Burn the Boats

6/25/2023

In 334 BC, Alexander the Great led a fleet of Greek and Macedonian ships across the Dardanelles Strait into Asia Minor to begin his conquest of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. When his army landed, Alexander ordered his troops to burn their boats, removing all possibility of escape. The message was clear: the Macedonians would either defeat the Persians or die trying to do so. Alexander’s army went on to win the Battle of Granicus, and begin a multi-year conquest.

Burning the boats, or removing the option to fail, seems to be the first true step towards a full commitment to the goal at hand. After weeks of deliberation, Ben and I notified our landlord that we will be moving out at the end of August. While this action represents only the first of a few boat burnings that will need to happen between now and my move out, I already feel simultaneous excitement and relief at taking this first step. Over the last few years I’ve done a lot of thinking and talking about this trip, to friends, family, and anyone I have a conversation with for more than 10 minutes. This dang idea of solo travel has been a screaming voice deep within me which I can no longer stifle, ignore, or distract myself from.

Yet over the last three years I’ve also felt comfortable thinking about this trip as something I will do in the future when it feels like the right time. I would tell myself ‘next year’ and enjoy the comforts of home and the reality I knew (a corporate job, nice apartment, living for the weekend), while satiating my wanderlust by 'having a plan.' I told myself I would feel ready when it’s the ‘right time’ for me to go.

However, since then I’ve realized that there’s never a ‘right time’ to pursue that big dream or adventure which excites, terrifies, and captures your every waking thought.

Don’t get me wrong, there are professional, personal, and health situations that make the jump out of the matrix more palatable. You get fired from a job that you hate, your partner breaks up with you, or you have a near-death experience and suddenly remember that life is short and not guaranteed. There’s a reason why most travelers are single, young, and generally in good health.

But invariably there will always be something (or someone) providing you with an excuse to delay your plans. Maybe you’re thinking about holding out until bonus season at work, or you’ve just joined an evening kickball league and made new friends. Maybe there’s a promotion waiting for you on the other side of 6 months or two years and you think once you achieve that you will have “made it” in your professional career. In Vagabonding: an Uncommon Guide to Art of Long-Term Travel, Rolf Potts tells the story of Christian Monks who put off travel in a similar way.

"When the summertime came, they said to each other, “We will leave in the winter.” When the winter came, they said, “We will leave in the summer.” They went on like this for over fifty years, never once leaving the monastery or breaking their vows. Most of us, of course, have never taken such vows—but we choose to live like monks anyway, rooting ourselves to a home or a career and using the future as a kind of phony ritual that justifies the present."

You can lead yourself on with these excuses for years. In my case it was “once this pandemic ends, then I’ll be ready!” But of course once the pandemic ended I was distracted by an awesome (and intentionally short-term) relationship, so I said “once she leaves, I’ll be ready!” and then it ended and I was ready but I had a new job with great pay and opportunity to advance and here I am 3 years after the idea of solo travel first punched me in the gut and captured my attention, finally burning my first boat. Only now that the vessel is ablaze, does the objective start to feel more real, more attainable, and less like a dream.

Until we take irreversible action towards our goals, our hopes and dreams will be nothing more than just that: hopes and dreams. And as long as they remain dreams, there will always be a reason to delay, overthink, and listen to the fears and doubts that inevitably creep in.

Alexander’s army had spent months preparing for their invasion and training for battle. Then they began the operation by crossing the Dardanelles in their ships. However throughout this process I imagine they were not 100% mentally committed to their goal because there was an escape plan waiting, should failure present itself. Burning the boats took them out of a mental state of wondering what the outcome of the invasion would be (or questioning whether it was a good idea at all) and forced them to face the possibility of death head-on without fear. There was never going to be a point in those early days of the invasion when burning the boats would ‘make sense’ or ‘feel right,’ it was always going to feel reckless to the Macedonians. The tempting pull of comfort and security will always try to hold us back from taking the risks necessary to pursue our goals.

Yes, indeed there’s never a ‘right time’ to burn the boats. So how and when does burning the boats happen?

Perhaps instead of realizing a 'right time' we reach a breaking point, where the voice inside shouting at us to take the leap has grown so loud in our conscious that we can’t take it anymore, so we throw ourselves into the unknown, knowing full well that there’s no turning back.

In 331 BC, three years after the order to burn the boats and the victory at Granicus, Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire. Alexander would die just ten years later, at age 32, but in his short 13 year reign as King of Macedon he had created one of the largest empires of the ancient world.

Do I aspire to be like Alexander the Great?

No, I have zero desire to rule an empire or die at 32 years old!

Yet I find his decision to burn the boats an inspiring one. And I’ve got a quite a few more boats to burn myself before I head off on my journey.

So I’ll end by asking you: What goals, hopes, and dreams have you been putting off and making excuses for?

How might you be leaving the door open for failure?

What boats have you kept docked and waiting?