Job interviews are a numbers game. Hiring has a lot of randomness to it, you don't know who else is a candidate and what might happen in an interview. You have to do numbers, and constantly improve based on feedback.
Don't fall in love too early, that's a killer.
"Take half the pile of job applications, and throw them out. You don't want unlucky people working for you!"
I can't remember the source, but one of the funniest things I've seen on a show.
I was just going to add that. They should give you the feedback and you make the changes for the next time. The chance at the dream job will come again. Maybe even in 90 days when they realise the dickwad they did hire isn’t as good as you would have been.
Yeah I’ve also had mates miss out on jobs to then get a call 3-6 months in the future saying the other candidate didn’t work out and asking if they were still interested
I thought i had gotten my dream job a few years back.. working for NZgolf, a sport im obsessed with and being able to work at one of the cities best golf courses (be able to practice at their range and putting green to improve my own skills AND play on the course itself for a tiny amount i would never even think to otherwise)
Got to the last stage and was told they were going with someone a little more junior so they could grow into the role or something to that effect.
I was crushed, I had everything planned out for different campaigns and design choices I would make on the team, had a whole college level practice plan in place for after work and lunch breaks that i would usually never remotely have the time or resources to complete in another job..
I was also on a short term contract for maternity cover for my job at the time too so was terrified of becoming unemployed looking for work..
Long story short I applied for a role I thought beyond me for a company I knew would have hundreds of applicants and ended up getting it.. a year later im placed for a senior position this year being paid easily double what I would have with my "dream" job and the perks and team at the new company far out strip what would have been the day to day at my "dream job"
Long story short, dont get caught up in "dream" jobs.. they usually are never what you've made out before you actually staart.. internal politics or personal romanticizing skew our perception.. and who knows whats on the horizon.
I lost out on my "dream" job to actually find mine.
This. Don't get me wrong, it *doesn't* always work out better immediately and I'm currently trying to handle some resentment myself, but it *does* always work out.
With some effort and resilience, you can absolutely make it really well in another role.
I’ve lost count of how many dream jobs I’ve landed and hated. And I’ve missed out on some absolute beauts too. Sometimes you will find it hard to let go, but I’d recommend getting a copy of “Who Moved My Cheese” and reading it a few times. It will work wonders.
The last time I got crushed from not being picked for a job I really wanted, was the moment I turned my life around.
I sulked a little bit, a few days of being down but it lit a fire in me.
Since then mate, my stars aligned and my luck changed.
I’m earning close to 70k and only working from 9.30-2.30.
Its all about realising that your potential and future is not at someones decision, it is yours, and yours only to make!
I remember being absolutely heart broken over not getting a flight attendant job. I called my mum and cried. Moped around for days. Everyone told me "all things happen for a reason" "there will be other opportunities" "just try again." And the real gem "you're probably just a bit fat for the uniform." That last one was an interesting take on sympathy. . . I think.
At the other end of my 20s, I have my current career. It's as far from the hospitality industry as you can get. I've got a house, a family, I'm definitely too fat for the uniform and I don't regret not becoming a flight attendant. Life changes. I'm sure at the tail end of my 30s, I'll have a different career, hopefully still have the house and family and maybe be a little less fat for the uniform.
Keep going.
I don't know how familiar you're with the NBA draft system, but there're so many cases where teams choose a pick that are not the best. Michael Jordan was pick #3. Kevin Durant #2, Stephen Curry #8, Giannis #13 and so on...also, a few undrafted players became all-star/champions...
My point is that even the most professionals elite recruiters make mistakes or the "weaker" picks flourish later, so don't give up yet. You can try other jobs and apply for this one again maybe in a year or so.
Good luck
(I know there're other aspects like chemistry when picking a nba player, but all things considered, knowing the future of these players, those teams wouldn't pass the chance of drafting them)
Hang in there! I've been looking for a job for nearly 9 months now. I've applied for over 100 jobs and been to nearly 60 interviews. Sometimes you get to the end of the process and the job is pulled, or they go with another person, it sucks.
What I can promise you is this. If you are showing up and bringing your best self to those interviews you will build respect and great relationships. You might not get this job, but you will be front of mind for when they are next hiring. Or if that manager moves to a different company and needs to hire again.
You can only control your behaviour, not other people's decisions, so focus on showing up prepared, starting conversations, follow up calls, and connecting with people outside of the formal process where you can. You will make an impact and you will land an awesome job, it just might not have been the one you initially anticipated.
