It's an amazing read and teaches you how to combat your inner battles. The book was very giving to me, as it gave guidance on how to explore your inner self in terms of creativity. From the book I learned we have a an angel and a demon each resting on each of our shoulder. They live within our soul and they each represent resistance (the demon) and genius (the angel). The genius is our Muse existing within us. The muse is our inner creativeness. But to ignite our inner Muse we must overcome resistance. Resistance is what we feel everyday, when we wake up in the morning, when we start a new project. It can take many shapes and forms and many times it can be seen as fear. Pressfield explains how we can overcome this fear, and distinguishes between two types of people: the amateur and the professional. He says: “The amateur believes he must first overcome his fear; then he can do his work. The professional knows that fear can never be overcome. He knows there is no such thing as a fearless warrior or a dread-free artist.” When you're going pro, “take a few blows. That’s the price for being in the arena and not on the sidelines. Stop complaining and be grateful.” He further explains, “The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.” He further explains the professional is an artist. The artist is the advanced model. His culture possesses affluence, stability, enough excess of resource to permit the luxury of self-examination. The artist is grounded in freedom. He is not afraid of it. He is lucky. He was born in the right place. He has a core of self-confidence, of hope for the future. He believes in progress and evolution. His faith is that humankind is advancing, however haltingly and imperfectly, toward a better world.” For the amateur, “Grandiose fantasies are a symptom of Resistance. They’re the sign of an amateur. The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work. The professional concentrates on the work and allows rewards to come or not come, whatever they like.”