Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer

In today's economy, personal and professional failures are abundant. Personally, we're tired of hearing bad news. Instead, we wanted to know how people have stayed relevant and successful.

Here's what we found out:

By Jessica Dickler, CNNMoney.com staff writer

NEW YORK -- With job openings few and far between, skilled professionals are trading their business suits for aprons - with mixed success.

Ramy Sukarieh, 32, worked in Credit Suisse's multi-asset class solution group in New York until he was laid off in October. He has tried to find a part-time position waiting tables, but he's been turned away from many restaurants and coffee shops in his upscale Brooklyn neighborhood, he said.

By Anthony Balderrama, CareerBuilder.com writer

Although polite society says that looks aren't everything, you have to concede that they mean something. Your first impression of many people is based on appearance. Their clothes, posture, height and even hair.

Siblings and sociologists John and Catherine Walter have researched how a person's image is affected by his or her hair part. Whether you part your hair on the left or right side of your head -- or not at all -- influences how others perceive you and possibly even how you perceive yourself. The idea behind their theory is that your hair part alters how others interact with you, thus altering how you interact with them, and so on.

By Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer

If I had to guess, I would bet that at least once in years past, come January 1, you've resolved to lose weight, be more organized, spend less and save more, find a better job, or simply be a better person.

Yes, people love to make New Year resolutions. Perhaps more than that, people love to break them.

"People often give up on their resolutions after the first setback. They get frustrated that they messed up," says Karyn Beach, success coach and founder of www.losetheexcuses.com. "What most people don't realize is that messing up is part of the process. Things happen. The key is to stop beating yourself up about it and get back on track as soon as possible."