The War Of Art Summary

1-Sentence-Summary: The War Of Art brings some much needed tough love to all artists, business people and creatives who spend more time battling the resistance against work than actually working, by identifying the procrastinating forces at play and pulling out the rug from under their feet.

Read in: 4 minutes

Favorite quote from the author:

Steven Pressfield is gold. After graduating from university in 1965 the variety of jobs he held seems to know no end, ranging from advertising copywriter to schoolteacher, tractor-trailer driver, bartender, oilfield roustabout, attendant in a mental hospital, fruit-picker in Washington state, all the way to screenwriter.

Just like Robert Greene, he wasn’t afraid to do the work he needed to, in order to keep working on his dream – becoming a writer.

Do The Work, his follow-up to The War Of Art, was one of the first books on Four Minute Books, so it’s only fair the original book about Resistance joins the ranks.

Here are the 3 biggest lessons you can learn:

1. You’re not alone, everyone struggles with Resistance.
2. You have to treat your dream like a full-time job.
3. Commit to a territory and you might change the world.

Ready to turn pro at your dream? Here we go!

Lesson 1: You’re not alone, everyone struggles with Resistance.

Have you ever had that feeling that you are here to do something great? Maybe you feel you owe the world a great book, a new approach to fitness, or even a blockbuster movie.

If so, today’s a different day than most days for you. Because instead of waking up, thinking about it for a second, and then shrugging it off, you’re actually going to deal with it.

The force that makes you swallow your urge to pursue your dream is called Resistance (the capital R is important), and everyone in the world struggles with it – you’re not the only one.

It’s this negative, opposing, ghastly little voice that tells you to stay at your job and not risk failure, that you’re not good enough to paint something great and that you can always start working out tomorrow.

Resistance manifests itself in the form of fear of failure, procrastination and self-doubt and, worst of all, is universal. It doesn’t exclusively speak to you, it targets everybody.

Will Smith was afraid to meet with Quincy Jones before becoming the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, John Lee Dumas was afraid to launch Entrepreneur On Fire, and Henry Fonda threw up before every single performance even long after he was successful.

Everyone struggles with Resistance. Don’t let that be your excuse.

Lesson 2: You have to treat your dream like a full-time job.

So what do you do to combat Resistance? What any professional would do: you work.

Stop treating your dream like it’s a hobby, it’s your dream for crying out loud! If your dream is really this thing that you want to be with all your heart, that you want to center your life around, then how come you treat it like a second cousins once removed’s BBQ party?

Don’t just tinker around for a few hours here and there, go all in, all chips into the pot. When you treat your dream like your regular, full-time job, you can transfer a lot of the skills you apply to the latter to the former, even if they’re not related at all.

Do you show up to your job on time? I bet you do. Do you keep working when shit hits the fan? I bet you do. Do the same for your dream. All pro’s know this:

I write only when inspiration strikes. Fortunately it strikes every morning at nine o’clock sharp. – W. Somerset Maugham

Schedule time to work on it, every single day, and then just show up.

Lesson 3: When you commit to a territory, you can change the world.

Each of us has a different calling. Some of us are app developers, some want to direct movies, others write books or knit tea cozies. That means we all pick different territories to leave our mark in. You find your territory based on 3 things:

1. It makes you feel better every time you go there. You can bet that Stephen Hawking felt better every time he came out of his office, and that Arnie was pretty satisfied after each gym session. Your territory is a place where you feel you grow, where you’re challenged and satisfied at the same time.
2. You can only become king of the hill through hard work. The only respect a professor gains is through the recognition of his work. Arnie made the gym his own by working out there every day of the week.
3. It’s endless. The only limit to how much Hawking can get in recognition is the number of meaningful insights and theories he can produce – in theory, it’s endless. You get back however much you put in.

Not only will owning your territory benefit you and your work, you just might change the entire world. Steve Jobs revolutionized the way we see and use computers, by committing to this territory and spearheading new developments and ideas in this field.

The War Of Art Review

Steven Pressfield feels like the kind of guy you could bump into on the street and strike up a great conversation with from the get-go. He’s seen a lot and done the work (still doing it) – it feels refreshing to learn from someone so real. His approach is stoic, even Spartan, some might say, but he never forgets having fun – and it shines through in his work.

Whether you believe Cal Newport, who says to just pick a profession and let passion follow, or others like Steven, who put passion first, it doesn’t matter. The message remains the same: Be a professional. Don’t wait for motivation, the perfect moment, or other peoples’ approval, just sit down and work – that’s still the best productivity hack there is.

The summary on Blinkist is a great read as is, but Steven’s anecdotes and stories are priceless. The book isn’t long either, I read it in one park bench sitting on a beautiful summer afternoon. The War Of Art is an absolute must read for all self starters.

Who would I recommend The War Of Art summary to?

The 37 year old hobby wine collector, who’s worried he might be the only one who fears turning his passion into a business, the 63 year old, who could use a challenge to prove herself she’s still got it, and anyone who hasn’t committed to a territory yet.

Last Updated on July 27, 2022