My Head in the Morning
People ask sometimes, “What time in your day do you first experience Resistance?”
My answer: “The second I open my eyes.”
Why do I go to the gym first thing in the morning? To confront that negative force and establish a pattern of positive commitment for the day. Have you ever logged onto Navy SEAL Jocko Willink’s site? Every morning he posts a photo of his wristwatch at the moment he completes his workout. It’s inevitably Zero Dark Thirty. Jocko’s been retired from active duty for years, but he has never slackened off from the self-discipline he manifested in “the Teams.”
My friend Randy Wallace (who wrote Braveheart) has a mindset he calls “Little Successes.” From the minute he wakes up, Randy sets his mind to establishing—and mentally crediting himself with—a series of positive achievements, however modest, one after another. He counts brushing his teeth. He counts taking a shower. He too works out like a maniac early in the morning.
Resistance wakes up with Randy and with Jocko, just like it does with Twyla Tharp and with you and with me. This is why we train early, this is why we build habits, this is why we school ourselves in self-discipline and reinforce ourselves with “little successes.” To steel ourselves against that dragon of Resistance that we all know we’re going to face when we sit down to do our work.
DO THE WORK
Steve shows you the predictable Resistance points that every writer hits in a work-in-progress and then shows you how to deal with each one of these sticking points. This book shows you how to keep going with your work.
THE AUTHENTIC SWING
A short book about the writing of a first novel: for Steve, The Legend of Bagger Vance. Having failed with three earlier attempts at novels, here's how Steve finally succeeded.
NOBODY WANTS TO READ YOUR SH*T
Steve shares his "lessons learned" from the trenches of the five different writing careers—advertising, screenwriting, fiction, nonfiction, and self-help. This is tradecraft. An MFA in Writing in 197 pages.
TURNING PRO
Amateurs have amateur habits. Pros have pro habits. When we turn pro, we give up the comfortable life but we find our power. Steve answers the question, "How do we overcome Resistance?"
I read Arnold’s “Education of a Bodybuilder” in high school. In it he writes about the value of working out first thing in the morning, how doing so gives you little hits throughout the day of “I already did that!” The habit became so embedded in me that though I’ve been forced at times to work out on my lunch hour or after work, it always feels second best. Thank you, Mr. P!
Brilliant post! So very helpful! Thank you!
A book, by Admiral William H. McRaven, begins with the chapter Make Your Bed (title) and ends with the chapter, Never, Ever Quit! A huge thanks to those who share their knowledge in the fight against resistance. Much appreciated Mr. Pressfield.
I remember reading a post about that book. Making my bed everyday has stuck with me ever since. It just feels better!
I bought the e-book Tyler Thorpe’s last week after your log post as a dancer, I was thrilled to read her book, but even more than that she is an encouragement to all of us. Thank you for guiding me to her.
I should stop voice texting. That’s Twila. And blog, not log. Just another day …
I have Jocko’s book — it’s helpful to get over the I-don’t-wanna-work-out-today resistance. Hadn’t thought to use it on this writing project I’m stalled on. Hmmm.
Thank you so much dear Steve.
Ah, this time it feels good to me to read about this self-discipline. These disciplines which actually are the only hope in the sensible cosmos to bring through your creations changes in the world and positive results in your fleeting life.
The reason today they sound good for me (while other Wednesdays they don’t) is perhaps -as far as I feel it- because I have a ballanced enough mood today. The rainy weather outside my window feels like a positive light, the small challenges of the morning I faced them like an unable-to-break-rock, and I had a good night’s sleep. Or it may be because I’m developing my perception quite heavily, and it may be starting to get a bit more clear, more mature.
See how subjective our heart is! To feel something as good one week, bad and discardaple the next. It happens all the time. I’m not its victim though, even if it seems so, and even if the book is not yet completed, which is indeed obviously a failure in the sensible eyes. I am not, because I ellude and I search through it.
