I lied on my CV - AMA

[Cvlying]

Following on from a recent thread about cvs. Nc for this.
I have a fabricated cv- not completely but in my 20s what is on my cv isn't what I actually did.
After having children I changed career and couldn't find a job so I invented a job history that was fake. It worked and for the past 12 years I've been doing this career. I no longer put the fake history on cvs as I now have the experience to back it up.
Never got into trouble and always kept track of my lie.
So AMA

Obviously if you work in a medical or scientific field or was an airline pilot it would be a lot worse than if it is an office type job which usually asks for experience and qualifications that aren't usually needed anyway.

Thats not the point, but you do you.

I do find people's opinions of "office type jobs" amusing

me too. I think it’s disgusting.
‘office jobs’ can also be in the medical field and lying about your cv would not bear very well.

I'm in a fairly senior management position now. I worked my way up from the lowest admin grade over the last 20 years. I would sack you too, if you worked for me. Honestly is fundamental.

you seem very secure in the fact that because your lies weren’t listed in your experience when you got your current position, that this means you have got away with it. The experience of the last ten years was all built on pack of lies and deception. You obtained this job because of previous experience which was obtained by pretence, deception and fraud. You really are nothing better than a fake and a con artist. I’d be appalled if you were my colleague or team member.

it would result in a complete breakdown of trust. It really is a dreadful thing you have done and very shameful

@Cvlying

have you had any close calls OP? Times when you thought you might get found out?

@Cvlying So you post an AMA then don't answer some of the questions?

I honestly think this is more common than you think, my brother put a title on LinkedIn that he never was. New starters clearly never done the job before like they claimed on their CVs.

Employers didn't used to ask for previous work reference like now so OP is quite lucky in a sense.

I have to hide all my older positions on my CV/linkedin because my industry is very ageist, I am 48, I hidden all the jobs I've done in my early and mid 20s. It's not lie but it's not fully open neither.

Sorry . No I've had no close calls. I've done a lot of short term contracts in the beginning to get a wide variety of experience and different industries.
Now I'm in a perm position I'm not worried.
I suspect one of my coworkers doesn't have as much experience as they claimed so they've been sent on a training course to be able to do their job.

Didn't they want references when you got a job?

Yes as I said before my 1st job I got an educational one as I'd just taken a year off to doan msc. Now I have my old jobs ones like everyone else

Wow, 10 years of fabrication is not something most people could live with I don't think. I'd be a stressed wreck for sure! Do you tell lies/stretch the truth as easily in other parts of your life?

I can’t believe how annoyed some people are over this 😂

Same.

I think lying on CVs is probably a lot more common than people would care to believe.

Amazed me how pure and honest so many MNers are. They abhor any firm of deception so clearly have lived the purest of lives.
What's crazy is I have never met anyone like that in my life.

Why did you do it?

I did it as I wanted a different career on a good salary after having children.

I think many people here are naive if they don't take CV's with a huge pinch of salt....

This is clearly at the extreme end of massaging a CV, but I suspect many many of the CV's that come past me have incorrect qualifications, work experience and timelines on them. It's why I test all my staff at interview and don't worry about qualifications!

The one person who "got through" this system, we suspect got someone else to do the test when they were remote due to covid.

you seem very proud of yourself.
I doubt you’d see it the same if someone took a job you wanted due to their fake CV.

So you’re a liar, which is not something to be proud of. You did not get the job fair and square and it is likely that you would not have achieved your current management position if you had not lied. These things usually come back to bite. Karma.
imagine having to constantly remember fake dates and anecdotes to keep up a web of lies. Isn’t that tiring?
You’d better not slip up!

Why post about it?
Does it weigh on your conscious?

Me too! Seems quite a gentle lie in the scheme of things.

It's not like she's done a first aid course and claiming to be a surgeon!

Would you tell your DC what you did? Would you be proud of them for doing the same? Ten years and getting your DH to forge a reference, wow! If you were on my SLT and I found out I would sack you and make it known exactly why. Honesty is one of the key principles of employment in any role at any level.

Not wishing to sound rude, but do you have a tenuous grasp of the truth in your everyday interactions? Relationships, interactions, tax etc.

Did you ever stop to consider someone else with a genuine CV and better qualifications may have missed out on their dream job by your dishonesty?

Are you actually ashamed of these actions?

So many people lied on CVs over the years. Today it is more difficult to do so then say 30/40 years ago.