Punctuality

CLOCK WATCHING

Being mindful of the time can mean a lot. Want to do well at work? Be punctual. Because, just being on time is all that some people will ever ask of you.

Being on time, sends out the message of professionalism and respect. Punctuality means consideration for others' needs will be met. Precision and attention to details - a consistency for doing hard work and reliability. This will be the message received - all without doing anything other than being somewhere when you say you will be. 

Getting into the habit of being on time, takes nothing more than setting a time and then sticking to it. Yet many cannot keep to something so very simple. This because they have become used to throwing out excuses why they are late. 

Blaming Others

We all do it. If we can shoulder blame elsewhere, we will - especially on our partners. It makes us think we're doing the right thing and someone else isn't, when in fact, the partnership is mutually flawed. Thing is, when timings are mentioned without consideration for factoring in the needs of the other parties involved, we tend to allow time slippage to happen without making prior allowances for it. So, once a time has been agreed, this agreement should also make allowance for some contingency too. That way, unforeseen circumstances can be adjusted for and countered against without the need for blame. The contingency plan means we'll still be on time too.

Removing the Badge

I've been late on many occasions and so has my partner. Without realising it, we've now allowed ourselves to become labelled as those people who are constantly late. It's become expected of us. My partner will blame me and me her. And no matter how hard I now try to be on time, this label has become firmly fixed. Because we are one unit in our friend's eyes, we are both tarred with the same brush and it will take a lot of hard work for us both to remove this slight on our characters.

Consistency is the Key
If I'm to remove my always late badge - I need to first establish clear timings in advance. This starts from the moment I wake up. Deciding the night before on having a clear time to get up plus establishing a mutual & definite morning routine for exercise, eating, ablutions and preparation for the day, means a routine (with some factored-in contingency) can easily be set and adhered to without deviations from the set timings. 

If this structure can be retained over days/weeks - the chances of sticking to it over longer periods of time will be increased and a new focus on sticking to timings will be established. 

Definite Timings

Agreement in advance is paramount for keeping good timings. We now have shared diaries for collaborative events. Timings are there for all to see. So if they aren't working, this needs to be addressed. If timings cannot be mutually kept, then individual times need to be established. If only one member of the partnership is on time, it's still a late blip in the eyes of the third party. So agree definite times even if they are staggered and be clear with whoever is meeting up that these are agreeable for all. 

I pledge to always be on time (from today)

Be serious about this new pledge to make it stick. I've now told myself that the new regime will be started from today. This has also been agreed with all parties concerned (namely, my partner). And just like a business contract, this will be continually assessed to ensure punctuality is adhered to from this day onwards.