The Sunk Cost Trap
Find out why "but I already paid for it" is a weak reason to keep going.
The idea
A sunk cost is money or time you already spent and cannot get back. Quitting feels like wasting it, but the money is gone either way — walking away does not spend it a second time. The sunk cost trap is staying with something bad only because you already paid. Good deciders ask "what is the best choice from right now?" instead of "what did I already pay?" 🕰️
Words to know
- Sunk cost
- Money or time you already spent and cannot get back, no matter what you do next.
- Sunk cost trap
- Sticking with something you don't like just because you already paid for it.
- Forward-looking
- Judging a choice only by what it gives you from now on.
- Opportunity cost
- The best thing you give up when you pick one option instead of another.
- Refund
- Money given back to you. If there is no refund, the money is a sunk cost.
Try it — no account needed
Swipe true or false. Some of these are sneaky.
A sunk cost is money you already spent and cannot get back.
In the full lesson
- 1True or false
- 2Put it in order
- 3Make the call
Vine has 107 lessons like this one, each written three ways so a 7-year-old and a 17-year-old both get a version that fits.
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