The Art of Manliness

Advice on Achieving Any Long-Haul Dream

Jan 16, 2023

53:11

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Quick takeaways

Overcoming self-sabotage and setting aside ego are crucial in achieving long-haul dreams.

Developing a killer instinct and finishing what you start are essential aspects of achieving any dream.

Deep dives

The Importance of Perseverance in Achieving Dreams

Achieving your dreams often takes a long time, and it's important to remember that overnight success is rare. In this podcast episode, Stephen Pressfield, best-selling author of books like The Legend of Bagger Vance, shares his own journey of becoming a published novelist. He discusses the mini-odd jobs he took along the way, such as driving trucks and picking apples, and the valuable lessons he learned from them. Pressfield emphasizes the significance of overcoming self-sabotage, setting aside ego, finishing what you start, and developing a killer instinct in order to achieve any dream.

Self-Reflection and Self-Reinforcement

02:05

The Most Important Thing Period Is to Keep Going

01:32

Ego Impedes Creative Flow

01:12

The Lessons I Learned While Delivering Government Cheese

02:41

Introduction

2min

Writing Your Way Out of the Wilderness

2min

Government Cheese, Interesting Title for Memoir

2min

How Did You Get Hired by a Trucking Company?

3min

You're Still Trying to Write During This Time?

2min

The Lessons I Learned While Delivering Government Cheese

3min

You're Not a Driver, You Are a Deliverer

2min

Is Your Ego Attached to Your Work?

2min

Is Your Ego Getting in the Way of Your Writing?

3min

10.

The All Is Lost Moment

3min

11.

Pulling the Pen

4min

12.

The Goddess Is Like Santa Claus

3min

13.

The Most Important Thing Period Is to Keep Going

2min

14.

How Old Are You at This Point?

3min

15.

The Legend of Bag of Pants

2min

16.

The Legend of Bhagavans

2min

17.

Put Your Ass Where Your Heart Wants to Be

2min

18.

The Success That You've Had Is Well Earned

2min

19.

Self Retention - Self Validation, Self Retardation

2min

20.

Self Retardance

2min

21.

The Killer Instinct

2min

22.

Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

3min

23.

The Aum Podcast - Episode 6 - Stephen Pressfield

2min

In a world that celebrates overnight success, it's easy to forget that very often, achieving your dreams takes a heck of a long time. My guest knows this all too well. You may know Steven Pressfield as the bestselling author of books like The Legend of Bagger Vance, Gates of Fire, and The War of Art, but as he details in his new memoir, Govt Cheese, it took more than a quarter century for him to become a published novelist.

Today on the show, Steven talks about what he learned in that journey, and the many odd jobs, from driving trucks to picking apples, that he took along the way. We discuss the lessons Steven gleaned that apply to achieving any dream, including how to overcome a propensity for self-sabotage, get your ego out of the way, finish what you start, and develop the killer instinct.

This is a great, motivating conversation on learning not to "pull the pin" on the important commitments in your life. And we'll explain what that means coming up.

Resources Related to the Episode

Steven's previous appearances on the show:
Steven's books mentioned in the show:
AoM Article: 4 Key Insights From the Bhagavad Gita
AoM Article: Hector and Achilles — Two Paths to Manliness
Seth Godin's pamphlet for learning to "ship it"
AoM Podcast #849: Live Life in Crescendo

Connect With Steven Pressfield

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The Art of Manliness

Advice on Achieving Any Long-Haul Dream

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

The Importance of Perseverance in Achieving Dreams

The Memoir 'Government Cheese' and its Unconventional Title

Embracing Uncertainty and Self-Reinforcement

Continued Dedication and Following the Muse's Call

Self-Reflection and Self-Reinforcement

The Most Important Thing Period Is to Keep Going

Ego Impedes Creative Flow

The Lessons I Learned While Delivering Government Cheese

Resources Related to the Episode

Connect With Steven Pressfield

Get the Snipd
podcast app

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

Save any
moment

Share
& Export

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

The Art of Manliness

Advice on Achieving Any Long-Haul Dream

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

The Importance of Perseverance in Achieving Dreams

The Memoir 'Government Cheese' and its Unconventional Title

Embracing Uncertainty and Self-Reinforcement

Continued Dedication and Following the Muse's Call

Self-Reflection and Self-Reinforcement

The Most Important Thing Period Is to Keep Going

Ego Impedes Creative Flow

The Lessons I Learned While Delivering Government Cheese

Resources Related to the Episode

Connect With Steven Pressfield

Get the Snipdpodcast app

AI-poweredpodcast player

Discoverhighlights

Save anymoment

Share& Export

AI-poweredpodcast player

Discoverhighlights

Get the Snipd
podcast app

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

Save any
moment

Share
& Export

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