Sometimes the fastest fix is starting over. Patching a bad foundation just builds a taller problem.

Effort already spent makes rebuilding feel wasteful, so people keep repairing something that was wrong at the base. Each patch holds for a while and adds weight, and the failures return higher up where they are harder to reach. What looks like saving time is often just moving the cost forward and adding interest to it.

When a fix breaks again in a new place, stop and ask whether the original structure can hold what you are asking of it. Rewriting the first version of an essay, a plan or a piece of code is usually shorter than you fear. Set a limit on patching before you start.