Sep
Image by koalazymonkey via Flickr
There’s an old saying that 90% of what you do in life is just showing up. While some people consider this to be true, almost everyone will agree that showing up on time is 100% of life. However, some people still think that it’s okay to be consistently late to various appointments.
There are very few situations where it’s not rude to make others wait on you. If you keep your friends waiting too often, they’ll start to think that you don’t care about your friendship enough to be there on time.
Being frequently late to your job is an obvious behavior to avoid, yet some people continue to do it. Most companies have no problem firing an employee who’s consistently late. Similarly, being late to classes can mean that you miss out on important information that could have an effect on your grade. Being late will almost always result in negative consequences, while it will rarely impart any benefits.
First, being late is a good way to waste your energy unnecessarily. You’ll often be forced to make up excuses for your lateness, and you’ll start to run out of excuses very quickly if it happens regularly.
Put your brain to better use by arriving on time and concentrating on the things that really matter. You also cause yourself undue stress by being late, so don’t add another unnecessary source of stress to your life; you have enough already.
If you’re paid as an hourly employee by your company, it’s almost a guarantee that they want you to show up on time every day. Many offices allow a five-minute grace period before they consider you tardy, but it’s really best not to push your employer’s patience.
Think about it this way: if you arrive to work on time every day while another coworker has a less-than-stellar record when it comes to tardiness, who will the bosses be more apt to promote? All other things equal, being punctual will display good time management skills, and that could mean the difference in getting you the next promotion.
Whatever your situation, it’s always going to be the case that being on time has benefits while being late has consequences. Save yourself the headache and make it a goal to always be on time, and you’ll reap the rewards.
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