Should I lie about the reason I got fired?


Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose – author of the business and time management books TimePeace: Making peace with time – The Book of Answers:  105 Career Critical Situations – and I am a business and efficiency coach that specializes in time management, project management, and work-life balance strategies.   

This question came from a business professional.

I got fired for poor performance. Should I lie about the reason of it in my next job interviews?

Firstly – I would not recommend “lying” in a job interview.  The truth will most likely be discovered.  And then you will be “caught in a lie” and therefore, seen as untrustworthy and unreliable. 

Having prefaced the above, I also wouldn’t come right out and say, “I got fired due to my poor performance.”

A better option might be to say something like, “The company and I weren’t a good fit and I’m looking for employment where I can make a bigger impact.” Or “My duties and responsibilities didn’t challenge my strengths,” or something along those lines.

Contacting previous employers

Keep in mind that the potential new employer might ask you if it’s alright to contact your current or previous employers.   However, your previous employer is limited in what they can say about you and your performance. Usually the question asked by your potential employer of your former employer will be, “Would you hire him/her for a position within your company again?” The former employer will answer a simple, “Yes or No.” If the answer is “No”, then it’s up to the scruples of the old and potential new employer how much detail they will share but, if the companies are operating fairly and within the law, the conversation will not proceed beyond a simple, “Thank you for your time.”

If it is ONLY your current employer where you were fired for cause, you’re not necessarily in a bad spot. You can, on the application, simply state the new potential employer is allowed to call your current employer AFTER you have been offered a position and have started. HOWEVER, if this is a continuing issue and you have lost previous jobs due to poor performance, you may be out of luck. In that case, maybe you need to aim for employment in a different profession or go back to school, earn a degree or learn a trade. In all likelihood your educational institution *may* offer job placement assistance.

Include References

Consider including co-workers, managers and even client references on your application.  Select individuals that will provide good references on your working relationships and dedication to the job.  Although many potential employers may choose not to call upon your provided references, this give you some ammunition during the interview.   If any issues were to come up regarding your performance, you can comfortably direct the potential employer to any of your listed references.

Correcting your performance issues

One last important point is to actually take your performance evaluation seriously.  If you are serious about being successful in your career, you need to take your performance evaluations seriously.  If your poor performance was actually the reason for your firing, you need to understand the exact issue and take steps to avoid in the future.

This might mean working on your soft skills, presentation skills, technical skills, or people skills.  This might mean that you need to create more professional habits in arriving on time, preparation for meetings, or suitable conduct at the office.  This might mean that you need to secure additional degrees or certifications.

Whatever the deficiency, you need to be aware and take steps to correct.  If you don’t, history will repeat itself.

If you need want to discuss in more detail, please setup a one-on-one consult session.

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