Resistance
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... Its aim is to shove us away, distract us, prevent us from doing our work. Steven Pressfield
Every morning when I wake up, I have the chance to live my perfect day: take a walk with the dogs, write in my journal, paint through the morning and afternoon, eat a tasty dinner with my husband, read a thought-provoking book for an hour, and go to bed planning to do the exact same thing tomorrow.
However, my “perfect” day and my “normal” day aren't always the same thing--not with the demands of running an art business, errands and appointments, a house and garden competing for my attention, and a news cycle that never quits. And “perfect” and “normal” are especially not the same thing when resistance rears its ugly head.
Franz Kline, “Black Reflections”
It's easy to understand how the demands of day-to-day life can get in the way of creative time--but "resistance"? Is that a real thing, even? What if you’ve been an artist for decades and are firmly planted in your creative medium, would you still sometimes resist doing this work you love?
Yes. I do, anyway. I find myself fighting resistance every day.
When I'm back in my studio after a few hours at the dentist, and I've answered the last email from students and galleries, and yet I'm still not walking over to my easel and picking up a brush—I know the force field of resistance is at work.
John Constable, “Rain Storm Over Sea”
Resistance keeps me doing the same safe thing longer than I need to, because doing something different means change, and change requires risk, and risk invites fear. When I drag out finishing a painting over weeks instead of days, that’s resistance.
The painting is never quite as perfect as what I’m seeing in my mind’s eye, and not finishing means I don’t need to accept that difference between the here-and-now real and the unattainable ideal.
Resistance caused by fear is a powerful enemy. It’s sneaky, persistent, and shrewd. It's the little voice in my head that, when the moment comes to get to back to work, whispers, "This is too hard for you." It’s the voice that says, “That’s a great idea you have, let’s keep thinking about it, we’ll start tomorrow.”
Willem de Kooning, “Police Gazette”
In his insightful book “The War of Art”, Steven Pressfield examines the inhibiting and even damaging role resistance plays in the lives of creative people (which we all have the potential to be.)
Pressfield writes, “Procrastination is the most common manifestation of Resistance because it’s the easiest to rationalize. We don’t tell ourselves, I’m never going to write my symphony. Instead we say, I am going to write my symphony; I’m just going to start it tomorrow.”
He also says that fear is something we need to embrace:
“Are you paralyzed with fear? That’s a good sign. Fear is good. Like self-doubt, fear is an indicator. Fear tells us what we have to do. Remember our rule of thumb: The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.”
Gustav Klimt, “Italian Horicultural Landscape”
Over time, I've learned that the only way to silence the negative voice of resistance is to hear it for what it is--a free floating fear of failure. The best thing I can do is ignore this bully who is always ready for a fight and go about my business. Resistance is a powerful adversary when empowered by our emotions but dissolves like the Wicked Witch as soon as we face it down.
I need to just show up, face the fear, and maybe even embrace it. Schedules, routines, goals, sharing what we do with others: all of these strategies can help create enough momentum to overcome inertia, fear and resistance.
"One more time" is also a good motto to tape up on our studio walls:
If, this one more time, I can pick up my tools and the strand of yesterday's work, and just get going again, I'll be fine.
Susan Abbott, “Camino, Itero de La Vega”