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66 Steven Pressfield

In Native American myths, our totemic ally is often an animal—
a magic raven, say, or a talking coyote. In Norse myths, an old
crone sometimes assists the hero; in African legends, it’s often a
bird. The three Wise Men were guided by a star.

All of these characters or forces represent Assistance. They are
symbols for the unmanifested. They stand for a dream.

The dream is your project, your
vision, your symphony, your

startup. The love is the passion
and enthusiasm that fill your heart

when you envision your
project’s completion.

Sometimes when Resistance is kicking my butt (which it does,
all the time), I flash on Charles Lindbergh. What symphony
of Resistance must have been playing in his head when he was
struggling to raise the funding for his attempt to fly across the
Atlantic solo?

“You’re too young, you’re too inexperienced; you’ve got no cre-
dentials, no credibility. Everyone who’s tried this has failed and
you will, too. It can’t be done. Your plane will crash, you’re going