up.

And I’ve had, I have had job interviews where they suddenly start speaking to you in another language to check, to check whether you speak the language or not.

So... but I think, I think white lies are OK, personally.

I swing between both. 

You shouldn’t outright lie because you will get caught out and if its − a lot of the times it could cost a company a lot of money if they employ you to do a job and then when you turn up, you cannot do it or to the ability that you have told them you could, and there’s a lot of people to be affected.

So, you shouldn’t lie because you will be asked to use it.

But the question didn’t say where on the CV, so I agree with you because when you’re talking about hobbies, that is to see what sort of person you are, whether they would like you to work with them.

So if you’re quite a boring person and you don’t have many hobbies, I think you should exaggerate a few to make yourself look a little bit more interesting.

So, I cook every single night, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy cooking, but I’m happy to put down that I love cooking.