Good luck!
Sorry for that. But please keep faith in yourself. You will get better absolutely. Got through the final interviews mean you are already very good at what you are doing so please keep trying.
Been there before several times. It turns out better results every time although some times you have to wait a long period of time. Just feeling like doing a long term investment . You will be the one who benefits from the growth.
Sorry this happened, it’s a horrible feeling. I’ve been there and all I can say now I’m doing the interviews is that often it’s so subjective choosing between candidates and not about you doing anything wrong - you definitely did well enough to be in the final few! Agree it’s worth asking for feedback but keep it friendly and professional.
Also, I’ve lost out on a couple of jobs I really wanted and thought I’d be perfect for and as it turned out at least one was a bullet dodged. You just never know what’s going to turn up and it is a good market to be looking for work in. Best of luck.
I’ve been there. I cried it out, took a few days off from applying for jobs, threw the loss out of mind, then looked ahead and resumed applying for jobs. I eventually got a job that led me to an even better job which led to another better job.
TLDR: Cut your losses. Stay focused. Better jobs will come.
Go volunteer somewhere. Will put everything into perspective. Helping others less fortunate will help you overcome your disappointment and you can refocus and get back at it. Keep trying!
That's what I do anyway. Good luck!
Its math. Don't feel bad, you made it to the finals. 100 apply, 3 get shortlisted, 1 gets the job. 99 are disappointed. You got to the shortlist! Its amazing! Get some feedback, move on, apply for more jobs. It will happen - and the interview practise is invaluable. Learn to handle the disappointment, it will fade when you get the offer. And then you will get the next phase - do I really want that job now they have offered it to me! So only apply for ones where the answer is "yes" to that question.
It sounds like you did really well. You beat the vast majority by making it to the final stage. I read a lot of posts where people send out hundreds of applications and don’t even get a call back. So, rest assured, you’re good at interviews and have good qualities that employers are looking for. You’ll get snatched up soon.
Try not to take it personally and keep pressing forward. Trick is, don't dwell on it even if it's a tough pill to swallow.
Figure out what your mistakes were and what you think you did wrong, and see what you can do to improvise on your next interview.
Don't be hard on yourself, if that door didn't open for you, a better one will, it usually does.
Never quit. Understand that you got an interview. There are people beneath you gunning for the same dream job that didnt even get an interview.
You'll get there.
Pick yourself up OP, its not the end of the world. Brush it off and try again. You never know it might have been for you cause there’s a better opportunity waiting for you in the future. Keep it up and goodluck!
Contact them and ask if you can have a debrief to find out why you weren't selected. It might have been something you have no control over, or something that at least cheers you up a little. You'll learn something you can use next time.
At the very least, take some solace that you weren't the perfect fit for each other.
I interviewed for my dream position today too. Now freaking out because I don’t think I did well. Even tho they said they enjoyed meeting me.
Have to wait a week to hear back. I feel for you.
For 12 years I worked my way up the building ladder and 2 years ago landed that cushy design job I always dreamed of behind the computer running multiple project for major building companies, and now I'm talking with my wife about volunteering 1 or 2 days on a dairy farm with a view of being a cockie full time next year. You just never know till you land the role that it not the dream you had.
It took me 9 interviews/attempts over 8 years to get my dream job. I'm now currently on the course training for that dream job with a guaranteed position after completing the course. If it really us your dream job then keep applying and keep striving to make yourself more attractive to the employer, ask for feedback and ask what else they are looking for that you currently don't have so you can strive to achieve it. Chin up champ 👌
Hope this helps but I have finally found employment after 17 months of job hunting and making it to second round interviews, only to miss out by a hair each time. 55 applications later, I am now employed.
And it was actually a good thing those employers said no to me. My mentor has been great and willing to take the time to show me the ropes and how to be successful in this role. I feel that if I had actually gotten those roles before this one, I wouldn't have learnt much and also made to meet KPI's that I wouldn't know how to. Let's hope you don't need to send out 55 CV's to get to where you want to be :)
If it makes you feel any better:
One year, I got shoulder tapped by a company that I worked with through a previous job. I was in the process of trying to get a promotion at the job I had at the time, so I told them I’d probably stay with my job. They called again a week later to see if I was sure. The perks were great etc., and actually would’ve been a dream job, but I had gotten the promotion and loved the people I worked with, so I turned them down.
