There’s a secret that real writers know that wannabe writers don’t, and the secret is this: It’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write. What keeps us from sitting down is Resistance. (Location 66)
Resistance kicked my ass from East Coast to West and back again thirteen times and I never even knew it existed. I looked everywhere for the enemy and failed to see it right in front of my face. (Location 85)
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. If tomorrow morning by some stroke of magic every dazed and benighted soul woke up with the power to take the first step toward pursuing his or her dreams, every shrink in the directory would be out of business. Prisons would stand empty. The alcohol and tobacco industries would collapse, (Location 91)
BOOK ONE ___________ RESISTANCE Defining the Enemy (Location 102)
Resistance seems to come from outside ourselves. We locate it in spouses, jobs, bosses, kids. “Peripheral opponents,” as Pat Riley used to say when he coached the Los Angeles Lakers. Resistance is not a peripheral opponent. Resistance arises from within. It is self-generated and self-perpetuated. Resistance is the enemy within. (Location 120)
Rule of thumb: The more important a call or action is to our soul’s evolution, the more Resistance we will feel toward pursuing it. (Location 137)
Resistance obstructs movement only from a lower sphere to a higher. (Location 148)
Resistance by definition is self-sabotage. But there’s a parallel peril that must also be guarded against: sabotage by others. (Location 160)
The reason is that they are struggling, consciously or unconsciously, against their own Resistance. (Location 164)
The best and only thing that one artist can do for another is to serve as an example and an inspiration. (Location 170)
We get ourselves in trouble because it’s a cheap way to get attention. Trouble is a faux form of fame. (Location 185)
Anything that draws attention to ourselves through pain-free or artificial means is a manifestation of Resistance. (Location 189)
RESISTANCE AND SELF-DRAMATIZATION Creating soap opera in our lives is a symptom of Resistance. (Location 193)
The paradox seems to be, as Socrates demonstrated long ago, that the truly free individual is free only to the extent of his own self-mastery. While those who will not govern themselves are condemned to find masters to govern over them. (Location 288)
(Conversely, the professional turns down roles that he’s done before. He’s not afraid of them anymore. Why waste his time?) So if you’re paralyzed with fear, it’s a good sign. It shows you what you have to (Location 306)
BOOK TWO ___________ COMBATING RESISTANCE Turning Pro (Location 394)
To the amateur, the game is his avocation. To the pro it’s his vocation. The amateur plays part-time, the professional full-time. The amateur is a weekend warrior. The professional is there seven days a week. (Location 402)
I joke with my kids beside the fire. They’re happy; the old man has brought home the bacon. The old lady’s happy; she’s cooking it up. I’m happy; I’ve earned my keep on the planet, at least for this day. (Location 430)
All of us are pros in one area: our jobs. (Location 444)
We show up every day. (Location 446)
We show up no matter what. (Location 448)
We stay on the job all day. (Location 450)
The stakes for us are high and real. This is about survival, feeding our families, (Location 453)
We do not overidentify with our jobs. (Location 456)
Now consider the amateur: the aspiring painter, the wannabe playwright. How does he pursue his calling? One, he doesn’t show up every day. Two, he doesn’t show up no matter what. Three, he doesn’t stay on the job all day. (Location 462)
Remember what we said about fear, love, and Resistance. The more you love your art/calling/enterprise, the more important its accomplishment is to the evolution of your soul, the more you will fear it and the more Resistance you will experience facing it. (Location 488)
The amateur believes he must first overcome his fear; then he can do his work. The professional knows that fear can never be overcome. He knows there is no such thing as a fearless warrior or a dread-free artist. (Location 521)
Tomorrow morning the critic will be gone, but the writer will still be there facing the blank page. Nothing matters but that he keep working. (Location 612)
Sometimes, as Joe Blow himself, I’m too mild-mannered to go out and sell. But as Joe Blow, Inc., I can pimp the hell out of myself. I’m not me anymore. I’m Me, Inc. I’m a pro. (Location 644)
BOOK THREE ___________ BEYOND RESISTANCE The Higher Realm (Location 657)
Let’s examine why. First, let’s look at what happens in a hierarchical orientation. An individual who defines himself by his place in a pecking order will: 1) Compete against all others in the order, seeking to elevate his station by advancing against those above him, while defending his place against those beneath. 2) Evaluate his happiness/success/achievement by his rank within the hierarchy, feeling most satisfied when he’s high and most miserable when he’s low. 3) Act toward others based upon their rank in the hierarchy, to the exclusion of all other factors. 4) Evaluate his every move solely by the effect it produces on others. He will act for others, dress for others, speak for others, think for others. (Location 968)
The artist must operate territorially. He must do his work for its own sake. (Location 975)
In other words, the hack writes hierarchically. He writes what he imagines will play well in the eyes of others. He does not ask himself, What do I myself want to write? What do I think is important? Instead he asks, What’s hot, what can I make a deal for? (Location 985)
The artist can’t do his work hierarchically. He has to work territorially. (Location 995)
We humans have territories too. Ours are psychological. Stevie Wonder’s territory is the piano. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s is the gym. When Bill Gates pulls into the parking lot at Microsoft, he’s on his territory. When I sit down to write, I’m on mine. (Location 999)
Here’s another test. Of any activity you do, ask yourself: If I were the last person on earth, would I still do it? (Location 1030)
Someone once asked the Spartan king Leonidas to identify the supreme warrior virtue from which all others flowed. He replied: “Contempt for death.” (Location 1039)
We must do our work for its own sake, not for fortune or attention or applause. (Location 1044)
Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor. It’s a gift to the world and every being in it. Don’t cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you’ve got. (Location 1068)