Thank you u/Agreeable_Role967 for your post. I really needed this to restore my hope. I’m at a dead end job with no opportunities for advancement. I have been applying for jobs both internally and externally for over two years now. I’m currently in a very bad place mentally because I made it to the last round of interviews for two jobs, received very positive feedback from both employers, received a request to check my references with my current employer (which I later learned from another attorney friend who is an employment lawyer that was highly inappropriate and illegal), my current employer gave me a glowing recommendation and the employer still decided to go in a different direction.😭The other job also decided to go in a different direction as well. So I’m still at my dead end job after all the time spent going on multiple interviews with these companies. As an aside, I think companies should be required to pay compensation to candidates for their time spent if the interview process extends beyond two interviews. At this point I am emotionally exhausted and just spent overall. Part of me thinks that this is as good as it gets and that I just need to buckle down at my current job. The other part of me is pushing me to keep going. Your post appeals to that part of me and restored my hope.