“There’s nothing to watch.”
Have you ever made that statement? You probably have- or at least you’ve heard someone make it. Maybe it was today, in the era of Netflix and Hulu, where choices are practically unlimited. Or, maybe it was in the day where cable was the way to go.
Or, perhaps you didn’t make the statement in regard to TV. Maybe you opened a fully stocked refrigerator or pantry and said “There’s nothing here to eat.” Or, perhaps you went to a restaurant with a wide variety of menu items, and after looking at it for ten minutes said “There’s nothing to order here.”
What’s interesting about those situations is that what we say isn’t exactly true. Of course there’s something to watch on a streaming service with thousands of different options. There’s most likely something edible in the pantry, the refrigerator, or on the menu. Either way, there’s not nothing. The problem is not a lack of options.
The problem is there are too many options- and it paralyzes our decision making.
Which leads us to the one thing we’re reluctant to do…and our failure to do this one thing keeps us from making progress.
Burn the boats
In 1519, Hernán Cortés arrived in the New World on a mission to conquer the Aztec Empire (clearly not the best motive, but that’s a discussion for another time). What he did next, though, was very interesting: he ordered the ships he and his men arrived in to be burned. That meant there was no way home. No way out. The only option was to conquer or die.
What Cortés did by burning the boats is this: he eliminated an option. He eliminated a potential choice. And by eliminating that choice, the next step became incredibly clear.
The lesson for us is simple: In order to make progress, we don’t need more options. We need fewer options. In fact, if we’re really going to get moving, we need to “burn some boats” of our own and actively eliminate options to force us towards our next step.
Leave it behind- by leaving nothing behind
In 1 King 19, we see this played out in the life of Elisha. The prophet Elijah had been told by God to go and anoint Elisha as his successor. Here’s how it happened:
So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. 20 Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “and then I will come with you.”
“Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?”
21 So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.- 1 King 19:19-21, emphasis mine
In burning his equipment and slaughtering his oxen, Elisha did one very clear thing: he made a clean break from his former life. By destroying the source of his livelihood before called to be a prophet, Elisha left himself without the option of returning to what he used to do. He enhanced his chance of permanently leaving everything behind by leaving nothing behind for him to go back to.
What do I need to eliminate in order to make progress?
So here comes the question for you and I: What “boats” or “plowing equipment” do we need to burn so that we can move forward? What is it we need to eliminate as an option from our lives so that we can begin to make real progress?
- If you find yourself “without time” to develop a consistent Bible-reading habit, maybe it’s time to cancel your Netflix or Hulu subscription. Eliminate an option
- If you find yourself struggling to get home from work, maybe you need to commit to leaving the office by 5:30- regardless of what’s done or undone, and eliminate evening meetings.
- If you find yourself struggling to break free from an addiction to porn, maybe your best next step is getting a dumb phone and cancelling your home internet service.
- If you find yourself wanting to go back to what was a toxic relationship, then block their phone number, delete their phone number, block them on social media, and maybe even move if it’s that bad!
We could go on, but you likely get the point. Which also leads us to the problem: for many of us, we simply don’t want to take that step. And we come up with a laundry list of reasons why we can’t take it:
- Of course I can’t cancel Hulu or Netflix- what would I do when I’m bored?
- I can’t commit to leaving the office by 5:30pm- what might my boss think?
- I can’t get rid of my smart phone or internet- I need those to connect with people and work!
- I can’t just block my ex…what if I need them because I’m still single in 10 years?
Hey, I get it. These are not easy decisions. In fact, sometimes these decisions will be utterly gut wrenching. But the real question, at the end of the day, is whether we are really committed to making progress or not. And as long as we keep our options open, we’ll often be utterly paralyzed in our decision-making.
But when we begin to eliminate options, the choices start to become increasingly clear. And with clarity comes progress because we’re no longer paralyzed by options.