The War of Art

Another great “feedback book” on the way of the world, this time Steven Pressfield’s book The War of Art.  I really enjoyed this relatively quick read which is broken into three separate parts, all centered on how one breaks through the blocks and how to win your inner creative battles.  Pressfield is a self-acclaimed failed screenwriter and shares some of those losses in the book.  As he notes, if you haven’t failed, you really haven’t tried.  Better to fail than not doing it at all.  His book, which is heavily reliant on his belief in God, is a common sense book on what holds us back, us!  He begins the book about why we have resistance with a top eleven greatest hits (of activities that elicit resistance), to include: the pursuit of any calling in art however marginal or unconventional; the launching of any entrepreneurial venture or enterprise; for profit or otherwise; any diet or health regimen; any program of spiritual advancement; any activity whose aim is tighter abdominals; any course or program designed to overcome an unwholesome habit or addiction; education of any kind; any act of political, moral, or ethical courage, including the decision to change for the better some unworthy pattern of thought or conduct in ourselves; the undertaking of any enterprise or endeavor whose aim is to help others; any act that entails commitment of the heart (the decision to get married, to have a child, to weather a rocky patch in a relationship; or taking of any principled stand in the face of adversity.  What a list, huh?  And so what stops us from doing any of the things listed above?  Resistance!  Yes.  As Pressman shares, resistance is invisible, internal, insidious, implacable, impersonal, universal, never sleeps, plays for keeps, and is fueled by FEAR!  He has a whole bunch more, but you get the idea.  Part two of the book shares ideas for how to combat resistance and finally how to move to a “higher realm” after the combat.  If we really want something, why not go for it, practice, plan, and use others along the way.  Pressfield’s at his best in the last chapter when he focuses on the idea of “fear” and how it plays a major role in our lives and how to move beyond it.  Many of Pressfield’s anecdotes are lessons we all knew, but weren’t as eloquent in writing them down, like he does.  This is a great book for those on the precipice of greatness.  This is a chance to perform and act with courage and integrity.  I don’t know, but it is really resonating with me… again asking the question, am I living a useful life?  Thanks Mr. Pressfield, always good to reflect on what we do and also what we fail to do!  Great read.