Don’t boil the ocean

    不要好高骛远“Boil” 是“煮”的意思，“ocean” 是“海”的意思。这句话的字面意思是“不要去煮海”，这是什么意思呢？请看对话：

    A: I have a big plan for the coming year.

    B: Oh? What’s that?

    A: I plan to do a lot of things, including start a company with 100 employees, help 10 students pay off their student loans and become a celebrity by participating in some reality shows.

    B: That’s crazy! Don’t boil the ocean.

    A: You never support my dreams.

    B: Accomplish just one of those goals and then I’ll believe in you again.

    Note: If you are trying to boil the ocean, you are attempting to do something that’s impossible or too big, or making something too complex.

    Thus, the sentence means you should be practical instead of aiming too high. It is impossible to boil the whole ocean, so try not to brag about things that are impossible to achieve at one time.