"A couple of years ago, I received a promotion that I had interviewed for that several other colleagues of mine had interviewed for as well. Following my acceptance of the position, a very close coworker of mine, that I had built a great personal relationship with, was acting much different around me and I knew right away that he was likely upset about not getting the promotion. While we were friends outside of work as well, I knew that this situation shouldn't impact life inside the workplace. I put it on myself to be proactive and break the ice with him by having a very frank conversation about my promotion and our relationship moving forward. My approach was to be forthright and ask why his attitude was different toward me, while not apologizing for being promoted. He immediately apologized to me for acting strange after not getting the promotion, and he congratulated me on my new role. From that point forward, things were much better between us, and we remain close friends to this day."
