3 Lessons From Steven Pressfield's "War of Art"

"War of Art" insights and analysis: 3 valuable lessons for every creative out there.

I just finished reading “War of Art", a 2002 book by Steven Pressfield. Main conclusion? Every creative should read this book.

It’s about the challenges and struggles we face in our work. Procrastination, laziness, doubts. Want to know how to fight them?

This post is based on my notes from the book and fresh memory.

Why 3 lessons? Not 5, not 10? The book is divided into 3 main sections:

1. Resistance.

2. Turning Pro (which is also the title of his other book).

3. The Higher Realm.

This is the summary of them mixed with my thoughts. I see we share some ideas with the author. I think you will like it.

1. Friction

“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance” ― Steven Pressfield

What is friction? Quoting myself from Instagram Reels and TikTok - Instant Escapism:

Let’s talk about friction. Friction, read - how hard it is to start an activity.

The friction of going for a run is: getting up, changing clothes, choosing something to listen to, run.

The friction of reading a book is - to pick up a book, open it, read.

The friction of watching short-form video is… close to 0. You probably use apps like Instagram or YouTube anyway, and as both force you to watch these (by shorts being a default section after opening the app, for example) it’s easy to get hooked. You want to check someone's profile but end up watching some garbage memes for 15 minutes.

If discipline is the bridge between goals in your mind and in reality, friction is the relentless wind that sets you back.

The bridge is very, veeery broad. Before you enter it, you need to know which way to go. Knowing that already, you make a first step, and set your foot on the bridge. It goes up. To cross it, you need to overcome friction. It’s not easy. The surface, dry and grippy in some places, surprisingly often becomes slippery and at a sharp angle. It’s much easier to slip back on such a surface, and the surface is sometimes out of our control. Even if you stand strong and won’t slip back, it’s soo tempting to take a break and sit for 5 minutes, which is not a bad idea. What is a bad idea is to let these 5 minutes become hours and days. Nothing chasese you after all.

Friction means resistance. You smoke, drink, play video games, eat, binge TV series, and basically do everything that gives you instant gratification to avoid delaying it. That doesn’t sound so bad, but putting it in different words: Friction is selling your future for pleasure now.

Starting is the hardest part

Writing isn’t hard, sitting down to write is. From this place, I have to mention:

Step 1 - Do It. Step 2?

You Already Know What To Do

If I need to clean the dishes, I do it until there’s nothing in the sink. But starting becomes especially problematic when there’s no satisfying end to the task.

I want to write a book. It’s obvious I won’t do it in one sitting. How long should I work then? One hour? Nine hours? Fifteen minutes? That is where timed work blocks come in handy. My sessions are, not 90, but 45 minutes for now. I cut the time in half and I’m happy with the results. Anyway - you need to set a specific time to engage fully and only in the work. Whether you wrote one or a hundred pages in that time, doesn't matter. What matters is that you went through it and now can rest guilt-free.

You don’t have time

Have you heard this story: Woman learns she has cancer, six months to live. Within days she quits her job, resumes the dream of writing Tex-Mex songs she gave up to raise a family (or starts studying classical Greek, or moves to the inner city and devotes herself to tending babies with AIDS). Woman’s friends think she’s crazy; she herself has never been happier. There’s a postscript. Woman’s cancer goes into remission. Is that what it takes?

Do we have to stare death in the face to make us stand up and confront Resistance Does Resistance have to cripple and disfigure our lives before we wake up to its existence? How many of us have become drunks and drug addicts, developed tumors and neuroses, succumbed to painkillers, gossip, and compulsive cell-phone use, simply because we don’t do that thing that our hearts, our inner genius, is calling us to? Resistance defeats us.

We procrastinate on things simply because we think we have time. We have time to start a YouTube channel, find a better job, go on that trip. We will do all that. Someday. But someday is not a date. If you say “someday” you may as well say “I don't care enough to do it, even though I know it will be good for me, and I will be grateful to my present self for starting it.”

How to deal with friction?

There are external and internal obstacles causing resistance.

External are easier, but not necessarily easy, to fix. Those are such as:

• Your phone on the desk.

• Negative Relationships (or even positive if you can’t say no): Unsupportive friends, family, or colleagues can create doubt.

• Notifications bouncing you off the flow state.

• Yelling parents or a roommate who can’t shut up.

Later about internal, it’s not that easy.

“It was easier for Hitler to start World War II than it was for him to face a blank square of canvas.” ― Steven Pressfield

If you like my writing, check out my book!

The book is now on Gumroad. Use code “FIRST10” at checkout to get 50% off! Only the first 10 people.

The ebook is gifted to paid subscribers.

2. Turning Pro

“I write only when inspiration strikes. Fortunately, it strikes every morning at nine o’clock sharp.” ― Somerset Maugham

Don’t worry about inspiration if you haven’t sat down to work yet. Someday better, someday worse, but inspiration or “Muse” is there. The challenge is to wring it out. Fortunately, just getting started is half the battle. Resistance affects everyone. What separates amateurs from professionals is how they deal with it. But how do they actually deal with it?

Professional and amateur - overview

Professional: