" When people are looking for causes of failure, they are predisposed to one of these positions. Suppose you apply for a job, but fail to get hired. Here are some possible answers you give.

Global: I don't look good on paper and I get nervous at interviews.
Specific: I don't really know enough about the kinds of products they sell. To look good at an interview, I need more of a feel for the business.
Chronic: I don't have a dynamic, take-charge kind of personality. It's not who I am.
Transient: I had just recovered from the flu and had not been sleeping well. I wasn't at my best.
Personal: The job was there for the taking. I just couldn't get it done.
Universal: they probably already had an insider picked out; the job search was just for show, and no outsider would have gotten the job. "

― Barry Schwartz