Just a little fun to lighten your day.

Sometimes, the best candidates get overlooked, and the worst ones land dream jobs. Other times, sheer luck or ridiculous missteps lead to legendary success. Here are some of the funniest recruiting stories in modern history; some that ended in disaster and others somehow worked against all odds.

  1. NASA’s Astronaut Who Was Almost a Spy

In the 1960s, NASA was looking for the best and brightest to join its elite astronaut corps. Somehow, they ended up hiring Richard L. Phillips, a man who later turned out to be an imposter and possible Soviet spy. Phillips had faked his credentials, claiming to be a highly qualified test pilot, but when NASA started verifying his background, they discovered he had never been a pilot at all. He disappeared before they could confront him, leaving NASA scratching their heads.

Lesson: Always check the references, especially if they claim to have piloted spacecraft before humans actually had.

  1. The Janitor Who Accidentally Became the Boss

In 1957, Sidney Weinberg, a janitor at Goldman Sachs, accidentally found himself sitting in on an executive meeting. He made such sharp observations that the company’s leadership decided to promote him on the spot. Over the next few years, he climbed the ranks, eventually becoming the CEO and turning Goldman Sachs into a financial powerhouse.

Lesson: Sometimes, the best hires aren’t even applicants, they’re just in the right room at the right time.

  1. The Convicted Criminal Who Became a Mayor, Twice

James Curley, a Boston politician, was so beloved by voters that he was elected mayor while serving time in prison, twice. The first time, he was behind bars for mail fraud; the second, for corruption. The hiring process for public office (i.e., elections) failed spectacularly, yet somehow, the people still wanted him in charge.

Lesson: Some resumes have serious red flags, but in politics, that might be an asset.

  1. The Man Who Lied His Way into Yahoo’s C-Suite

In 2012, Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson was caught with a completely fabricated computer science degree on his resume. This might not have been a big deal except that Yahoo had just spent millions hiring him for his “technical expertise.” When the lie was exposed, Thompson was swiftly fired.

Lesson: If you’re going to fake your credentials, maybe don’t do it for a tech job at a company that specializes in, well, tech.

  1. The CIA Almost Rejected One of Its Best Spies

Virginia Hall, one of the most legendary spies in World War II, was initially rejected from the U.S. Foreign Service for a ridiculous reason: she had lost her leg in a hunting accident. Despite this, she joined the British SOE and later the OSS (the precursor to the CIA), where she became a top operative, evading the Nazis and orchestrating resistance operations across France.

Lesson: Sometimes, the best recruits don’t fit the “ideal candidate” mold but they’re exactly who you need.

  1. The Guy Who Talked His Way Into a Baseball Team Without Ever Playing

In 1914, a man named George Plimpton convinced the Detroit Tigers to sign him as a pitcher. The problem? He had never actually played professional baseball. His entire career was an elaborate hoax, but he managed to last just long enough to get on the team’s official roster before being exposed.

Lesson: Confidence is great, but maybe make sure your new hire actually knows the job.

  1. The Job Interview That Turned Into a Hostage Situation

In 2009, a man in Florida applied for a job at a bank. When he was rejected, instead of leaving, he held the bank employees hostage for hours, apparently hoping this would convince them to reconsider his application. Shockingly, it did not work.

Lesson: “Persistence” is great, but don’t take it too far.

8. The Musician Who Became a War Hero Because the Army Thought He Was Someone Else

In World War I, a British man named James Honeyman-Scott wanted to join the army, but he failed the physical exam. Not one to be discouraged, he noticed that the military recruitment office had a mix-up in its paperwork and mistakenly assumed he was another man with the same name who had already been accepted.

Rather than correcting them, he went along with it, was sent to the front lines, and ended up becoming a decorated war hero.

After the war, he admitted the mistake but was so well-regarded that nobody cared.

Lesson: Double checking a candidate’s background is always a good idea.

Some people fail upward in spectacular fashion, while others flame out in ways that become legendary. A final lesson? Life is full of surprises. It pays to always look on the bright side.

Have an eventful day.