Lying is something that most people will say is a bad habit, yet many candidates seeking a sales job interview are known to lie on their resumes or even tell a “white lie” in regards to the answers to questions while on a sales position interview.The English Dictionary defines a white lie as a minor or unimportant lie, especially something said in the interests of being tactful or polite.

But is this an acceptable practice or are these candidates breaking a known taboo? Here is some information that shows that perhaps in some situations, the “white lie” may be ok.

What questions cause problems?

Studies by CNBC.com show that employers are aware that candidates tell “white lies” during the process of sales hiring. It turns out that they know this may occur and are somewhat ready for it. But are any of those white lies truly acceptable for sales recruiters to accept?

Sometimes sales recruiters ask more than one kind of question. One type is meant to see what kind of experience and skills the candidate has and these are the kind that the candidate should definitely tell the truth when they answer them. The other kind of question that is sometimes asked at a sales job interview is the kind asked just to see what the person is going to say.

For example, sales recruiters may ask a candidate, “Where do you think you will be in a few years?” or “What do you think is your worst weakness?” These are the kind of questions that they want to see more about your body language and your reaction than to get a real answer and in that case, a “white lie” may be ok, depending on what it is.

Truthful Answers Hard to Some Questions

It is rather impossible for a candidate to give a truly honest answer to these kinds of questions posed at a sales hiring or any other job field. They just want the candidate to be able to think on their feet and come up with a decent answer that shows they can be a good team member in certain situation where they have to really think on a possible subject or problem and to be able to come up with possible solutions to it.

Another acceptable white lie could be an answer to the question, “What salary do you require?” This is due to the fact that many sales recruiters really don’t have a set salary in mind for the job the person is interviewing for. So, during a sales position interview, it is best for the candidate to possibly name a slightly higher salary than they really need so they can start the negotiation process. Both the potential employer and the person being interviewed usually know this figure is not correct initially.

So, while it is not acceptable to lie about skills, experience and your references, in some cases it may or may not be acceptable to tell one of the above “white lies.”

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