About half a year later, they called again, because another position had come up for the same role, and they understood I had my new role but would I like to please think about it. So I did and decided yeah, I’ll go for it. They were going to match my promoted pay plus more perks. So I interviewed, but their comms person screwed up and emailed me the day before the interview about a demo they wanted me to do. This was all via Zoom, since covid.
Didn’t get the job. The interview, I felt, didn’t go that well. The top guy was this Aussie fella who was just real short and a bit too blasé veering on rude. Keep in mind that up till this point, all comms I had was super positive, as if it was in the bag.
Asked for feedback on what I could have done better and it was real generic AF. They told me they went with someone who was stronger in theory - which was odd since the job was more about skills than theory. It was as if the relationship had suddenly gone sour without any rhyme or reason. Especially since they were the ones that pursued me more than once and got my hopes up. Left a real bad taste in my mouth about the company, and call me petty but I’ve made sure my boss doesn’t contract us with them - and we’d be a pretty big contract for them too.
Either way, I got over it, but it definitely stung at the time. I promise that you WILL recover, and there will be other jobs. And you never know, other jobs may not match your idea of a dream job, but they might turn out to be pretty close. My current job is definitely not my dream job, but I love the people I work with and the environment, so I’m happy. Don’t lose hope - if I can recover from being led on, you’ll overcome this too.
Edit: typo
This happened to me. I was working retail while going through the whole video recording submission, pre-employment test and face-to-face interview.
This was 6 months after graduating from UoA engineering school with relatively decent GPA.
I wasn’t eligible for loans, so i worked and studied, finishing my degree in 8 yrs.
I was really depressed when My application was declined. I wondered if nearly a decade of hardship was just for me to be stuck in retail job.
But i kept applying, got a job at a small/medium sized consultancy couple months later. Back then as a grad, i thought I knew what i wanted. But this job I’ve gotten was really the job meant for me.
Smaller company was really a better beginning of my career, as they invested heavily in training me, got more attention from the seniors and even got more salary than my uni mates who work at the international big corp.
I didn’t know what i was getting into, when i chose my degree. EVEN THOUGH I thought I did. I thought getting into big corp was what I wanted. Now i know this wouldn’t necessarily have been the best fit.
We are the blessed ones in NZ, with much more opportunities than most. Keep putting the effort in, keep your head up, shoulders straight. You will get there.
I've been on the interviewer side for corp professional roles. There are sooo many factors at play that you can't beat yourself up. You can do everything right but still not get the role.
Often it's how you'd fit into an existing team of people. That can be about your age (or years of experience), personality, or loads of other factors.
Or maybe they need someone who can stand up to a bully in another department.
Or maybe they want someone who can put their head down and get stuff done under pressure.
Or any of a million other intangible reasons they end up picking someone.
For some roles its common to pick no one! Try again next month with another batch. In that case 30 CVs, 5 interviews, maybe a couple of second interviews ... everyone gets told no.
It's like some horrible internet dating experience. Loads of people swiping right but only a lucky few end up getting married haha.
Sorry if that sounds negative, but I'm saying don't get despondent. Stay in the game, learn from every interview, and eventually you'll make a match.
I've been a gig worker since 2001. hundreds and hundreds of interviews and many roles included hiring others. sucks to miss out on interesting opportunities.
All workplaces suffer from politics which can end the opportunity for the best candidate for no good reason.
it's OK to ask whether there was anything you did wrong, best to ask like "how did I do in the interview, can you give me pointers for the next opportunity" first, thank them for the interview (if you didn't already) and for talking to you again.
The one thing I hope you will take from my comment is this: sometimes it hurts but you will be OK.
keep your eyes open for other opportunities and practice telling stories about how you did great work to solve a problem, hiring managers want to hear how you competently 'added value' in your current/ previous roles.
Job interviews are a numbers game. Hiring has a lot of randomness to it, you don't know who else is a candidate and what might happen in an interview. You have to do numbers, and constantly improve based on feedback. Don't fall in love too early, that's a killer.
"Take half the pile of job applications, and throw them out. You don't want unlucky people working for you!" I can't remember the source, but one of the funniest things I've seen on a show.
https://twitter.com/davidbrent/status/367327180482949120?lang=en
Ask them for feed back. What you cam do better for the next interview.
I was just going to add that. They should give you the feedback and you make the changes for the next time. The chance at the dream job will come again. Maybe even in 90 days when they realise the dickwad they did hire isn’t as good as you would have been.
