How insidious is your “Resistance” ?

Know your enemy

The following passage is from Steven Pressfields work “The War of Art” Book 1 Resistance – Defining the Enemy.

London 1989. Photo by Challen Yee

In Book 1, Pressfield often takes a page per concept approach to highlight individual ideas. This aids In the focusing process of gathering a comprehensive picture of this multi-dimensional force that is responsible to stifle our self-expression and creativity. I also appreciate the extra space to write notes while I am reading, rephrasing and recapturing the new thoughts and ideas that come to mind.

SInce reading The War of Art, I find myself treating my Resistance more like a person rather than a mere circumstance that has no form and this helps me regain my footing when I am knocked off balance. I can tell a bully to beat it, but I can’t tell, as easily, some force of nature to just go away.

Steven Pressfield.  Source: stevenpressfield.com

stevenpressfield.com

Here Pressfield describes in stark and sometimes salty terms (where I have added the asterisk)  a particularly nasty aspect of the formidable opponent we must face on a day to day basis if we are striving, as he calls, to “do the work” we are meant to be in fulfilling our true self-expression. 

By the way, there are no asterisks censoring words in the book.

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RESISTANCE IS INSIDIOUS

Resistance will tell you anything to keep you from doing your work. It will perjure, fabricate, falsify; seduce, bully, cajole. Resistance is protean. It will assume any form, if that’s what it takes to deceive you. It will reason with you like a lawyer or jam a nine-millimeter in your face like a stickup man. Resistance has no conscience. It will pledge anything to get a deal, then double-cross you as soon as your back is turned. If you take Resistance at its word, you deserve everything you get. Resistance is always lying and always full of sh*t.

 

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If you’ve receive some value, learning something about the ways Resistance deploys against the liberating of your talents and skills, please like, share and comment.

I’ll see you… on the next page

Challen Yee

Challen Yee

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