The Amateur, the Resistance and the Professional

If you have never read Stephen Pressfield Book, ‘The War of Art’ stop reading, go and read it, then come back.
My friend Tara recommend this book to me, and I am eternally grateful for that, I have read the book at least five times, and is a great testament of the War we constantly have with what Pressfield called ‘Resistance’ with capital ‘R’
We all suffer from Resistance, the difference is how we confront and act in front of this Resistance, you can act as an Amateur or as a Professional. I am a writer, I am also a Sales Person, on my day job, I act as a Sales Manager.
I have been a Professional Sales Person for the last seven years, I make sales regarding of the economy, how difficult it is, regardless if it is saturday, sunday or holiday, I learn my product, I observe my competitors, and I try to get the most out of every opportunity, and honestly, I am good at it, I am a professional and my hard work over years has bring me here. Until recently, I was an Amateur Writer, I want it to be a Writer, but I had not turn Pro, the Resistance and the fear was getting the best out of me.
I have join a MasterMind Group, as well as work in this issue for over a year, and I begin writing, and then stop, and begin again and stop.
Recently, I happen to listen to the War of Art while driving to work, and for the first time I got the change from Amateur to Professional, and I turn the switch. I am now, also a Professional Writer. At the same time I decide to begin publishing in Twitter my daily count, even if I don’t write, I need then to Tweet Zero Words Down Today.
What has change from the amateur to the professional is that I am showing up everyday, regardless of weekends, holidays, or any other type of excuse, i am showing up to write regardless of any excuse I have, I am investing on improve my craft, in the same way I continue learning business and sales books, I am trying to be patient with the art as well as my self, and I am acting in face of fear, regardless how terrified I am on this, I am writing everyday. Finally, I am not afraid to failure, but I will finish this novel.
I had over the years begin three novels and two business books, and the fear of failure, and starvation has always stop me. This time “The Novel” will be finished and revised. If it is terrible too bad, we will write another one, and if that one is also bad we will write a third one.
Around the same idea of this novel, I had wrote two manuscripts, this is the third one, and I think I make the mistake of not work hard enough on revise the two I had wrote before, and the Resistance is telling me to go back and revise them, and we will (me and the Resistance) but not know, in the next months we will write everyday “The Novel”, after that, my dear friend Resistance, you will be more than welcome to revise the other ones.

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Augusto Pinaud

Augusto Pinaud es Coach de Tecnología de Productividad Bilingüe, Especialista en Nozbe Teams. Augusto trabaja con dueños y gerentes de pequeñas empresas, ejecutivos y profesionales en productividad, tecnología y mejora de procesos utilizando una variedad de tecnologías de productividad.

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