Adam Grant was in college when he finally saved enough money to take his first big trip.
It was his chance to see the world beyond North America, to push himself, and maybe to check something extraordinary off his list.
So, when the opportunity arose to climb an active volcano in Panama, he didn’t hesitate.
He and his friends started the hike later than they should have.
The guidebook said it would take two hours to reach the summit, but two hours turned into four, and still, they weren’t at the top.
They were puzzled.
The climb felt endless, but none of them stopped to ask the hard question:
Should we turn back?
By then, turning back didn’t feel like an option.
They had already come so far.
To quit now would mean admitting the hike might’ve been a mistake.
So, they pressed on, determined to reach the summit no matter what.
Eventually, they got there—just as the sun began to set.
It wasn’t the victorious moment they had envisioned.
Instead, it was sobering.
They were stranded, high up on a mountain, without food, water, or a safe way to make the long descent in the dark.
To make matters worse, they later realized they had misread the guidebook.
They weren’t on a two-hour hike.
They were climbing Panama’s highest peak, a trek that typically takes six to eight hours.
Thankfully, they were rescued.
A lone pickup truck came down the mountain and gave them a ride back.
But the experience left an impression on Adam:
Sometimes, our determination to see something through blinds us to the warning signs all around us.
The Pitfall of Grit
What Adam and his friends experienced is called "escalation of commitment."
It’s what happens when you’ve already invested so much time, energy, or resources into a decision that you can’t bear to rethink it—even when all evidence points to the need to stop.
It’s why people stay in jobs they hate, cling to investments that have clearly failed, or hold on to relationships long past their breaking point.
The harder it is to let go, the more we convince ourselves that we just need to try harder.
In Panama, Adam learned the danger of grit.
Our culture often glorifies persistence—“Never give up!”—as the ultimate virtue.
But as Adam discovered, grit has a dark side.
Sometimes, it keeps us climbing the wrong mountain.
The Lesson
The experience on the volcano taught Adam an important truth:
Persistence isn’t always the answer.
Goals, no matter how lofty, can give us tunnel vision.
And sometimes, the smartest, bravest thing we can do is stop, reassess, and choose a different path.
Because in the end, the goal isn’t just to reach the summit.
The goal is to make it down the mountain safely—and to climb the right mountain next time.
This post was inspired by Adam Grant's video What frogs in hot water can teach us about thinking again.
