I recently read an HR article called “How to Tell When a Candidate is Lying on His or Her Resume.” I thought this title was a bit harsh. I’ve dealt with hundreds and hundreds of candidates—and although some have leaned toward exaggerating their skills or experiences a bit (a practice I don’t recommend) I rarely felt that someone was outright lying. It did bring to mind an important point, however: “If you put it on your resume, they will ask you about it.”

Recently, I’ve had several candidates go through an interview where they were asked to speak to a particular project they had been involved in or asked a couple of technical questions about a software language they had listed, and their response left the interviewer questioning that person’s actual experience in that area.

I don’t believe that any of those developers lied about what they put on their resume—nor do I think that they even exaggerated their experience or involvement. In each of these instances, I truly believe it was simply a case of not being prepared to speak to that skill or experience.

As I’ve often said over the years, “An ounce of preparation is worth a pound of ‘saving face’ when it comes to interviewing.” So what, specifically, is that “ounce of preparation?” A couple of things come to mind.

First, when preparing your resume, always be repeating to yourself, “If I put it down, they will ask me about it.” Obviously, they might not…but smart interviewees don’t take that chance.

Second, take the time to put yourself through a mock interview. Every person I know who was dead serious about getting a job, took the time to do this.

The steps are simple:

• Put yourself in the shoes of the interviewer and then look at your resume.
• Write down the 10 or 20 questions you might expect your interviewer to ask.

  If you’re not sure what those questions might be, simply google “common questions asked about your resume.”

• Find a friend who will ask you those questions while you answer them back.

  It doesn’t matter a bit if your friend doesn’t know the difference between C Sharp and B Flat. The benefit comes from a live person asking you a question that then requires you to formulate your thoughts and articulate an answer back.

If you commit to this minimal upfront investment, you certainly will give a better interview—potentially even tipping the balance in your favor in the event of a close race.