Resume Inflation, The Job Seeker's Enemy

Time and again we here at All Star Resume get startling reminders of why exaggeration and fabrication on resumes is not only wrong, but also stupid. Our latest example of resume fraud came to us via a colleague who covers higher education. And before we get too far, let's just preface the story with a note of caution. The subject of this story may have just been involved in folly. At this point, we're not sure. With that said, here's a summary of what we've read from various accounts:

A senior at a very prestigious university developed a website, a video, and a resume as part of an interview package for an investment-banking job. All were filled with fabrications, such as the non-profit organization he launched, the book on the Holocaust he authored, and his previous experience at an investment firm, which, curiously, contains his last name.

The web page on his fake charity even includes a seal of approval from a watchdog group for non-profit organizations. While we're confused about how a non-existent charity can work so efficiently, we're definitely clear on this fellow's skill at copy and paste. Owing to having better things to do today, we'll pass on recounting his athletic accomplishments.

As we've seen time and again, the Internet just gobbles up situations like this, and then spews them far and wide. As of today, Google turns up 16,000 mentions of this one overblown application package.

It could be years before this guy recovers from his own antics.

Lest you be sitting there feeling smug that your resume's exaggerations are nothing in comparison, we urge you to weigh each word of the document for truthfulness. And if, by some unforeseen circumstance, your resume is suddenly circulated far and wide, would all who see it, and knew you back when, vouch for it?

We hope your answer is "Yes!" Truthfulness is the guardian of your credibility. The Internet makes it easier than ever for employers to check out the facts. Every day, some bits of our lives are stored electronically, and in the future, some of those recorded events may be retrieved. While we doubt that many job seekers are committing wholesale resume fraud, we remind you that even the little things, the half-truths and the puffery, can prick holes in your integrity and deflate your opportunities for career growth.

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