Embrace the "Burn the Ships" Mindset to Achieve the Impossible

How Alex Honnold Harnessed It To Do the Unthinkable

Recently, I watched the film Unsung Hero, which chronicled the inspiring story of an immigrant family, who against all odds achieved fame and fortune in the United States despite a series of challenges and obstacles that would have proved daunting to just about anyone. Who doesn’t love the story of an underdog succeeding? These types of stories have resonated with audiences forever. However, one thing that really struck me about the story was the “Burn the Ships” approach the family adopted that propelled them through adversity to find success.

What Does “Burn the Ships” Even Mean?

The "Burn the Ships" mental model is based on a historical narrative, often attributed to the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés. When Cortés arrived in the New World in 1519, he is said to have ordered his men to burn their ships, eliminating any possibility of retreat. This forced them to commit fully to their mission of conquest, knowing that there was no option to turn back.

The primary idea is to remove any safety nets or backup plans that could allow retreat or abandonment of the stated goal. By doing so, you are compelled to fully commit to achieving your objective.

Personally, I have always liked to have backup plans. This is a main reason I continue to build passive income streams, because if one dries up, there are others constantly flowing. However, when thinking about the “Burn the Ships approach, I do understand the appeal, because I believe it is human nature to make excuses or change directions when faced with things that scare us. I know I have given up on things in life I later regretted and by putting yourself in a position where there is no option to turn back, the road to success seems straightforward. 

Climbing Without A Safety Net

I believe that a great example of this concept was embodied in the story of Alex Honnold and his unbelievable quest to free climb the 3000-foot face of Yosemite’s El Capitan, which was documented in the film Free Solo.

If you are not familiar with the sport, free soloing is a dangerous form of rock climbing where participants eschew the use of ropes, harnesses, or any type of protective gear. Unlike bouldering, free climbers scale heights above what is considered safe, where the fall would likely result in serious injury or death. It is considered a niche within the world of rock climbing that has the ability to propel the best climbers to either incredible stardom or a most grisly death. Without question, it takes incredible mental fortitude to even attempt the deadly challenges free soloing presents to even the most gifted competitors.

The “Burn the Ships” mentality is certainly needed for endeavors such as this because quite simply, failure is not an option. So how does one apply this thinking to such a daunting challenge? In this case, it involved careful planning and this is how Honnold approached it.

Instead of thinking of free soloing El Capitan as something he wasn’t capable of, he looked at it as something he wasn’t capable of yet. This distinction is important and highlights the way someone with a high agency mindset operates. He did not let the challenge stop him but found a way to circumvent the challenge in front of him.

First of all, this was not an overnight success story in which he decided what he wanted to do and the next day accomplished it. Instead, Honnold had been climbing for over 20 years and still spent several years of hyper-focused training before even attempting the challenge. In essence, he set the goal he wanted firmly in mind, and then trained incredibly diligently to realize that goal.

Secondly, he didn't take shortcuts on the way to his goal. In addition to honing his body, he took the time to plan out the task at hand to the smallest detail. Instead of looking at El Capitan as an impossible obstacle, he broke the ascent down into a number of smaller, more manageable problems to be solved and went about structuring his training to address each puzzle that was presented to him. By breaking it down this way and figuring out the best way through the maze, he not only built confidence but minimized every potential risk.

Thirdly, he did not let failure deter him. Several times during his journey he suffered from both physical setbacks and moments of incredible doubt. Indeed, one day he even started the climb, but early on in the attempt, pulled the plug and aborted because he didnt “feel right.” Instead of quitting, however, he re-focused his efforts and got back on track mentally to continue his quest.

Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, after setting his audacious goal, he did everything within his power to focus on accomplishing it. This included living an austere lifestyle out of his van so he could live simply and inexpensively and fully commit to his training regimen. It also went as far as cutting off distractions such as social media and email and getting his mind to a place where his sole focus could be envisioning what his success would look like. In other words, he made a total commitment to the end goal and ensured he would have no excuses when it mattered.

If you have not seen the movie, I highly recommend it. It’s quite possibly one of the most breathtaking films you will ever watch and truly highlights what is possible when one combines clarity of vision with a powerful mindset to make that vision into an accomplishment.

So What is Your El Capitan?

I think this is an important question we all have to ask ourselves at some point in our life. What is the one goal or achievement that would give you an ultimate sense of accomplishment or purpose? Only you can answer that for yourself.

However, once you do, is it something you would be willing to “Burn the Ships” to make a reality? If the answer is “Yes”, then you should do everything in your power to eliminate the excuses and pursue the challenge in front of you. If the answer is “No”, then you are not thinking big enough. 

We all have one life and if we do not pursue the things we are most passionate about in that time, that feels like a wasted opportunity. I hope you seize the chance to think boldly and live big. You may just surprise yourself.

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