Over the past 10 years, I’ve read over 400 books. I’ve only read a handful of them more than once. But one book, I’ve now read it seven times. And that book is Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield.
- But why would I read the same book seven times?
- What is Pressfield pointing to that keeps me coming back for more?
- And what are the seven lessons you need to learn from his book?
Who is Steven Pressfield?
Steven Pressfield is an American writer.
He’s an expert on ancient Greek wars.
His novel The Legend of Bagger Vance was made into a movie with Matt Damon and Will Smith.
He wrote a series of books on what it takes to create your Life’s Work. Turning Pro: Tap Your Inner Power and Create Your Life’s Work is part of that series. I reviewed them here: Best Books for Writers and Authors
Lesson 1: Living
“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us.”
Are you pursuing your dreams? Or are you asleep at the wheel? Is your life, lived or unlived?
In Turning Pro, Steven Pressfield shines a light on the common hurdles we also face and he offers a way forward.
He shares the path to freedom. But it’s not the one you might expect. And it might not be the one you want either.
Lesson 2: Amateur
“When we’re living as amateurs, we’re running away from our calling — meaning our work, our destiny, the obligation to become our truest and highest selves.”? Steven Pressfield, Turning Pro
Instead of pursuing your calling, what are you distracting yourself with?
Alcohol, food, exercise, travel, shopping, a fake career, gossip, Netflix, helping others, abusing others, social media.
Being an amateur is not about money.
It’s about your mindset, attitude to your art, calling, and Life’s Work. It’s about becoming the person you know you can be and want to be.
This is why I keep re-reading Turning Pro because I feel like I haven’t lived its lesson. I work as a Pro for a while and then I stop. I fall back into being an Amateur again. And that’s not a good way to live. It leaves me unhappy and disappointed.
Lesson 3: Pro
“What we get when we turn pro is, we find our power. We find our will and our voice and we find our self-respect. We become who we always were but had, until then, been afraid to embrace and to live out.”? Steven Pressfield, Turning Pro
Pressfield’s concept of “Turning Pro” is all about taking ownership of your actions. By conquering your inner obstacles and committing to your craft, you can unleash your full potential and achieve greatness.
But how do you break through?
Lesson 4: Turning Pro
“When we do the work for itself alone, our pursuit of a career (or a living or fame or wealth or notoriety) turns into something else, something loftier and nobler, which we may never even have thought about or aspired to at the beginning. It turns into a practice.”? Steven Pressfield, Turning Pro
To make the shift from Amateur to Pro you must overcome what Pressfield calls Resistance.
We all face the same challenge. It is easier to sit on the couch and distract yourself. It’s easier to take the path of least resistance. It’s easier to live a comfortable life.
But to turn Pro you must stop looking for immediate gratification and start doing the long-term work you know you need to.
It all comes down to this: DO. THE. WORK.
(And that’s another Steven Pressfield book in this series, Do The Work)
Lesson 5: Start Here
“When we turn pro, we stop running from our fears. We turn around and face them.” Steven Pressfield, Turning Pro
To get started do this:
- Stop.
- Sit Down.
- Be Still.
- Listen.
- Can you hear it?
- What’s calling you?
- Who do you want to become?
Lesson 6: Choose
“To feel ambition and to act upon it is to embrace the unique calling of our souls. Not to act upon that ambition is to turn our backs on ourselves and on the reason for our existence.”? Steven Pressfield, Turning Pro
It’s time to choose.
Are you going to be an amateur?
Or commit to being a pro?
Lesson 7: More
“Turning pro is free, but it’s not without cost. When we turn pro, we give up a life with which we may have become extremely comfortable. We give up a self that we have come to identify with and to call our own. We may have to give up friends, lovers, even spouses.”? Steven Pressfield, Turning Pro
To dig deeper, buy Pressfield’s book. It might just change your life.
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