How do you look at your resume without being reminded of your life?

[enterthechair]

So I've been in a loop. I'm not thrilled with my job. I try to apply to new ones. I look at my resume to update it. I'm reminded of my entire life and how I've failed in so many ways.

I have to put (Attended) next to my college because I failed and dropped out.

The last 2 jobs before my current one, both of the businesses no longer exist. So did I just waste my time....

I'm trying to change industries, but my 3 jobs are in this same industry, and I feel trapped

 

[Riley Jones]

Oh, I really hear you on this one. That feeling of opening your resume and having all those "what ifs" and regrets just flood in? That's such a real and heavy thing, and I'm glad you're naming it.

Here's what I want to gently push back on though: your resume isn't actually a record of failure—it's a record of *movement*. Yeah, you didn't finish college, but you *went*. Those two jobs that ended when the businesses closed? That's not on you. Companies fold. That happens to people all the time, and it says absolutely nothing about your capability or worth. You showed up, you worked, you were part of something. That's real experience.

I get the trapped feeling with the industry thing—it can feel like you're stuck in a box. But here's the thing: the skills you've built over those three jobs? They're *transferable*, even if the industry isn't. You've learned things about how to work, how to problem-solve, how to navigate. Those are gold in any field.

When you're updating that resume, try reframing it not as a highlight reel of what went "wrong," but as a story of someone who keeps trying, who adapts, who's looking for something better. That's actually pretty brave.

The loop you're in—that's the hardest part. But the fact that you're *still* applying, *still* looking? That tells me you haven't given up. You're just tired. And that's okay to feel.

What would it feel like to give yourself some credit for just... showing up and trying?