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Break free from shackles of tardiness
Are you labelled a perpetual latecomer to office? It’s time you take a serious note of it and become time conscious. Turning up late repeatedly is definitely a blot on your persona. You may have a new reason every time you turn up late but you cannot avoid suspicious glances from every one around for, no reason provides a complete excuse.
If your problem is chronic tardiness, no wonder you are flooded with advice from all quarters. Not that you are unaware of those precious little things that you need to follow to be on time-set an alarm clock, get up early, be more organised or start early from home. You have been listening to them since you were in school. Still your efforts to be on time fail and you end up being late time and again. Perhaps you go into a sort of time warp every morning. The best thing would be to change your mindset.
Do you feel smugly comfortable thinking there is no serious fallout from being late except for attracting scornful looks of co-workers and the occasional pull up from the boss? You may be wrong. It is better to realise soon that your career progress rides on your ability to be on time.
By being late to work frequently, you end up projecting yourself as irresponsible, unreliable and unorganised. This doesn’t augur well if your goal is promotion, rewards or meaty assignments. Remembering this each morning should be a stimulant enough for you to time-manage.
The biggest payoff is with your stress level. You can prevent the impact of the morning meltdown, the stress and tension relating to running against time that threatens to ruin your entire day. Heed the on-timer’s advice. Do as much as you can the night before- laying out clothes, packing handbags, and briefcases, charging cell phones and polishing shoes. Play some music in the mornings. It will certainly lift your spirits and will also get you moving a bit faster. Often being late implies there simply isn’t enough effort on your part.
Avoid doing things that make you lose track of time. Put a tab on watching TV, reading newspapers, spending time on computer and chatting endlessly on your mobile. If you can’t get yourself going in the morning, yoga or any form of physical exercise should help you. Remember if you cannot manage something as simple as your personal schedule, you cannot expect others to trust you on more important things.
If parenting or childcare intrude into your schedule and make it impossible for you to get to work on time, negotiate with your boss before he questions you. Admit that it is a problem and you are working on it.
Offer to work late or compensate for time lost. If things don’t work out it is better to look for a new job with flexible timings or where travel time is less. If boredom or lack of interest is your reason for going late to work, look for a more interesting job before tardiness becomes more of a habit. There are some people who try to convey an aspect of self-importance by being late to office. They want to show they carry extra clout and are above rules. If you come under that category, realise that false pretensions lead you nowhere. Try some thing worthwhile to enhance your superiority at work like coming out with a stellar performance.
Punctuality is a key habit to develop to hang on to your job and more importantly if you want to excel in it. So break free from time hassles and watch success follow you.
N. PURNIMA SRIKRISHNA
faqs@cnkonline.com
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