I've burned the ships lots of times. Often when I was younger it was because I was facing depression-related burnout but didn't really understand what that was or what to do about it. As I've gotten older, the same type of thing can cause it but I'm more aware, deliberate and intentional in my choices. Although sometimes I've regretted the way that I did it, I have never regretted doing it.
And so goes the expression, "don't burn your bridges." It's very individualistic. One person's small bridge is another's big bridge and vice versa. For example, Person 1 may become estranged with a family member and make no attempt to repair the damage and move on relatively unscathed but will never quit their soul sucking job. But Person 2 would be destroyed by familial estrangement and will do everything in their power to repair relationships while at the same time they'll quit a gig at the first sign of trouble. It has to do with priorities and values.
I had this semi-forced "burning the ship" moment during the 2020 Covid lockdown in Denmark. I was Head of Content in an event ticketing company, and as you can imagine, Corona wasn't kind to events. At the time, my wife and I were both working fulltime but also had two kids (3 and 5) at home because kindergartens were closed. That was a tough balancing act.
So when myself and a bunch of others got laid off due to the company struggling, instead of jumping back into the world of fulltime work, I finally went freelance...and pretty much never looked back. Not sure if I'd ever have made the move if it wasn't for the nudge of losing the proverbial "safety blanket" of my fulltime job.
A really thought-provoking post. It makes me wonder whether the past isn't always on fire. We can see it, but we can't go back. I guess what worries me more is when we set fire to the future, to the bridge we're about to cross or the boat that's just left the harbour.
You’ve given me some things to think about. I feel like I’ve had few truly burn the ships moments, but many that felt that way at the time. Maybe even some this week 😬
The post is a reflection of the paths we take for our lives at certain times. Sometimes, we are scared of what is in store. You never know actually. Moving from known to unknown is a bit scary and if can't burn the ships, you will be tempted to return. And I think at the moment of making a pragmatic change of direction, we need to refer to the life hacks of the Stoics to get perseverance , resilience, grit, and patience to overcome mental difficulties to be faced along the chosen path.
The pinions which measure the old way of doing things. A spline is the way a measuring curves. A spline is the smooth path. The needs new smooth paths rather the old smooth path.
I've burned the ships lots of times. Often when I was younger it was because I was facing depression-related burnout but didn't really understand what that was or what to do about it. As I've gotten older, the same type of thing can cause it but I'm more aware, deliberate and intentional in my choices. Although sometimes I've regretted the way that I did it, I have never regretted doing it.
Same!
And so goes the expression, "don't burn your bridges." It's very individualistic. One person's small bridge is another's big bridge and vice versa. For example, Person 1 may become estranged with a family member and make no attempt to repair the damage and move on relatively unscathed but will never quit their soul sucking job. But Person 2 would be destroyed by familial estrangement and will do everything in their power to repair relationships while at the same time they'll quit a gig at the first sign of trouble. It has to do with priorities and values.
I had this semi-forced "burning the ship" moment during the 2020 Covid lockdown in Denmark. I was Head of Content in an event ticketing company, and as you can imagine, Corona wasn't kind to events. At the time, my wife and I were both working fulltime but also had two kids (3 and 5) at home because kindergartens were closed. That was a tough balancing act.
So when myself and a bunch of others got laid off due to the company struggling, instead of jumping back into the world of fulltime work, I finally went freelance...and pretty much never looked back. Not sure if I'd ever have made the move if it wasn't for the nudge of losing the proverbial "safety blanket" of my fulltime job.
Good for you for taking the opportunity! You might not have gotten it otherwise.
That was my thinking as well.
A really thought-provoking post. It makes me wonder whether the past isn't always on fire. We can see it, but we can't go back. I guess what worries me more is when we set fire to the future, to the bridge we're about to cross or the boat that's just left the harbour.
Agree. I think folks tend to latch onto the past too often, but that ship has... well, burned.
Burn it down in order to better see what options you may have. Sometimes you need to start a fire!
Just preferably not a grease fire!
You’ve given me some things to think about. I feel like I’ve had few truly burn the ships moments, but many that felt that way at the time. Maybe even some this week 😬
Oh wow! Let's talk about those next week.
The post is a reflection of the paths we take for our lives at certain times. Sometimes, we are scared of what is in store. You never know actually. Moving from known to unknown is a bit scary and if can't burn the ships, you will be tempted to return. And I think at the moment of making a pragmatic change of direction, we need to refer to the life hacks of the Stoics to get perseverance , resilience, grit, and patience to overcome mental difficulties to be faced along the chosen path.
The stoics are very helpful during these times!
All the time, because when you create something new you must keep the cardinal splines and burn down the structures.
What's a cardinal spline? Google did not return a satisfactory result.
The pinions which measure the old way of doing things. A spline is the way a measuring curves. A spline is the smooth path. The needs new smooth paths rather the old smooth path.
Who knew, until now, that scuttling ships could be so interesting Bravo
Thanks, George!