Matt Higgins on How to Eliminate Plan B and Guarantee Success (Fan Fav)
Matt Higgins, successful entrepreneur and Shark Tank investor, discusses his philosophy of "burning the boats" — eliminating backup plans to achieve extraordinary success. He emphasizes trusting instincts during crises, rejecting incrementalism in favor of step-change thinking, and the importance of proprietary insights and value alignment in partnerships.
Summary
Matt Higgins shares his journey from dropping out of high school in Queens to building a $150 million net worth. He attributes his success to several core principles: rejecting conventional thinking built for average situations, trusting instincts (particularly during crises when survival is at stake), and taking full responsibility for outcomes rather than blaming external circumstances.
Higgins explains the "burn the boats" concept, drawing from historical military leaders who eliminated escape routes to force commitment. A 2014 Wharton study showed that merely contemplating a Plan B reduces motivation toward Plan A. However, Higgins clarifies that burning boats doesn't mean reckless risk-taking—rather, it means identifying the worst-case scenario upfront, assessing its actual probability, and committing fully to Plan A while maintaining awareness of mitigation strategies.
A central theme is the distinction between instincts and impulses. Higgins argues that true instincts emerge during crisis situations where survival is threatened and clarity is unavoidable, not from casual decision-making. He discusses his relationship with his mother, which taught him that viewing yourself as an agent in your own rescue rather than a victim is fundamental to progress.
On business philosophy, Higgins advocates for "highest and best use" thinking—constantly re-evaluating how to deploy yourself optimally. He rejects incrementalism, arguing that people wrongly believe they must take small steps before attempting ambitious goals. Instead, he champions step-change thinking: identifying what proprietary insights you possess and having the courage to act on them without waiting for external validation or credentials.
Higgins discusses partnership dynamics in business, noting that while complementary skill sets are often emphasized, value overlap is far more critical. He emphasizes the importance of identifying base assumptions—invisible beliefs about how the world works—that can cause partnership friction. He shares stories of entrepreneurs like Michelle Cordero Grant (Lively) and the two sisters from the Bronx running Airbnbs, illustrating how proprietary insights combined with decisive action create extraordinary outcomes.
On personal transformation, Higgins discusses surviving testicular cancer at 32 and how facing mortality changed his perspective. Rather than becoming nihilistic, he found motivation in touching the ceiling of his potential and capacity. He emphasizes being present, facing challenges directly, and the relationship between confronting mortality and relieving anxiety about trivial concerns.
Regarding his Harvard Business School teaching, Higgins brings in unconventional speakers like Kim Kardashian to illustrate principles about direct-to-consumer business models and CAC (customer acquisition cost) efficiency. He defends this choice against criticism, noting that Kardashian has built a multi-billion-dollar business using her community to generate subsidized customer acquisition costs.
On his current marriage, Higgins credits his wife with unlocking potential through value alignment and a lack of ego. He contrasts this with his previous divorce, which forced him to reckon with modeling unrealistic expectations of others and recognizing that different people have different capacities for stress and pressure. He emphasizes the importance of believing that the right partner exists and that you deserve it.
