Resistance is this negative force of self-sabotage that will work against us anytime we try to move from a lower level to a higher level.

Ethically, Marley, creatively, if you have an idea for a book, if you have an idea for a podcast, if you have an idea for this studio or something that you want to do, a voice will come into your head immediately that will say, who are you?

You could put this thing together. This has been done a million times and it's been done better than you ever could do or ever would do your two-old, your two-young, your two-fat, your two-skini, you don't have enough education, you have too much education, etc., etc.

And that negative force is universal. I can tell you from 1000s' emails I've got, and not only is it universal, but it's the same voice in all of our heads.

It can be tailored a little bit to you or to me, but it's the same voice. And when we hear this voice in our head that says, you're not good enough, it's all been done, etc., etc.

What makes that so powerful against us is we think it's our own thoughts. We think, oh, that's me assessing the situation objectively, but it's not.

It's this other siren voice, this force that's just out there that's a fact of nature. And once we can say, oh, that's not me, that kind of is the key to the whole thing.

I'm Stephen Pressfield and this is the Rich Roll Podcast.

The Rich Roll Podcast. Hey, everybody, how you guys doing? Welcome to the podcast. Good to be with you.

To share this digital, liminal space that is somehow real, but if you think about it, doesn't actually exist in three dimensions, but hey, man, we are here.

And this is exciting for me because Stephen Pressfield is a bit of a personal hero of mine. And a guy who without knowing it has had a profound impact on my life, my career, and how I think about and pursue creative work.

For those unfamiliar, Stephen is a writer with something like 20 books to his name. You might be familiar with his first novel, the Legend of Bag of Dance, which landed on the big screen with Matt Damon, or maybe you read Gates of Fire, which is on the curriculum at West Point and Annapolis.

Stephen is also a screenwriter, a former screenwriter, I should say, and of most importance to me, Stephen is the author of inarguably some of the most important books I've ever read on pursuing a creative life.

Landmark books that I recommend and talk about all the time on the podcast like The War of Art, a book I've read and reread, at least a dozen times, do the work and turning pro, which together are all about overcoming resistance to self expression and bringing a disciplined approach to birth the work you were born to create.

This is an absolute masterclass on all things creativity served up with a healthy dose of perseverance, persistence, patience, and the heavy lifting required to eliminate distractions, lay resistance, and make manifest the dormant, authentic voice within.

But before we get dirty. Okay, so one of the many things about this guy, Stephen Pressfield, is that he wrote for 27 years before his first book was published, holding something like 21 jobs along the way.

It took him 17 years before he even got his first paycheck for writing, so this is a guy who knows a thing or two about grit, perseverance, playing the long game, the process required to give birth to a dream, the war that we all wage with ourselves that he calls resistance.

And the thing is creativity isn't about talent, it's not about being touched, it's about discipline, it's about showing up, it's about respect for the mystical, courting the muse, connecting with something beyond our conscious awareness, something that doesn't show up without putting in the work, and then respecting that grind as something sacred.

Anyway, Stephen's got a new book out, it's a historical novel about the Roman Empire, a reluctant hero, the rise of a new faith set in 1st century Jerusalem, it's called a man at arms, it's quite the book sweeping cinematic and quite immersive.

So today we break it all down from finding your voice to falling in love with the process, the pernicious nature of resistance and how to overcome it, and the common ground shared between warrior and artist.

I hold this man and his work in the highest regard, I can't think of enough for the gift that he has given me personally, and I'm super honored to have him on the show and share this conversation with you guys today.

Final note, unfortunately, there was some construction going on next door during the podcast, apologies for that, there was nothing we could do about it, but hopefully it's not too distracting.

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