PDF Summary:The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield

Do you feel a calling inside to create or inspire the world? Do you struggle to follow that calling because of doubt, fear, or lack of motivation? The War of Art spells out the reason you struggle to reach your dreams and provides strategies to help you overcome the obstacles. Each creative person experiences resistance in the form of fear when they approach their true work. When you understand where that fear comes from, how it manifests in your life, and how a commitment to your work can give you the strength to push forward, you will be successful in living your dreams.

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To reach this creative space, you must be a professional in your work, not an amateur. When you’re an amateur, you dabble in your art whenever inspiration strikes or you’re in the right mood. You’re not committed to your art, and your goals center around fun, money, and status. Resistance loves an amateur because you are easily distracted from the work.

When you’re a professional, you create art because your soul demands it. Your art is a full-time commitment, even if you aren’t getting paid. You sit down to face your art daily because it is part of who you are. You shape your life to include the work as a priority. Resistance hates the professional because you are less likely to cower to fear.

The great thing about being a professional is the access you have to your muse. Each time you sit down and face your art, you open the portal to your artistic space, where the muse resides. Within this universe, your muse conspires to bring you inspiration because you are committed to your art.

How to Become a Professional

You become a professional the moment you decide to commit to your art. But what does being a professional look like? The answer lies in how you approach your day job, or “money-making work.”

• You show up daily and work hard.
• You take criticism from your boss with a grain of salt.
• You are detached from the work because it doesn’t define you.
• You keep working because your livelihood demands it.

Approach your creative work with the same attitudes, and you will be prepared for resistance when it shows up.

Why? Because the only way to defeat resistance is by working. You can’t be precious about the work. You must show up to greet your muse every day. You must learn about your craft so you have the skills needed to use the inspiration the muse provides. You must put the work into the world and be open to criticism. You must detach from the work personally so you can complete it authentically.

A professional understands that fear is part of the work and failure part of the road to success. You know that you must love being miserable because each time you sit down to do your work, you will have to overcome resistance. It is not easy to remain motivated in the face of this formidable foe, but you must if you want the life you were meant to have.

Working like a professional gives you the power to work through fear. Resistance, like any bully, doesn’t know what to do when its target stands up for herself and no longer fears them. When you do the work, you stand up to fear, and resistance slips away. You’ve won the battle for the day, and you are prepared to keep winning in the days to come.

Consciousness and Art

You have a muse waiting in your creative space to give you the inspiration you need to do your work. Some call the muse talent, and others think of it as an angel sent from the gods. However you look at it, the fact remains that when you tap into your creative space, you open your consciousness up to mysterious forces that conspire to serve your work.

When you acknowledge the muse in your artistic life, you counteract feelings of ego that hinder the authenticity of your work. The muse knows things that you don’t. It sees your potential and wants to give you what you need to reach it. The muse rewards the commitment of the professional. Therefore, the only way to summon the muse is simply starting to work.

The muse is just one mysterious force working in your favor. The other comes from you and exists in higher planes of existence, called the Self. When you harness the energy of the muse and power of the Self, you will shove resistance to the side.

Your Self vs. Your Ego

Your Ego is the embodiment of the personal “I,” or the surface mind. The ego operates in the real world. The Self is the larger conscious entity that comprises the individual and collective unconscious minds. Your dreams, intuition, and visions live within the realm of the Self.

The Ego is where resistance lives, and the Self is where the spirits live, including yours and that of your muse. Both the Self and Ego are powerful and battle for position in your mind.

When you are led by your Ego, your main priority is to maintain the status of “I” in the world. The Ego believes that life is finite, so you live in a constant state of fear of losing it. The Ego lives on the surface and manages your day-to-day activities. This aspect of the Ego is valuable in continuing life, but it does nothing for continuing art.

The Self believes in life beyond death. It wanders in a realm where everything is connected through love, and space and time are artificial constructs. Your psychic power lies in the sphere of the Self, and anytime you try to alter your consciousness, you seek to access this higher sphere. The Self does not lie and cannot disguise itself as something it’s not. The Self encompasses the deepest form of who you are.

Your Artist Self

When you sit down to create, you are attempting to access the plane of the Self. You gravitate toward art because you want to grow, evolve, learn, and tap into internal truths. You seek a spiritual awakening to become more enlightened.

The more enlightened you become, the less you rely on Ego. The you that exists within the Self is more powerful than the physical you, so resistance tries to block the path to your awakening. The Ego would rather you didn’t become your authentic self. But your authentic self is the only person you can be if you want to be happy.

Claiming Your Artistic Identity

Identity is important to all of us. We have an inherent need to know where we fit in within society. You define yourself based on your connections, which inform how you act. There are two main forms of connection in society: those based on hierarchy and those based on territory.

Hierarchy vs. Territory

Hierarchy defines you based on your position along a certain social ladder. Territory connects you to certain environments or activities. To reach your creative potential, you must seek your identity from territory, not hierarchy.

Hierarchy is death for the artist. It narrows your scope regarding the work. You strive to find your place within your field, so you measure yourself against those achieving success. You try to shape yourself according to the rank you wish to become. When you look to the outside world to define your worth, you will never be content.

When you look outward instead of inward for validation, you stop doing the work for the sake of the work. You write, paint, or develop your ideas based on what you believe people want to see and will accept. You force yourself to travel down an unauthentic path, and you and the work suffer.

The territory of your art is the creative space inside you. You connect with your muse and higher mind in your territory. Some examples of territories include the canvas for a painter, the stage for a performer, or the blank page for a writer. The only way to claim your territory is by doing the work.

When you work within your territory, you invite their mysterious forces in and promise to serve as a patient servant. You do the work for the sake of the work, and you will be rewarded with insight and guidance from your higher planes of consciousness.

If you’re not sure which place you work from, ask the following questions:

If you’re suffering psychologically, what do you do to make yourself feel better?

• If you call a bunch of friends to receive reassurance, you’re more hierarchical.
• If you turn to the work for solace, you are territorial.

If you were the last person on Earth, would you still create your art?

• If your creations lose meaning because there’s no one to validate your work, you’re hierarchical.
• If you gain sustenance from the act of doing the work without accolades, you are territorial.

A major advantage of the territorial foundation is that it banishes fear. When you work because it is part of who you are and commit to the work, you can never fail. Claim your territory through work, and intruders have no choice but to move on to unclaimed land.

Living Your Creative Life

The only thing that will stop you from achieving your calling is yourself. If you let resistance stop you from doing the work, you will never reach your potential. You will suffer because you know you are meant for more, and the world will suffer because you have not provided the gift you were chosen to give. You can’t predict the outcome of your work, but you can ensure nothing happens if you don’t try. Trust the process, trust the muse, and trust yourself to work like a professional, and you will never fail. Every day you choose to follow your true path in life you win.