Do you find it difficult to get to places on time? You may not give importance to punctuality. Maybe you consider it important but you do not manage to be on time. Or maybe you like to be punctual and it bothers you that others arrive late.
Let us see why punctuality is a virtue and a skill that can be trained. How you can be on time or teach others to be punctual.
Why do you have a hard time being punctual?
Your first response may be that you are very busy and that you simply do not manage to be on time. That can be a reason. But then you should consider how you organise your time. If you go running everywhere your agenda might be too full of commitments. In addition, you may not have calculated the trips when acquiring those commitments or scheduling those meetings.
But there may also be other reasons. Maybe you have a hidden fear of getting there first? You may not like having nothing to do. That is to say, you are afraid to arrive and have to wait alone.
What is punctuality
Being punctual means arriving neither too early nor too late. Both extremes hint at things that you may not like. If you arrive very soon you will denote insecurity and anxiety. If you arrive late it seems that you do not respect the time of others. When we talk about meeting with people, the ideal is to arrive at the same time or a little earlier than others.
The benefits of punctuality
First of all you show respect for the people you are meeting or the organisers of the event you attend. Besides, being punctual means arriving without stress. You will have time to greet people and put yourself in situation. That is, you can prepare yourself mentally for the meeting or the event.
How to learn to be punctual
Punctuality begins in the morning
How you start your day sets the tone for the rest of day. If you get up with just enough time to get ready in a hurry and leave the house running, then you have every chance to start the day stressed and any contingencies will add just more stress.
That is why I suggest that you calculate how much time you really need in the morning to be able to leave with enough time from home. Depending on this, get up early so that you can shower, dress and have breakfast calmly, even meditate or exercise before leaving home. You will start the day calmly and you will also leave home on time and without hurries.
Anticipate the unexpected and not so unexpected
Do you usually arrive late because of a traffic jam, because you cannot find a parking space, the train has left in front of your eyes or there is no taxi available? Really these are not unforeseen but probable things that can happen to you. Then there are unforeseen things that can arise. Your car may break down. Maybe the train you usually take is out of service. You may have forgotten something at home and need to return.
To decide what time you should leave home or to a meeting, remember that these things can happen. This way you ensure you arrive on time and without stress. Besides nowadays, with the help of navigation systems and online maps you can easily figure out how long it takes you to get somewhere.
And if no incident arises? In the worst case you arrive early. Well, if that you can always have a coffee, catch up on emails or read for a while.
Help stick to meeting times
When we go to a meeting we need to arrive a few minutes early. Let us say you have a meeting that starts at 9:30. You arrive at the exact time, greet other attendees, store your jacket, look for a place to sit, take out your notebook … and have spent at least five minutes.
Whether or not you are the organiser of a meeting, you can help the meeting go smoothly by showing up punctual, that means a few minutes earlier, to help start the meeting on time. But finishing the meeting on time will also help all attendees to arrive punctually to their subsequent commitments. That is why I suggest that you not only arrive on time, but also prepare yourself well for the meeting in order to help make it as effective as possible.
Punctuality in job interviews
Earlier I mentioned that being punctual means not arriving too soon or too late. This is especially important in the case of job interviews. Needless to say, being late for an interview is the worst thing you can do if you want to show interest in the position. So organise yourself so that you do not arrive late under any circumstances.
With the worry of not being late you may have arrived very soon. Then I recommend that you do not notify immediately of your arrival. The interviewer may interpret that you are insecure, too anxious or even desperate to get the job. Rather kill time until five minutes before the agreed time and then announce your arrival.
Punctuality in public events
When we talk about attending a conference or another type of public event, arriving on time also means arriving a few minutes early. Depending on the format of the event you will want to go to the wardrobe or the bathroom. Maybe you want to greet other attendees. Then you will want to find a good place to sit. All this will take you at least five to fifteen minutes.
The good thing is that in most events they reserve half an hour in the agenda for the arrival or registration of the attendees. Therefore being punctual in this case means to arrive during that period of time and not at the time at which the conference begins.
Punctuality in private events
Here I mean meeting with family, friends or acquaintances. If you have agreed to meet at some place, arriving on time will mean arriving a little bit before or at the same time as the rest. If you know the habits of the people you are meeting, you will know if they are usually punctual. So get organised based on it. But do not be afraid to arrive first either. Is it really so bad to have to wait a bit? You will surely come up with something to entertain yourself. Worse is arriving so late that the other needs to wait half an hour for you.
Obviously this does not apply to meeting for the cinema or theatre for example. Make sure you arrive at least ten minutes before the show. Do not make your friends wait all nervous thinking if you arrive or not and if they will miss the beginning of the show because of you.
If you are meeting at someone’s home, confirm at what time or in what time period you are welcome. Here I suggest you take into account possible cultural differences. People from Nordic or English-speaking countries have a more rigid concept of punctuality than people from Mediterranean and Arab countries for example. Depending on the origin of the host, the concept of punctuality may vary. What is usually bad manners anywhere is to arrive before the agreed time.
But communication fixes these things. So, if you want to be a good guest, in case of doubt ask the host what time they really want you to arrive.
Last advice
If you know that you are going to be late, I recommend that you let others know. In my opinion it is rude to be late. But not letting know is an even greater disrespect.
Do you have trouble being punctual?
Are you one of those who find it hard to arrive on time? Why do you think that is the case? Which of the tips will help you be more punctual?
