He Went Out of His Way to Help a New Graduate Find a Job—Then Had to Tell Him His Salary Expectations Were Unrealistic

September 2, 2026 at 7:55 am
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Have you ever gone above and beyond to help someone with their job search…but they’re either unappreciative or unrealistic?

Or maybe both?

It’s pretty obnoxious when that happens!

And it kind of makes you not want to be associated with that person anymore

That’s what the guy in this story is dealing with, and he sounded off about a guy he’s helped out who sounds like he’s a bit of a moron

Take a look at what he had to say about this joker

AITA for telling a guy he was being unrealistic after helping him get multiple interviews?

“I (30M) got a message from a guy (23M) on LinkedIn asking about an opening at my company

I checked and found out the role was already pre-identified, so I told him not to waste his time applying

He thanked me for being direct

A few weeks later he reached out again asking if I could guide him with his job search

This was very nice of him!

I had some free time, he seemed genuine, so I gave him my number. He’s a fresh graduate looking for his first job

Over the next couple months I tried to help where I could. I reached out to people in my network, gave him interview tips, and generally tried to point him in the right direction

One of my friends referred him to his company. I helped him prep, but he didn’t clear the interview. Fair enough, that happens

Then another company interviewed him. Again, I gave him pointers. He made it all the way to the final round, but made it very clear he expected a higher salary then they were offering, and they rejected him

This wasn’t going well…

Later, an entry-level role opened up at my own company. I referred him, he got shortlisted, interviewed well, and got an offer

Once again, he pushed for more money. They wouldn’t budge, so he rejected the offer

Honestly, I was frustrated, but I didn’t say anything because it’s his career and his decision

The market is rough right now, especially for freshers, and the offer was by no means bad

The guy could tell something was different

I just became a bit distant

A few days later he called me asking if I was angry because he didn’t take my company’s offer

I told him no, I was just busy

He kept pushing, saying I seemed different and wanted me to be honest

So I was

If you really want to know…

I told him I thought he was being unrealistic and, if I’m being honest, a bit ungrateful considering how many people had tried to help him

I said fresh grads usually don’t have much leverage and no one is paying huge salaries for entry-level roles in the current market

He replied that he wasn’t going to let himself be manipulated at the beginning of his career into accepting less then he deserved

I just said, “Best of luck with that attitude,” and ended the call

Sorry, just being honest!

Later he texted me saying I had really hurt him because I was the only mentor he had and he expected more understanding from me

I told a friend what happened, and she thinks I was too harsh. She says he’s young and naive and I should’ve either kept guiding him or quietly stepped away instead of telling him what I really thought

My view is he’s 23, not 13. He asked me if I was upset, I tried to avoid it, and only answered honestly after he kept pressing

AITA?”

Take a look at what folks had to say about this on Reddit

This person weighed in

Another individual spoke up

This Reddit user shared their thoughts

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an employee who thought HR was doing them a favor, only to realize they were really saving the company money

And this reader weighed in

This guy has done A LOT for his pal…

But the guy just doesn’t see it!

And he also sounds pretty entitled, if we’re being honest

Well, the truth hurts sometimes…

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Source: twistedsifter.com