The saying, “Burn your ships” describes the fleets that would land in the foreign land, it was assumed that an act of burning the ships would force success as now there is no point of return. By burning the ships, it cuts off retreat, and there is no point of return. You must move forward with the objective, the do or die, the YOLO of YOLOs.

A ship in a harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for, but ships were also not built to stay there forever. Our dreams, goals, and ambition are the scariest when it becomes real. It’s more comfortable to constantly dream without action. As you realize the tangibility of the opportunity to achieve your dream, that’s when shit gets real. Only you can say what your dreams and hopes are; nobody else can. I’m not here to force you into a new journey. If you’re ready, let’s talk about how to navigate it.

Invoke “the fear”

In the Friends Episode, The One Where Rachel Quits, Jennifer Aniston's character Rachel Green hates her job and is thinking about quitting. Joey and Chandler talk about “the fear.”

Invoking fear doesn’t mean just quitting a job as a forcing function. It takes many different forms. Perhaps it’s making that cold outreach you’ve been putting off or putting something in the world to hold you accountable on that project you’ve been wanting to do. There is a calculated risk in everything you choose in life. Understand what risks you’re willing to take and make the call.

The fear is like skydiving. The time on the plane waiting for the jump is more anxiety-inducing than the jump itself. Once you’re on the plane, there is only one way out of the situation, which is jumping.

Limiting resources improves results

There is something about getting resources that changes you. From Tony Montana in Scarface to you, accruing capital and resources often make people complacent. As companies scale, there is a tendency to get comfortable with the resources. You can always hire more people, fix it later, etc. People are like this too. When people earn more money, there is a tendency to spend more. To this day, I still give myself an allowance for spending. Yes, it's more than the $5 a week my parents use to give me for doing chores at home, but the mindset is still there.

When you start a new job, remember you haven't earned anything, no matter how much experience you have. This is a new adventure. Perhaps you have the desire to start a company. As you build success and capital (congrats!), stash it away. Don't let it get you bloated and slow down what makes you successful.

Your mindset should be that of a video game that starts you with nothing. You need to learn and earn your way to additional resources and power. You don't need that new $4,000 MacBook Pro to get started on an idea that could be built on an internet browser.

Entering your new world

The professional world makes no sense right now. In many career conversations with people, I cannot say in good faith I know what's going to happen. Tech is going through the factory reset and we're just rebooting. Everything is a risk right now, so you might as well make the most of it.

Your new world is something you've always wanted. During the journey, it felt improbable that it would happen. Now, you're there, and here's your opportunity.

Burn the ships. Enter your new world.

Weekly recap

Instagram launches Threads
Will this be Meta’s Slingshot of the 2020s? Only time will tell. I’m not posting on threads. Why? I do not have time to try out 100 Twitter alternatives. One aspect I like is it sounds like Instagram will integrate with ActivityPub.

Hype links

• How to Do Great Work by Paul Graham → PG essays are long, but this is a great read.

• Workspaces 321 - Mariana Castilho

• Playground AI → One of my favorite generative AI experiences that mixes natural language and drawing tools (built on TL Draw!)

• Lessons From the Catastrophic Failure of the Metaverse

• Why did Airbnb combine Product Management with Product Marketing?