Has being punctual become a thing of the past? I find it weird to think that in this day and age where we want things instantly, that we have strayed away from something as simple as being punctual. A looong way.
Back in the day, when it wasn’t so easy to connect with people, I can see why being late could be excused. If something came up, we weren’t able to let the other person know because maybe they were in transit or something, and there was no such thing as cell phones. Today we can just send a quick text saying you’ll be late and it’s all good, right? Maybe it would be… if people actually did that, but for the most part they don’t. So maybe it’s because we are able to communicate with each other almost instantly that we don’t feel the need to be on time anymore?
More and more I find myself having to call, text or email whomever I’m waiting for to see where they are, or where is that file I’m waiting for, etc. and I’m not sure why it’s come to this.
Growing up, I was taught that one of the most disrespectful things you could do to someone was to waste their time, because time is something you never get back. Not only that, but how would I like it if they did that to me? It was a mutual respect thing. Being late sends a message to the other person that you don’t care about them.
Your boss is watching too. If you’re supposed to start work at 9am, and you walk in the door at the stroke of nine… your boss probably considers that as late for work. Spoiler alert… your boss is probably of the mindset that work starts at 9am, not you arriving at nine, getting a cup of coffee and kibitzing with your co-workers for 10 or 15 minutes then getting to work. Maybe your boss is more lenient than others, but I have worked for several of those types of employers, and I personally know many employers that think that way.
And if you have other co-workers counting on you to get things done by a certain time and your lateness starts to affect them, now you’re wasting their time too. That’s not only going to upset them, but it will draw the attention of your boss, and you don’t want that.
Have I ever been late for something? Oh, many times. We are all human, and things happen, but we must remember to respect the other persons time and let them know that we will be late as soon as we know we will be late. That way they can utilize their time until you get there, and don’t feel that you’ve wasted theirs. There is nothing worse that sitting around waiting endlessly for someone… we’ve all been there. I just feel that it’s starting to get worse and worse.
A good rule of thumb is that if you’re on time, you’re late. That means you should always be early for whatever it is. 10 minutes will usually suffice. A lot of times you’ll find that you will be able to get started early, and as a result get done early too. If everyone did this, I think you’d find everyone would be way more efficient.
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