A bridge consists of bottlenecks you can cross to move your life “forward” or “backward.” It’s a passage that takes you from position A to B, or if you’re at B, to C or back to A.

Bridges are of two types:

a) Bridges Behind
A bridge behind is generally known as a way to go back. You can do two things with it: preserve it or break it. By preserving it, you can always return and have the reassurance that wherever you “f*cked up,” you can go back. By breaking it, you can’t return, even if you made a mistake.

Obviously, this affects how you cross the bridge and your seriousness on the other side. If you break the bridge and know there’s no way back, your only option is to survive on the other side. This doubles your effort and the results you achieve, compared to knowing you can return at the first sign of trouble.

b) Bridges Ahead
A bridge ahead is one that lies in front of you. These are bridges in your tomorrow that you will cross, and the day after tomorrow you’ll reach the end of one of them.

What you can do with these bridges is similar to bridges behind: preserve or break them. By preserving bridges ahead, you keep countless options for the innumerable tomorrows awaiting you. This abundance of choices can lead to confusion and, if you try to cross more than one bridge at once, “slipping” or losing focus.

On the other hand, breaking bridges ahead limits your choices. Breaking the bridge to becoming a carpenter, breaking the bridge to becoming a construction worker, a doctor, a writer, and so on. By breaking bridges ahead, you narrow your options to one or a few paths. Naturally, the fewer bridges remain, the less freedom, the more focus, the higher chance of success, and the lower risk of slipping.

Let me give an example: You’re a programmer wanting to start a business. That’s a bridge you must cross to reach the position of a programmer running a business. Simple, right? When does the problem arise? It arises when, while crossing this bridge, another bridge catches your attention, one that ends with fame. Another bridge with a beautiful girl at the end. Another with becoming a musician. Another with traveling the world. Another with politics. Another with social analysis. Another with sports, and so on.

Obviously, when you put one foot on one bridge, your other foot slips on another bridge.

What to Do?
Some people may enjoy slipping. Some may want to be both a musician and a social analyst at the same time. But if you think you don’t have the flexibility to place your feet on multiple bridges simultaneously, there’s no choice but to break the bridges ahead.

It’s also clear that if from position B there are bridges to C, D, E, and F, these bridges may not exist from position D. In other words, if you choose to cross the bridge ending at D, your access to C, E, and F may become very difficult or even impossible.

So here you are forced to choose: between falling in love, starting a business, becoming an analyst, or any position you’re not yet in. To avoid slipping while trying to reach one, you must not only ignore other options but also eliminate any possibility of reaching them, focusing entirely on the bridge you intend to cross.