I’m reading a super fascinating book that’s been on my “to-read” list for a long time. It’s not part of the “Top 100 Business Books of All Time,” but I’ve been super eager to read this, and I wanted to get through it.
The book is The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. That’s right – it’s not the art of war, but the war of art.
Steven suggests that there is a force inside us all, which he calls the resistance, that causes us to avoid getting things done that truly matter.
It’s the force of procrastination – it’s the force of taking less or no risk – it’s the force behind writers’ block – it’s the force behind creative paralysis. It’s similar to what Seth Godin calls the lizard brain.
So here’s the question I’m asking myself now.
Pressfield says that every time we do (or don’t do) something that’s mildly or remotely scary, we’re being confronted by the resistance.
Over the past four months, I’ve confronted the resistance on a daily basis by writing this blog. As I’ve mentioned before, I used to say I didn’t have the time or motivation necessary to blog on a daily basis. Now, however, each morning I arrive at my desk with my coffee in hand, and I challenge the resistance.
Some days it’s gotten easier and the resistance relents. Somedays the lizard is quiet and allows me to easily finish my blog post without any pain.
On other days – I’d rather be fishing.
But now I’m starting to ask myself a bigger question about the resistance.
Have I begun blogging on a daily basis as a way to cope with the resistance in an act to avoid doing things that really matter?
And if so, is the resistance relenting?
That is scary.
