Re: Resistance
This morning, I began reading The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. It’s a book that provides a practical guide for succeeding in and creative sphere. The first book in the book dives deep into the concept of resistance—something we’ve all encountered but may not fully understand. Resistance, often known as self-sabotage, is the force that holds us back from pursuing our true potential. Pressfield speaks to that inner knowing, that intuition we all have, urging us toward something more. His words sparked something in me, bringing me to this moment—sitting here with my coffee, my notes, and my laptop, writing this very blog.
Before the chapter begins, Pressfield shares a powerful insight:
“There’s a secret that real writers know that wannabe writers don’t, and the secret is this: it’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write. What keeps us from sitting down is resistance.”
This resonated deeply with me, and I think it will resonate with many others—the writers, the dreamers, the entrepreneurs, the artists. You have a dream, a knowing, a little voice telling you there’s something more out there for you. But then resistance rears its ugly head, and suddenly, procrastination and self-sabotage set in, trying to talk you out of going after your dreams. Sadly, more often than not, we listen.
Pressfield illustrates this with a story of a woman diagnosed with cancer who, given six months to live, knowing this she quits her job to pursue her dream of writing Tex-Mex songs. She finds herself to be happier than ever before.
This begs the question: why does it often take a drastic event—a near-death experience, an illness, heartbreak—to snap us out of the haze and confront resistance? Why must it take such extremes to awaken us to follow our dreams?
It’s one of those situations that you don’t fully notice until you do. And once you become aware, it’s challenging to revert to the way you lived before.
Our society often prioritizes instant gratification over long-term growth. We’re quick to slap a band-aid over a deep wound and call it a day, choosing quick, easy distractions over addressing what we truly need. In doing so, we allow resistance to win.
Pressfield offers a valuable insight: the more crucial a call or action is to our soul’s growth and evolution, the more resistance we will feel. This resistance often manifests as procrastination, the most common form of self-sabotage. We’ve all heard the excuses: “I don’t have time for that,” or “This needs to be done first; it’s more important.” We’ve become masters at finding reasons not to act.
But what if we started to fight back? What if we reminded ourselves that we hold the power to create the life of our dreams?
If I were to ask you what your dream life looks like, could you honestly say you’re living it? Maybe your dream is to work a 9-5, Monday to Friday, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. But maybe your dream is to create—to write, paint, or follow your heart and passion. When confronted with these dreams, our rational minds often take over, reminding us of bills to pay and mouths to feed. So, we put our dreams on hold.
But Pressfield reminds us that, in this very moment, we can change our lives. You just need to sit down and do the work.
So that’s what I did—one small step, one act of courage, one blog post later.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it wouldn’t have been built at all if they hadn’t laid bricks every hour. It’s easy to overestimate the importance of grand gestures and overlook the power of small, consistent actions. Start small, focus on getting 1% closer each day. You don’t have to do it all today, but just start. It’s about progress, not perfection, and recognizing that each small step is a victory in itself. Keep moving forward, and soon enough, you’ll look back and see how far you’ve come.
Embrace the journey, create your reality, and live out loud.
Keep shining,
Liv
