Feeling Stuck? It’s Not You. It’s Resistance.
Resistance is the devil that stands between us and anything we want.
Resistance is procrastination, a mental block. It’s getting in your own way. Being your own worst enemy.
It’s also fear. Fear of failure. Fear of being seen. Fear of being cringey.
It’s excuses. An endless, sweeping array of very compelling, logical, practical reasons you simply can’t continue.
It’s hitting the snooze button. Forgetting your shoes for your workout. Not planning ahead. Yep, that’s Resistance, too.
It’s also that feeling when enthusiasm wanes and drudgery sets in. It reminds you over and over, “You can quit at any time.”
Resistance is oh so tricky. It’s the easy path. “Stay in bed,” it whispers. Avoid risks. Skip flossing. Keep scrolling. Don’t put yourself out there. It feels good in the moment.
Resistance gives you permission to avoid the very thing you need and want to do.
But you know what? Resistance kind of loses its power once you give it a name.
If it’s good for you, you can count on Resistance to show up. That means, you can plan ahead, recognize it when it shows up, and be ready to fight.
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield taught me everything I need to know about capital-R Resistance.
The book is written with creative work in mind, but just like my philosophy for Creative Adjacency, creativity comes in many forms. Resistance will ALWAYS show up, whether it’s a creative project, trying something new, building a healthy habit, or reaching the finish line for anything.
The War of Art is only 165 pages broken up into three “books” (which are more like chapters) of quick essays that explain Resistance and how to fight it.
Resistance: Defining the Enemy
This part teaches us how to identify Resistances in its many, tricky forms.Combating Resistance
Learn how to be a professional, not an amateur.
Beyond Resistance: The Higher Realm
Call upon a muse or angels–however you define them–to support you on your journey.
Now that you have a name for the enemy, do you feel empowered to keep going? How does Resistance show up for you?
Want to read more about Resistance read: Feel Cringey and Do It Anyway.
Here’s one where a famous muse helped me overcome a writing block: Start with One True Sentence.
Oo, this was the nudge I needed to confront Resistance in my own life. I love the idea of naming it in order to take away some of its power.
I LOVE the idea of calling on a higher realm for support with creative endeavors. Seems like it would help remove some of the ego at play and put the creator more in a position of channeling higher information.
Also, I feel like this relates closely to the concept of upper limit problems… Gay Hendricks talks about this in his book The Big Leap. Basically we’ve subconsciously determined a fixed level of happiness for ourselves, and anything that pushes us beyond that level will trigger resistance.
Great piece, thoroughly enjoyed reading!