There is certainly something to be said for seeing something through.  Society would certainly be less advanced if inventors and innovators had simply had a dream but then failed to follow it through.  Often, too, gritting our teeth and getting on with things is the best way to overcome adversity and create better lives for ourselves.  

However, is it ALWAYS the case that we should continue with something just because we have started it?  What if the thing that we have started is no longer working for us?  Is it really a sign of strength to keep on ploughing the same furrow and hoping that happiness will come from misery?  This can apply to so many situations in an educational context.  Many of our students join our College part of the way through the year, with our latest new-starter only joining us yesterday.  If a child’s current educational setting isn’t suitable and is leading to unhappiness and underperformance, then perhaps a fresh start would be beneficial rather than going through the same miserable cycle week after week.  Likewise, students are often studying an unsuitable subject, leading to the stress which arises from constantly underachieving.  At EIC, we don’t insist that all subjects are suitable for all students.  If a GCSE student wants to drop a science or a language, then we allow them to do this as one size certainly does not fit all.  Other students may spend years thinking they would like to be a doctor and then realise in Year 13 that they actually don’t really enjoy science.

Outside of education, other examples could include an unhappy relationship, a toxic “frenemy” or a job where you feel unwell every Monday morning at the thought of the stresses which lie ahead that week.

In these situations, an intelligent choice clearly needs to be made, and this can be incredibly difficult to do.  Sometimes it is right to stick things out and, with a little bit of resilience, we can overcome challenges and grow stronger as a result.  At other times, perhaps it is a good idea to remind ourselves that we only have one life and to realise that sometimes change is actually the courageous option and that we deserve more from life than just getting by.  “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got”.