Its not just Procrastination, its the Evil Force that stops Us

This book The War of Art is not just about procrastination nor a self help book on how to get your work done. This book is about breaking free from resistance or inertia that stops us from achieving our dreams.

Have you ever brought home a treadmill and let it gather dust in the attic? Ever quit a diet, a course of yoga, a meditation practice? Have you ever bailed out on a call to embark upon a spiritual practice, dedicate yourself to a humanitarian calling, commit your life to the service of others? Have you ever wanted to be a mother, a doctor, an advocate for the weak and helpless; to run for office, crusade for the planet, campaign for world peace, or to preserve the environment? Late at night have you experienced a vision of the person you might become, the work you could accomplish, the realized being you were meant to be? Are you a writer who doesn’t write, a painter who doesn’t paint, an entrepreneur who never starts a venture? Then you know what Resistance is.

Primarily for freelancers, or artist, or creative professions, this is a guide to get over resistance by following order and discipline in their professions.

Resistance by definition is self-sabotage. But there’s a parallel peril that must also be guarded against: sabotage by others. When a writer begins to overcome her Resistance—in other words, when she actually starts to write—she may find that those close to her begin acting strange. They may become moody or sullen, they may get sick; they may accuse the awakening writer of “changing,” of “not being the person she was.” The closer these people are to the awakening writer, the more bizarrely they will act and the more emotion they will put behind their actions.

What I particularly liked is the book touched upon Sri Bhagavad Gita at couple of places.

To labor in this way, The Bhagavad-Gita tells us, is a form of meditation and a supreme species of spiritual devotion. It also, I believe, conforms most closely to Higher Reality. In fact, we are servants of the Mystery. We were put here on earth to act as agents of the Infinite, to bring into existence that which is not yet, but which will be, through us.

Resistance is also about fear. The cause of resistance. The reason why I am not able to work on that important task may be fear. This leads us to self discovery. Artists and Musicians are similar to someone following spirituality. Both searching for their truer selves. Fear can be of many types. Fear of the consequences of following our heart. Fear of bankruptcy, fear of poverty, fear of insolvency.  Fear of madness. Fear of insanity. Fear of death. etc.

Not the Master Fear, the Mother of all Fears that’s so close to us that even when we verbalize it we don’t believe it. Fear That We Will Succeed. That we can access the powers we secretly know we possess. That we can become the person we sense in our hearts we truly are.

Overall a good book, a guide from a person who overcame his own resistance to become a successful writer.