Learned a brutal lesson about inflating my experience on my resume

Back in 2021 I applied for a project manager role at a small marketing agency in Portland. I stretched my skills a bit too far claiming I knew Agile methodology. The hiring manager asked me one simple question about sprint planning and I completely froze. I didn't get the job and honestly that embarrassment taught me to be straight up about what I actually know. Has anyone else bombed an interview because they oversold themselves?

2 comments

2 Comments

amyh2113d agoMost Upvoted

Right there with you on the diana_king point about that embarrassment sticking with you longer than the job would have. A friend of mine once said he was fluent in Spanish on his resume, got through three rounds of interviews, finally landed the job, and then on day one the team lead started talking to him in Spanish about a client project. He ended up having to come clean two weeks later and they moved him to a different department where he never spoke to clients directly. That moment of shame followed him around that whole office for months, way more than if he had just been honest from the start.

diana_king13d ago

Wait is it really that bad though? I used to think inflating your resume was just part of the game, like everyone did it a little. But then I saw my buddy get totally grilled about a graphic design certificate he didn't actually have, and watching him sweat through that whole interview made me reconsider. Now I'm more on your side, it's better to be honest about what you know because those embarrassing moments stick with you way longer than the job offer would have. That sprint planning question sounds rough, but at least you learned from it instead of having to fake it on the job.