About this episode
<p>This is a fan fav episode. If you’re about that hustle culture life then you’ve either entertained the idea of burning the boats or you already took the leap. Is it necessary though? Is there a link to being successful and leaving yourself no option for retreat?</p> <p><br /></p> <p>Matt Higgins has been on Shark Tank as one of the sharks, he’s vice chairman of the Miami Dolphins, guest lecturer teaching at Harvard, and CEO of a private investment firm, RSE Ventures among other things. His success is mind-blowing and at a level very few people ever achieve. </p> <p><br /></p> <p>The plot twist is he grew up broke, selling flowers, working at McDonald’s and actually made the decision to drop out of high school at 16 years old! He’s sharing why Burn the Boats, the title of his latest book, isn’t the idea you think it is. Matt points out that 48$ of people have a plan A and believes that when you spend time coming up with Plan B you’re more likely to not even give Plan A the effort it deserves and therefore minimize your chance of success.</p> <p><br /></p> <p>This conversation is about getting real with yourself, facing everything that comes your way,and not retreating to Plan B, C or D. The idea that Matt Higgins shares is about being so totally committed to your Plan A that success is the only option. Eliminate choices. Fully commit. Experience new levels of success.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>ORIGINAL AIR DATE: 3-28-23</strong></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Follow Matt Higgins:</strong></p> <p>Website: <a href="https://www.burntheboatsbook.com/%20" target="_blank">https://www.burntheboatsbook.com/ </a></p> <p>YouTube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@BurnTheBoatsBook%20" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/@BurnTheBoatsBook </a></p> <p>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mhiggins/%20" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/mhiggins/ </a></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>What's up, everybody?</strong> <strong>It's Tom Bilyeu here:</strong></p> <p>If you want my help...</p> <ul> <li>STARTING a business:<a href="https://tombilyeu.com/zero-to-founder?utm_campaign=Podcast%20Offer&utm_source=podca[%E2%80%A6]d%20end%20of%20show&utm_content=podcast%20ad%20end%20of%20show" target="_blank"> </a><a href="https://tombilyeu.com/zero-to-founder?utm_campaign=Podcast%20Offer&utm_source=podca[%E2%80%A6]d%20end%20of%20show&utm_content=podcast%20ad%20end%20of%20show" target="_blank">join me here at ZERO TO FOUNDER</a> </li> <li>SCALING a business:<a href="https://tombilyeu.com/call" target="_blank"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://tombilyeu.com/call" target="_blank">see if you qualify here.</a> </li> </ul> <p>Get my battle-tested strategies and insights delivered weekly to your inbox:<a href="https://tombilyeu.com/" target="_blank"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://tombilyeu.com/" target="_blank">sign up here.</a></p> <p>**********************************************************************</p> <p><strong>If you're serious about leveling up your life, I urge you to check out my new podcast,</strong><a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/47VE90Cittmo6TGGFqg2xf" target="_blank"> <strong>Tom Bilyeu’s Mindset Playbook</strong></a> —a goldmine of my most impactful episodes on mindset, business, and health. Trust me, your future self will thank you.</p> <p>**********************************************************************</p> <p>Join me live on my<a href="https://impacttheory.co/4fitmnJ" target="_blank"> Twitch stream</a>. I'm live daily from 6:30 to 8:30 am PT at<a href="https://impacttheory.co/4fitmnJ" target="_blank"> </a><a href="https://impacttheory.co/4fitmnJ" target="_blank">www.twitch.tv/tombilyeu</a></p> <p>**********************************************************************</p> <p><strong>LISTEN TO IMPACT THEORY AD FREE + BONUS EPISODES on APPLE PODCASTS</strong>:<a href="http://apple.co/impacttheory" target="_blank"> </a><a href="http://apple.co/impacttheory" target="_blank">apple.co/impacttheory</a></p> <p>**********************************************************************</p> <p><strong>FOLLOW TOM:</strong></p> <p><strong>Instagram:</strong><a href="https://www.instagram.com/tombilyeu/" target="_blank"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://www.instagram.com/tombilyeu/" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/tombilyeu/</a></p> <p><strong>Tik Tok:</strong><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@tombilyeu?lang=en" target="_blank"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@tombilyeu?lang=en" target="_blank">https://www.tiktok.com/@tombilyeu?lang=en</a></p> <p><strong>Twitter:</strong><a href="https://twitter.com/tombilyeu" target="_blank"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://twitter.com/tombilyeu" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/tombilyeu</a></p> <p><strong>YouTube:</strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@TomBilyeu" target="_blank"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@TomBilyeu" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/@TomBilyeu</a></p><p> </p><p>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices" target="_blank">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a></p><p>See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.</p>
Key Insights
- Higgins argues that conventional thinking and education systems are built for average situations and don't work for people in outlier circumstances, requiring them to take matters into their own hands.
- He claims that the Wharton study demonstrating that merely contemplating a Plan B statistically reduces likelihood of Plan A success proves the psychological principle underlying 'burn the boats.'
- Higgins distinguishes between instincts (which emerge during genuine survival crises with unavoidable clarity) and impulses (which often lead people astray), arguing most people conflate the two.
