What if instead of cataloguing your skills and achievements, your resume listed your weaknesses and failures?

This document is called a Failure Resume, or a CV of Failures. And it might be just what you need to do before you find your next success, or encourage those around you to find theirs.

The professor who popularised this idea explains it like this:

“Most of what I try fails, but these failures are often invisible while the successes are visible.

I have noticed that this sometimes gives others the impression that most things work out for me. As a result, they are more likely to attribute their own failures to themselves, rather than the fact that the world is stochastic, applications are crapshoots, and selection committees and referees have bad days.”

Johannes Haushofer

A 2016 study showed that students who were exposed to their hero’s failures as well as their successes worked harder and got better results.

Failure is a natural part of all success.

Acknowledging this and tracking the lessons you’ve learnt from your stumbles can inform the things you might try to succeed or fail at next.