Are you always late? Even just 5 minutes is late. Being late might not seem like a big deal to those who are always late, but it is in fact a big deal. Let me tell you why.
When you’re late you impact other people. Let’s say you’re 20 minutes late to a meeting. Depending upon the role you play in the group that’s meeting, and whether or not those waiting on you have a good sense of how to handle meetings, the meeting may not start until after you get there. Once you walk in 20 minutes late, there’s usually the greetings, small talk and other things that take place instead of the meeting agenda. That 20 minute delay then turns into a 30 minute delay and things at that point are way off track, ending with either the meeting agenda not being completely covered or with those in attendance leaving the meeting late, having a domino affect on their day and those around them.
Not only does chronic tardiness affect others, it’s not all that great for your reputation and it can cost you greatly in the work environment. It will do everything from annoying peers to losing a job because of tardiness. It can also impact your self esteem and shows a lack of respect for others. Do you know people who are always late? Maybe you think that they like the attention they get when they walk in late, or perhaps that they think their time is more valuable than others, or that they just manage their time poorly. What’s your perception of them? There’s more to it than meets the eye. Check out my next post to see what I mean.