do the work
In his book “The War of Art”, my teacher Steven Pressfield1 — I refer to him as my teacher because I am learning from him, and therefore he is teaching me — personifies resistance as an active, sinister force acting against people engaged in creative endeavours. In the sequel, “Do the Work”, he graciously appends “entrepreneurs” to “the people” and enforces the life-changing perspective and motivation with a tactical plan to apply introspective insights to complete and ship a creative piece that is meaningful and rewarding. Okay, that was too much! To make it short: “The War of Art” diagnoses the problem, whereas “Do the Work” prescribes the treatment. If you are choosing which one to read — do both. It’s even better to pour the intensive and passionate narration into your pods and enjoy a dramatic flair in his voice.
Pressfield warns against falling victim to resistance and allowing it to stop meaningful work from being accomplished. He advocates that the way to do meaningful work is to engage in an internal battle with resistance. Pressfield is the ultimate life coach! Any of his ‘resistance series’ books provide more transformational coaching material than any book that states ‘transformational coaching’ on the cover. I began using the term ‘distraction’ in my journaling years before reading ‘The War of Art.’ It is interchangeable with the ‘resistance’ but has a slightly broader sense for me. It serves as a catch-all for ‘busyness’ and ‘obligations’ that lack in psychic nutrition, as well as the reluctance and avoidance of doing what you chose to do.
linked mentions for "do the work":
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heron
In this letter, I explore the metaphor of the Heron battle an inner voice of doubt, represented by a croaking frog. I relate this to doing meaningful creative work by outlining principles from Steven Pressfield's “Do the Work.” We must engage with resistance and persist despite the obstacles. Just as the Heron achieves flight through courage and determination, we realise our potential by battling resistance and ship our creative or entrepreneurial work.
In this letter, I explore the metaphor of the Heron battle an inner voice of doubt, represented by a croaking frog. I relate this to doing meaningful creative work by outlining principles from Steven Pressfield's “Do the Work.” We must engage with resistance and persist despite the obstacles. Just as the Heron achieves flight through courage and determination, we realise our potential by battling resistance and ship our creative or entrepreneurial work.