How about telling the truth for a change

I have alluded to the fact that it is quite normal to tell a bunch of white lies when one is trying to show off especially to one of the opposite sex when it comes to trying to earn respect or a reply or a date. However I wish to elicit comments on the lies that are told in the job hunt as to what is in the CV and other half truths at interviews.

I just the other day caught out an applicant just plain lying and asked her why she needed to lie as it did not affect whether she got the position or not and that it would have been much better to come clean and come out with the truth. This fear that the truth will somehow implicate needs to change. The least one could do is not say anything rather than implicate oneself by lying.

This added problem of having to deal with lies is also intertwined with the reliability issue that I have referred to before. This is all part of the character of a person, which is very important when it comes to getting a job without favors, and on merit. It must also give the person a lot of confidence to land something on merit, so that no one can hint at having helped them on their way, as some are wont to rub it in rather too often.

 This habitual cultural trait of lying to preserve one’s status, and not wanting to let the side down or even in some cases lying so as not to offend someone who is trying to help, does not lend itself to confidence on the part of the employer or superior. It is very important that one stands by principle unflinchingly and proceeds to elaborate from there.

The young are constantly reminded that they must tell the truth when they go to their weekly Sunday school classes and that telling any lies does not bring them any merit. However they clearly forget that the moment they leave the Sunday school, negating whatever they learn in the first place.

The practice of lying is so entrenched that those who deal with this problem all the time, do not expect the truth to be told, being very philosophical about that. They then try to ascertain the truth by cross examination, and by other tried and tested means if they are intent on hiring someone, despite knowing that all the facts as presented have to be cross checked for accuracy before relying on them.