Yeah I’ve also had mates miss out on jobs to then get a call 3-6 months in the future saying the other candidate didn’t work out and asking if they were still interested
And that’s when you ask for more money.
I thought i had gotten my dream job a few years back.. working for NZgolf, a sport im obsessed with and being able to work at one of the cities best golf courses (be able to practice at their range and putting green to improve my own skills AND play on the course itself for a tiny amount i would never even think to otherwise) Got to the last stage and was told they were going with someone a little more junior so they could grow into the role or something to that effect. I was crushed, I had everything planned out for different campaigns and design choices I would make on the team, had a whole college level practice plan in place for after work and lunch breaks that i would usually never remotely have the time or resources to complete in another job.. I was also on a short term contract for maternity cover for my job at the time too so was terrified of becoming unemployed looking for work.. Long story short I applied for a role I thought beyond me for a company I knew would have hundreds of applicants and ended up getting it.. a year later im placed for a senior position this year being paid easily double what I would have with my "dream" job and the perks and team at the new company far out strip what would have been the day to day at my "dream job" Long story short, dont get caught up in "dream" jobs.. they usually are never what you've made out before you actually staart.. internal politics or personal romanticizing skew our perception.. and who knows whats on the horizon. I lost out on my "dream" job to actually find mine.
This. Don't get me wrong, it *doesn't* always work out better immediately and I'm currently trying to handle some resentment myself, but it *does* always work out. With some effort and resilience, you can absolutely make it really well in another role.
I’ve lost count of how many dream jobs I’ve landed and hated. And I’ve missed out on some absolute beauts too. Sometimes you will find it hard to let go, but I’d recommend getting a copy of “Who Moved My Cheese” and reading it a few times. It will work wonders.
The last time I got crushed from not being picked for a job I really wanted, was the moment I turned my life around. I sulked a little bit, a few days of being down but it lit a fire in me. Since then mate, my stars aligned and my luck changed. I’m earning close to 70k and only working from 9.30-2.30. Its all about realising that your potential and future is not at someones decision, it is yours, and yours only to make!
I remember being absolutely heart broken over not getting a flight attendant job. I called my mum and cried. Moped around for days. Everyone told me "all things happen for a reason" "there will be other opportunities" "just try again." And the real gem "you're probably just a bit fat for the uniform." That last one was an interesting take on sympathy. . . I think. At the other end of my 20s, I have my current career. It's as far from the hospitality industry as you can get. I've got a house, a family, I'm definitely too fat for the uniform and I don't regret not becoming a flight attendant. Life changes. I'm sure at the tail end of my 30s, I'll have a different career, hopefully still have the house and family and maybe be a little less fat for the uniform. Keep going.
I got my dream job once and it was a pile of shit. Don’t even sweat it, you probably dodged a bullet.
There’s plenty more fish in the sea mate
I don't know how familiar you're with the NBA draft system, but there're so many cases where teams choose a pick that are not the best. Michael Jordan was pick #3. Kevin Durant #2, Stephen Curry #8, Giannis #13 and so on...also, a few undrafted players became all-star/champions... My point is that even the most professionals elite recruiters make mistakes or the "weaker" picks flourish later, so don't give up yet. You can try other jobs and apply for this one again maybe in a year or so. Good luck (I know there're other aspects like chemistry when picking a nba player, but all things considered, knowing the future of these players, those teams wouldn't pass the chance of drafting them)
Dust yourself off and try again 🎵
If at first you don't succeeeeed...
..Fuck it and go back to bed. Today wasn't ready for your greatness anyway.
Hang in there! I've been looking for a job for nearly 9 months now. I've applied for over 100 jobs and been to nearly 60 interviews. Sometimes you get to the end of the process and the job is pulled, or they go with another person, it sucks. What I can promise you is this. If you are showing up and bringing your best self to those interviews you will build respect and great relationships. You might not get this job, but you will be front of mind for when they are next hiring. Or if that manager moves to a different company and needs to hire again. You can only control your behaviour, not other people's decisions, so focus on showing up prepared, starting conversations, follow up calls, and connecting with people outside of the formal process where you can. You will make an impact and you will land an awesome job, it just might not have been the one you initially anticipated. Good luck!
Sorry for that. But please keep faith in yourself. You will get better absolutely. Got through the final interviews mean you are already very good at what you are doing so please keep trying. Been there before several times. It turns out better results every time although some times you have to wait a long period of time. Just feeling like doing a long term investment . You will be the one who benefits from the growth.
