In this book, Pressfield offers another calling for creatives. His message consistently suggests that the biggest battles we fight are those with ourselves. Are you in? Are you all-in as in in-it-to-win-it? Before we begin, we should determine whether we will endure. Dreaming and doing are different things. Our actions speak louder than words. In order to make progress on what matters most to us we need to put ourselves in a position to succeed. The biggest battle we will have in life is with ourselves. We need to overcome our own inertia, our own doubt, our own laziness. To give ourselves a chance, we need to decide on a direction and put ourselves in the game. Whatever it is you want to do or become, you need to put yourself in the physical vicinity of where the action in your desired domain is occurring. Pressfield writes, “Tremendous power lies in the simple, physical act of stationing our body at the epicenter of our dream.” He then offers two questions he asks himself to evaluate his efforts on a day writing, “The only questions I ask are, Did I show up? Did I try my best?”
A leading method of learning is imitating. We learn by watching others and then trying to copy. This is true from our earliest days and remains so throughout our lives. Being around others that are doing what we desire gives us something to look up to, to learn from, to copy from, and to bond with. The explosion of like-minded energy can lead to an eruption of excellence. Consider Silicon Valley today and Italy during the Renaissance. Moreover, moving is a sacrifice. A willingness to relocate reflects commitment to the cause. Think Arnold and both bodybuilding and movies moving to California. Think UFC fighters relocating to join a training gym… we move for commitment, to go where expertise is, and to hot house and be with peers. Pressfield notes, “When you move your material ass to the geographic site of your dream, your peers and potential mentors think at once, This person is serious. She has committed. She has burned the boats. She is one of us.”
Besides being close to the action, we need to humble ourselves to accept any kind of work that may give us the opportunity to learn. Choose experience over compensation. Any opportunity to earn a dollar at your craft further reinforces your progress to becoming a professional. More importantly, it offers the chance to learn. You are being exposed to others, you are seeing the path forward. Third, Pressfield learned, is that by simply participating in some small way in your chosen domain you will meet people who may, over time, be in a position to help move you forwards. The relationships and learning are worth far more than any immediate compensation.
From physically being where the action is, Pressfield suggests that we need to commit our psychology to the cause. Is our mind fully invested. Instead of being anywhere but here like most are stumbling through their days distracted by devices, the committed are thinking only and always about their craft. They realize they are right where they want to be. Commitment is to be invested. Invested physically and psychologically. Pressfield notes, “’Ass’ means commitment. As in, ‘His ass is on the line.’ Or ‘If she screws this up, it’ll be her ass.’ When we say, ‘Put your ass where your heart wants to be’ in this sense, we mean, ‘Commit emotionally, psychologically, spiritually to your dream.’”
To Pressfield, commitment is demonstrated by physical and psychological investment coupled with time. Are we dedicated for the duration? Will we put in the time over time? Will we continue to persist when progress stalls? He invites us to consider, “Can you put your ass where your heart wants to be for life?” Cumulatively, our commitment is the answer to the question, how bad do you want it? Our commitment is demonstrated by the sacrifice and struggle we’re prepared to endure.
A reason we’re reluctant to commit is because we’re taking action based on an outcome that isn’t certain. Not only is it not certain, it doesn’t yet exist. This implies somewhat irrational behavior taking steps towards something that doesn’t exist. It is this leap of faith that is scary. We need to be prepared to jump and build our parachute on the way down.
The good news is that each step towards commitment we take can serve as a reward reinforcing the next steps. Putting ourselves in the game physically sends a message to our mind we’re serious. It’s not just others we’re communicating to with our actions, it is to ourselves. We are slowly forging our identity with our actions. Pressfield sees our willingness to commit physically and psychologically as demonstrating the Hero’s Journey which is at the core of so many of our stories and movies. Pressfield writes, “In myth and legend, when the hero commits to an intention by taking bold action, he enacts a Cosmic Overthrow.” “She has, by an act of will and love and daring, stepped out of the role of the passive and the self-paralyzed and into the role of the active protagonist, the hero.” When we put ourselves out there, devote ourselves to our dreams, our innards align with our aspirations. Additionally, others and the world itself sees us as serious. Pressfield is of the view that the universe isn’t neutral. It wants to reward those that don’t just care but dare. People want to help those that help themselves.
Additionally, progress follows patient production. Pressfield considers this a law of the universe. Our actions trump intentions. Our body of work speaks for itself. What we’ve done reflects our commitment. Res Ipsa Loquitur. The matter speaks for itself. What does your body of work say for you? Does it reflect dedication or dabbling? Are you doing something daily which contributes to your body of work? It is less about insane work ethic and more about patient plodding. Pressfield writes, “One hour a day is seven hours a week, thirty hours a month, 365 hours a year. Three hundred and sixty hours is nine forty-hour weeks. Nine fourty-hour weeks is a novel. It’s two screenplays, maybe three. In ten years, that’s ten novels or twenty movie scripts. You can be a full-time writer, one hour a day.” There’s zero excuse. We all have the time to curate, to create, to learn, to produce.
Putting your ass where your heart wants to be isn’t about developing good habits. It’s about building a life. It’s less about what you do and driven more by your definition of who you are. Pressfield exhorts, “This is the job. There is no other job. This is the job.” By saying yes to our calling, it’s easier to say no to everything else. Our attraction washes away distraction. When we focus on this, we can forget about that. To Pressfield, the goal is to play today for tomorrow. He writes, “Our game is the long game.” It’s a sustainable, daily practice that is being pursued. He notes, “I’m training myself and reinforcing myself every day.” Commitment implies being responsible for our own motivation. We need to reinforce our energy reserves with our efforts. We can draw on our past efforts, our budding body of work, to recognize that we’re on track, we’re making progress, that staying the course is the only way forward.
Pressfield writes, “When we put our ass where our heart wants to be, we may change where we live; we may alter what we do to support ourselves. We may rethink the way we dress or wear our hair. We may shave our skull; we may acquire tattoos—or efface them. We may change political parties, invent new ones, or drop out entirely. Our taste in music, books, art, or movies may change. We may discard longstanding habits and addictions. We may acquire new enthusiasms, make new friends. We may marry or divorce. We may change the time we get up in the morning and the hour we go to bed at night. We may rethink the people we choose to associate with. We may make over the way we eat or sleep or decide or act. That which we had previously considered important, even vital or indispensable, we may now shed as lightly as a worn-out coat. We may elect to simplify our life.” These are the consequences of getting clear on what you hold dear. Massive change may appear to others as acting deranged. But reflects an internalizing of a new true identity.
We won’t succeed sitting on the sidelines. We can’t seek skill while dreaming and scheming. We have to put ourselves out there. We have to say okay to getting into the fray. When you dedicate yourself to your dreams, ironically, it becomes less about you and more about living a life that is true. We lose ourself, our ego, and invest in the cause. It is the process that pulls us forward. It is giving our full attention, energies, and time in service of the calling that drives us. Pressfield writes, “Our priorities change when we make the shift from the ego to the Self. Our field of consciousness broadens… We have become artists… in the sense of being servants of an intention that comes from somewhere else, even though we cannot grasp what that intention is or what its source may be. We trust this intention somehow, even though we can’t say why.”
