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That's not how hiring works. First you have to get past automated screening, which looks for keywords. Then someone scans a stack of resumes looking for things

That's not how hiring works. First you have to get past automated screening, which looks for keywords. Then someone scans a stack of resumes looking for things like experience and a credible overall story. Then maybe you get called for an interview. Reference checks happen after interviewing -- no one has time to confirm details of every resume they get. The purpose of a resume is to get an interview. That's it. It's not intended to tell all about yourself, or to present a test for the potential employer to pass to prove they are worthy of you. You have 15 seconds or less to make an impression with a resume, so every word has to count, and you can't expect some deep analysis, phone calls, etc. at the first stages. At most companies the person tasked with turning a big stack of resumes into a short list of candidates to interview is not the person who makes the hiring decision, so you have to get on that short list first. Anyone can "prove" they had the title Director, that's not the question. What's hard to prove is that the title meant anything or just signals vanity or a two-person company. A Director at Microsoft is a very different job than a Director at Jack at Jane's Design Agency.

DoreenMichele 7y ago
Director at Microsoft is a very different job than a Director at Jack at Jane's Design Agency. I imagine the hiring process would also vary substantially between the two. I know something about giftedness, something more than I know about theoretically standard hiring processes. One of the things gifted people run into is people routinely thinking they are making stuff up or exaggerating. Over the years, I've learned to just be me. If people have a problem with that -- with who I actually am -- it's not going to be solved by finding polite euphemisms and telling little white lies and dressing down my accomplishments and trying to pretend I'm less than I am. All that does is give them a new excuse to claim I'm a liar because now I've "changed my story." YMMV and probably will. I tossed out my 2 cents on the theory that someone being called Director in their twenties is someone with problems like mine. Of course, I could be entirely wrong about that.
- gregjor 7y ago
  It’s not a question of age. The original question asked how it looks on a resume to have a director title followed by a “lowly SW3” title. A resume is not a person, it’s a summary of skills and accomplishments intended to get an interview. The OP asked this question here, and referred to their current job as lowly. The OP also brought up doubt about age, perceptions, and pretension. All of that does not communicate confidence, much less “giftedness.” The question was about how those job titles might be perceived. A person with demonstrable skills and a record of accomplishment would not have such doubts, and would not worry about how titles get perceived. A resume is for getting interviewed, not to prove something to yourself.

DoreenMichele 7y ago

Director at Microsoft is a very different job than a Director at Jack at Jane's Design Agency. I imagine the hiring process would also vary substantially between the two. I know something about giftedness, something more than I know about theoretically standard hiring processes. One of the things gifted people run into is people routinely thinking they are making stuff up or exaggerating. Over the years, I've learned to just be me. If people have a problem with that -- with who I actually am -- it's not going to be solved by finding polite euphemisms and telling little white lies and dressing down my accomplishments and trying to pretend I'm less than I am. All that does is give them a new excuse to claim I'm a liar because now I've "changed my story." YMMV and probably will. I tossed out my 2 cents on the theory that someone being called Director in their twenties is someone with problems like mine. Of course, I could be entirely wrong about that.

gregjor 7y ago
It’s not a question of age. The original question asked how it looks on a resume to have a director title followed by a “lowly SW3” title. A resume is not a person, it’s a summary of skills and accomplishments intended to get an interview. The OP asked this question here, and referred to their current job as lowly. The OP also brought up doubt about age, perceptions, and pretension. All of that does not communicate confidence, much less “giftedness.” The question was about how those job titles might be perceived. A person with demonstrable skills and a record of accomplishment would not have such doubts, and would not worry about how titles get perceived. A resume is for getting interviewed, not to prove something to yourself.