Procrastination can kill you. It pops up everywhere. If you let it, procrastination will rob you of everything you own. Everything you could be. It is vicious and preys on everyone.

Sometimes procrastination comes to us as a little voice that says – ah, that can wait for tomorrow. Other times it screams you can’t do that! You are not good enough.

Procrastination may tell you something isn’t perfect. You can’t do this until it is perfect!

Sometimes procrastination shows up and you aren’t even aware it is there. Like the time you jumped on FaceBook and then started reading posts. Or you watched a YouTube video and then clicked on another. Or a friend called and you stayed on the phone a bit longer than expected. Or someone needed your help and you had to stop what you were doing.

A couple of years ago I was diagnosed with depression. I stopped caring about things that had meant a lot to me. I stopped returning phone calls. I spent the day in front of the television with a cat on my lap.

I had never believed in depression. I thought it was something you could snap out of. I was wrong and it showed me first hand. Depression brought a new level of procrastination to me.

The first step in solving the problem is to be aware of it. I highly recommend the book – The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. It deals with his experiences overcoming procrastination as a writer. It is wonderful reading for all creative types – including ventriloquists.

What is stopping you from picking up a puppet to practice? Or working on a new joke/script? Or creating a new character? Or contacting some people in search of shows?

Don’t procrastinate!