the.com/credential
Proof you jumped through hoops, framed as proof you can fly.
means A document or qualification that certifies you're trusted or authorized to do something.
from From Latin credentia, 'that which is believed,' rooted in credere, 'to believe' or 'to trust' — the same root behind credit, credible, and creed. The word entered English via medieval Latin credentiales (letters of credence), the formal papers an ambassador carried to prove he spoke for his king. So a credential was never really about skill — it was always a note asking someone to believe you.
- origin
- from Latin credere, to believe or trust
- irony
- often verifies you survived, not that you excel
- inflation
- jobs now demand degrees for tasks that never needed them
- real power
- works best when nobody checks it