You've gotta deal with all of your fear and paranoia before you can do anything. I'm now going to take a great leap and tell you why the books THE WAR OF ART and EVERYONE POOPS are deeply connected and why you must walk into any potentially intimidating situation with these references in your head. Hold on. This might be a bit bumpy.
First of all, THE WAR OF ART by Steven Pressfield is a bible about Resistance. You must buy this book. Resistance is Fear. If you can overcome Resistance, you can accomplish your goals. If not, you’re screwed and you should curl up on your couch and get comfortable living the status quo, complaining about your job, your struggles, your salary, other people, and your lot in life. Resistance is cunning, baffling and powerful. It is out to kill you and your dreams. Know that. The author, Steven Pressfield sums up how we create our own problems and road-blocks through Resistance: “Resistance has no strength of its own. Every ounce of juice it possesses comes from us. We feed it with power by our fear of it. Master that fear and we conquer Resistance.” Read that again. And again. Here's the deal: You're sabotaging yourself because you're scared to death of everything and everyone. No one else is doing it. You must conquer your own FEARS. You must realize how much power you give to other people. You shrink under the power YOU GIVE THEM! In reality, they’re just people so stop giving them POWER! STOP IT!
How do you get over this sickness? Glad you asked. Here's the leap: It's the companion book, EVERYONE POOPS.
EVERYONE POOPS by Taro Gomi is a bible about how we are all the same – it’s for potty-training kids, but stay with me -- you can benefit, too. I’ll sum it up so you don't have to buy it: Some animals and people make bigger poop than others, but regardless, EVERYONE POOPS. There it is. Oprah poops. Bill Gates poops. Elephants poop. Michael Eisner poops. Sherry Lansing poops. Alligators poop. Homer Simpson poops. The high-ranking person you’re meeting with tomorrow for that big job poops. Bugs poop. The teacher’s pet poops. I poop. You poop.
Think about how much POWER you’re CURRENTLY giving to your boss, the head of the company, someone you’re interviewing with, anyone you perceive to be “above” you, the person who sits next to you, a seemingly more experienced co-worker, whomever, ALL BECAUSE YOU’RE SCARED! INTIMIDATED! FEARFUL! STOP IT! For God's sake they poop just like you! They are HUMANS, not GODS. Don't give them more power than they deserve.
Now I’d be lying if I said I’m never intimidated by anyone and that I never experience fear. The difference is, I PRETEND I’M NOT! I bullshit! And the more I bullshit, the more I believe that I’m not intimidated, not fearful. It’s a psychological phenomenon that works. Just doing what I’m doing right now with this silly website is terrifying. I’m just pretending it’s not so that I can get past Resistance, past the debilitating consequences of FEAR. If I let fear get in my way I wouldn’t have ever gotten anywhere in my career, my 23-year marriage, my writing, and all my leaps of faith. When I have fear that you, my reader might hate what I’m writing -- or worse, not care -- I just think of you pooping. That gives me a gag reflex and brings me back to earth. Now I have taken away your power and I move along my merry way.
So, for today, think about what you’re holding yourself back from. Starting a new project? A new company? Going for a job you feel is too good or prestigious for you? Writing a book? A play? A song? Taking music lessons? Learning to dance? Meeting someone new?
If you’re afraid of it, it’s probably because you’re afraid of what PEOPLE might think or say or how they might respond to your dream. F-them.
“…the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
P.S. Roosevelt pooped, too.
*The War of Art that was recommended by my favorite podcast, “The Accidental Creative”. I highly recommend BOTH of these fabulous resources. Go to an independent bookstore and buy The War of Art (I’m trying NOT to go to the behemoths like B&N) and go to www.theaccidentalcreative.com and start listening!
