Have you ever competed with your friends for the exact same job/position?

N918KT

N918KT

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When you just graduated from college, have you ever had to compete with your fellow friends and classmates for the same job or position at the same company?

What would be your reaction if you heard that one of your best friends in college got the exact same job you really wanted and have been trying to get?

This happened to me a few times so I am curious if anyone else ever had to compete with your friends for the same position.
 
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N918KT said:
When you just graduated from college, have you ever had to compete with your fellow friends and classmates for the same job or position at the same company?

What would be your reaction if you heard that one of your best friends in college got the exact same job you also have been trying to get?

This happened to me a few times so I am curious if anyone else ever had to compete with your friends for the same position.
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Learn to deal with it, it's part of life. One of you will get the job, one of you won't. It's all professional. Consider them the same way as you would consider anyone else competing for a job.

In my industry, I compete with long standing personal friends of mine in securing contracts literally on a daily basis.
 
Be gracious and congratulatory. They might be able to hire you or contract to you someday. The business world is small. Sour grapes breed bad karma.
 
Yes. A couple of times - no big deal. They didn't cheat me out of anything, the employer figured they'd be a better match for the job, that's all.

One time I interviewed for a job, didn't get it. Got another job instead - then I found out the job I got was vacated by the guy that got the other job I interviewed for.
 
Coming out of school I interviewed for a job at a large industrial plant. I went in to the interview, and the noise there was deafening. The boss was screaming. We went outside where it was quiet. He was still screaming. I passed. I met up with a schoolmate of mine that took the position a few months later.

"So, Royce, where did you end up?"

"Remember that position over at Ubercorp, I think you interviewed for it?"

"I remember yes."

"I took it."

"Oh." (sorry to hear)

"Yeah." (thanks)
 
N918KT said:
When you just graduated from college, have you ever had to compete with your fellow friends and classmates for the same job or position at the same company?

What would be your reaction if you heard that one of your best friends in college got the exact same job you really wanted and have been trying to get?

This happened to me a few times so I am curious if anyone else ever had to compete with your friends for the same position.
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I am constantly competing with friends for the same jobs. Also, in my industry the churn is high enough, we put each other in our jobs when we get tired of them. When one of my buddies is running a boat I would like to, I tell them and we work out a 'relief captain' gig and go on rotation, or they tell the owner to hire me when they are done with it; I do the same with them. If it's a really cool gig, we'll hire the other on as our mate. After you have a bit of time in the industry, you realize that being on a good boat with a good program and a fun crew is worth way more than a title and a few extra shekels. I actually prefer running as engineer than captain, it's the best gig on the boat (chef is worst, you get no solid sleep), only issue with it is I need to trust the captain implicitly because I'm old enough that I typically have the oldest, largest tonnage, master's/captain's license on the boat, therefor the law hold me as captain regardless what my contracted position is. For the most part it's not a big deal because these guys are typically reasonably fresh captains and are hiring me to back them and learn while minimizing their risk when they realize they jumped in the deep end of the pool only to figure out they aren't strong swimmers yet. One thing I try to get across to the kids with a fresh license they bought with minimal practical experience upgrades their personal liability to prison terms for manslaughter. You get someone killed as a deckhand, it's an accident, if you get someone killed as captain, it's manslaughter.
 
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Look for the silver lining. Most people only keep their first job a short time and move on. You probably didn't lose much in the long run.

When I graduated, my two best friends and I applied for the same three jobs. I got offers from all three and accepted on of them. About a week later the other two got offers from both of the ones I didn't accept. They both accepted a position at the same company. They were both jealous of me.

Two years later I was hating my job. I suffered through it for another two (the great salary helped the suffering, but not that much).

Of my two friends; one of them retired from the company he started with 40 years ago. The other friend has had 8 or 9 different jobs and now reports to the CEO of an international conglomerate.

Make the most of what you get, and if you don't like it, move on to something else.
 
