You only need one

Oh! The places you’ll go!

You’ll be on your way up!
You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers
who soar to high heights.

You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don’t.
Because, sometimes, you won’t.

For example:

Dear Dr. Gross,
Thank you very much for taking the time to interview with us for a Hermann-Weyl-Instructorship position.
The committee has now carefully evaluated all interviews, and I unfortunately have to inform you that in this round we are not able to offer you a position.
We would like to emphasise that all interviewees were excellent, and that the committee was very impressed by the high qualifications and the enthusiasm of all candidates.
We would like thank you very much for your interest in this position at ETH Zürich, and wish you all the best of luck in your career endeavours.

Or:

Dear Renan Gross,
I am sorry to inform you that the Faculty of the School of Mathematics is unable to offer you Membership for the 2024-2025 academic year.
We receive a large number of applications, and in view of our limited funds, office space, and other resources, we are unable to accept more than a small number of them.

Or better yet:

Dear Renan Gross,
We would like to express our appreciation to you for your interest in the Postdoctoral Scholar position at the UW Department of Mathematics.

We regret to inform you that we will not be hiring you. The search drew a large number of highly qualified candidates, and our decision was a difficult one. We have narrowed our selection to a list of candidates whose record most closely match the requirements of the job and needs of our department. Thank you for your interest in this job, and we wish you the best in all your future endeavors.

But on you will go
though the weather be foul.
On you will go
though your enemies prowl.

And ultimately, you only need one.

Dear Dr. Gross,
I am very pleased to be able to make a conditional offer to you of the position of Research Associate in the Department of Pure Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, University of Cambridge, under the following terms and conditions…

No mountains in Cambridge, though. Still… get on your way!