Do you know the famous psychological bias called "the sunk cost fallacy"?

It's when you've already invested so much time or energy in a project that you can't bring yourself to abandon it, even when you know it's going nowhere. Once we know it exists, we start seeing it everywhere: our friend who's staying in a relationship that emotionally ended years ago, the degree we're no longer interested in but we're "too far in" to quit...

We keep pouring energy into something because we can't bear to admit what we've already spent is lost.

But I had an idea: what if we could flip this bias on its head?

What if, instead of sunk costs, we could create sunk benefits?

I thought about it because one of my former clients sent me a message recently. When we first worked together, he made one decision: start his mornings with 5-10 minutes of yoga.

It doesn't sound like much, but here's what happened: once he'd invested those ten minutes into his wellbeing, he found himself naturally protecting that investment throughout the day. He took mindful breaks spontaneously. He chose the stairs over the escalator. He snacked less.

He didn't even have to think about it, his brain spontanously whispered "I started my day so well. It would be a shame to waste it."

When you invest in your body and mind first thing in the morning, every decision that follows becomes easier. You're not trying to find motivation from scratch at 3pm when you're exhausted. You're simply continuing the momentum you've already built.

We're using our own psychology in our favour, because we don't like to destroy what we've built.

You already know what I'm going to ask you...

What kind of momentum are your mornings creating?

If you're rushing, eating on the go, or dragging yourself to your laptop... what investment are you protecting for the rest of the day?

I'm not telling you to wake up earlier than you do, I know it's too tough a committment for a lot of people. Just think about one thing you could change to your current routine, and how it might shift everything that follows.

What I love about this approach is that it doesn't require any willpower. Just one conscious choice early in the day, that makes all the other choices easier.

And if that speaks to you and you'd like me to help you build your own morning routine, you know what to do (it's my website).

Om, peace 🧡

Clem