August 19, 2025

Being on the wrong train

Many of the decisions I’ve made in the past have been driven by the sunk-cost fallacy; choosing to continually invest in something because I’ve invested so much in it already instead of whether or not the benefits of further investment will be worth it.

But, this is where it’s useful to remember the old Japanese proverb: When you’re on the wrong train, get off at the next stop. The longer you wait, the more expensive the return trip is.

The tricky part is working out if you’re really on the wrong train and, to know that, you need to know which train you’re supposed to be on and, to know that, one needs to know one’s self.

Other observations
July 7, 2026

Polishing the rice

What can I learn from how brewers help or hinder the flavour profile of rice when they’re making sake?

June 30, 2026

14,500 days unnoticed

If I’ve only noticed the sunrise a handful of times out of tens of thousands of daily opportunities. What else have I missed?

June 23, 2026

Ready? Catch!

If we never know when the world will offer us a new idea, how can we best prepare for the moment when it inevitably comes?

June 16, 2026

Brain, Heart, Hips and Feet

If you feel like dancing, you probably wouldn’t book last minute tickets to a Chopin concert. So what’s bad music? And can bad books exist?

June 9, 2026

Exposure matters less and less

What changes in an art practice when the sharing of the work one makes becomes secondary to making the work in the first place?

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