Happens often. I've been on both sides.

Think of it kind of like sports. Prepare and put your best effort out there. Regardless of the outcome, shake the guys hand and move on. If you lost, work harder next time.
 
A few years ago a headhunter was pursuing me for a senior position with a major company. I wasn't interested solely due to the location (not interested in moving, could have handled the job from where I am now). A colleague wound up getting the job. Guess who got laid off earlier this year? Glad I didn't take it. I hope he finds another job quickly (if he hasn't already). I'm in a fairly small specialty and I don't worry if someone else gets a job I've looked at.
 
same job = same profession (obviously) = someone you can network with in the future. THAT is how you score jobs, knowing people, networking with people. the old "it's not what u know, it's who u know" is quite often true. you want to be the person who knows some people. they may help you out, you may help them out. either way it's a good business relationship to have.
 
Thanks for the advice so far everyone. I guess I should be happy that one of my friends got a job that we both wanted, rather than being disappointed that one of my friends got a good job that I really would want to have.

I actually feel a bit of both emotions, happy and disappointed that my friend got a job that I was trying to get.
 
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Sort of. One of the other candidates for my present position was a recent graduate from my former department and someone I'd worked with a few times. We're not in touch though, she left a couple of years before I was laid off and has been looking for a permanent position for a while. I only found out because according to the guestbook at the B&B the search committee put me up in, she had been there just a couple of days before I arrived.

As others said, it happens and it's part of professional life. I did feel somewhat the way you described, though -- from the opposite perspective.
 
yup, been trading jobs for the last 15 years with a guy....now he sits on the other side of the wall from me. :lol:

I even took him and his girls for a ride once in the Six a few years back......:D
 
No big deal, it will happen the rest of your life too. I've worked for people who were formerly my peers and I've had employees who were formerly my peers.
 
I compete with friends daily. We bid, someone wins and someone buys lunch...

Other days, we work on the same projects...someone buys lunch...

Other days we work for each other...someone buys lunch...

The world you work in can be very small...

Be glad for others success...the sun doesn't shine on the same dogs butt every day...

Oh...Buy lunch.
 
I'm about to hire someone who will be my boss. Is that weird?

To be fair the final decision is not mine. But I have been working for a start up in finance/operations management and am moving into sales now that we have brought products to the market. So we need a sales manager with industry experience. I interviewed 2-3 people and gave the green light on a person for the job who subsequently accepted a job offer. Starting monday I essentially report to him
 
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Hey guys, I want to bring back this thread because I am coming across a similar issue. A friend of mine (Friend A) who majored in aviation is looking for an aviation or airport job but is working in an unrelated job. I found out from another friend (Friend B ) who currently works at a certain airport saying that they are still hiring (I think 2 or 3 people) and the pay is better than what I am currently making at my current airport.

Last year I applied to this airport and got rejected from this job and found out that Friend B got the job. I now have some work experience in aviation under my belt and would like to reapply to this airport even though I got rejected last year.

Should I tell Friend A that this certain airport is hiring when I want to apply to this airport too? I feel I wanted to help her out. But I am worried I will get turned down again and Friend A will get the job, just like how Friend B got the same job I wanted last year. Would it be selfish of me to not tell Friend A about the opening? My thinking is competition is tough and it would be better if I do not tell my friends about the same job I wanted to get to improve my chances of landing that job.
 
You have your own bills and such to worry about. Not your job to take care of others. Apply for the job. If you get it or are rejected, and they are still hiring, let her know.
 
N918KT said:
When you just graduated from college, have you ever had to compete with your fellow friends and classmates for the same job or position at the same company?

What would be your reaction if you heard that one of your best friends in college got the exact same job you really wanted and have been trying to get?

This happened to me a few times so I am curious if anyone else ever had to compete with your friends for the same position.
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Yes. We all competed for the same jobs, interviewed at about the same time, etc. And the reaction was "congratulations."

