Cerebrate Weekly: Burn the Boats and Re-Invent Yourself.
Having a plan B is often seen as an advantage, but the ancients saw it differently. When Alexander the Great arrived on the shores of Persia, he realized that the Macedonians were greatly outnumbered. His solution: order his men to burn their boats. Worried that his soldiers might be tempted to retreat, he chose to close off all avenues of cowardice in battle.
Burning the boats means to force yourself to be in a point of no return (PNR or PONR). No alternative. No Plan B. This tactic of not giving an opportunity to hesitate, to reflect, or to procrastinate was not unique to just Greeks.
Throughout history, many great leaders have used the same tactic to ignite the desire of their armies to succeed. By providing no option other than victory or death, win or perish, everyone is focused on one common goal, often against great odds, which extracts every ounce of effort needed for victory.
Crossing the Rubicon
- “Crossing the Rubicon” is a metaphor that refers to deliberately proceeding past a point of no return. This phrase is associated with Julius Caesar’s seizure of power in the Roman Republic in 49 BC. As per Roman law, generals were prohibited from bringing their troops into the home territory of the Republic in Italy. However, Caesar led his army across the Rubicon River from the province of Cisalpine Gaul into Italy. If he did not emerge victorious, he would have been executed.
- Another such incident was in 711 AD, when Muslim forces conquered the Iberian Peninsula. The commander, Tariq bin Ziyad, ordered his ships to be burned.
- Similarly “Break the kettles and sink the boats” is an ancient Chinese saying, referring to Xiang Yu’s order at the Battle of Julu in 207 BC. He destroyed all means of re-crossing a river, committing his army to give it all on the battle eventually achieving victory.
When you ignite the boats you ignite the desire of everyone not just to survive but to succeed.
Creative Destruction: The Risky Business of Going against the grain.
We may not get a chance to invade a territory, however this ancient wisdom can be applied to our business or any other projects that we pursue.
As author Adam Grant highlights in his book Originals, there are two paths to achievement: Conformity & Originality. Conformity is to follow the crowd, while Originality is about taking radical risks.
The term “entrepreneur”, coined by economist Richard Cantillon, literally means “bearer of risk”. However, taking radical risks is not easy. We are wired to play it safe, rather than to burn our boats.
For example, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the founders of Google, were once so worried about dropping out of their Ph.D program that they couldn’t fully commit to their search engine. “We almost didn’t start Google,” Page says.
Google was so distracting that they even tried to sell the company for less than $2 million in cash and stock. Fortunately, the potential buyer rejected the offer.
After inventing the Apple I computer, Apple was offered a bankroll by an angel investor. However, Steve Wozniak found it hard to leave Hewlett-Packard. He reflected “My psychological block was really that I didn’t want to start a company. Because I was just afraid”
Leap of Faith: Trusting your Instincts to Burn the Boats
Jeff Bezos was a successful investment banker in the 1990s. but he was passionate about technology and the internet. He felt like he was missing out on something big.
Jeff applied what he called the “regret minimization framework.” He imagined himself at the end of his life, looking back on his career. He realized that not pursuing his passion for technology would be a lifelong regret. Jeff left his Wall Street job and started Amazon, taking a risk that paid off in a big way.
Matt Higgins, a successful venture capitalist, used the “burning the boats” strategy to escape his dire situation at a young age. He needed to escape the grinding poverty that he and his mother were trapped in.
He took a leap of faith and dropped out of high school at 16 to take the GED and apply to college two years faster. He then later shed his identity as a dropout to become the youngest press secretary at just 26 years old.
Higgins took risks and trusted his instincts, even when it went against convention, and leveraged opportunities to become a senior executive with the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins. His story is a testament to the power of committing fully and embracing change to achieve success.
As Adam Grant highlights the thought of economist Joseph Schumpeter: Originality is an act of creative destruction. Advocating for new systems often requires demolishing the old way of doing things, and we hold back for fear of rocking the boat.
💬Quote of the Week
🧭Weekly Compass
If you’re looking for more inspiration on taking risks and embracing change, check out the book “Who Moved My Cheese?” by Spencer Johnson. This quick read is a parable about two mice and two “little people” who are forced to adapt to unexpected changes in their environment.
🧠Food for Thought
As you move forward in your journey of life, reflect on what “boats” you need to burn in order to move forward. What fears or doubts are holding you back from taking the leap?
🛠Tools for Thought
Blinkist: The Blinkist App offers condensed versions of non-fiction books in various categories, including business, science, and history. It provides audio versions of the summaries and is available on iOS and Android devices. Perfect for those who want to learn but have limited time to read.