Hi friends!
There was a little celebration dance in our household this week as we hit 100 subscribers on YouTube! #SmallSteps 🥳
To keep the momentum, we published a new video answering the question: "How can I start a meditation practice?"
There are a million answers to that question, so I hope you like my take on it!
Now onto this week's idea.
Resistance
I've recently been struggling with a writing project I’ve taken on with a business partner who is an incredibly gifted writer. While working on it (or trying to start...), I noticed a few thoughts cascading through my mind:
You’re not good enough.
You don’t have anything new or unique to contribute.
He’s going to think your writing sucks.
This inner-dialogue kept me from sitting down to start for days, then weeks, then almost a month.
Luckily, I recognized this voice. This, my friends, is the voice of Resistance.
Resistance is the voice in your head preventing you from expressing yourself. It’s a negative force that can stop you from starting that new side hustle, writing that blog post, or asking for that raise.
Common signs of Resistance include procrastination or perfectionism. We delay the start, or we nitpick endlessly to avoid reaching the finish.
Steven Pressfield, a prolific writer and author of the cult creative classic The War of Art describes Resistance as an “inner voice of self-sabotage.”
It is persistent, it is cunning, and most importantly, it is universal.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve taken away from Steven’s writing is that all creatives*, no matter how experienced or talented, face this same struggle.
I’m not alone, and neither are you.
In reflecting on this struggle, I recognized that the Resistance is connected to the Inner Critic that we touched on two weeks ago. They are both subtle, persistent, and universal.
I believe they are both trying to protect us from embarrassment, loss, or social alienation. Perhaps they served a purpose when survival was our key goal and we depended on acceptance from the group.
But these days, both forces can keep us paralyzed from reaching the next level, whether that be personally or professionally.
The good news is that just like the Inner Critic, the first step to overcoming Resistance is awareness.
Once we notice this voice, we can recognize that it's not "me." It's part of our lived experience, yes, but it's not the complete picture.
When I remembered this lesson, I felt a new sense of clarity.
The self-doubt that cast a haze over my motivation slowly began to lift.
That's not to say I sat down and got to writing straight away. But as I recognized the Resistance, I became clear on my challenge.
I accepted that this voice wasn't going away and that as Robert Frost once wrote, "the best way out is always through."
So I marked time on my calendar and when that time came, I sat down, began to write, and faced the challenge.
Where in your life is the Resistance strong right now? What would it look like to lean into that situation and face the fear?
*By creative, I mean this in the biggest and broadest sense. If you are creating value in this world in any way, shape, or form, you fit my definition of a creative.”
Words of Wisdom
"Remember our rule of thumb: The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it."
— Steven Pressfield