On Time? You're Late!

First a quote: “Early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.” – Eric Jerome Dickey

Hello and happy Monday,

Do you have one, or more, of “those friends” to whom you lie on a frequent basis?

The lie I’m referring to might be about the starting time of a meeting, or perhaps dinner reservations at a popular restaurant? That friend is the person who is almost always, predictably, late.

And the lie you tell that person, “Our reservations are at 7:45 pm.” In actuality, the reservations are for 8:00 pm.

The reason for the lie is obvious to you, and certainly justified in your mind.

You’re thinking predictably poor behavior on their part justifies a lie on my part.

I’m often curious about what goes on in the mind of a habitually tardy person.

Is it simply poor planning, their upbringing, or some deeper psychological underpinning, perhaps some distorted view of their own self-importance.

Or are they simply careless and disrespectful of other people’s time.

Please know my opinions on this topic are skewed in the opposite direction. I was raised by a father who shared Eric Dickey’s definition of what being on time means. In fact, I often attributed Eric's quote to my dad not knowing the origins of those thoughts.

“Early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.” – Eric Jerome Dickey

I also worked for a company where the cultural norm for an announced 8:00 am meeting was to begin at 7:50 am. It was not uncommon for the meeting room door to be locked at that time. Late arrivals were simply barred from entering the room and participating in the meeting. ?

I will say that approach worked.

People were rarely late to meetings after being locked out for being tardy in the past.

This article is not about people (including me) who are occasionally late. Life is complicated. Unintended interruptions are commonplace. Putting it plainly, stuff happens! It is reasonable to assume there will often be things that get in the way of our timeliness.

This article is about the people who are frequently, perhaps even habitually, late for all kinds of events, gatherings, dinners, and meetings. Don’t we all know at least a couple of these people.

Tardiness is expensive for all involved, for the organization, for non-offenders, and for the guilty parties.

For the organization:

There is the cost of lost time and productivity.

As an example, assume you’re attending a meeting where 12 people are expected to participate. To make the math simpler, assume each of those participants earn $20 per hour* not including benefits. Also assume the meeting is delayed ten minutes by one or more late arrivals.

The estimated cost of that seemingly short delay is:

• 12 people x 10-minute delay = 120 minutes/two hours in total lost time for the collective. One person's tardiness, if the group waits, costs the group two hours in total time.
• A "meeting run rate” of $240 per hour (12 people x $20 per hour = $240)
• $240 per hour x two hours of lost time/missed productivity = $480

The attitude of “What’s the big deal, it was only a few minutes?” is quite expensive.

* This is a low hourly rate in many, if not most organizations. The average “meeting run rate” for executive teams is likely to be many times the numbers estimated above. And unfortunately, senior leaders are often as guilty as other associates.

“Time is money.” – Benjamin Franklin

In addition to the financial costs illustrated above, there will also be other “soft costs” which are more difficult to measure; but are just as real. My friend Rick Williams refers to these as “Blue Dollar Costs.” ?This refers to known costs which are simply harder to measure but just as important as those which are easily measured.

Morale for instance. It is reasonable to assume there will be increased levels of frustration and decreased levels of teamwork in groups with chronic tardiness patterns of behavior.

For the non-offenders:

In a world where work/life balance continues to be a challenge for most, wasted time and lost productivity only multiplies the problem.?Most of us spend not only too much time at work, but also too much time in unproductive or ineffective meetings.

Assume for a minute that a person attends only two meetings per day on each of four days for a total of eight meetings per week. Also, please assume, six of those eight meetings start 10 minutes late.

Those non-offenders, who made the effort to arrive on time for those same meetings, lost an hour of productivity (6 meetings each starting 10 minutes late) while waiting for those meetings to begin.

Perhaps, if that time had been used more effectively, they might have been able to spend that hour with their families or in some other meaningful way.

For conflict-adverse individuals, who might be unwilling to confront repeat offenders, they are likely to experience higher levels of resentfulness, stress, and anxiety. There is also the probability of lower levels of teamwork as mentioned above.

And possible costs for the guilty parties:

I suspect most habitually late people don’t see any of this as a big deal. They’re probably thinking, “It is only a few minutes, what is all the fuss about?” Or maybe they’re thinking, “I’m not that important, just begin without me.”

“Arriving late is a way of saying your own time is more valuable than the time of the person who waited for you.” ?– Karen Joy Fowler

This is even more important in high performance organizations and cultures. I submit there are also potential “career & relational costs” to be considered including:

• Lost credibility – Credibility and dependability are very much linked. If a person isn’t perceived as dependable, then their credibility will be questioned as well. One measure of dependability can be a person’s predictable timeliness. Clearly credibility can be measured, or assumed, in many ways beyond timeliness.
• Lost respect – Respect is a two-way street. When people don’t feel respected, it is more difficult for them to extend respect in return. For many people, showing up late for an agreed upon event, be it social or professional, is a sign of disrespect. For many, when a person is continually late, it appears to others that they see themselves as more important than everyone else; that what they had to do is more important than what others might be doing.

“The while we keep a man waiting, he reflects on our shortcomings.” – Unknown

• Guilt-related stress – For many, being frequently late can lead to an internal sense of guilt that can build over time and become a barrier to relationships and productivity.
• Reduced probability for promotion or expanded responsibilities – When looking to promote someone into a higher position of responsibility, most companies prefer people who will lead positively by example. They want to promote people with exemplary work habits and practices.
• Damaged relationships – Over time, people tend to become resentful when continually disrespected or diminished by the poor time management behaviors of others. Teamwork breaks down. Relationships become increasingly difficult.

Repeating, the personal and professional costs for being habitually late can be high, even if it is only a few minutes. Time is money. Time is precious. Minutes matter.

If this article hits a little bit close to home for you this week, why not show up at your next meeting early… perhaps with coffee and donuts.

Bonus quotes below.

How will you live, love, or lead, differently, or better, this coming week?

Sincerely,

Bryan Yager

“Expanding Your Capacity for Success”

* Revised and updated. Originally published on February 20, 2023.

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Bonus Quotes:

• “Punctuality is the soul of business.” – Thomas Chandler Haliburton
• “Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.” – William Shakespeare
• “If you want to be regarded as a valuer of life, then first value time.” – Auliq-Ice
• “Perhaps punctuality is a quality made even more valuable because it is found in so few people. Punctuality is not usually thought of in our day as a major virtue.” – Sterling W Sill
• “Being late is not an accident. It is a choice.” – Nicole Bandes
• “If you’re five minutes early, you’re already ten minutes late.” – Vince Lombardi