Do Hard Shit: A Guide to Beating Resistance

When I first read Steven Pressfield's "The War of Art," I was just another plebeian, another ordinary person drowning in excuses and procrastination. His insights about resistance hit me like a bucket of cold water. This is my story of transformation, from someone who let resistance win to someone who learned to fight back.

"I'll do it tomorrow," I said, as tomorrow turned into next week, then next month, then next year. Until one day, I realized tomorrow was stealing my life.

We all start here. Regular people, living regular lives, telling ourselves regular excuses. Every morning, resistance sits at the foot of your bed, ready with a list of really excellent reasons why today isn't the day. It's raining. Mercury is in retrograde. You didn't sleep well. Your horoscope said to take it easy. The alignment of your chakras feels a bit off.

But here's what Pressfield taught me: resistance is allergic to action. The moment you start moving - really moving - it begins to lose its power. This was my first lesson in becoming a warrior.

Doing Hard Shit The most profound spiritual principle I've discovered isn't found in ancient texts. It's simpler and harder than that: Do hard shit. Every day. Especially when you don't want to.

This isn't about torture or punishment, it’s about turning pro. Warriors aren't born - they're forged in the fire of doing hard things consistently.

The Plebeian's Excuses (We All Have Them)

"You need more preparation"
"You should wait for inspiration"
"You need to organize your desk first"
"You should research more before starting"
"You're not as ready as [insert name] was when they started"

Pressfield teaches that true warriors aren't fearless. They're intimate with their fear. They know it's patterns, its favorite excuses, its sneaky ways of derailing dreams. But they show up anyway. This was my turning point - when I realized being a warrior wasn't about being fearless, but about being faithful to the work.

Here's what I learned about beating resistance, taking Pressfield's wisdom from theory to practice:

Start before you're ready (plebeians wait for readiness; warriors create it)
Start small, but start now (plebeians plan; warriors act)
Embrace the suck (plebeians avoid discomfort; warriors lean into it)
Keep showing up, especially on the days when it feels pointless
Don't wait for motivation - action comes first

There's something almost holy about doing the hard thing, the scary thing, the thing that resistance screams at you to avoid. Each time you push through resistance, you're less of a plebeian and more of a warrior. As Pressfield would say, you're turning pro!

Resistance never goes away - Pressfield was right about that. It just gets more sophisticated. As you grow stronger, it grows smarter. But here's the beautiful thing: you get stronger faster than it gets smarter.

The secret isn't motivation! Motivation is for plebeians. It comes and goes like an unreliable friend. The secret, as Pressfield teaches, is showing up like a professional. It's deciding ahead of time that you're going to do the work, regardless of how you feel.

This is where the transformation happens. When you keep showing up, especially when you don't want to, you build something more valuable than motivation: you build a warrior's momentum.

To every plebeian facing their own battle with resistance: I see you. I was you(and still am sometimes).

Remember: Do hard shit. Not sometimes. Not when you feel like it. Every damn day. Because that's how plebeians become warriors. That's how you become who you're meant to be.

Now go do that thing you've been avoiding. Yes, right now!!