There is a story in the Steve Jobs autobiography about the guy who wrote the program to have all the icons at the bottom of the screen, and then become enlarged like they are under a magnifying glass when the cursor gets close to them. Apparently the guy had written that on his own and came in for an interview. He didn’t get the job, but Steve saw him in the lobby and saw his program. He liked it so much he hired the guy.
As a couple of people have pointed out, it’s not unknown in the creative fields. I remember reading that a lot of the artists for 2000AD during the late 1970s, early 1980s - people like Brian Bolland, Steve Dillon, who went on to great fame in the States - got their start by just submitting a portfolio of drawings fresh out of college, and a fortnight later they were churning out Judge Dredd and Rogue Trooper.
I got my first freelance writing job by sending in a couple of samples and following up with a couple of phone calls; the interview was more a kind of “so this is the deal” chat. At the time I was fresh out of university with basically no history at all. In fact I had an interview for Loaded magazine whilst I was still at university (didn’t get the job though). Sadly alcohol got the better of me, and after that early success it’s been a long steady downward trajectory. The only friend a man needs is the battle.
Of course the other classic fictional example is Luke Skywalker, who is put into the cockpit of an X-Wing based on his purported skill in a private plane. I surmise that the real-life equivalent would be someone who was plucked from the street in Syria, Sri Lanka, Congo, Somalia etc, handed a rifle, sent into battle, and didn’t die immediately, but we never hear about them. Top GI Audie Murphy seems to have risen from private to first lieutenant simply by being very good at killing people. Quoting wikipedia:
His combat initiation finally came when he took part in the invasion of Sicily on July 10, 1943. Shortly after arriving, Murphy was promoted to corporal after killing two Italian officers as they tried to escape on horseback. … While leading a night patrol, Murphy and his men ran into German soldiers but fought their way out of an ambush, taking cover in a quarry. The German command sent a squad of soldiers in, but they were stopped by intense machine-gun and rifle fire. Three German soldiers were killed and several others captured. As a result of his actions at Salerno, Murphy was promoted to sergeant.
And there are people - again, predominantly in the media, and once upon a time in banking - who were basically given jobs by their dad’s friend, with a perfunctory interview. They weren’t necessarily any good, although there are some jobs where a firm handshake and personal connections are genuinely more useful than having a skill.
Er, Keith Moon? Henry Rollins? In both cases they jumped on stage and got the job by sheer force of will (and kept the job by being awesome). See, that’s the thing. It’s easy to spunk out your talent in one giant wad. You’ve got to dribble it out so that lasts. And not succumb to the demon drink.