Resume Inflation: Top 5 Overstatements

The Bluster and Blarney of Today’s Job Seeker

Filling out your job history? Why settle for being a waitress when you can be a Dining Experience Liaison? While there’s nothing wrong with being a garbage collector, Waste Management Technician does have a certain ring to it. These types of exaggerations, termed “resume inflation” are on the rise, nudged by a competitive job environment and a culture that insists our resume should reflect our uberselves.

While some job candidates are experts at taking hyperbole to its outer limits, employers have an eye for resume padding even if you’re not an outright fabulist. Don’t say we didn’t warn you – here’s some of our favorite examples of bluster and blarney providing HR departments with colorful reading.

Top 5 Resume & Application Overstatements

1. Job Titles

Job titles like Genius and Sandwich Artist don’t even raise an eyebrow in today’s landscape. But some, whether Assistant Director in a department of two, or Innovation Sherpa in a technology company, just don’t pass the smell test. Hiring directors are up to their lapels with jargon. Put your best face forward, but think twice about listing your job title at a call center as Communication Executive.


2. “In Transition”

We’d all prefer to consider ourselves in transition when we don’t have a steady paycheck, but any potential employer knows that means unemployed. There’s no shame in being employment challenged. But if the story you’re sticking to is that you’re in transition, how you’re spending your time during this evolutionary stage better be compelling, and include things like training for a new career or building skills by volunteering.

3. “People Person”

This phrase had its heyday decades ago, but some applicants haven’t retired their people person status either in their resumes or introductory letters. These “people” people probably just want to emphasize their outgoing personality and willingness to plan the office Christmas party, but today’s typical people person also can wear the mantel of social maven.  Translation: they’ll spend more time on Facebook than on the monthly inventory report. If you interface well with clients, say so, and explain whether your skills are in answering the phone or negotiating a multi-million dollar deal.

4. “Results-Oriented”

Many applicants showcase their value with strong phrases like “results-oriented”. Trouble is, this can prompt the red flag brigade for application-weary employers hungry for details about your accomplishments. Phrases like this are dead weight if you don’t provide actual results to support your powerful turns of phrase, and they have a tendency to sound like you’re masquerading simple job duties as successes. According to a recent piece in Business News Daily, even the mere appearance of the phrase can land your resume in the circular file. Runner up: “was instrumental in” – you better not mean playing second flute in the high school band.

5. “Excellent”

Finally, this is your resume, not a Bill and Ted Adventure, and if your typing fingers are itching to upgrade your accomplishments as “outstanding” or your skills as demonstrating “expertise”, sit on your hands until the feeling passes. Your resume is fact-based, and opinions about your awesomeness quotient should be red-lined and left to those qualified to put the gloss on your abilities – like your references, who exist to sing your subjective praises.


Have you encountered a particularly egregious resume or job applciation euphemism, overstatement or outright misrepresentation? Let us know!

Why You Didn't Get The Job

Don’t Be a Casualty of These Job Application & Resume Slipups 

It’s a common scenario for the job seeker: They hear about the perfect job opening, but when they apply, their application seems to disappear into the ether.

If this sounds like your job search routine, you could be falling into one of the lesser-known job application traps. You do the basics – you proofread, you check your formatting – but you haven’t taken a hard look why your application goes from being a “maybe” to a “not going to happen”.

If you’re crossing your t’s and dotting your i’s to no avail, try cross-checking your process against these five job application ambushes before you press send on another plea for the perfect position that goes unheard.

1. You Overdid the Jargon.

Skills and duties jargon might have been all the rage on resumes a few decades ago, but today employers see through the doublespeak. Being “innovative” and a “multi-tasker” can prompt major yawns unless you can back it up with real action. Did you implement a new customer service tracking system that increased efficiency by 30%? Did you regularly manage interns while keeping an eye on daily duties? Go on a hunt for those empty adjectives on your resume – and replace them with real life accomplishments that will keep your name on the short list.

2. You Lied.

You exaggerated your job title. You fudged your several months of unemployment. You saw a void in your “Accomplishments” column and you, uh, filled it. Trouble is, background checks are simple, references are forthcoming, and if one detail doesn’t stand up, your application will go in the circular file fast – no opportunities to explain and no second chances. Lying on your job application can ruin your chances faster than you can say “unemployment”, so if you didn’t get that degree, say so. Your qualifications may lag behind other candidates, but your honesty will keep you in the running.

Want to Get the Job? 

Get Social.

If you’re leaving out social information when applying for a job, then that phone ring you hear is the 80s calling – they want their resume back! Getting social is expected when it comes to hitting the bricks in a tech savvy age. In fact, says Business News Daily, your social profile could be your true application. Maintaining your social profile should be the first effort you make as you embark on your job search.

LinkedIn. A LinkedIn account is an imperative for job seekers – put the address at the top of the page, and make sure your profile is updated. (Use the “Public Profile” button to clean up long addresses.)

Twitter. Depending on the job you’re seeking, including your Twitter handle is optional, but more and more important, say today’s recruiters. If you’re job hunting, your feed should be clean and show the real you – but at your best.

Facebook. Listing your Facebook profile is also optional depending on the type of job you’re seeking, but make no mistake – if you’re a potential employee in contention for a position, recruiters will be taking a gander. It’s the quickest way to see what kind of person they might be hiring. Give your page the attention it needs – you know what we mean – before taking it on the road.

3. You Didn’t Include a Cover Letter.

Even if you are applying for a job via email, don’t just attach a resume with the requisite sentence or two. A good cover letter is essential. It’s also an opportunity to make the business of job hunting personal by telling your potential employer why you’re applying and what makes you the right person for the job. Point up what’s particularly desirable about you, and make sure you mention specifics about the job and the company you are applying for so it’s clear the letter was written with that job in mind. Try these cover letter tips to help you create an attention-grabbing cover letter.

4. You Cut Corners. 

It’s tempting: You’re faced with a long application, either on paper or online, with plenty of blank spaces asking for past employers, education, and screening information, and you leave it blank, or say “see attached”. Duplicating efforts you’ve already made on your resume may seem unnecessary, but if employers request an application, they are probably using it to screen for basic information. So, put in the time, and leave no space unfilled (if it doesn’t apply, indicate as much with an “n/a”) and your employer will know you’re willing to do due diligence – on the application and on the job.

5. You Disappeared.

The interview’s over, the application is submitted – you’ve done your part. Right? Not by a long shot. First, many a hire has been made by a mere nudge – a follow up call, or a reminder that you’re serious about the job or available to come in for an interview. One contact just isn’t enough when application piles are as tall as a Coast Redwood. Second, if you’ve already had an interview, don’t vanish into thin air – your job prospects will vanish too. Send a thank you note (email is usually fine) before you even consider following up with a call, or you’ll end up as in the slush pile as just another felled tree. Get the basics on writing a thank you note following a job interview.

Visit BONNEY’s Support Center for advice about Powerful Resumes, Interview Tips and being a strong job applicant. Or, put a staffing agency to work for you! BONNEY can help you put your best foot forward in a job you are suited for. Visit your local branch location and talk to your local staffing specialist.