Overcoming Resistance: Do. The. Work.
By Robert (Bob) W. Jones

My friend Tim is a prolific writer. He writes. Everyday.

Tim takes pen in hand (his is a fountain pen) every morning and lays down ten minutes of creative content in response to writing prompts. The remainder of his daily writing time is spent producing content for diverse publications and job proposals.


Tim’s good at what he does. Its not easy being successfully productive, so I asked him,

“What’s your secret?”

He summed it up in three words. What he told me was genius in a sound bite.

Do. The. Work.

Author, Steven Pressfield observes, “There is an enemy. There is an intelligent, active, malign force working against us. Step one is to recognize this. This recognition alone is enormously powerful. It saved my life, and it will save yours.”

The force?

Resistance.

Resistance is invisible, infallible and insidious. Its aim is to shove you away, distract you and prevent you from doing your work.

Resistance is what the author of Romans referred to when he penned, “I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing” (Romans 7:18,19 NIV).

Resistance is the enemy but it’s also your ally. The more important a call or action is to your soul’s betterment, the more resistance you’ll feel toward pursuing it.

So I ask you, “What is it that you’ve resisted writing?”

How To Start Writing Through Resistance

• Start before you’re ready. Get your idea down on paper. Tweak it later.

• Start writing from power. Don’t overthink. Don’t over prepare. Don’t let research become resistance. Write.

• Start at the end. Solve the climax first. Work backwards from there.

The first (and only) book I wrote, Ornament, started way before I was ready.

There was a need for the content and the necessity overcame my resistance. I did the work. The ending wrote itself, so I started there. Faith, hope and joy were the strengths that carried my friend, Kristen, through cancer until her passing. They became the path forward for her husband to carry on with their three little boys. Readers of Ornament had their answer to how Kristen was at her best when life was at its worst. They also found a map and light into their own dark future.

Having Ornament win a national award from the Word Guild in 2016 was the proof in the pudding— do the work.

Overcome resistance.

Today. And tomorrow.

Do. The. Work.

About this Contributor:

Robert (Bob) W. Jones is a recovering perfectionist, who collects Coca-Cola memorabilia and drinks Iced Tea. His office walls are adorned with his sons’ framed football jerseys, and his library shelves, with soul food. He writes to inspire people to be real, grow an authentic faith in Jesus, enjoy healthy relationships and discover their life purpose.
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