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Of course one can withhold information that would work against them, but one should NOT lie if asked specifically about it. It's fine that Bill Gates did not tell IBM he did not have an operating system ready if IBM did not ask him. However, if they specifically asked Bill if he had an operating system ready, I hope you would not contend it would be fine if he said he did...
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<p>Uh, actually, in this specific scenario, Bill Gates would be perfectly within his rights to have lied in that meeting. After all, misdirection and bluffing is an accepted part of business negotiation. That's business. To think otherwise is to have a highly romanticized, idealistic, way of thinking about business. Let's not be naive. </p>
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You phrased your initial response in such a way that you appeared to be saying, 'if they ask what you were doing, just say you ran a business. They can't prove you didn't, so you can make up anything you want about it. If you're not a fan of lying, just do these simple steps so you are an entrepreneur on paper...'. Is this not correct? If it is, you are saying it's ok to lie if they can't prove otherwise.
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<p>I am saying that if you need a cover story, you can generate one fairly easily. I am not even saying that you even need to 'lie'. You really can put some effort into getting some consulting work, and then legitimately call yourself an entrepreneur. Even if you don't actually get any work at all, if you actually put some effort into it (i.e. you actually call around for consulting gigs, you actually respond to requests, you actually create a website advertising your services, etc.), then I don't see what the issue is. </p>
<p>But, look, Addwit, you have to keep the context in mind here. In a perfect world, no company would ever ding you for being 'overqualified' because you have a PhD. We don't live in a perfect world. We live in a world where having a PhD really can send a mixed signal to the labor markets. I am therefore proposing an alternative to sending this mixed signal. What I would obviously prefer is for companies to stop dinging people for being "too" educated. But if we live in a world where companies are going to ding you for being overqualified, then I think you are well within your rights to market yourself in a manner such that you do not appear to be overqualified.</p>