Overcoming Resistance
I recently read a book called The War Of Art by author Steven Pressfield. It was an enjoyable read and I found it to be full of practical advice and tongue in cheek humor. The structure is comprised of 1-2 page, bite sized and easily digestible thoughts on how to be productive as an artist. Or productive in general. One of the foundational concepts discussed in the book is what Pressfield calls resistance. This is the tendency to avoid starting projects. Procrastination. A person obviously won’t be successful if they can’t complete projects, let alone start them. So the book also discusses how to identify and overcome resistance and avoid procrastination.
Reading Pressfield’s thought on resistance reminded me of some simple methods I’ve come up with for myself to start projects, complete projects, and accomplish more. I’d like to share my approaches in the hopes that they might be of use to somebody else.
Identifying Resistance
The first step in overcoming resistance is developing an awareness of what it is. For starters, here is a short paragraph Pressfield wrote about the subject:
“Resistance cannot be seen, touched, heard, or smelled. But it can be felt. We experience it as an energy field radiating from a work-in-potential. It’s a repelling force. It’s negative. Its aim is to shove us away, to distract us, prevent us from doing our work.”
Do you ever plan to do something but find yourself having to battle against this invisible force to get going?
In my own life, it’s the feeling of overwhelm when starting something difficult. It’s the fear of failure. It’s making excuses, and deciding that the day was too exhausting so watching youtube videos for the evening would be more relaxing than working on a project. It might be toggling over to the next tab in my browser to check my email when I should be writing instead (which just happened).
It’s looking at the entire mountain that has to be climbed before taking the first step. And letting it seem too big to even try. It’s cheap dopamine hits that distract us. And the world is more full of them than ever before. It’s mindlessly surfing Instagram before realizing thirty minutes went up in smoke.
It might even be a tendency to be overzealous and unfocused when it comes to our goals. I’ve been guilty of wanting to accomplish too many things simultaneously and then not doing any of them because I wasn’t realistic and didn’t prioritize.
The Results Of Resistance
Some results of resistance are mental. For me, resistance almost always leads to guilt. And disappointment. I knew I had the chance to get one step closer to my personal goals which take effort. But somehow I didn’t get around to it. Then I might feel a touch depressed. Or even angry at myself. And the feeling that precious time slipped away drives me crazy.
And then there is the more objective result of nothing getting done. Where there was once no article written, there’s still no article or accomplishment of any sort.
The only positive result of resistance for me is that it makes me think of methods for avoiding it going forward. And that gives me something to write about. So with that here are some of my methods and mental tricks.
Just Start, Who Cares If It’s Crap
One insidious form of resistance can manifest as self doubt. Questioning whether or not we’re any good at something. I never thought much about being a writer. But the urge to share knowledge was too great.
I often have ideas but question my writing skills. It’s never been a real strength for me. But I know that if I keep doing it I’ll get better. So I just have to start.
And in order to start, I sometimes have to give myself permission to be a terrible writer. Which I most certainly am a lot of the time. I tell myself “just start, who cares if it’s crap.” And then I at least get some momentum. I start. Lots of times I do end up with crap, but sometimes I also end up with something half usable. And a lot of the time a steamy pile of crappy writing has some salvagable parts that I can save and reorganize. These serve as a starting point to continue the crap next time.
This mental trick is a go-to for me when I need to overcome resistance. It at least gets me over the hurdle and gets me working so that if nothing else I’m practicing a skill I want to develop.
Just Commit To 15 Minutes
Sometimes I want to write, but it means sitting down at the computer on a sunny day. And I already spent the whole week at the computer. It doesn’t have much appeal but it’s a necessary evil.
So I tell myself I’m just going to write for fifteen minutes and then I can be done. Maybe I’ll just lay out the structure for a new article I’m thinking about and be done. Or I’ll write garbage for fifteen minutes and then never use it.
Or I might start writing and find it feels good. Ideas are flowing. Words come easily. I feel confident and it ends up being fun. I feel like I’m accomplishing something.
And so I end up writing for a couple of hours and knocking out an entire article.
Either way, I overcame resistance. And I also started building a habit. Which leads me to…
Build Habits
I’ve been lifting weights for thirty years. And I’ve never stopped. Some people can’t stand the thought of the gym. But I can’t stand the thought of not lifting weights. All it really boils down to is that I’ve made it a habit. Perhaps there is a downsides to an exercise habit. But the pros generally outweigh the cons. And anyone who has built an exercise habit knows that there comes a point where it’s easier to go to the gym than avoid it.
So build habits bit by bit. Create tricks to do something consistently for a few months and one is well on the way to creating a new habit and greater productivity.
Pick A Lane
As previously mentioned, I have a tendency to bite off more then I can chew. I hate the constraints of space, time, and energy. I want to pursue every opportunity and idea. But the reality is that I’m always more productive when I narrow my pursuits to a couple of key items and go all in.
An analogy from lifting and fitness is that I see trainers in the gym having people do new, random exercises every time they come into the gym. But their clients don’t seem to get great results from what I can see. On the other hand I’ve always made my greatest progress when I choose a training program and stick to it without deviation for at least six months or more. It isn’t always novel and fun. And it can get repetitive. But it works.
So pick a lane and stay in it until results become evident.
Bite Sized Chunks
Just like climbing a mountain seems more daunting when thinking about the entire climb all at once, completing a project can feel like a giant mountain when we think about the whole process as one giant task.
But a project can be broken down into its components, and each individual component feels a little easier to take care of. Here are some examples.
Example 1
I recently had to replace a solenoid in my sprinkler system. The part that turns the water on and off for a particular zone of the lawn. I did it once years ago so I knew it was going to be a bit of a project. And every time I thought about dedicating a chunk of my Saturday to knocking it out I felt resistance creep up.
Then I thought about it in terms of steps. First, I could just identify which solenoid is broken and remind myself how the wiring works. No commitment beyond that. I realized a big part of my resistance was simply figuring out how to do it again so I’d just take care of that one step.
Then on a separate day I’d collect the parts and lay out the tools.
Then on a third day I’d actually perform the work.
What ended up happening is that I identified the broken solenoid and wiring scheme in about five minutes and suddenly realized the repair was going to be easier than I remembered. By virtue of simply tricking myself into starting the process I developed momentum.
So I went straight to the hardware store to pick up the parts I needed. Then came home, grabbed my wire cutters and strippers, and replaced the solenoid in under a half hour. I just had to start! And this method helped me trick myself into it.
Example 2
I also decided recently that I want to improve my slide guitar playing in open E tuning.
So I broke the process down into parts.
First I’d relearn how to tune my guitar to open E.
Then I’d write out the scale patterns along the fretboard in that tuning.
Then I’d memorize the scale patterns without the slide.
And finally I’d pick up the slide and start working on phrasing, etc.
It worked great, and I also use the fifteen minute commitment to keep my practice regular. Just picking up the guitar for a little while every day ends up resulting in progress.
And for a bonus tip, I realized I’d play more often if I made it as easy as possible for myself. I re-positioned my amp in a convenient spot in my living room and put my guitar in its stand right in front of the amp so I don’t have to go to the other room, get it out if its case, put the strap on, etc.
These things sound trivial, but it’s amazing how much they help avoid resistance and procrastination. By eliminating every little excuse I play more often.
Trick Yourself Into Being More Productive
I hope these ideas help somebody break through resistance and avoid procrastination. Sometimes we just have to use mental games to trick ourselves. Go forth and conquer!