Have you ever had to wait for someone who is running late without an excuse? Does this happen frequently with the same friend or coworker? If so, you understand the importance of punctuality.

Punctuality is essential in all areas of life if you want to have respect from family, friends, and coworkers. An occasional lapse will be forgiven, but being chronically late can damage your reputation and possibly even your career. Being late all the time sends a signal that you are disorganized. Besides all that, it’s awkward and quite rude because it shows that you don’t respect other people’s time.

Punctuality With Friends

When you agree to participate in any event with friends, you should always mark the time on your calendar and plan your schedule accordingly. If you receive an invitation that requests an RSVP, send it in a timely manner. Then show up at the designated time. Not doing so may create an unwelcome delay in activities, and your friends might think twice before inviting you again.

Punctuality at Work

Being on time for work is an absolute must if you want a favorable job performance review. Always breezing in past the start of the workday might even cause you to lose your job.

If you ever want to be considered for a promotion, one of the things your employer may look at is how often you have been late for the workday or to a meeting. Employers appreciate attention to detail that can affect all other aspects of a person’s work.

The company depends on all employees to be where they are supposed to be at a certain time. When one of the workers doesn’t show up on time, the others have to carry his or her share of the load. Being late causes the person to miss important information, so others waste their time explaining tasks or going over what the person missed. Over time, this may build resentment, and when that happens, everyone suffers.

Stress of Being Late

Being late all the time creates unnecessary stress that may affect your relationships and job performance. It makes you feel frenzied, which in turn might lead to abruptness and a short temper. Over time, this becomes a habit that is difficult to break. Many people consider persistent tardiness to be passive aggressive behavior.

Take Steps to Be on Time

If you’re normally late for everything, being on time might sound foreign to you, but if you work at it and practice, you will discover that it eliminates some of the turmoil you create when you’re late. Thinking ahead and proper planning will enable you to take control of your life. Another benefit is that you won’t have to spend time thinking of excuses as to why you are late.

Tips to taking control of time so you won’t be late:

• If you are chronically late for work, set your alarm to go off 15 minutes earlier. Put your alarm clock far enough away from your bed so you will have to get up to turn it off.
• Do as much as you can the night before. Check the weather and select what you will wear accordingly. If anything needs ironing or steaming, don’t wait until morning when you will be in a hurry. Lay out your accessories and shoes.
• Plan to be five or ten minutes early. These few minutes can go a long way toward goodwill with friends, coworkers, and employers.
• Don’t overbook. If you have more things on your schedule than you can manage, you will never be able to relax or be on time for anything. This involves learning how to say no.
• Expect a delay. If you have a long commute to work, there is a good chance you will be faced with traffic. Plan for it and leave early.
• Know where everything is. If you drop your keys in different places every night, you may have to spend unnecessary time looking for them the next morning. Put them in the same place everyday when you get home, and you’ll save quite a bit of time.
• Keep your gas tank full. You don’t want to drive your car with the fuel level hovering on the empty line. Having to stop for gas, or worse, running out on the way to work or an event, can make you late.