Start Here - Declare War Within

Here's what you need to know...

Alliance - A relationship you have developed with a mentor, mentee, business partner, best friend, sexual partner. A Professional creates Alliances with other Professionals. He reads blogs like Declare War Within to keep his mind sharp and open to the next attack from the Enemy.

Amateur - Here are some chapter titles from "Turning Pro" that describe an amateur: An amateur is terrified and doesn't do anything when facing their fears. An amateur is an egotist. An amateur lives by the opinions of others. An amateur permits fear to stop him from acting. The amateur is easily distracted. The amateur is addicted. The amateur seeks instant gratification. The amateur is jealous. The amateur lacks compassion for himself. The amateur seeks permission. The amateur lives for the future. The amateur lives in the past. The amateur will be ready tomorrow. The amateur gives his power away to others. The amateur is asleep. The amateur is not a Professional.

Attack - This includes all the strategies and tools to use against your Enemy. It also demonstrates a mindset of going forward. Heading towards the Dragons of your life.

Angels - Any time you have an intuition, idea that comes out of nowhere. Whether it comes from God, the collective unconscious or your gut. No one knows. We call all creative forces Angels.

Artist - An artist is another part of the Warrior. The artist is a creator. The creation is different per person. One could be making ceramic mugs, writing, painting, starting a business, directing a film, cooking. The product is different, but the process of creating beauty and delivering it to the world is the same.

Black Magic - Black magic is the an ode to the power of language. The words we say are extremely powerful. Black magic is the negative side of language. When someone at age eight called you stupid, that's a spell of black magic. Most of us unconsciously accept these spells from the outside and they end up determining how we live our life.

Creator - A person that realizes that the world is not a static plane. We can create, add value and change the world in a positive way. We can create art and deliver beauty in a billion different ways. It's a relationship to the universe. Here is a quote from Phil and Barry about creators: "Everything he does is with the intention of making an impact on the world. His code ensures this: He doesn't accept the world as he finds it; he brings things into the world that aren't already there. He doesn't follow the herd; he sets his own course. He ignores the reaction of others. He resists superficial distractions. He remains focused on his goals even if he has to sacrifice his immediate gratification." - Quote from The Tools. A creator is an Artist, Warrior and Entrepreneur blended into one.

Castle - This is your apartment, room, house and place of living. It is imperative for a King to keep his Castle in order, and allow it to be soul-nurturing for his creativity and life force.

Devil - I'm not referring to a red creature in Hell with pointy ears. This is another way of talking about Part X/Resistance/The Enemy. Napoleon Hill in his book 'Outwitting The Devil" is the one that brought this label to light.

Defend - When you use certain strategies and tools to prepare beforehand for a future Enemy attack. It's the daily maintenance to make sure your Castle walls are strong.

Dragon - Dragons are personified fears. Whatever you fear is your Dragon. When you avoid fears your Dragon becomes bigger. You must attack it immediately no matter how scared you are.

Enemy - Another way of describing Part X and Resistance. A great label to use when you feel fear, procrastination, worry or any form of self-sabotage. Telling yourself "the enemy has invaded" will allow you to realize you to create enough separation from this force in order to defeat it in that moment.

Entrepreneur - He is a business. It is You Inc. He is not a wantrepreneur. He has a company and works on it every day to create value and deliver it to the marketplace. He is a problem solver. He creates solutions that make peoples life better.

Invisible Enemy - As you read through DWW you will see 'invisible Enemy'. This is just another word to describe this force. It is invisible, it wants us to self-sabotage and destroy our life.

Invasion - When the Enemy has invaded your life. Everything was going great and now all your bad habits have resurfaced. This is part of the process. Sometimes it rains and sometimes it's sunny. When doing even the most simple activities is a struggle, means that you are under a Devil led invasion.

King/Queen - He has developed his Artist, Warrior and Entrepreneur to a high level. He has a Kingdom now. Whether that includes a relationship with a significant other, multiple businesses. He rules over his outer and inner Empires with an iron throne. While ruling he is keenly aware and constantly looking for the next way that his Enemies will try to dethrone him.

Killer - The path of pursuing your calling is what hardens you. It what makes you a killer. Through suffering, daily battles and pain you have developed an inner fortitude. Your soul has evolved. You have a confidence in facing the Resistance present every day and defeating it. This is the part of you that is just as ruthless as the Resistance. The Killer develops once you decide to become a Professional.

Kingdom - Your business, art, platforms and value you have delivered into the marketplace. This includes your Castle, relationships and alliances with other Professionals. Everything you own, rent and use are part of your Empire.

Magician - A Magician is someone who have found their voice. They have connected to their authenticity and uses their words to positively influence others.

Part X - The label created by Barry Michels and Phil Stutz, authors of the book 'Coming Alive' and 'The Tools'. In their own words, we can all be the person we are meant to be, however, it is a fight. The fight is against your own worst habits. It's called Part X because it's the part of us that does everything it can in order to X out your potential. It's mission is to hold you back, and it's extremely smart (knows you better than you know yourself). It is ruthless in exploiting your weaknesses. It is an invisible force that enters through numerous forms. It is the counterforce to our life force.

Prince/Princess - Someone that is a semi-pro. They haven't paid the price to become a professional. They are a pro on Mondays not Tuesdays. Quote from Pressfield "Sometimes we can be professionals in our shadow careers and amateurs in our true calling." A Prince hasn't committed to doing the work on he can truly do. He doesn't listen to the voice in his head guiding him along the journey.

Professional - A word so aptly described by Steven Pressfield in his book "Turning Pro". Here's a quote: "I wrote in The War of Art that I could divide my life neatly into two parts: before turning pro and after. After is better." The Professional is one who changed his mind. He has stopped fucking around and dedicated his life to pursuing his calling and doing great work. The main difference according the Steven is that "What changes when we turn pro is we stop fleeing, when we turn pro, we stop running from our fears. We turn around and face them."

Pawn - Someone who hasn't met the Enemy. Another word for Amateur. Who doesn't know how powerful Part X is. It is our responsibility to live like Professionals in order to inspire the open-minded Pawn to step onto this path of evolution.

Resistance - Phil and Barry call it Part X, and Steven Pressfield, author of 'The War of Art' named it Resistance. Quote from Steven: "Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance." It is the root of unhappiness, poverty and all of our dysfunction. It is also an invisible force that comes into different forms. It is absolutely evil. Every single person in the world deals with this force.

Treason - Any choice that is not in alignment with your vision is treason. Every time you let Part X control your life and choices, you are committing a treasonous act. This includes any choice that is moving you away from the ideal future.

Warrior - Someone that realizes that there is a war going on every single day. Every day he fights Resistance because he is a professional. He uses the Enemy as his jumping board to growth, his compass for evolving his soul. A warrior falls and stands back up. A warrior doesn't ask how strong the Enemy is, he asks where it is and destroys it.

Weapons - These are in reference to tools you will use in the moment, in order to defeat the Enemy within.