Today’s job market is more ruthless than ever, leaving many desperately clinging to their roles amid mass layoffs and side-eyeing the competition.

In such environments, a rival colleague or workplace nemesis may make themselves known. Watching a smug colleague get called out for a mistake in a meeting or blundering a promotion is often deeply satisfying (even if we may not admit it).

Many know the German name for this impulse, schadenfreude: pleasure derived by another’s misfortune. But another, more work-related term that has emerged recently is fail watching: a coping strategy born from today’s challenging job market as a way to make us feel better about our own position.

Research has shown that seeing others fail can give us a self-affirming boost. Those with low self-esteem are more

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