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 enlarge | Author: Steven Pressfield
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $12.95
Buy New: $6.93
You Save: $6.02 (46%)
New (40) Used (19) from $6.84
Avg. Customer Rating:  130 reviews
Sales Rank: 3696
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 192
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5 x 0.6
ISBN: 0446691437
Dewey Decimal Number: 153.35
EAN: 9780446691437
ASIN: 0446691437
Publication Date: April 1, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new and in stock. Your satisfaction is our top priority. Thank you for your business.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Great book but is it helpful? June 24, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
First I want to say that I love this book. Second, I need to say that there might be better ways to attack procrastination.
The first time I read this, everything in it spoke to my problem of procrastinating from writing. The voice in the book is no-nonsense and raises the stakes of completing your work. He speaks of resistance as an enemy that must be conquered at all costs. He describes how to think of yourself as a professional to put yourself at some remove from your work. He also throws together a mythology of creativeness that is almost Jungian (or from Blake). The voice is that of a hard boiled detective. Really I'm not doing justice to how wonderful these short essays are to read.
However, after reading this book, I worked hard for a short while and again stopped. I can't blame the book for this.
I would argue that this book tries to encourage one to work by raising the stakes. And let me tell you, this book is very inspirational. It will get you working. It will instill in you the idea that your work is important. As the title says, you must attack resistance.
I have personally found that raising the stakes works only in the short term. As much as I love this book, it does nothing to lower my anxiety. Even though Pressfield makes clear that one has to be a professional and not wrap up ones self worth in their work, the overall message is the more resistance you feel, the more you must do this. And it is very very important you do this ("this" being anything you want to do but feel resistance toward doing).
Another way of overcoming procrastination is to lower the stakes. Instead of thinking "I must do this", one can think "I choose to do this" or one can still survive and thrive even if your chosen mission goes uncompleted. If you increase your self esteem in other areas of your life, rather than focusing on that role of "creator", it frees you up to be pulled toward the job - rather than being pushed by the feeling that you "have to" do something. A sense of security is the best motivator for doing creative work.
The War of Art may work for you. I fully recommend buying it. Yet if it doesn't work, you should look at other books on procrastination. What worked for me (and I have no interest in selling any particular book) is the book The Now Habit.
 Excellect piece of work June 24, 2008
I have read this book through and through. It is now being passed around by my co-workers as a must read for them.
Motivational June 9, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Not only will this book help you make the next move in your life, it will help with the down times as well. Very motivational.
A great meditation on the battle for change. June 3, 2008
Of all places, this book was recommended by a screenwriter after we had come off the ice having played a game of hockey.
Looking back, I can think of no better poetic allusion to Pressfield's wonderfully thoughtful and amusing book than two men, dressed in armor, discussing the philosophy of creative obstacles.
This book, while being filed in the 'self-help' genre, is less a 'How To...' manuscript than one of changing perception.
It is candid, fervent in intelligence, and so personal that I constantly felt the author was writing directly to me. (A notion observed in many other readers as well).
Pressfield has real world accomplishments and real world obstacles. The obstacles take the form of 'Resistance' and every day is a relationship at play with retreating from them or overcoming. All misery emerges from the rift of who we are and who we want to be.
I always have this book at arms length, quote it often and have written my own projects with it's guidance.
A quick read.
Unlock your true potential May 26, 2008
36 out of 36 found this review helpful
I had a good time reading the pages of this book and found myself laughing out loud, and enjoying how Steven Pressfield shares how to break through the blocks and win our inner creative battles. He explains in great detail how resistance works in life and can sabotage us from pursuing our dreams (big and small). He explains where procrastination comes from and the many faces it can take on so one can tackle it and stop it from ruling our lives.
While reading, I thought that a great follow up to this book is Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: A Book About Instantaneous Transformation by Ariel and Shya Kane because their book presents 3 principles of Transformation that have supported me in shifting that very resistance Steven describes. After reading the Kane's books, (the other two are How To Create a Magical Relationship and Being Here: Modern Day Tales of Enlightenment), all aspects of my life have transformed and the pursuing of my dreams happens effortlessly and organically.
I strongly recommend these books to anyone who wants to unlock their true potential and live the life of their dreams.
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