It is an unspoken but widely accepted rule in the corporate world that to get ahead, it is not necessarily what you know, but who you know that is going to help you climb that godforsaken ladder. Countless careers have been made over the years purely because people were in the right place, at the right time, having the right conversation with the right person. When there are so many job seekers out there sending out resume after resume to no avail, it can seem unfair—and sometimes it is. Still, there are plenty of hardworking individuals for whom this lucky chance is well-deserved.

One of the potential issues that can arise when somebody gets a job this way is that others begin to think that they owe them something. While gratitude is important, this isn’t always the case, and it can easily sour the relief of starting a new position.