Life's too short to take that stuff personally.
 
N918KT said:
Hey guys, I want to bring back this thread because I am coming across a similar issue. A friend of mine (Friend A) who majored in aviation is looking for an aviation or airport job but is working in an unrelated job. I found out from another friend (Friend B ) who currently works at a certain airport saying that they are still hiring (I think 2 or 3 people) and the pay is better than what I am currently making at my current airport.

Last year I applied to this airport and got rejected from this job and found out that Friend B got the job. I now have some work experience in aviation under my belt and would like to reapply to this airport even though I got rejected last year.

Should I tell Friend A that this certain airport is hiring when I want to apply to this airport too? I feel I wanted to help her out. But I am worried I will get turned down again and Friend A will get the job, just like how Friend B got the same job I wanted last year. Would it be selfish of me to not tell Friend A about the opening? My thinking is competition is tough and it would be better if I do not tell my friends about the same job I wanted to get to improve my chances of landing that job.
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Why do you assume the only way your friend would find out is through you? Just apply for the job. Assume your friend will also find out about the job. Whether you tell or not is up to you but I never tell anyone anything about my job searches.
 
Help out your friends, especially in aviation. Small world. If you and a buddy are applying for the same job, don't get disgruntled when one loses.

Take the opportunities when they come up, be honest, don't cheat anyone else.
 
Its called contacts. Stay in touch with your friends, as they should stay in touch with you. The better jobs come from who you know.
 
N918KT said:
Hey guys, I want to bring back this thread because I am coming across a similar issue. A friend of mine (Friend A) who majored in aviation is looking for an aviation or airport job but is working in an unrelated job. I found out from another friend (Friend B ) who currently works at a certain airport saying that they are still hiring (I think 2 or 3 people) and the pay is better than what I am currently making at my current airport.

Last year I applied to this airport and got rejected from this job and found out that Friend B got the job. I now have some work experience in aviation under my belt and would like to reapply to this airport even though I got rejected last year.

Should I tell Friend A that this certain airport is hiring when I want to apply to this airport too? I feel I wanted to help her out. But I am worried I will get turned down again and Friend A will get the job, just like how Friend B got the same job I wanted last year. Would it be selfish of me to not tell Friend A about the opening? My thinking is competition is tough and it would be better if I do not tell my friends about the same job I wanted to get to improve my chances of landing that job.
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You do the right thing, tell her about the job, and apply yourself. It's not a great conunundrum.
 
Try being a junior Captain in an Air Force Fighter squadron! All these guys are your friends, and each of you is competing in a relentless up-or-out system.
 
Henning said:
You do the right thing, tell her about the job, and apply yourself. It's not a great conunundrum.
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:yeah that:

Help your friends.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 
The premise of this topic is so alien to my way of thinking. It seems like you treat shopping for a job the same way as shopping for a pair of shoes, and you worry over buying the last pair of your friend's favorite shoes.

That just isn't how jobs work. The shoes pick you, not the other way around. It's possible that they would hire you instead of your friend if only you applied, but it's also possible that they would just keep holding out for a better candidate if they didn't think you were a good fit. You're over-thinking and over-emoting the issue, in my opinion.

1) Apply for any job that interests you, period. It's retarded not to.
2) Tell your friends about jobs you think would interest them. Otherwise you aren't friends.

Your friend could be legitimately upset about you withholding information relevant to her interests, but only a self-serving jealous a-hole would get mad about being passed-over for a job. Or a child. How old are you two again?
 
I'll echo what others have said, with a caveat...

Assuming your friend got the job fairly, and didn't throw you under the bus to get it, congratulate him and wish him well. If he did throw you under the bus to get the job, still congratulate him, tuck that info away for future reference and be glad you DIDN'T get hired. If a company accepts a candidate that throws people under the bus before getting hired, what do you think the culture of that company would be like once you were working there.
 
