Friendships

8 Ways to Eliminate Late

PAY ATTENTION to how long it takes to do things and make note. Do you

really know exactly how long it takes to drop the kids off and get to work?

SCHEDULE ADEQUATELY and accept that things often take 20 percent

longer to do than you think.

LEAVE PREPARED to be early. Take something productive to work on in

the event you are early. Often we don’t want to be early because we feel like we

will have to wait, and waiting seems like a waste of time.

DON’T ASSUME that the other party feels the same way you do about

lateness. Just because you are okay with people being late, doesn’t mean they

are, even if they say it’s okay.

SET A TIMER. If you have to leave for a meeting at 11:45, set an audio timer

for 11:35. It will remind you—as well as indicate to anyone you’re with—that

time is up. People are less offended by a timer going off than by you saying,

“Oh, sorry I’ve got to go.”

JUST SAY NO. Often we think we can squeeze in one more thing, especially

if it is a favor for a girlfriend or a task for the boss. If you can’t manage it or it

will rush you too much, respectfully decline, or tell them realistically when

you can get to it.

Just decide that you will KEEP YOUR WORD with time commitments, no

matter what. If you can’t keep it, don’t make the appointment or commitment.

Each time you are late, TRACK BACK to the event, action, or incident that

caused you to be late. Once you identified it, think about how you could have

handled it differently so that you could have stayed on schedule. If you do that

enough, you will learn to self-correct lateness.

Mattison Grey

Greystone Guides

www.greystoneguides.com