The guest
Steven Pressfield: Bestselling author of "The War of Art," "Gates of Fire," and other historical fiction and nonfiction. A former Marine, advertising copywriter, and screenwriter who published his first book at 52 and is still writing daily at 82.
What this episode covers
Pressfield and Huberman dig into the practical and spiritual mechanics of creative work, centering on 'Resistance' (capital R) -- the internal force that makes us procrastinate, doubt, and quit. Pressfield explains his blue-collar daily writing process (two focused hours, no phone or internet, never re-reading the day's work, thinking in 13-15 drafts) and his belief that ideas come from outside us via 'the muse.' They explore turning pro versus staying an amateur, why the people closest to us often sabotage our growth, perfectionism as disguised Resistance, and how to handle criticism and success. The conversation weaves in mortality, competition as a driver, mentorship, and the unbalanced life required to pursue a calling.
Recommended on this episode
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Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson
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My Big Break
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“a documentary that I wish everyone would see”
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The Fighter
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The guest's own work
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The War of Art
Steven Pressfield
“And if anyone hasn't read "War of Art," it's an absolute must-read. I've read it many times.”— Andrew Huberman
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Do the Work
Steven Pressfield
“including the now iconic "War of Art" and also the book "Do the Work," which both focus on understanding the forces in our minds”— Andrew Huberman
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Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t
Steven Pressfield
“if I can hype one of my books, it's a small follow-up to "The War of Art" called "Nobody Wants to Read Your S***."”— Steven Pressfield
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Turning Pro
Steven Pressfield
“And my book, "Turning Pro," is about that, flipping that switch in your head that costs no money.”— Steven Pressfield
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Gates of Fire
Steven Pressfield
“It's either "The War of Art" or "Gates of Fire."”— Andrew Huberman
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Govt Cheese
Steven Pressfield
“In fact, I wrote a memoir called "Govt Cheese." the chapters are named after the various mentors that I've had”— Steven Pressfield
BookBy the guest
A Man at Arms
Steven Pressfield
“I had a book a few years ago called "A Man at Arms," which is about a recurring character that I have”— Steven Pressfield
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The Arcadian
Steven Pressfield
“this new book that's coming out, it's called "The Arcadian," is about his final life.”— Steven Pressfield
Also referenced (named, not recommended)
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Iliad
Homer
“if you go back to the ancient Greeks, right? "The Iliad," or "The Odyssey," or any of those other great works always start with an invocation of the muse”— Steven Pressfield
BookReferenced
The Odyssey
Homer
“the invocation of the muse from "The Odyssey," from Homer's "Odyssey," translation by T.E. Lawrence.”— Steven Pressfield
BookReferencedISBN verified
Chocolate Days, Popsicle Weeks
Ed Hannibal
“And it was called "Chocolate Days, Popsicle Weeks," and he quit to become a novelist.”— Steven Pressfield
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Terminal List
Jack Carr
“I have a good friend, Jack Carr, the thriller writer who did "The Terminal List," and he's a master of writing in airplanes”— Steven Pressfield
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Body Keeps the Score
Bessel van der Kolk
“"The Body Keeps the Score." No other book in the field of psychology, biology, or wellness has resonated in people's minds as much”— Andrew Huberman
BookReferencedISBN verified
Eat Pray Love
Elizabeth Gilbert
“"Eat Pray Love." It doesn't get better than that.”— Andrew Huberman
MediaReferenced
Silver Linings Playbook
David O. Russell
“He did "Silver Linings Playbook," with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper.”— Steven Pressfield
MediaReferenced
Joy
David O. Russell
“And "Joy," about the lady who invented the Miracle Mop, which was Jennifer Lawrence.”— Steven Pressfield
MediaReferenced
Braveheart
Randall Wallace
“Randall Wallace, who wrote "Braveheart" and, as secretary, directed that and many others.”— Steven Pressfield
MediaReferenced
Top Gun
Jack Epps Jr.
“This was Jack Epps, the original writer of "Top Gun." he said, "Always think in multiple drafts."”— Steven Pressfield
MediaReferenced
Alien
Ridley Scott
“Ron Shusett, who was one of the guys who originally did the first "Alien," the thing where the alien bursts out of the guy's chest.”— Steven Pressfield
MediaReferenced
That Thing You Do!
Tom Hanks
“There's a great movie with Tom Hanks about that. "That Thing You Do!" It's a perfect example of that.”— Andrew Huberman
MediaReferenced
Good Will Hunting
Gus Van Sant
“"Good Will Hunting." That was what that movie was about, right? That the Matt Damon character was this mathematical genius”— Steven Pressfield
MediaReferenced
The Godfather Part II
Francis Ford Coppola
“This is like that great speech in "The Godfather Part II" where... It was a great scene, too.”— Steven Pressfield
Big reveals from this episode
- Pressfield's core claim: the more important a project is to your soul's evolution, the stronger the Resistance you'll feel -- so do the project you're most afraid of.
- Reveals he recites the invocation of the muse from Homer's Odyssey out loud every morning before writing -- a ritual he's kept for ~50 years.
- Says his mind never flits to distraction in the first 10 minutes of writing anymore; he just 'dives straight into the pool.'
- Confesses his real lifelong driver was proving his struggling family wasn't 'the black sheep' -- 'I'm going to show these motherf***ers.'
- Admits 'King Kong Lives' was 'one of the worst movies ever' and that he thought it was great until the deathly-silent screening.
- Says he doesn't believe in work/life balance and has missed things in life, including having kids, to pursue his calling -- with no regret.
- Advises getting 'the most uncomfortable chair you possibly can' for writing, calling the famous 'comfortable chair' advice terrible.
Worth remembering
- At 82, Pressfield is at the gym at 4:45 AM every morning; he treats it as a 'rehearsal' for facing Resistance at the keyboard.
- He writes a book in 13-15 drafts, the last seven or eight being only slight changes, and never reads back the day's work.
- Cites Steinbeck: pushing past a long day for a little more is 'the falsest kind of economy' because you pay for it the next day.
- Huberman links shorter, more intense work bouts to nervous-system recruitment -- the better you get, the shorter and sharper your sessions.
- Pressfield argues that un-enacted creative energy turns malignant, surfacing as addiction, cruelty, or self-abuse.
- Learned the phrase 'pulling the pin' (quitting too soon) from railroad-riding fruit tramps in Washington State.
- Steve Jobs used to come into the Palo Alto sports shop where teenage Huberman worked to buy rollerblade wheels.
- The doc 'My Big Break' shows everyone gets a big break; most blow it not from lack of talent but because they can't handle success.
- Pressfield credits 'The War of Art' title to his business partner Shawn Coyne, not himself.
- Pressfield reframes his slow-building success as 'slow-release dopamine over many years.'
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