Let’s say you dream of making a film or writing the next great novel, but you just never get very far with it. This experience is called resistance.

If you’ve ever bought exercise equipment that never got used, you’ll know what resistance is. The intent is there… but some form of self-sabotage gets in the way and you end up putting things off.

Actually doing the work isn’t the hard part. It’s getting your butt in the chair and overcoming the powerful forces of procrastination, distraction, and anything else that might hold you back.

The first step to overcoming resistance is recognizing it. It usually takes the form of a negative voice in your head that tries to talk you out of action, e.g. “What a bad idea”, “You’re no good”, “It'll be a waste of time”, etc.

This saps belief in ourselves and the project we want to pull off. But the other fiendish thing this voice will do is to tempt us with alternatives, e.g. “Let’s check Twitter”; “Let’s do some online shopping”, "Time for a snack!”, etc.

The goal of resistance is incapacity. It wants to stunt our development. But according to writer Steven Pressfield, there are three rules of resistance that will help you defeat it.

Rule #1: The more important a project is to your personal growth, the stronger the resistance will be. (You can use this to your advantage by letting the fear direct you to what’s important.)

Rule #2: Resistance is predictable. It shows up at the outset (“Don’t do it!”), right when you’ve taken the plunge (“Turn back before it’s too late!”), and even at the end (“This has been a terrible mistake.”)

Rule #3: Resistance is universal. It doesn’t matter who you are. Everyone experiences it, even the greats. The upshot of this is: 1) You can’t take it personally, and 2) You’re not alone.

So what’s the secret to putting your resolve into action? Let’s take a closer look at what Steven Pressfield recommends in his book on fighting resistance,  The War of Art…