The War of Art
Ratings202
Average rating3.8
I already understood the critical importance of persistence in achieving any goal but enjoyed and benefited from the reinforcement he focuses on in part one of the three part book. I enjoyed (and saved) the profound observations Pressfield states throughout the book. This is a fast but important read no matter what your pursuit is.
This book could have been a postcard.
There's only a handful of helpful things to retain, but you have to dig through so many repetitive and weirdly moralistic and spiritual chapters of fluff. Besides that, it is filled with hyperbole and a certain type of theological determinism that I find uncomfortable and against creative freedom.
If this somehow resonates with you, all the power to you, but to me it was mostly a waste of time.
I can't remember why this book was on my to-read list. I usually find something to take away from each of these self-help books. Here I couldn't. I found it self-centered and trite.
This is a classic, short read that outlines The Resistance experienced by all artists and entrepreneurs (often called procrastination, but with much deeper analysis).
This would be an excellent gift for someone who wants to “turn pro” - the new writer especially. If you struggle to complete work that matters to you, I highly recommend reading this. It would probably pair well with Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert.
This book changed my perspective on art and the creative process. I will need to reread it, and probably often.
The book aims to help individuals overcome their creative struggles. It is certainly a book that has resonated with many people, but personally, I found it to be a mixed bag.
The book's core message is valuable and relatable, as it identifies the enemy of creativity as “Resistance” and offers practical advice on how to conquer it. Pressfield emphasizes the importance of discipline, consistency, and adopting a professional mindset, which are undeniably essential aspects of any creative pursuit.
However, the tone of the book didn't sit well with me. Pressfield's writing often came across as overly aggressive and didactic, which I found to be off-putting. Instead of feeling inspired, I sometimes felt alienated by the author's approach. I believe the message could have been delivered more effectively with a more empathetic tone.
If you can look past the author's aggressive style, there is valuable advice to be found.
I think this is exactly what people think of when they criticize self-help books - small concepts that anyone could reach with the most minimal of research, and, in some cases, outright fabrication of fact. Rather than do the research, those same individuals turn to the SparkNotes of Psychology - it's a shame this one is so highly rated.
There are nuggets of inspiration, sure, but you could probably get the same effect from reading about Stephen King's work ethic or watching an art reel on YouTube.
The basis of tying everything to human procrastination and willpower isn't a new idea, and the format that this is written in makes me think I'm reading a message board where someone suddenly thought they found out that the secret to hustling is just to work harder. No kidding.
I learnt about this book because of Rich Roll's and Lex Friedman's interviews with the author. The podcast's gave me great expectations about the book. But, sadly, page after page I was presented baseless claims about topics the author doesn't dominate at all.
The main message is “procrastination is bad”, as if that was some kind of divine revelation. But the whole book feels as “Dunning-Kruger, the extended version”
Eh... I think this book has a lot of valuable wisdom behind it, but for me, I do not find this style of writing personally effective. (Yes, I really am ‘its not you, its me'-ing to a book). The writing style was the literary equivalent of a young man in the gym hyping himself up in the mirror. It is good advice though, and if the style is one you resonate with, I imagine it could be an invaluable thing to read.
Author sets up the problem pretty well.
I felt like it could have been more concrete, some how.
Go and get stuff done.
More of a pep talk than a how-to guide. There is some great stuff in there, I liked the chapter on criticism, but overall it didn't really give me much in the way of action items or motivate me. If you feel like you could use a good kick in the pants to get you started, this would be a good book for you, especially the audiobook.
I'm utterly blown away by this book. It explains way better than I ever could the exact philosophy I wrote about drunkenly to my now wife back when I was coming to understand my alcoholism and my relationship to my higher power.
DNF. Drivel. I enjoy Pressfield's fiction writing, and am willing to give his other non fiction a chance after some distance from this one, but this one seems like he had a book deadline and hadn't written anything, so he took some Adderall and cranked this bad boy out in one night, and then never looked back. The book can be summed up with, “hey, get your shit done, because I said so.”
Un livre de moins de 200 pages, avec de courts chapitres, mais profondément inspirant. Dans la première partie, Steven Pressfield définit ce qu'il appelle la Résistance, cette force qui nous empêche de réaliser notre potentiel créatif et qui se manifeste notamment par la procastination. La deuxième partie permet à l'auteur de proposer sa solution pour lutter contre la Résistance, en adoptant une attitude de Pro dans notre travail de création. La troisième partie parle d'inspiration et d'attitude créative. Plus mystique, elle m'a moins plu, mais l'impression laissée par les deux premiers tiers du livre a été suffisante : c'est un livre inspirant et marquant, que je pense garder en tête un bout de temps.
Great book for me right now with try to start a new YouTube channel and brand. It lays out all the things that keep us from doing what we were meant to do and how to punch fear in the face and do the work. Highly recommend!
Like every other book on this topic, just get started to defeat procrastination. -1 for the religious overtones.
An excellent book to get into gear and make the most out of your goals and desires in life.
Read this in the morning to start off your day with a drive.
Steven Pressfield uses the analogy of war (I hope it's just an analogy) for the process of writing. He pits Resistance, our human ego, against us as we attempt to write our screenplay or novel. The first chapters are grim, with all the fighting and battles and struggles in our quest to simply write. He proposes we must become Professionals, standing firm against Resistance, showing up every day, ignoring the voices in our head (our ego self) that urge us to give up.
I like Elizabeth Gilbert's take on the quest to write better, I think, but Big Magic may not work for everyone and The War of Art definitely offers a more aggressive take on the writing adventure.
I've just finished this book and have lots to say, but when I tried to begin writing a review, resistance kicked in. What is resistance? Well, Steven dedicated this book to explaining what that force is, and how to conquer it.
He explains that resistance is the force which doesn't let us become our greatest selves. The good news is, that it's entirely in us. It IS us, or the part of our psyche that he calls the ego.
Every one of us experiences resistance towards our creative pursuits. This point needs to be emphasized more. EVERY one of us. Even the ones you think as geniuses. Yes, they are geniuses, but not because they were born with some extraordinary capacities or some superhuman brains. No, one of the things that they did was that they learned how to deal with resistance. If they didn't, we wouldn't have the 5th Symphony, The Great Pyramids, The Mona Lisa, etc.
It's in our capabilities to slay this dragon, which keeps us from getting that holy grail which is at the end of our journey. And as Joseph Campbell said, we are the hero of this journey, and it's our responsibility to do so.
Pressfield also differentiates the two approaches of doing your art: hierarchical and territorial. The difference is that hierarchical approach doesn't work, because it's focused on how your art affects your hierarchical level in society, whereas with the territorial approach you are solely interested in doing your craft, for its own sake, and not for the approval of any kind.
In short, this is a must-read for anyone who creates something.
The artist as mystic rehashed
A few good lines. Mostly trash. Terrible formatting. Why is everything bold and centered?
Ugh. Hated it. Waste of my time.
Un livre majeur pour comprendre et dépasser les blocages que l'on peut rencontrer quand on désire s'atteler à une tâche importante et que tout semble conspirer contre nous. Aussi salvateur face à la procrastination ainsi qu'un grand coup de pieds nous incitant à enfin nous mettre à agir et pratiquer notre “art” quelqu'il soit.
“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.”
Fun book (the audio version), even though it didn't give, at least in my mind, any real ideas of how to implement any techniques.
To me it served more of an engaging story to actually take action, rather than how to take action.