Procrastination — The Enemy of Progress

“While wasting our time hesitating and procrastinating, life goes on.” — Seneca

“Enemy of Progress” is a term that you hear a lot of as a Nigerian. For example, “the people who leaked Funke Akindele’s movie ‘Tribe of Judah’ on Telegram are enemies of progress. I cannot say exactly when I first heard the word, but as I write, it is a word that plays around me on a daily basis, whether in its exact form or other variations.

An enemy of progress is something or someone who works against growth and prosperity, a talent stealer established for downfalls

Procrastination is an enemy of progress. Merriam-Webster dictionary establishes that “procrastination implies blameworthy delay, especially through laziness or apathy.” Let me tell you a story…

There used to be a famous actress; she was known far and wide across the country. One day someone said to her, “You are so talented in acting, and not just acting. I have watched how you change scripts and even act as a director sometimes; maybe it's time to get into filmmaking. What do you think?” The actress laughed, saying, “You know I have been thinking about becoming a filmmaker? I believe it’s the next step for me; you’ve just read my future.”

You see, the actress never thought deeply about it; she kept pondering, but that was all she ever did. For years she went on and continued acting; she was sought after, but that began to reduce as she grew older; she got fewer scripts and fewer deals; she was no longer at the front of the best magazines; nobody was looking for her anymore; she wasn’t getting invitations to parties. One day she looked into the mirror and sighed, her eyes exhausted, and then she thought back to the moment years ago when someone told her about making films. She remembered how she enjoyed adjusting scripts and adding that little tweak to make them better. She thought about how she never even got writers' or directors' credit when she put in the work, and so she whispered to herself.

What do you think she whispered to herself?

Sometimes, the enemy of progress is you—yes, you. In the story, we don’t know what happened to the actress; did she sigh and continue to wallow in self-pity, or did she take her talent further? Let me show you a few things about this story that might be the reason why you are your enemy of progress when you procrastinate.

1. The actress was very talented, but she failed to expand on her talents. You see, in the parable of the talents, there were 3 types of talents: 2, 5, and 10. While the people with 5 and 10 talents went on to use all and multiply their talents, the ones with 2 talents didn’t do anything with theirs. The actress was popular; she reached a certain point in her career, but she refused to progress. She was so comfortable with her one talent that she didn’t nurture the others. Are you currently comfortable with your one talent, or are you seeking continuous improvement?
2. The actress was blinded by immediate gratification. It is very easy to lose yourself when everything is going as it is supposed to. I mean, why do you even need to worry about the future when the present is perfect? The future will take care of itself, right? Wrong; the present would take care of the future. The actress had a fantastic and flourishing career as an actor, but what about later? In an industry where looks and age matter, shouldn’t she have been making better retirement plans? Are you currently comfortable with the present, or are you thinking forward?
3. The actress always pondered the possibilities of expanding her career and becoming a filmmaker, but she never took any actual step; it remained a passing thought. Life in itself is a great example of the stages of progression: first, you are born, then you walk and talk, and then you can run around and play. Throughout life, you move from one stage to another, all starting from the cradle; therefore, it is a natural progression to move from stage to stage. Are you currently too comfortable in your career, or have you drawn up your career projection?
4. In the end, the actress had a good career as an actor. She was an established name, and she had left her footprint behind, but the most significant part was the moment she looked in the mirror. She did that because she was not satisfied with the outcome of her life, and this is the most important feeling. Now, if she looked in the mirror and smiled, then it meant she was content with how her life turned out; however, she sighed because she wanted to become a filmmaker and had spent years pondering about it but never establishing it. Are you that person who is not satisfied with his or her career growth? Have you been procrastinating on taking that course and exam that would elevate you to the next level, or are you the person who has decided it is finally time to stop procrastinating and go for what you want and know would make your future much better?

So we are back to where we started. What do you think she whispered to herself?

Well, your response would determine whether or not you allow procrastination to take over your life or whether you choose to quit postponing that one thing or those things that would take you to the next level.

Leave me your comments by giving the actress the ending that you would want to see.