The unknown reason why you didn’t get the job

By Jeff Altman, Big Game Hunter

EP 3087 This devastating rejection email leaves everyone with one urgent, lingering question: Where did it all go wrong? Stop replaying the interview or second-guessing every bullet point on your resume, because this in-depth exploration will lead to more realistic, candid, and freer answers. We open the curtains The hidden reality of hiring decisionsexplores how final decisions happen behind closed doors, driven by specific, random, and subjective factors you can never prepare for. Understand why your goal values, skills, and accomplishments may be completely overlooked in favor of a personal calling, intuition, or even unconscious bias, and how recognizing this fundamental disconnect can be the key to breaking out of the cycle of self-doubt and the emotional consequences of being stuck. Tune in to find out the real reasons why you didn’t get the job, so you can stop staring at closed doors and finally look toward your next horizon.

Prosperity Guide

Ah, that email. You know the one. It starts with, thank you for your interest, but…then your heart sinks.

It’s a universal sting that always leaves you with a burning question. Well, today we’re going to put aside all this corporate jargon and find a more realistic, honest, and liberating reason as to why this happens. That’s it, right? This is the question that bothers you.

It can keep you up at night for days and make you second guess every word you say and every point on your resume. You just keep replaying that interview in your head, trying to find the moment it all went wrong. But what if the answer is much simpler than that? What if it has almost nothing to do with you? Now you get it.

That’s it. The long, complex, thoughtful answer you’ve been looking for is just that. They just like others more.

This may not be a fatal flaw in your interview, or a huge mistake on your part. It’s just a preference. Did you know? Accepting this straightforward truth is the first step, because from here, everything else starts to make more sense.

Okay, let’s pull back the curtain a little on what actually happens at recruiting meetings. Let’s look at the untold reality of how these decisions are actually made. This is how you start thinking about rejection in a new light.

Much of the final decision is made behind closed doors and is based on things you can never prepare for. Seriously. This does not reflect your qualifications.

This reflects their specific, random subjective context at the time. I mean, think about how these determinants are beyond your control. Maybe the hiring manager and another candidate just happen to bond over a shared hobby, like golf.

Or maybe they just have a soft spot for people from a certain company or school. It might even be a tiny niche technical skill that suddenly becomes very important to them. Or yes, to be honest.

Sometimes bias comes into play. None of this has anything to do with your actual worth. This quote cuts right to the heart of the nebulous concept of company culture fit.

Sometimes a good fit just means the hiring manager has a better gut feeling about someone else. This may feel very, very unfair because it’s completely subjective. This is a personal decision, not a scientific measurement of who is better suited for the job.

So what you’re seeing now is this fundamental disconnect. On the one hand, it’s their subjective judgment, you know, a mixture of intuition, personal relationships, and maybe even some bias. But on the other hand, you have your objective value, your skills, your experience, your achievements.

Those are real. They didn’t change anything because of that. The key to getting here is that you cannot and should not try to change yourself to suit someone else’s intuition.

Stop surfing the Internet at home

Yes, this is the hardest part. Once a decision is made, it’s made. This is final.

That ship already fulfilled that specific role. Now, accepting this doesn’t mean giving up. not at all.

This is about freeing up your energy to focus on what comes next. But, you know, accepting that the ship has sailed can put you in a very strange position. You might be feeling stuck, right? This has emotional consequences for us.

This feeling of being trapped on the shore. It’s 100% natural to stand on the shore for a while and take in it all. Disappointment, frustration, self-doubt.

These feelings are completely valid. But note that the key word here is wander. Just go to the shore and take care of things.

Setting up camp and deciding where to live is where the problems really begin. Because dwelling on it creates this nasty feedback loop. You feel uneasy, right? This can make you obsess over what went wrong.

When all your attention is focused back, staring at the departing ship, you completely miss all the new ships appearing on the horizon. This is truly the moment of truth. That particular opportunity, was gone.

It’s past. Admitting this does not mean admitting failure. It’s about finding the key to the next chapter.

This is the clean break you absolutely need to move forward. A clean break allows you to finally turn your attention away from the past and start exploring some new horizons. This is the part where you take back control.

Smart ways to apply for jobs

This is the other half of this very powerful metaphor. As you watch an opportunity disappear over the edge of the world, remember that the ocean is wide. It’s huge.

New ships kept appearing from other directions. Your potential is never limited to the opportunity you just lost. So ultimately, it’s a very simple strategic choice.

You can spend all your energy staring at one closed door, or you can turn around and see all the other doors open. Diversion isn’t just good for your mental health. This is the most beneficial and empowering move you can make for your career right now.

So we’ll leave you with this. What is past is past. They made a subjective decision.

Your target value remains intact. The only real question that needs to be answered is the question here. So instead of asking, why didn’t I get that job? It’s time to start asking yourself, what new horizons will you explore?

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