Great advice! A lot of people get misguided into being dishonest in an interview, however if you ask any hiring manager, dishonesty shows! If it doesn't show in the interview, it'll become apparent when you start and your manager's expectations don't match your abilities. It's better to be totally honest and open in my own opinion!

I like the exuberance, but I have to take issue with the generalized premise. I am not saying to be dishonest; rather, what I do recommend is to be diplomatic, to be prudential, and to not volunteer too much information. Recruiters and other hiring agents are in selection mode, and are essentially shopping in a human capital market place. If you were at the market, and looking at produce, you would likely pass-over something which had a flaw such as a bruise, a cut, or some form of spoilage. Recruiters are the same way: career-wise, they look for the least-damaged people to choose from. Furthermore, each recruiter or hiring agent comes from a different background. They are as diverse as there are people on the planet. Some functionality brings them onto roughly some general grounds; but each has pictured what, to them, is the ideal candidate. A few like honesty. Others like modesty, but self-assuredness. While others find honesty and introspection as personal weakness. So again, be prudential and diplomatic in your approach. Also, remember that recruiters and hiring agents represent the company, not you. Why would they ask questions like tell me your greatest weakness? That, on its face, is not even a rational question to ask, when you ponder it. When I finished my MBA 12 years ago, the recruiter asked me what weaknesses I had, and my response was that I needed to really learn financial reports better (because in the MBA process, I saw how complex they can be, so I was just making the assessment that I knew less than I wanted to know. It was a Johari Window observation. Subsequently, when I was turned down, I asked why. The recruiter said that I said that I was weak at financial reports. I had just finished an MBA, for Heaven sakes!!! I am now in my third master's program, and also I'm in a doctoral program. But street-level learning taught me to not be too open, because it usually comes back to bite you. I can tell dozens of other stories, but there's no time, and little space here.

I am honest with hiring agents, but like them, some things are left unexplored. They generally do not reveal what often goes on in their companies, such as personal conflict, firings, disputes with management, etc.; or, with them personally.

Just keep in mind the basic fact that the hiring arrangement is a transaction. It's an economic definition, as well as a real trade. Do not let them trick you into thinking that they hold all the cards. And if you truly have talent, then they should be woo-ing you to work for them, not digging into every corner of your life, as if they are trying to detect a crime. Almost exclusively, they do not similarly open-up to your inquiries. Think about that, the next time you sit in front of an interviewer--which interviewers often make just a few dollars above minimum wage. If you doubt that, then look at job postings on the big sites. Here in Southern California, I regularly see postings for recruiter jobs which pay $14/hour (where the minimum wage is around $12.00--depending on the jurisdiction). This, in Southern California, where relatively few people can afford to live. And those entry-level people are judging your fitness to work in the company they represent. Let that digest for a while, before you hastily chase some shiny object like being completely open with hiring agents.

John Beck
San Diego, CA