Creating options means nothing if you can't preserve them until optimal exercise moments.
The Optionality Tax
Maintaining options costs resources. Understanding these costs enables intelligent preservation.
Andrew mapped option maintenance costs: - Financial: Membership fees, subscription costs, maintenance expenses - Time: Relationship maintenance, skill practice, monitoring - Energy: Mental bandwidth, decision fatigue, opportunity cost - Social: Explanation burden, perceived lack of focus
He ruthlessly pruned expensive options while preserving high-value ones.
Avoiding Premature Exercise
The biggest option mistake is exercising too early, before maximum value accumulation.
Barbara's patience strategies: - Set value triggers for exercise (not time triggers) - Maintain multiple options to avoid desperation - Build resources enabling patient holding - Create intermediate value without full exercise - Practice delayed gratification systematically
Her patience consistently captured 10x more value than hasty execution.
Option Refresh Mechanisms
Options can expire or decay. Building refresh mechanisms maintains perpetual optionality.
Charles refreshed options continuously: - Skills: Regular practice and updates - Relationships: Consistent value delivery - Opportunities: Deadline extensions and restructuring - Knowledge: Continuous learning and application - Resources: Reinvestment and compounding
His options improved rather than decayed over time.