When I'm involved, there's really not much competition.
 
When I worked, it was promotions. Everyone worked together, had worked together for a long time, and many of us would try to get promoted up the ranks, or into a different division. For me, over the course of twenty-nine years, I got passed over for eleven promotions, which meant that eleven of my co-workers and friends got promotions that I didn't. At the same time, I got four promotions over those years, and those four put me pretty close to the top of the ladder. So I guess I'm saying, you have to be in there for the long haul. One thing, a guy who would become my best friend, got three promotions over me, but in the last five years of both our careers, I ended up getting a promotion over him. That was very hard for both of us, and it took a lot to keep our friendship. But we did, and in retirement we are still good friends, we just don't talk about that last five years ever.

The other point is, that one should not think that the person who got the job is more qualified, or even a better person for it. Ten people might apply for a position, and all be just as qualified for it as the next, but if there is only one job, only one of the ten is going to get it. The rest could be equally qualified and have been equally good at the job if they had gotten it, the fact is, one person got it, and the rest didn't. That is not only hard for the person trying to get the position, it makes it really hard for the person filling that position as well. I've been on both sides of that one.
 
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True story. There were two similar positions with two similar but different departments supervised by the same senior manager. I had applied for both/either. Position #1 was a closer match for my background but the interview process was on the path to Position #2. I wondered why.

I found out at the last interview when the senior manager said before I left, "Do you know so-and-so?" It was a (former) co-worker of mine who had also applied for both positions, but before I did.

I started laughing because I realized that we were both going to be offered the respective jobs. And, of course, I couldn't resist congratulating my co-worker who had not yet been formally offered the position either.
 
midlifeflyer said:
True story. There were two similar positions with two similar but different departments supervised by the same senior manager. I had applied for both/either. Position #1 was a closer match for my background but the interview process was on the path to Position #2. I wondered why.

I found out at the last interview when the senior manager said before I left, "Do you know so-and-so?" It was a (former) co-worker of mine who had also applied for both positions, but before I did.

I started laughing because I realized that we were both going to be offered the respective jobs. And, of course, I couldn't resist congratulating my co-worker who had not yet been formally offered the position either.
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Similar thing happened to me once. A friend and I were both interviewing for the same position as supervisors at a MRO. We were both working elsewhere at the time. The hiring manager asked the old lame question "why should I hire you over the other candidates?" I gave my usual answer along the lines of "I can't speak to the other candidates' qualifications or experience but I would be a great hire because ....". He then said that he knew that I did know one of the other candidates and mentioned my friends name "Bob" and then asked if I were him, which of the two of us he should hire. I paused and then I said I would hire Bob. The hiring manager laughed and said that Bob said he should hire me. He then asked why I would hire Bob and I laid out why I thought Bob would be a good fit. Bob got the job. I guess I did a better job selling Bob than myself. :lol: A few months later, the hiring manager called me about another supervisor job there and was told the job was mine if I wanted it. It had not even been posted yet. Since I had already moved on to a position at another company, I politely declined. No regrets.
 
midlifeflyer said:
True story. There were two similar positions with two similar but different departments supervised by the same senior manager. I had applied for both/either. Position #1 was a closer match for my background but the interview process was on the path to Position #2. I wondered why.

I found out at the last interview when the senior manager said before I left, "Do you know so-and-so?" It was a (former) co-worker of mine who had also applied for both positions, but before I did.

I started laughing because I realized that we were both going to be offered the respective jobs. And, of course, I couldn't resist congratulating my co-worker who had not yet been formally offered the position either.
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In the maritime industry it really gets interesting because turnovers are so high. I have trained mates and turned them loose, just to see them 5 years later as the operations manager or Port Captain at some other company. One was really funny because he was good, I just had to put some boat handling experience and confidence on him, he had been running as a mate for 20 years when I kicked him off to the boat next door to run it. I walk into his office for an interview not knowing whom it was I was meeting, "Ok, this'll be short, you're hired, let's go get lunch." "Cool."
 
