Meet James
Before you walk away.
He still opens the shop at eight. He stopped looking forward to it months ago.
He doesn’t owe the next thirty years to the last thirty. Is he choosing another year—or protecting a decision he made decades ago?
James still arrives before eight. He straightens the books by the door, turns the sign, and makes the same cup of coffee.
For thirty years, the shop has given his days a shape. Lately, he notices the relief he feels when it is time to close.
Leaving sounds like giving up. Staying sounds like loyalty. Neither description tells him what the next year would actually be like.
He can be proud of what he built without promising it every year he has left. He can also want something to change without closing the door tomorrow.
Tonight, James writes two lists: what he would miss, and what would have to change for him to choose another year.
The question worth sitting with
If you stayed, what would need to change?
How North helps
Not an answer. A better way to reach yours.
- 01Names the sunk cost so it stops making the decision for you.
- 02Asks what would have to be true for staying to be the right call.
- 03Helps you define a next step that is smaller than all or nothing.
Describes how North is designed to work. See an illustrative walkthrough on the homepage.