It’s like the man in a myth devoured by the beast alive, but there in the beast’s belly he has still the chance to defeat it. It’s like Luke in that dungeon where Jabba the Hutt threw him under his pallace to be eaten by that beast: there is no escape for him too, but still he is Active, that’s why he manages to continue. The fact afterwards that he becomes a Jedi, even that doesn’t mean that ah, now he’s a winner without obstacles and distractions. And the fact that in the new Star Wars movies he was depicted as an annoying old man, I believe that George made him so, parallelizing him in secret with his own life’s course -like he did back then, only parallelizing him with his dreams back then, not this life: hidden inside a protected mansion, a man that is actually a man and not a super hero. With RAM also like us (see below). This time maybe he symbolized the truth rather than the vision.
Even now – a few minutes after I read your post and after I wrote the sentences above -, I had already forgotten your main point! There’s another obstacle. After a while after making a decision, flow keeps you on that, but you may soon forget what is the cause of what you’re doing. You become an automatum. Wow, the cosmos’ system within which we work may be full of traps greater than we can ever imagine. We are a RAM of a few minutes, and this RAM must build alone complex towers and achievements.
So back to my case. Through you mentioning it I met also the philosophy of Julia Cameron as I’ve written. In the belly of the beast, this is the next step for my personal situation. Remember when I talked about the ants and the elephants? What I would write in the beginning in my book was an elephant in terms of energy, but the last years it looked like an ant. And I should find the elephants again. Well, maybe the elephants are actually right behind me. I just need to find the flow to be able to turn. I’m finding it. But I guess even then it would be foolish to not add the hyper shit-detector afterwards. These spirals I go through, they may have wisdom inside. Great wisdom. Acres of diamonds.
Making a long story short, yes, disciplines. I just must clear the noice (wrote voice) “first”. That noice that keeps me being like an indifferent animal in my emotional control, wandering distracted, rather that the hero of my great dream.
I remember a podcast conversation between novelist/short story writer Thomas McGuane and MeatEater’s Steve Rinella. Tom told a story about a rancher neighbor in Montana. The guy would get up at 0430 and turn on his kitchen lights so his neighbors would think he was up and working. Then he’d go back to bed until 0830.
I’m guessing that rancher neighbor was NOT named Jocko Willink.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DPEGYCBFCA2/
Needed this reminder. Thank you Steven! 6 am here and i’m off to the gym!!!
The most important thing I do early in the morning is have breakfast with my wife. We do so almost every day. Our relationship can get a bit rocky, but we renew our relationship by time with one another. We talk, listen, check calendars, and pray.
After that, I can walk for exercise and begin to write.
Wow! All these 1st -thing -in-the-morning to-do’s! Deep into retirement, I let my body wake me up when it needs to clear itself for the need for basic rest. On Wednesday mornings I check the Pressfield Post before returning to make my bed. I’m out of breath reading everybody else’s first-thing procedure, I haven’t even brushed my teeth yet..
I’ll repost this comment. The original is “awaiting moderation,” I’m guessing because it includes a hyperlink (to one of Jocko’s Instagram posts showing “0430 am” on a watch attached to a sweaty and hairy wrist). So until the original gets let out of URL jail…
I remember a podcast conversation between novelist/short story writer Thomas McGuane and MeatEater’s Steven Rinella. Tom told a story about a rancher neighbor in Montana. The rancher would get up at 0430 and turn on his kitchen lights so his neighbors would think he was up and working. Then he’d go back to bed until 0830.
I’m guessing that rancher neighbor was NOT named Jocko Willink.
👏👏👏👏👏Faço isso desde sempre sem perceber. Sinto-me muito positivo com o seu comentário. Obrigado Steve
Thank you for this sound advice. I so look forward to Writing Wednesdays! Let’s battle Resistance!!!!!!
Thank you for posting Writing Wednesdays, Steven! They are an inspiration. As a musician, I’ve referenced Turning Pro and The War of Art many times to effectively fight the battles against the negative forces.
A few days ago, I was walking around small town Virginia with a freshly brewed coffee. I popped into a warm bookshop and found, The Legend of Bagger Vance. I bought it and gifted it to my parents. They just built a home next to Hole 7 of a golf course in South Carolina. They were thrilled and we talked about your Writings Wednesdays. This sparked a deeper conversation about confronting daily resistance and pursuing creative endeavors. It was wonderful to see your creative works intertwine so effortlessly. Cheers.
I love these and love sharing your notes and your thoughts. As well as reading them for myself. God bless you
Always so useful and inspiring! Thanks Steven!