throwing good money after bad
Doubling down foolishly
Throwing good money after bad is continuing to invest in a failing venture because you've already spent so much.
The phrase captures the sunk cost fallacy—the reluctance to cut losses makes people pour more resources into something unlikely to succeed: We've already spent a million on this project, but throwing good money after bad won't save it.
- sunk cost fallacyHonoring spent resources irrationally
- penny wise, pound foolishEconomizing on trifles, squandering on essentials
- false economySavings that backfire
- opportunity costSacrificed alternative's worth
- diminishing returnsReduced benefit from additional effort
robbing Peter to pay Paul · money pit · confirmation bias · overcapitalization · cost-benefit analysis · emotional attachment · doubling down · chasing losses · white elephant · beating a dead horse · dead horse · fool's errand · resource allocation · cognitive dissonance · risk aversion
throwing good money after badcutting losses
Accepting small defeat early
walking away · pulling the plug · cutting one's losses · calling it quits · financial discipline
throwing good money after baddue diligence
Pre-transaction reasonable care
capital preservation · risk management · pivoting · diversifying · starting fresh
throws, thrown, thrower, goodness, moneys, moneyed, monetary