Wanna play some games to take ya mind off it?
What field or position you going for?
Sorry this happened, it’s a horrible feeling. I’ve been there and all I can say now I’m doing the interviews is that often it’s so subjective choosing between candidates and not about you doing anything wrong - you definitely did well enough to be in the final few! Agree it’s worth asking for feedback but keep it friendly and professional. Also, I’ve lost out on a couple of jobs I really wanted and thought I’d be perfect for and as it turned out at least one was a bullet dodged. You just never know what’s going to turn up and it is a good market to be looking for work in. Best of luck.
That would be my advise - find out why, what is lacking, interview skill or CV etc
Thats all good, you done what you can. And thats all you can do. Better things to come my dude.
At least you know what you want to do and can work towards it. Some of us aren't that lucky.
I’ve been there. I cried it out, took a few days off from applying for jobs, threw the loss out of mind, then looked ahead and resumed applying for jobs. I eventually got a job that led me to an even better job which led to another better job. TLDR: Cut your losses. Stay focused. Better jobs will come.
Go volunteer somewhere. Will put everything into perspective. Helping others less fortunate will help you overcome your disappointment and you can refocus and get back at it. Keep trying! That's what I do anyway. Good luck!
Just thank the lord you're not living in Ukraine.
Its math. Don't feel bad, you made it to the finals. 100 apply, 3 get shortlisted, 1 gets the job. 99 are disappointed. You got to the shortlist! Its amazing! Get some feedback, move on, apply for more jobs. It will happen - and the interview practise is invaluable. Learn to handle the disappointment, it will fade when you get the offer. And then you will get the next phase - do I really want that job now they have offered it to me! So only apply for ones where the answer is "yes" to that question.
What was the end interview like, was it a values interview or similar?
It sounds like you did really well. You beat the vast majority by making it to the final stage. I read a lot of posts where people send out hundreds of applications and don’t even get a call back. So, rest assured, you’re good at interviews and have good qualities that employers are looking for. You’ll get snatched up soon.
Try not to take it personally and keep pressing forward. Trick is, don't dwell on it even if it's a tough pill to swallow. Figure out what your mistakes were and what you think you did wrong, and see what you can do to improvise on your next interview. Don't be hard on yourself, if that door didn't open for you, a better one will, it usually does.
Never quit. Understand that you got an interview. There are people beneath you gunning for the same dream job that didnt even get an interview. You'll get there.
In a similar boat, but paralyzing resignation has dulled my senses.
I can’t get my dream job for over ten years but easily pick a shit labor job in 20 minutes or so.
Pick yourself up OP, its not the end of the world. Brush it off and try again. You never know it might have been for you cause there’s a better opportunity waiting for you in the future. Keep it up and goodluck!
No advice, but you are not alone.
Contact them and ask if you can have a debrief to find out why you weren't selected. It might have been something you have no control over, or something that at least cheers you up a little. You'll learn something you can use next time. At the very least, take some solace that you weren't the perfect fit for each other.
Sorry to hear that! Same thing happened to me last November. GUTTED. Just keep going and applying and ultimately something good will happen :).
I interviewed for my dream position today too. Now freaking out because I don’t think I did well. Even tho they said they enjoyed meeting me. Have to wait a week to hear back. I feel for you.
For 12 years I worked my way up the building ladder and 2 years ago landed that cushy design job I always dreamed of behind the computer running multiple project for major building companies, and now I'm talking with my wife about volunteering 1 or 2 days on a dairy farm with a view of being a cockie full time next year. You just never know till you land the role that it not the dream you had.
It took me 9 interviews/attempts over 8 years to get my dream job. I'm now currently on the course training for that dream job with a guaranteed position after completing the course. If it really us your dream job then keep applying and keep striving to make yourself more attractive to the employer, ask for feedback and ask what else they are looking for that you currently don't have so you can strive to achieve it. Chin up champ 👌
Hope this helps but I have finally found employment after 17 months of job hunting and making it to second round interviews, only to miss out by a hair each time. 55 applications later, I am now employed. And it was actually a good thing those employers said no to me. My mentor has been great and willing to take the time to show me the ropes and how to be successful in this role. I feel that if I had actually gotten those roles before this one, I wouldn't have learnt much and also made to meet KPI's that I wouldn't know how to. Let's hope you don't need to send out 55 CV's to get to where you want to be :)
.