Tell her about the job, apply for it yourself if you want, and as others have said, don't have hard feelings if you don't get hired. Doing others a good turn without worrying about how it will affect you is always good for you. Don't ask for or expect anything in return.
 
Competed with my boss for a position at a bi-state agency for a senior project manager position in the engineering department. I didn't know he applied and he didn't know I applied. While I was waiting to go in for my interview he came walking out of the engineering department.....his facial expression was priceless. Out of 56 applicants I got the job. My old boss still bust my stones over that and every time he does I remind him that I am now retired thanks to that job.....he usually tells me to GFY. At least we are still friends and he has a sense of humor.
 
My tale is a bit backward from these. My last semester of college I interviewed with a startup. My girlfriend wanted to hang with me afterward so the plan was for her to sit in the car w/ the engine running while I was in the interview. The temperature was well below zero and about fifteen minutes into the interview I thanked the guy for his time and told him that I was not a good fit for the job. I should have left it at that, but I was young and dumb back then. I just had to throw in, "I'm confident that what you're doing is not legal. And if it is legal it's certainly unethical." and I quietly left. I walked outside to find my car gone. My girlfriend had taken the car to run some errands, figuring she'd be back before I was done. I walked around for over an hour wearing only a suit, no coat, in sub-zero temps because I couldn't go back into the office building.

Not long after, I ran into a good friend of mine who was excited about his new job. I almost fell over when he told me that he had taken the one I walked out of. I never said a word about it. But it was a major scandal here in town a couple of years later and the founder (the guy I interviewed with) ended up doing a few years.
 
The same ethic also carries over later in your career, it becomes part of your responsability to train the people to take your job. Way back I took a second mate gig on ocean going tugs with Crowley. Ops director turned out to be an old buddy from my Catalina days. "You're gonna do me a favor, and I'm gonna do you a favor. I've got an old captain should have retired a couple of years ago, and I've run out of mates to put with him, they've either been run off or refuse to sail with him. You're good and easy to get along with. In return, you'll advance way faster than the 7 year and 11 year current seniority based upgrade time (Crowley is Union)." "Cool, no worries."

So I meet him, we get along great from minute one, dude is a great captain.... When docking a 730' 3 deck RoRo barge, you do it by radio from the back of the barge giving driving commands to the mate at the helm. If you were off watch coming into port, you could stay in bed. Our second docking I was off watch, so I got up and went to the back of the barge with Ray. He looks at me, "Aren't you supposed to be in bed? What are you doing back here?" "Learning to take your job." "Well get over here so I can teach you to do it right. Anyone who wants my job is welcome to it, there's another one for me."
 
Once applied for a job where four of us who knew each other went after two open positions.

Company *created* two more openings when they realized they'd hit the candidate jackpot.

We were all there, eventually in very different roles, for five-seven years through multiple company name changes.

There was always someone you knew you could trust in those other three departments.

Later after we all left that place, now we have people we know we can trust all over town.

Two of us ended up at another place for a number of years. We kept in touch and it was both of our interests at the time. He ended up head of one technical discipline, I ended up head of another one.

Apply. Tell your friend to apply. Tell ten other people to apply.

Now older and on the hiring and mentoring side of life, we'd kill for the right two candidates to walk through the door, and we'd probably make them both offers... if they were the right people.

The right people attract other right people, quite often.

And you wouldn't believe how hard it is to find two good people.

We've been interviewing for one position now for half... a... year...

It's a critical enough role that we can be both picky and also five of us can cover the slack that having the role not filled, creates.

Here's the interesting part. It's a role that will DESIGN the role itself. We know we have to fill that gap eventually but we don't have to hire an "almost" capable person into it.

Sadly we had a great guy. He had to move out of State for a family emergency. We were very sad to see him go.
 
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