- He contends that viewing the world as 'I happen to things' rather than 'things happen to me' is a fundamental psychological shift necessary for progress, which he learned from his mother's struggles.
- Higgins argues that most people reject incrementalism not because it's impossible but because incrementalism is the only path with historical data to validate, while step changes feel risky due to lack of precedent.
- He claims that proprietary insights exist within everyone's life experience but go unacted upon because people don't trust their own judgment and wait for external validation.
- Higgins asserts that value overlap is far more critical in partnerships than complementary skill sets, because partnerships survive crises only when partners share core values and can navigate disagreements.
- He argues that base assumptions—invisible beliefs about how the world works—cause more partnership failures than values disagreements because people don't recognize or discuss them.
- Higgins contends that facing mortality directly (through contemplation or crisis) relieves anticipatory anxiety because it removes the uncertainty that keeps people mentally outside the present moment.
- He claims that modeling healthy partnerships publicly (as Tom and his wife do) creates permission for others to believe such partnerships exist, counteracting societal narratives about inevitable relationship dysfunction.
- Higgins argues that being 'highest and best use' oriented means constantly re-evaluating your deployment across opportunities rather than following a predetermined career path.
- He contends that people fail to act on their insights because they fundamentally don't believe improvement is possible, not because they lack ideas, and that empty Instagram platitudes cannot overcome this core disbelief.
Topics
Transcript
Right now, I want to talk about a bet you're losing every day. Someone says something important in a meeting, a client drops an offhand comment that matters, a teammate floats a half-formed idea, but you know it's gold, and then you bet yourself the same thing every time. I'll remember that. But nine times out of 10, you lose that bet. Everybody does. Your brain wasn't built to retain 40 hours a week of dense conversation. And the cost isn't just a forgotten detail. It's the follow-up you never make, the promise that you don't keep, the connections that slip through your fingers. And Ploud is built to make sure you win that bet every time. It's an AI-powered…
Full transcript available for MurmurCast members
Sign Up to AccessMore from Tom Bilyeu's Impact Theory
Wild Weekend Recap: Iran Chaos, Global Shifts, and the Economic Debate Shaping Our Future
Tom Dewey discusses the chaotic Iran nuclear negotiations, Israel-Lebanon tensions, UK political upheaval, South American political shifts, and critiques Ro Khanna's economic policies, arguing that government spending and price controls are fundamental problems requiring deregulation and fiscal discipline.
Can the Middle Class Be Saved? Political Division, Economic Doom & The Leadership Problem | Andrew Bustamante Pt. 2
Andrew Bustamante discusses how economic uncertainty drives populism and political polarization, arguing that fixing the economy through fiscally responsible leadership is essential to prevent societal collapse within nine years. He emphasizes that voters should prioritize candidates with clear economic visions and that building personal wealth is both a practical necessity and a way to stabilize the broader middle class.
How Immigration and War Test the Strength of Values and National Identity
Tom Bilyeu hosts a wide-ranging political commentary show covering the collapse of the Iran-US nuclear negotiations and Strait of Hormuz closure, the shifting tide of the Russia-Ukraine war, EU immigration reform, and debates about national identity and assimilation. The episode also touches on UK censorship policies, AI industry government intervention, and California's vote on illegal immigrant voting rights.
Trump Isn't Confused, He's Doing This on Purpose | Andrew Bustamante
Former CIA officer Andrew Bustamante analyzes Trump's foreign policy in Iran, arguing that Trump seeks leverage rather than peace, and that the US has overshot its military objectives while violating its own doctrines. The conversation expands into a broader critique of late-stage financialization, American imperial decline, and the systemic interdependence of AI, energy, and labor that makes future prediction increasingly difficult.
Breaking Down Iran’s Mystery Deal, US Debt Crisis, and AI Surveillance in Daily Life
Tom and Bill discuss the vague Iran nuclear MOU, the US debt refinancing crisis amid Japan's bond selloff, AI surveillance technology, the SPLC scandal, and debates around capital gains taxation and government spending. The hosts are skeptical of the Iran deal's durability and critical of proposals to increase taxes as a solution to the deficit.