Young, dumb and lots of ego: You make a decision but then things go wrong. Maybe it’s bad luck, maybe you missed something upfront, maybe someone lied. So you double down and throw more good money and precious time at the problem. You never recoup your losses but you bang your chest and tell yourself that you won’t quit while obsessing over getting back to break even.

Older, wiser and aware of your ego: You make a decision but then things go wrong. Maybe it’s bad luck, maybe you missed something upfront, maybe someone lied. What do you do? You reset your expectations. At the time of the initial decision it was sound but new information has since surfaced. You reset and reassess. It’s time to cut your losses and walk. A loss of time and money is like paying for an education. It’s not a penalty. You keep looking forward because life isn’t a zero sum game.