When Resistance Wears a Thousand Faces
A reflection from our War of Art book club
In our last book club gathering, we closed The War of Art—a small book with a sharp edge. Steven Pressfield doesn’t coddle. He names resistance for what it is: that internal force that rises the very moment we step toward meaningful work.
But what struck me most in our conversation wasn’t just how resistance shows up—it was how loud it feels right now.
Resistance Isn’t Laziness. It’s Weight.
Pressfield talks about resistance as procrastination, distraction, perfectionism. And yes—all of that is true. But lately? Many of us aren’t procrastinating because we’re careless. We’re carrying too much.
Sales are slow.
Material costs are rising.
The collective mood of our country feels thick with fatigue.
It’s hard to sit down and create beauty when everything around us feels uncertain. And so resistance adapts. It doesn’t always say, “Don’t make.” Sometimes it whispers, “What’s the point?”
The Art of Showing Up Anyway
In the book, Pressfield writes that resistance is a compass—it points directly toward what matters most. Maybe that’s why it’s louder now. Because our work still matters, even when the outside world feels shaky. Especially then.
Showing up doesn’t have to look like productivity. Some days, showing up is just:
Laying out your tools.
Cleaning up your bench or studio.
Touching the stone you’re not ready to set.
Sketching something you may never make.
It all counts. That quiet persistence? That’s devotion.
We’re Not Alone in This Season
One of the biggest takeaways from our discussion was this: It’s not just you. Across studios, across states, we’re all wading through the same fog. And just naming that took some of the isolation out of it.
We’re not weak for struggling. We’re human for feeling.
A Gentle Reframe
What if resistance wasn’t a sign to stop… but proof you’re close to something true?
What if this difficult season isn’t working against us… but shaping us into artists with deeper wells?
Art made in easy times is lovely.
Art made through resistance is alive.
As Season 3 of the Slowmade Podcast begins this week, my hope is that we continue this conversation—not about pushing harder, but about staying tender enough to keep creating through it all.
We’ll keep showing up. Not polished. Not perfect. Just present.
Reflection
Where has resistance been showing up in your creative life lately—
and what might it be protecting that actually matters to you?
Take a moment. Write it down. Name it gently.