How to notice when Resistance sneaks into your creative projects and how to deal with it
In The War of Art, Steven Pressfield describes Resistance as: an impartial force of Nature that cannot be seen touched or smelt but can be felt. It distracts us to keep us from doing our work. It can show up in any act that rejects immediate gratification in favour of long-term growth health or integrity such as:
Pursuit of any calling of any creative art
Launching of entrepreneurial venture for profit or not
Diet health regiment
Any program of spiritual advancement
Any activity who’s aim is tighter abs
Any course or program designed to overcome an unwholesome habit or addiction
Education of every kind
Any act of political moral or ethical urge including the decision to change for the better some unworthy pattern of thought or conduct in ourselves
The undertaking of any enterprise who’s aim is to help others
Any act that entails a commitment of the heart (decision to get married, have a child…)
Taking of any principle stand in the face of adversity
For me it appears in, of course, everything but ESPECIALLY in my writing and any self-expression endeavor (podcasts, videos, stand-up…) I choose to pursue. It is such a fascinating topic to me that I wanted to share how it shows up and what I do about it and maybe open up a conversation with YOU fellow creatives and hear about what your experiences!
I noticed that Resistance can be quite sneaky and can take various forms depending on: the project, the fear you might have of it, the importance of the project to you and maybe other people, how you see yourself, how you see the world, how you perceive your work, etc.
In the past it used to appear as self-sabotage of my creative time by scheduling coffee dates with my Girlfriends instead of editing a podcast or writing a blogpost.
And now that I don’t sabotage my creative time anymore, Resistance is showing up in my body.
For example, these days, my biggest creative project is the editing of my first book and whenever I have the whole day ahead of me to work on it, my body, aka my Resistance, will make me have flue symptoms so that I think I’m getting sick and won’t work. Even though I’ve been working on this project for almost a year, Resistance is still showing up in this way for this specific project. How do I know it’s Resistance and not the flue? Because as soon as it’s 6pm — the time my brain chooses to call it a day — the symptoms disappear!
Another example: I remember my very first Improv class or rather I remember that it should have been my very first class but unfortunately right beforehand I had a diarrhea attack — even though I was fine the whole day! I couldn’t leave the toilets so I had to text the teacher I wasn’t coming and told her why because I didn’t want her to think I wasn’t serious about it! ah! It was the perfect way my body could come up with to not make me face my fears!
One last example for today: sometimes when I’m about to do stand-up comedy at an open mic, my back will suddenly come up with a lumbago so I cannot straighten up or walk properly anymore! Even though I didn’t carry any heavy thing or didn’t do a wrong move! It appears almost magically. This one though doesn’t stop me from facing my fears!
Often I understand only afterwards that those reactions of my body were actually Resistance but since it happened so many times in the same ways, I started noticing while it’s happening. And then I have 2 options:
either give in and read a book on the couch instead of working, rest and hope that next time, my body will cooperate.
or start a dialogue with the Resistance and ask it why it’s here, what does it need, what does it want from me, what is it scared of… and listen to its answer and then see what happens. Maybe today it will ask me to rest or maybe I can reassure it the way I would talk to a kid, tell it that I hear it and that everything is ok or maybe I can negotiate with it so it allows me to do the things I actually want to do!
And every time its answer might be different!
I think being able to pause and ask yourself : could this be Resistance ? is the very first step.
If you too have a creative project that matters to you, I invite you to — whenever you are not working on it although you clearly blocked that time on your calendar for this project — ask yourself: could this be Resistance?
Whether you are browsing the web during your creative time or whether you are showing sickness symptoms like a headache, or simply coming up with excuses, not feeling like it…. ask yourself could this be Resistance?
And then decide to either rest/do something else or to start a dialogue with it :)
Does Resistance show up during your creative time or any kind of project? Do you have another word for it? What do you do when it shows up? I’m curious!
