When do you quit, let go of the sunk cost?
How do you decide when to quit? It is a hugely important component of deciding how and where to allocate your scarce resources.
Quitting, and taking the ‘hit’ is also much harder than just planning. There are always sunk costs involved, and every psychologist will tell you that the pain of a loss is far greater than the prospect of a gain. Then there is ego, credibility and self respect at stake. In a corporate environment, many avoid mistakes, or at least conceding a mistake has been made, as that can have a detrimental impact on career prospects, bonuses attached to KPI’s, and the perception of those around. you.
No matter the size of the enterprise, from the corporate monoliths to the garage operator, there is a reluctance to admit mistakes and move on.
You cannot change the past, but you can learn from it, and move on, if you choose to do so..
It is not being a quitter, it is sensible strategic leadership
The good thing about being at the point of strategic quitting, is that you have actually taken action, done things, and hopefully learned from them, so that the next action you take will be better informed.
What we need is less strategic planning, and more strategic doing, and part of that is being prepared to quit, learn, and move on.
Strategic quitting is a fundamental part of strategic success, embrace it.
Again, Dilbert has the last word, thanks to Scott Adams.
