A map is helpful not only to direct where you are going but to give you an indication of whether you should press on or turn around. When you tire while out hiking, you can look at a map and determine whether the shortest path is the one ahead of you or behind you. But when you’re working on a project and face barriers, we often fail to consider the “turn around” option and instead waste valuable time and energy slogging forward.
Some projects are not worth the continued investment. As we lean into them and learn more, we encounter previously unknown complications that change the value ratio of the work. It’s the proverbial “sunk cost” that should be ignored — instead, reevaluate the project from where you are now without basing its merits on what has already been sunk into it.
Whether you are hiking or implementing a project, it helps to have markers to guide you in deciding whether you should proceed by going forward or whether turning around is better. Pressing on through difficulty may be noble, but it may not always be your wisest choice.
Thanks, Amy!
