The tragedy that is self-sabotage.
Myles Munroe captures the tragedy of many great things that were never implemented as, The graveyard is the richest place on the surface of the earth because there you will see the books that were not published, ideas that were not harnessed, songs that were not sung, and drama pieces that were never acted.[1] I look back and realize that my immunity against procrastination and fear has not been as strong, I have books and other creativity beauties that I should bring forth. Stephen King in his first non-fiction book, On Writing, gives advice on how to be a successful author by, sharing his journey to being an author; listing the essential tools that every writer should master; listing the nitty-gritty of writing including having a daily writing habit, starting with a draft (even two drafts or more), having the Ideal Reader(IR) in mind as your write, critiquing your own work before revising, and especially being an ardent reader; and, finally shows why its possible for an aspiring writer to overcome all the odds to become a successful author, and also the magic of the written word.[2] Steven Pressfield, in his book, The War of Art, writes on the overarching theme that procrastination is harmful to our long-term success which in a different way he calls ‘internal resistance to do something’, in this case creative art, and why we should by all means fight for our art.[3]
The two books in many ways are similar in encouraging us to overcome the inner resistance to discovering and putting to use, our creative abilities and desires, rather than giving in to procrastination or, the inner fear of our inadequacy and inability to produced a masterpiece of art. The impact of procrastination has been researched and there is evidence that supports these two books as is reported in the research by Nguyen et al. Nguyen says ‘High levels of procrastination is associated with lower salaries, shorter durations of employment, and a greater likelihood of being unemployed or under employed rather than working full-time.’[4] Pressfield starts by writing about resistance, then writes about acting on the knowledge of the resistance and how it works against you and why it’s imperative to combat it, he then talks about going on to the ‘higher realm’ of muses and divine inspiration where he acknowledges the source of our art as outside of ourselves. He acknowledges God as the source of art through inspiration and this caught my attention because many will attribute their success to their talents and abilities, this is humility and wisdom to acknowledge inspiration through God. He also points to other outside sources as the universe, consciousness, angels and guides but it his mention of God as the source that stands out to me as a Christian leader. For me it inspires me to purposeful writing as a servant leader that depends on God, and desires to empower others. I have wronged to write and document the holistic ministry model that I believe God has entrusted to our ministry organization and the leadership, and which has been transformational and impactful in vulnerable communities, to facilitate its replication to multiple communities across the world. As is instructive of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, I believe in the master’s model of starting from home and moving on to the uttermost parts of the World, by the help of the Holy Spirit of God. In Acts 1:8 Jesus says, ‘But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth.’[5] The desire for the documentation of the model informs my research, and reading these two books encourage me to combat the inner resistance and any feeling of inadequacy, not only in writing but also in other areas of ministry and life. The opportunity presented by this Doctorate program, presented me with the best opportunity to combat procrastination, and it’s God gift to me to have this dream fulfilled through my research work.
King’s book provides an example of a man whose life was almost ruined by alcohol but through writing, he was able to overcome his bad habits and has gone to make a great success of his writing. He is both an inspiration to overcome procrastination through his own life story and greats words of encouragement but also equips any aspiring writers with the toolset to help along the journey of writing. His positive approach to overcoming the inner resistance, helps to demystify and make the creative work of writing look easily achievable, and it was a great encouragement and inspiration for me. One key emphasis of King is the fact that both the seasoned and the aspiring writer have to adopt writing as a daily habit, reading must also become a daily habit since it also serves to equip you as a writer, as you learn from other writers and add to your toolset. I have added the two books to my library for reference and they are certain to be added to the bibliography of my research work.
While on a personal level I was challenged to identify areas where I will need to work on combating procrastination and realize my dream of documenting the holistic model, I’m also challenged about helping other leaders in our organization and in the church and the need to assist them to overcome procrastination, as an important way of empowerment. As a leader, I recognize that I am obligated to empower those that work with me as a lifelong commitment of a servant leader.
[1] Myles Munroe. This quote has also been attributed to Leslie Brown.
[2] Stephen King. On Wring: A Memoir of The Craft. (New York. Leatherbound Bestsellers (Simon & Schuster), 2014).
[3] Steven Pressfield. The War of Art: Break Through The Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles. (
[4] Nguyen, Brenda, Piers Steel, and Joseph R. Ferrari. “Procrastination’s Impact in the Workplace and the Workplace’s Impact on Procrastination.” International Journal of Selection and Assessment 21, no. 4 (2013): 388–99.
[5] Bible, NASB2020 Version.
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