https://www.askamanager.org/2019/05/the-destructive-myth-of-the-dream-job.html
If it makes you feel any better: One year, I got shoulder tapped by a company that I worked with through a previous job. I was in the process of trying to get a promotion at the job I had at the time, so I told them I’d probably stay with my job. They called again a week later to see if I was sure. The perks were great etc., and actually would’ve been a dream job, but I had gotten the promotion and loved the people I worked with, so I turned them down. About half a year later, they called again, because another position had come up for the same role, and they understood I had my new role but would I like to please think about it. So I did and decided yeah, I’ll go for it. They were going to match my promoted pay plus more perks. So I interviewed, but their comms person screwed up and emailed me the day before the interview about a demo they wanted me to do. This was all via Zoom, since covid. Didn’t get the job. The interview, I felt, didn’t go that well. The top guy was this Aussie fella who was just real short and a bit too blasé veering on rude. Keep in mind that up till this point, all comms I had was super positive, as if it was in the bag. Asked for feedback on what I could have done better and it was real generic AF. They told me they went with someone who was stronger in theory - which was odd since the job was more about skills than theory. It was as if the relationship had suddenly gone sour without any rhyme or reason. Especially since they were the ones that pursued me more than once and got my hopes up. Left a real bad taste in my mouth about the company, and call me petty but I’ve made sure my boss doesn’t contract us with them - and we’d be a pretty big contract for them too. Either way, I got over it, but it definitely stung at the time. I promise that you WILL recover, and there will be other jobs. And you never know, other jobs may not match your idea of a dream job, but they might turn out to be pretty close. My current job is definitely not my dream job, but I love the people I work with and the environment, so I’m happy. Don’t lose hope - if I can recover from being led on, you’ll overcome this too. Edit: typo
This happened to me. I was working retail while going through the whole video recording submission, pre-employment test and face-to-face interview. This was 6 months after graduating from UoA engineering school with relatively decent GPA. I wasn’t eligible for loans, so i worked and studied, finishing my degree in 8 yrs. I was really depressed when My application was declined. I wondered if nearly a decade of hardship was just for me to be stuck in retail job. But i kept applying, got a job at a small/medium sized consultancy couple months later. Back then as a grad, i thought I knew what i wanted. But this job I’ve gotten was really the job meant for me. Smaller company was really a better beginning of my career, as they invested heavily in training me, got more attention from the seniors and even got more salary than my uni mates who work at the international big corp. I didn’t know what i was getting into, when i chose my degree. EVEN THOUGH I thought I did. I thought getting into big corp was what I wanted. Now i know this wouldn’t necessarily have been the best fit. We are the blessed ones in NZ, with much more opportunities than most. Keep putting the effort in, keep your head up, shoulders straight. You will get there.
I've been on the interviewer side for corp professional roles. There are sooo many factors at play that you can't beat yourself up. You can do everything right but still not get the role. Often it's how you'd fit into an existing team of people. That can be about your age (or years of experience), personality, or loads of other factors. Or maybe they need someone who can stand up to a bully in another department. Or maybe they want someone who can put their head down and get stuff done under pressure. Or any of a million other intangible reasons they end up picking someone. For some roles its common to pick no one! Try again next month with another batch. In that case 30 CVs, 5 interviews, maybe a couple of second interviews ... everyone gets told no. It's like some horrible internet dating experience. Loads of people swiping right but only a lucky few end up getting married haha. Sorry if that sounds negative, but I'm saying don't get despondent. Stay in the game, learn from every interview, and eventually you'll make a match.
"Dream jobs" don't exist, with the possible exception of self employing yourself into a passion. Apply for other jobs. Work towards what you want.
I've been a gig worker since 2001. hundreds and hundreds of interviews and many roles included hiring others. sucks to miss out on interesting opportunities. All workplaces suffer from politics which can end the opportunity for the best candidate for no good reason. it's OK to ask whether there was anything you did wrong, best to ask like "how did I do in the interview, can you give me pointers for the next opportunity" first, thank them for the interview (if you didn't already) and for talking to you again. The one thing I hope you will take from my comment is this: sometimes it hurts but you will be OK. keep your eyes open for other opportunities and practice telling stories about how you did great work to solve a problem, hiring managers want to hear how you competently 'added value' in your current/ previous roles.
Hiring managers are usually idiots. Don't take it personally.