How to Win Resistance: Begin Now, Begin Little
“Resistance is the most toxic force on the planet. It is the root of more unhappiness than poverty, disease, and erectile dysfunction. To yield to Resistance deforms our spirit. It stunts us and makes us less than we are and were born to be.” ― Steven Pressfield, The War of Art
To win resistance, begin now, even if it means beginning little; even when your mind seems blank like mine before I typed the first word here. Just begin.
Like I did, begin with typing a word. And if yours doesn’t require typing, start whatever good thing you can start — though little, though not special, though insignificant — just start and move on with the little starts that follow.
“Are you paralyzed with fear? That’s a good sign. Fear is good. Like self-doubt, fear is an indicator. Fear tells us what we have to do. Remember one rule of thumb: the more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.” ― Steven Pressfield
Your current mood — the feeling to quit, the not wanting to do anything, the fear of failing, the seduction to settle for the easy life — shows there’s a potential in you, something so great that resistance is fighting, just so that you give up.
In The War of Art, Steven Pressfield explains it,
“The more important a call or action is to our soul’s evolution, the more Resistance we will feel toward pursuing it.”
Yes, your fear is afraid of what you’re capable of doing, so it fights to keep you back from doing what you’re capable of. Your fear is afraid of you.
Now, refuse to let that fear, or not feeling like doing anything, keep you back from what you must begin right now, even if doing it right now means beginning little, beginning with baby steps, beginning with insignificance.
You don’t feel like it, but begin. Drop the phone. Close that app. Turn off the TV. Read just one sentence or paragraph or page of a helpful book. Pick that dirty clothing (just one piece of clothing) — go wash it. Maybe start writing a sentence. And if writing a sentence appears overwhelming, try writing out a word. Just begin, and begin now.
I promise that if you begin now and keep beginning now — doing what the next now following your current now demands you do, little by little — you will be winning resistance. And your winning is becoming a routine and a way of life. It’s becoming a model, inspiring others to begin—and win too.
Begin.
