Lesson #1: Don’t Lie.
Lesson #2: If you do and you get caught (and you will) have an alibi.
Lying to get ahead at work can get you fired.
Lying to get a job will never end well.
Sue Ellen Crandell never got the memo.
In the movie, Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead, Sue Ellen’s mother goes out of town, leaving her five children alone with a babysitter. Guess what happens next. Sue Ellen is the oldest so, the “17-year-old . . . tries working at a fast food restaurant, but she can’t stand [the paper hat], so she puts together a false resume and, posing as a woman in her 20s, she applies for a job as a receptionist at a [uniform] company. The company’s vice president, Rose Lindsey, is so impressed by her resume that she hires her on the spot as her executive assistant.” (emphasis added.) Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead (1991)
Sue Ellen is successful despite having to hide her age and inexperience from her boss and co-workers, dealing with sexual harassment from her boss’s boyfriend and suffering as a victim of office gossip. But…and you knew this was coming…her mother comes home and catches her, at the height of her success in her new uniform. Sue Ellen’s boyfriend, who really does wear a uniform with a paper hat, shows up at the same time for some comic relief.
Sue Ellen’s lie, her adopting a new persona via a new uniform, works for her; she is offered a job after her eventual graduation. However, we do not live in Hollywood and unless you want to be fired, or never hired, I suggest you stay honest.
I do commend her for her timely French-braid and shoulder-pads, however, just dressing the part, professionally or otherwise, does not mean you belong in the position.
P.S. This movie includes a wonderful cameo by David Duchovney. Is it a cameo if they just weren’t famous yet?
