the War of Art

or Don’t Overthink the Resistance

There’s something to be said for just showing up every day and doing the work.

This has been written about plenty by folks like Seth Godin and Stewart Pressfield. I recharged my Kindle yesterday and opened up my long forgotten list of downloaded eBooks. Many of these have been read more than once and many are still reads-in-progress. The key to being a better reader is giving up on books that make it hard to finish them.

Thus I began re-reading the War of Art. This gem by Pressfield can be read in less than a day, especially if you’re on a flight or have a few hours to commit to following through. It’s a great inspirational read about the Resistance that stops us all from accomplishing the things that we want to accomplish.

The hardest part about doing the things we want to do and accomplishing what we want in life is simply taking action on them. Day in, day out. Showing up. Putting in the reps.

It turns out that there is a force in the universe that wants to stop us all from accomplishing the things that we want and Pressfield takes to calling that thing the Resistance.

Giving in is really easy. Doing the work is also easy, but not as seductive as giving into the Resistance.

I definitely recommend this book for anyone working in a remotely creative or entrepreneurial environment.