Create a failure rsum. Most of us have a rsuma written compendium of jobs, experiences, and credentials that demonstrate to prospective employers and clients how qualified, adept, and generally awesome we are. Tina Seelig, a professor of practice at Stanford University, says we also need a failure rsum, a detailed and thorough inventory of our flops. A failure rsum offers another method for addressing our regrets. The very act of creating one is a form of disclosure. And by eyeing your failure rsum not as its protagonist, but as an observer, you can learn from it without feeling diminished by your mistakes. A few years ago, I compiled a failure rsum, then tried to glean lessons from the many screwups Id committed. (Disclosing these embarrassments to myself will be sufficient, thank you very much.) I realized Id repeatedly made variations of the same two mistakes, and that knowledge has helped me avoid those mistakes again.

The Power of Regret by Daniel H. Pink