7 reasons why punctuality at the workplace is priceless

It doesn’t matter how smart, capable and competent you are. If you’re habitually late, be it to work or on deadlines, you run the risk of undermining your professional reputation.

Chronic lateness is frowned upon in the Gulf and it was apparent when His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, recently made surprise visits to local government offices. The Shaikh is known for his early-morning excursions to get up to speed firsthand on whether the offices are working up to Dubai’s globally-admired standards.

As his office tweeted later: “Timeliness starts at the top and we won’t go after employees when their bosses aren’t there.”

Punctuality isn’t a courtesy; it’s a must at the workplace. We give you seven reasons for being on time, every time:

It shows that you are a true professional
Most professionals, be they employees or managers, have one thing in common: they make punctuality a priority. This one habit helps you stand out as a reliable and trustworthy person, one who’s dependable and can be relied on to deliver on time.

It increases your credibility
You may think your job security is based on your performance but that’s not the only thing that matters. Benjamin Franklin said it all when speaking to an employee who was always late but always ready with an excuse: “I have generally found that the man who is good at an excuse is good for nothing else.”

It reveals that you respect other people’s time
When you are punctual, it reveals that you respect others’ time and consider them significant. This trait reflects not just your level of commitment, but also the level of respect that one has for his employers and fellow employees.

It ensures that you are not stressed
Stress is the number one complaint at the workplace, and being on time can reduce work-related stress. Constantly being late means rushing and scrambling to catch up with deadlines and pending work. It not just leads to poor workplace performance; it makes your team and superior anxious and uncomfortable.

It enhances your and the team’s productivity
Being punctual ensures that you get your project done on time and – in an interdependent work environment, ensures that the rest of the team does their bit in time, too. Miriam Dishon-Berkovits and Meni Koslowsky wrote in their paper, Determinants of Employee Punctuality, that a tardy employee “may have a negative influence on employees who arrive on time, specifically on those who have to ‘cover’ for him or her.”

It makes you synonymous with integrity
In the dog-eat-dog world being punctual singles you out as someone with a plethora of positives. It shows that you’re dedicated to the job, interested in your work and keen to take on more. Over time, it also improves your work ethic.

It can help you get ahead
Your performance and skills do matter but punctuality may also help you scale the ladder of career advancement. Diana DeLonzor, author of Never Be
Late Again: 7 Cures for the Punctually Challenged, writes that managers are less likely to promote employees who are perennially late.

A few minutes here and there may not seem like much but in the long run they could add up and affect your job. Majority of the respondents in a York College of Pennsylvania study titled Professionalism in the Workplace said that the best way to get dismissed from a job is to have poor attendance and “a lack of punctuality”.

We would do well to remember Shakespeare: Better three hours too soon than a minute too late !

Which kind of unpunctual personality are you?

Diana DeLonzor, author of Never Be Late Again: 7 Cures for the Punctually Challenged, classifies “late” people into seven types:

The Deadliner Enjoys the rush of the last minute
The Producer Loves to get as much done in as little time as possible
The Absent-Minded Professor Gets easily distracted and shifts focus
The Rationalizer Never fully admits to her lateness
The Indulger Lacks discipline and self-control
The Evader Attempts to control feelings of anxiety, low self-esteem by being late
The Rebel Is always late to assert power

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