Finance
![Matt Higgins - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B0BHZRMMQK.jpg)
Burn the Boats: Toss Plan B Overboard and Unleash Your Full Potential
Executive fellow at Harvard Business School, Guest Shark on Shark Tank, and famed angel investor Matt Higgins reveals the counterintuitive formula for a life of perpetual growth that has been practiced for thousands of years by military leaders and serial entrepreneurs alike-forget the Plan B and burn the boats.
From Sun Tzu to Julius Caesar, the ancient Israelites to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, there's a bold and highly effective tactic seen throughout history-when leaders want to motivate their troops for success, they destroy all opportunities for retreat, and go all-in on the mission. They burn their boats; it's win or perish, and the clarity of sheer desperation propels them to victory.
Serial entrepreneur, brilliant investor, and television personality Matt Higgins makes the case that burning the boats isn't just advantageous in times of war or crisis, but a strategy we can all use to achieve our greatest dreams. Conquerors don't have a Plan B, knowing intuitively what science bears out: the mere contemplation of a Plan B weakens our resolve and diminishes our chances for breakout success.
In Burn the Boats, Higgins draws from experiences in his own rags-to-riches life to show you how it's done. The lessons he's learned along the way, and witnessed in the leaders around him, are now for the first time distilled down to a template for success that's available to everyone bold enough to use it. Each chapter includes clear, actionable advice that readers can immediately start applying to their own lives, along with inspiration drawn from dozens of real-life success stories, adding up to a blueprint for a future filled with victories.
From Sun Tzu to Julius Caesar, the ancient Israelites to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, there's a bold and highly effective tactic seen throughout history-when leaders want to motivate their troops for success, they destroy all opportunities for retreat, and go all-in on the mission. They burn their boats; it's win or perish, and the clarity of sheer desperation propels them to victory.
Serial entrepreneur, brilliant investor, and television personality Matt Higgins makes the case that burning the boats isn't just advantageous in times of war or crisis, but a strategy we can all use to achieve our greatest dreams. Conquerors don't have a Plan B, knowing intuitively what science bears out: the mere contemplation of a Plan B weakens our resolve and diminishes our chances for breakout success.
In Burn the Boats, Higgins draws from experiences in his own rags-to-riches life to show you how it's done. The lessons he's learned along the way, and witnessed in the leaders around him, are now for the first time distilled down to a template for success that's available to everyone bold enough to use it. Each chapter includes clear, actionable advice that readers can immediately start applying to their own lives, along with inspiration drawn from dozens of real-life success stories, adding up to a blueprint for a future filled with victories.
Editorial Reviews
"Matt Higgins knows from experience that when you have little to lose, there's a lot to be gained by making bold bets. In this engaging, actionable book, he shows how it's possible to take the reins and reinvent your career." - Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife
"Some people are afraid to take that first step and start a business. Matt gives you a path to challenge yourself and accomplish what you may have been too afraid to start." - Mark Cuban, entrepreneur and Shark Tank Shark
"Instead of wondering what's next, I've found it's better, wherever you are in your career, to focus on what you can learn. Anybody who thinks through the questions Matt raises in Burn the Boats will form a clearer idea of where it is they want to go, and after reading his inspiring stories, they'll be ready to blaze their own trail." - David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs
"Matt has a rare ability to articulate the fears that loom so large in our collective subconscious. Burn the Boats is a brilliant book that will renew your faith in your ability to achieve exactly what you set out to do, to stop settling and start striving for the life you always imagined. In these pages you'll discover the practical tools you need to conquer your self-doubt and navigate around people's opinions and expectations of you. This book will change you." - Jay Shetty, #1 New York Times bestselling author Think Like a Monk
"I hate Plan B. I always tell people that to achieve big dreams, you have to ignore the naysayers, but the naysayers are external. Once you have a Plan B, you've become your own naysayer. Big dreams require relentless focus, and any time we spend planning for failure sets us up for failure. When Matt told me I inspired him, I was really touched. But the best part is, inspiration is contagious, and now Matt can inspire you with this book. Enjoy it, when you finish reading, I can't wait to hear about who you inspire." - Arnold Schwarzenegger
"I've always known that one of the best advantages is being disadvantaged. Life and business is all about how you can take those negati...
