When we’re looking for work we all want to put our best foot forward during interviews and on our resumes. However, you don’t want to cross into bragging territory, and there are definitely some words and phrases you want to avoid using to make sure you don’t come across as arrogant. When writing your resume or discussing your skills in an interview, be sure to steer clear of these descriptions.
Intelligent
Everyone thinks they are intelligent, and many many people are. However, it is also important to acknowledge the fact that intelligence is a subjective characteristic and is judged on a wide spectrum. It’s the reason why we can call both Albert Einstein and Tom Brady smart. They are both intelligent, but in different ways. The point here is that you shouldn’t say you’re intelligent because intelligence means different things to different people. It’s a characteristic you want people to say about you rather than something you say about yourself.
Perfectionist
Stop it. You’re not a perfectionist: no one is. Most people say this without really knowing what the word actually means. They will say “I’m a perfectionist” trying to convey that they take their work seriously and pay attention to details. What a perfectionist actually is is a person who is so obsessed with achieving perfection that they refuse to accept anything short of it. Perfectionists would never get anything done because they would spend their entire work day making sure that ONE of their tasks was done absolutely perfectly. Would you want to tell your interviewer “I can only do one thing a day, but I’ll do that thing really well”? You probably wouldn’t. Try using words like “detail oriented” or “focused” to communicate that you are dedicated to your job and stay away from perfectionist.
Humble
Nothing says “I’m not humble” like saying you’re humble. This a rare situation where talking more about a personal characteristic shows that you don’t actually have it. Expressing a humble nature is not something you do through words, in fact it’s quite the opposite. Let your actions do the talking, and sometimes the best course of action is not talking at all. Let your experience and accomplishments speak for themselves. Focus solely on the results and not on the emotion attached to them. Think about it like this: if your retelling of events and accomplishments include you complimenting yourself, you’re probably not being humble.
Successful
Never ever ever describe yourself as successful in a general sense. Everyone has had moments of failure and that includes you. Not to mention, this comes across as very arrogant: like you’re somehow above the position you’re applying for. Would you go into an interview bragging about how great your life is? Probably not. Rather than saying you’re successful in a general sense, talk about specific tasks or situations where you came out with a successful result. You want to get across that you are good at what you do, but saying that you are just generally successful in life is a little ridiculous.
Likable
The general theme of this blog post is “Stay away from subjective words to describe yourself”, and likable is no different. Likability is not an accurate measure of a candidates potential. Who says you are likable? Your friends? Family? What about the people who DON’T like you? What would they have to say? The point is there are people who will say you are likable and people who will say that you aren’t. It’s an opinion, not a fact; and you want to stick to the facts when talking about your potential as a new employee.
–Tyler Geeve, Staff Source Marketing/Recruiting Assistant