“Boiling the ocean” means an impossible task or overly complex project. It can refer to caring about fine details or doing too much planning. The phrase’s origin is uncertain. It’s better to reduce steps than add extra detail, and some people get caught up in planning and never start. Children with certain disabilities may struggle to initiate homework.
“Boiling the ocean” is an idiom that can have a few related meanings. One is that it’s obviously impossible to boil all the water in the ocean, so it can refer to an impossible task – something so complicated that it’s hard to know where to start. Another definition is used in business and tends to refer to extremely complex projects, perhaps overly complex. The idea of boiling the whole ocean means that someone cares about a minuteness of fine detail. This may mean that someone is thorough or it could mean that he has done something so complex that he will never achieve his goals.
There are few potential origins of this phrase. One is typically attributed to Will Rogers who, when asked how the United States should handle the German U-boat problem during World War I, recommended he boil the ocean. A reporter who asked the question purportedly followed up by asking how this could be done, to which Rogers replied, “I’m just the idea man.” Others attribute the phrase to Mark Twain.
Some people, when they have ideas, can be warned not to boil the ocean, which makes a lot of sense. It can be applied to many situations in business and personal life. When someone has something they want to make, it’s often better to reduce the steps required to make it than to keep adding extra detail. It is also possible that if someone does too much or plans too many contingencies, they may never see their idea or concept materialize.
There are many incredibly complex situations that require tons of thinking and planning, however, and they can seem impossible. It can be helpful to look at the steps needed to resolve a situation or to create a solution and see if there’s any chance of eliminating certain steps and still achieving a goal. Some people understandably immerse themselves too much in total solutions to appreciate the small steps that represent small wins.
Occasionally, people will see children practicing their own interpretation of boiling the ocean. When a child looks at a difficult task, he might get so caught up in planning that he’ll never get started. This is especially true for children with certain disabilities, such as nonverbal learning disorder. Initiating homework, especially written homework, is challenging as a person with this disorder is attempting to resolve every contingency before writing a word.
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