"Some people are afraid to take that first step and start a business. Matt gives you a path to challenge yourself and accomplish what you may have been too afraid to start." - Mark Cuban, entrepreneur and Shark Tank Shark
"Instead of wondering what's next, I've found it's better, wherever you are in your career, to focus on what you can learn. Anybody who thinks through the questions Matt raises in Burn the Boats will form a clearer idea of where it is they want to go, and after reading his inspiring stories, they'll be ready to blaze their own trail." - David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs
"Matt has a rare ability to articulate the fears that loom so large in our collective subconscious. Burn the Boats is a brilliant book that will renew your faith in your ability to achieve exactly what you set out to do, to stop settling and start striving for the life you always imagined. In these pages you'll discover the practical tools you need to conquer your self-doubt and navigate around people's opinions and expectations of you. This book will change you." - Jay Shetty, #1 New York Times bestselling author Think Like a Monk
"I hate Plan B. I always tell people that to achieve big dreams, you have to ignore the naysayers, but the naysayers are external. Once you have a Plan B, you've become your own naysayer. Big dreams require relentless focus, and any time we spend planning for failure sets us up for failure. When Matt told me I inspired him, I was really touched. But the best part is, inspiration is contagious, and now Matt can inspire you with this book. Enjoy it, when you finish reading, I can't wait to hear about who you inspire." - Arnold Schwarzenegger
"I've always known that one of the best advantages is being disadvantaged. Life and business is all about how you can take those negati...
Readers Top Reviews
Mark ZalewskiSank
This book is consistent throughout as it delivers key advice points you need to hear if you are serious about your venture, mixed perfectly amid real life examples. If you ever wondered about your starting point in business, after reading there is a genuine fire lit under my feet to chase my calling. Highly recommend if you have trouble starting!
Matt Higgins embodies the essence of daring to take a bold leap of faith in oneself. He defied conventional norms by dropping out of high school and went on to establish RSE Ventures, and other notable achievements, by sheer determination and perseverance. Matt's success was not by chance but by embracing the attitude of discarding fallback plans and committing to unleashing his full potential. This book will serve as a guide through Matt's incredible journey and the inspirational stories of other remarkable individuals. It offers valuable insights on overcoming self-doubt and navigating the path towards realizing your aspirations. Whether you are grappling with self-doubt or seeking ways to reach your goals, this book will undoubtedly inspire and empower you.
Phillip Aguiar
If you are a person that needs that extra encouragement to continue striving in your direction, I recommend reading this, and then BURN YOUR BOATS! Matt Higgins is an awesome author, and reading this will hopefully inspire others to continue striving for their goals like I am.
Rupesh MalpaniPhi
Simply awesome to learn from your experiences, very well articulated and simple to read.
Petia W.Rupesh Ma
Matt Higgins called it "Burn the boats" but for me, it became a lifeboat. Is this a contradiction? An oxymoron? You be the judge. It's not like I was looking for another business book to read. But my connection to Matt Higgins comes through someone who has illuminated my way of thinking for many years in countless ways so anyone who teaches with that mentor comes with a powerful endorsement. (By the way, this is also the power of a network - accessing great new insights because of the people you are connected to!) I started reading "Burn the boats" while I was embarking on the scariest thing I've ever done. As the founder of an MBA admissions consulting firm, I was working on my first product. I was doubting myself. I was scared of the investment I was making that required tapping into my safety net. I almost did NOT want to hear that you don't need a safety net. Or that "back up plans hobble us on the road to success". So I started reading almost reluctantly. What can a white American male venture capitalist teach me, the immigrant-entrepreneur who grew up on the other side of the Iron Curtain and lived through the 2,000% inflation of March 1997 when my family lost all their savings? Turns out there was a lot I could learn from him after all. "Burn the boats" is about being bold, not reckless. It's about overcoming, building and creating - not being lucky. And especially about not being complacent or willing to be held back by conformity. And it's especially about how if you do all this, you will find way more success and freedom than if you continue to hedge. So I kept reading. I kept, as Matt advises, diluting my doubts by cultivating my conviction. I took the leap. At night, after a long day of building what has been my dream for the last two years - a space where under-resourced MBA candidates can access the same guidance and support that the most privileged ones have - I would sit down to read the next chapter, rebuilding my conviction and diluting the doubts of the day. It paid off. Earlier this month, I launched my dream and it is now home of MBA candidates from 19 countries. And the very first one to enroll was a candidate from Africa, bringing everything full circle as the conception of MBA Application Boost Camp started with a conversation with an MBA candidate and entrepreneur from Nigeria. Early on in "Burning the boats", Matt tells you: "This isn't just my story. It's every story, and it's all of history." He's right. And I'm not done reading - or burning! I highly recommend you give "Burn the boats" a read. It might just change the way you think of what your path in life should look like.
