My friend’s been applying to 10-20 jobs a day with 1-2 callbacks. A few days ago, he got another standard rejection email: “Sorry, but we’ve decided to pursue other candidates.” Noticing it came directly from the recruiter’s email, he replied. He didn’t expect anything from it.
Just typed a quick thank-you message, saying, “I appreciate the response. If you have 30 seconds, I’d love to know what I could do better. I’m genuinely trying to improve.” Then he went back to scrolling through job listings, barely thinking about it.
A few hours later, his phone buzzed. It was an email from the recruiter. Surprisingly, she’d written back.
She said, “Thanks for the thoughtful note. Honestly, your resume was strong, but the team leaned toward someone with more direct experience. That said, I respect your attitude.
Mind if I keep your resume on file for another opportunity?”
He told me about it over coffee the next morning. I could see a tiny spark of hope in his eyes, the kind that had been missing for months. “Maybe that’s something,” he said, half-smiling, still guarded.
Two weeks passed. He kept applying, getting the same rejections. But then, out of the blue, that same recruiter emailed again.
This time, she said, “A new role just opened that might suit you better. Would you like to interview?”
He was stunned. He prepped like crazy—watched interview tips, practiced responses, even rehearsed his introduction in front of the mirror.
I hadn’t seen him this focused in months. The interview came and went. He said it went okay but didn’t want to get his hopes up.
“They said they’d let me know by Friday,” he mumbled, avoiding eye contact. Friday came. No email.
Saturday. Nothing. Sunday.
Silence. He told himself it was over. “I blew it.
Maybe I talked too much. Maybe I wasn’t confident enough.”
But on Monday morning, while standing in line for groceries, his phone rang. He almost ignored the unknown number, thinking it was a spam call.
But something told him to pick up. It was the recruiter. “Congratulations,” she said.
“The team loved you. They want to offer you the job.”
He stood frozen in the middle of the store aisle, blinking rapidly, not saying a word. The lady behind him tapped his shoulder.
“You alright, honey?”
He nodded slowly, then smiled. “Yeah. I think I am.”
That job changed his life—but not in the way you’d think.
It paid well, sure. Better than anything he’d ever made. The office was sleek, the coworkers kind, and the projects interesting.
But something wasn’t clicking. Two months in, he started to feel… off. He couldn’t put his finger on it.
The work wasn’t hard, but it felt hollow. The small talk in the break room didn’t feel real. The days blended together like static.
One night, he called me. “I should be happy,” he said. “But something’s missing.
I don’t think this is my ‘thing.’ I feel like I’m borrowing someone else’s life.”
I didn’t know what to say. It’s hard to hear your friend say that when everything on paper looks perfect. Then, out of nowhere, he added, “Do you remember that small community center where I used to volunteer?
The story doesn’t end here — it continues on the next page.
Tap READ MORE to discover the rest 🔎👇
