Curriculum vitae: It is better to keep these points secret

At first glance, the CV appears to be a highly formal matter. It records professional stations and qualifications as well as time off – with precise data and as completely as possible. In fact, applicants also have a lot of leeway when it comes to tabular CVs. “The CV is nothing more than an advertising brochure,” says career coach Jürgen Hesse. “It’s not about the course of your life, but that you put the key data on paper and explain what you’ve achieved so far.”

You don’t even have to lie (which you should try to avoid) to present yourself in the best possible light. You can simply keep quiet about some unwelcome spots in your vita, cover up professional failures, sugarcoat time-outs or even give them a positive twist. “If you want to conquer a woman, you won’t immediately say why it ended with your last girlfriend, why you were alone for so long or that you constantly had one-night stands,” says qualified psychologist Jürgen Hesse .

You should rather conceal, obfuscate or turn the following points into a positive one:

Resume Problem 1: Unemployment

At least short phases of unemployment are actually normal in today’s working world. Still, it never does well to simply write: “from day X to Y: unemployed”. If it doesn’t go halfway seamlessly to the next job, you should be able to explain what you’ve done worthwhile in the meantime. The following applies: the larger the gap, the better the filling material must be.

Good options are: Freelance work, part-time jobs, further training or volunteer work with a professional focus. You can also do more with less. If you program in your free time, you can sell it as private further training, provided that it is useful for the new job. Have you been traveling for a while? Great, then you have worked on your foreign language skills! If you really don’t have anything to show that you can convey credibly, it’s still better to write “application phase” or “professional reorientation” than the bad “A” word.

Problem 2: Many jobs in a short time

If an applicant has changed jobs several times within a few months, this makes the HR manager suspicious. What’s wrong with this candidate? Why can’t he stay anywhere longer – or the company with him? Career coach Hesse therefore advises sweeping very short engagements under the carpet. “If you got kicked out of the last job during the probationary period, it’s better to say that you are in an orientation phase and have been looking for a few weeks now,” says Hesse. Many short interludes in a row can also be summarized into a point that seems homogeneous. For example: “Experience in the hospitality industry”.

Problem 3: reason for termination

You should only state the reason for termination if it is to your advantage. If, for example, the old employer went bankrupt despite your tireless efforts, it’s probably not your fault. Or have you been kicked out because of incompetence, internal quarrels or violations of the compliance rules? Only the cloak of silence helps.

Problem 4: Criminal past

If you don’t have to present a police clearance certificate, you should of course not talk about breaking the law yourself. It becomes difficult with a prison sentence that bursts an obvious gap in the CV. Application coach Hesse advises: “Hide out shorter prison stays, come up with a particularly good and difficult to verify excuse for longer ones, or be honest.”

Issue 5: Illness

Serious illnesses – even if they happened some time ago – can tempt the employer to cast doubt on the applicant’s ability to perform. According to application coach Hesse, applicants should therefore adhere to the principle: Personal health is a private matter. Nobody has to mention chronic illnesses, alcohol addiction or the like in their CV. For certain activities, however, the employer can insist on a medical examination.

You should only make illnesses an issue yourself if you absolutely have to explain a major gap in your CV and can convincingly demonstrate that there are no longer any impairments.

Note: This text was first published in 2018. We are republishing it as a service piece for current events. According to a representative Insa survey reported by the “Bild” newspaper, almost every fifth employee in Germany would like to change jobs this year.