A Few More Details

Sunk Cost Fallacy

Our tendency to continue investing time, money, or effort into something simply because we’ve already invested in it, even when it no longer makes sense.

We say things like:

• “We’ve come this far—we can’t quit now.”
• “I don’t want all that effort to go to waste.”

But the truth is: past costs are gone. Good decisions are based on the future—not the past.

Why It Happens

• We’re loss-averse: it feels worse to lose something we already spent than to start fresh.
• We tie our identity and ego to being right or “not wasteful.”
• We fear looking bad for changing course.
• We want to justify past decisions, especially public ones.

Why It Can Be Good

• Encourages perseverance, even through challenges.
• Builds grit and loyalty, which can strengthen culture.
• Helps leaders avoid being too quick to quit on people, projects, or strategies.
• Reflects a sense of ownership and responsibility.

Why It Can Be Bad

• Leads to throwing good resources after bad.
• Prevents pivoting or course correction.
• Causes leaders to cling to failing initiatives, just to justify past decisions.
• Wastes time, morale, and budget on things that no longer serve the goal.

How It Shows Up in Leaders

• Using a tool or piece of equipment that’s outdated or unreliable because “we already paid for it.”
• Sticking with a flawed job plan or layout even after field conditions change—because the team already started and “it would be a waste to backtrack.”
• Hesitating to report an issue or request a change order, because you’ve already used up time and materials, and don’t want to admit a mistake.
• Continuing to invest time in training someone who’s a poor fit for the role, because “we’ve already put a lot into them.”
• It might sound like: “We’ve already got two days in—let’s just finish it.” “We can’t afford to start over now.” “I don’t want them thinking we wasted time.”

How It Shows Up in Teams

• Crews keep using the wrong tool or method, even after seeing better options.
• Team members double down on bad decisions to avoid admitting a mistake.
• They won’t scrap a flawed plan because of the work already put in.
• They resist change by saying: “We already trained everyone on this.” “That would mean everything we did was for nothing.” “Let’s just ride it out.”