Friday, January 3, 2020

3 Ways to Catch a Video Resume Fib

3 Ways to Catch a Video Resume FibIs your superstar candidate stretching the truth in their video resume? Unlike Pinocchio, the animated Disney character whose nose would grow if he told a lie, theres no surefire way of telling whether or leid your candidate is being truthful.Its always a good idea to be skeptical about the skills, qualifications and experience being presented on a resume. Whether youre viewing a video resume or scanning over a traditional paper resume the odds are high youll come across at least one or two candidates massaging the truth.A recent survey showed 46 percent of resumes submitted by job seekers contained at least some form of false information. Thats almost half of the resumes that come into your inbox or play across your monitor.You might think the early-adopting job-seekers who submit a video resume are immune to the urge to lie. Dont fall into this trap Even a good-quality video resume could be filled with less-than-truthful statements.You dont have to be The Mentalist to figure out if your job seeker is lying in the video resume. Here are some ways to catch a fib before you waste more of your precious time on a candidate misrepresenting themselvesIts too good to be trueDoes your candidate just seem too good to be true in their video resume? Maybe thats because the truth is far less impressive. One of the first video resumes to go viral belonged to a man named Aleksey Vayner. In his video resume, titled Impossible is Nothing, Aleksey Vayner boasted of his superior skills and qualifications. He even included his ability to ballroom dance as a reason he should be hiredAleksey Vayner might not have been lying, but his outlandish claims certainly should have merited some research. If your candidate gets on film and tells a story seemingly too good to be true, dont just accept it at face value. Do some research and listen to your gut reaction.Be especially careful of job seekers making big claims without any concrete evidence to back up their boasts. At least Aleksey Vayner really did ballroom dance Dont be afraid to ask job seekers for specific instances to prove their qualifications and skills.They seem overly nervousIf a candidate seems to be sweating through their shirt, ask yourself if this is more than just common nerves. Signs of being too nervous might just point to the fact this candidate is lying. Listen to where the job seeker seems to be tripping up. Is it when they mention their previous salary? Keep in mind 40 percent of people have inflated their salary claims on their resume.Youll also want to pay special attention to the job seekers eye contact- or lack thereof. While not as telling as it would be in an in-person meeting or live video interview, you might find job seekers have a hard time maintaining eye contact in the video resume when theyre spinning a fib.Theres a mismatchIn todays technology-driven universe, social media might actually make it harder to lie in a video resume. If something ab out a job seekers video resume seems fishy, you can use social media profiles and channels to back up the information presented. Many job seekers dont think to clean up their personal social media channels before applying for jobs.You might be able to uncover a fib just by checking a candidates claim against their own social profile. For instance, maybe they actually worked at their last position for only a few months even though they stated in their video resume they were employed for a year. This wont always do the trick, but its amazing what job seekers will forget in favor of a good fib to make them look better.Biggest takeaway Always check referencesThe biggest lesson for avoiding hiring a liar is to always check references. A candidates list of references is the source most likely to give you the insight you need to make an informed and smart hiring decision. So never skip the reference check, or you might end up with a tall tale instead of a great candidate.What are some ways you try to spot a fib in a video resume? Share with us in the commentsIMAGE Courtesy of Flickr by Onion.