“The greatest cause of sorrow is this: we take up something and put our whole energy on it—perhaps it is a failure and yet we cannot give it up. We know that it is hurting us, that any further clinging to it is simply bringing misery on us; still we cannot tear ourselves away from it.”
— Swami Vivekananda
Have you clung to relationships, investments, or jobs though you knew they were sinking? Have you turned sentimental about your beliefs and goals even when the reasons to preserve them are no longer valid?
This is known as the sunk cost fallacy. It’s the tendency to stick with bad decisions when we’d be better off changing course, just because we invested time, effort, or money in it.
Why? Because we hate to admit that we could be wrong, or to step outside our comfort zone. As a result, we either take too long to see the light or spend our entire lives in denial.
To get off this hamster wheel of bad decisions, reframe your experience. Instead of hanging around in a place where you’re not welcome, ask yourself, “Does being here make me happy?” Rather than doubling down on a bad investment, ask yourself, “Is this the only way to make back the money I lost?” When you find yourself struggling to leave an unfulfilling job, ask yourself, “Is this job the best use of my energy?”
Reframing your experience will lead to a change in how you feel. That, in turn, will change how you act.