"The War of Art"

The Book

The War of Art – Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield

What It’s About

The premise is simple.  We are all called to do something with our lives, something important.  But each of us fights an enemy that Pressfield calls Resistance.  Resistance, like a force of nature attacks us all.  Its primary purpose is to keep us from our work.  Resistance is the greatest evil of all, because it keeps us from being productive, doing what we are meant to do, and from making the world a better place.  It keeps us from our potential, from our mission in life.

Resistance is both personal and impersonal.  It never quits.  Never.   And its purpose is to destroy us.

Resistance manifests itself in an infinite number of ways through internal and external forces, but, make no mistake, its main source of power is from within.  It is fueled by our own fear.  We fuel it.  We strengthen our own worst enemy.

To defeat Resistance, one must become a professional.  This is described in the second section, Combating Resistance – Turning Pro.  The term “Pro” is not literal (though it could be).  The professional is one who does his or her work every day, no matter what.  Because he is a writer, Pressfield describes his daily routine as a writer in both literal and figurative terms.    The key is that the professional does his work every day.  Doing the work is a battle, which he eventually overcomes each day.  After the work is done for the day, or when his time is up, he can rest and enjoy leisure time.  But it’s not long before he’s thinking of the next day’s battle with Resistance.

The professional understands that this battle will be and must be fought daily.  It is a battle fought by anyone pursuing his or her purpose, doing his or her work.  Becoming a professional is the surest way to beat Resistance.  It’s not easy, but we must approach our work as if were being paid for it.

The third section, The Higher Realm, discusses angel and the muses.   These are our allies in the war against Resistance, in the war to do our work.   It is doing our work and being a professional, that calls down the forces of Heaven, of Creation, to assist us.  This section is mystical, but also practical.   It is also inspirational.

Why I Picked This Book

Not that I would ever want to make this choice, but if I could only have ten books, The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield, would be one of them.  Except for the Bible and The Power of Now, no other book has affected me as much as this one.  I listen to or read this book at least three times a year.  My debt to Mr. Pressfield for this book can never be repaid, except by doing my work.

The War of Art helped me realize that I allowed fear to keep me from doing what was most important to me.   I spent years knowing what I wanted, but being afraid to move forward.  This book helped me see what I was fighting.  I was fighting laziness and fear, but most of all, I was fighting the calling to do my work and to live my life fully, as it was meant to be lived.

How This Can Help You

If you’re feeling unfulfilled or frustrated with your life, it may be because you are not doing the work you were put on this planet to do.  The War of Art may help you see that and it may also help you to make some decisions to move forward.  You may see what has been holding you back for so long, how to change your habits, and how to enter into a new life, a far more meaningful one.  You may realize that you aren’t alone in your struggle, and that millions are going through the same struggle.  But you will also see that you have to face your own resistance alone.  Best of all, you will see that, though the battle is a daily one, it can be won.  You can beat Resistance.

Quotes from the Book

“This is the other secret that real artists know and wannabe writers don’t. When we sit down each day and do our work, power concentrates around us. The Muse takes note of our dedication. She approves. We have earned favor in her sight. When we sit down and work, we become like a magnetized rod that attracts iron filings. Ideas come. Insights accrete.”

“The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down

every day and trying.”

“Of any activity you do, ask yourself: If I were the last person on earth, would I still do it?”

“We feed it [Resistance] with power by our fear of it. Master that fear and we conquer Resistance.”

Additional Information

http://www.stevenpressfield.com 

Go to his blog for more encouragement.

The Purpose of Reading

There are just too many books– good books, great books, fun books, instructional books, spiritual texts, the classics, beach novels, “serious” literature, and more.  It goes on and on.  If you could read a book a day for the next ten years, you still wouldn’t even be close to reading all that’s available.  Bookstores can be overwhelming.  So can the well-intentioned recommendations of friends – “You have to read this book.”  (I’ve been guilty of saying that myself.)  If the publication of all books, magazines, newspapers, and Internet content stopped right now, we still would have too much to read.  

We could throw up our hands in despair and look for the remote, but that won’t solve the problem.  We need to do something.  We need to read or at least have an idea of what’s available to read.  The more we read, and the more widely we read, the more we think. Our thoughts, for better or worse, often determine the quality of our lives.  All of our loves, hatreds, beliefs, and even our self-image come from our thoughts.  We can also find our thoughts through our Purpose.

So what do we do? 

Maybe I can help a little. 

I read…a lot.  I’ve read at least 60 books over a wide variety of subjects in the last five years alone.  That’s not a lot, but it’s more than many.  In addition to reading, I write…a lot.  I’ve kept private journals for almost 40 years.  I’ve written three books, and published one.  In the last year and a half, I’ve written nearly 700 blogs.  I love writing and I love reading.  Even more, I love sharing what I’ve read in a way that’s practical and appealing.  I want to share what I’ve read, how it’s helped me, and most of all, how it might help you.  This is part of my Purpose.

Here’s what I’m not doing:  I’m not writing book reviews.  I’m already recommending these books, or I wouldn’t have read them in the first place and I wouldn’t be taking the time to write about them. There won’t be a rating system.  No books will be getting stars or happy faces or a thumbs-up.  While I may point out merits or shortcomings of something I’m reading, that’s not the purpose. The purpose is to share something that’s helped me in the hopes that it will help you.

This will also not be a “Cliff Notes” version of the book.  The main ideas will be present, but if I’m writing about a fictional piece, I probably won’t be giving- away the ending.  If it’s a self-help book or a spiritual text, I won’t be covering every point, only the main ideas.  If you don’t read the books I’m recommending, then you will miss a lot.   I want you to read these books.  They’ve helped me and they can help you.  But if you can’t or choose not to read the books recommended here, at least you’ll be able to discuss them intelligently after reading these blogs.  You can agree or disagree with my perspective, but you’ll have something to consider.

Using Steven Covey’s idea in 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, I want to begin with the end in mind.  Here’s the picture in my head.  Eventually, this website will have hundreds of books to choose from, across many genres.  There will be indexes, by title and subject.  I’d even like to create an app for this.  Most of all I want to see people getting excited about reading books that might help them find their Purpose.

Welcome then.  I hope this is the beginning of an exciting and fruitful journey for all of us.  Now let’s Get Started and Keep Going!