Punctuality, in general, is a way of honoring the people you are working with or associating with.
It communicates respect and honor for others when I show up on time. If I make you wait on me (when I’m late), in essence I am communicating that my time is more valuable than yours and that my presence is more important than yours.
If I am comfortable in regularly showing up late for something, either I don’t think it affects others, I feel that my time is more valuable than someone else’s, or I am being asked to do something that is physically or morally impossible. (Sometimes there are legitimate complications that may cause someone to be late. We are mainly discussing here the issue of habitual patterns and not infrequent incidents.)
I remember an old boss of mine many years ago saying, “We’ve got a dollar waiting on a dime.” The reality is that not everyone’s time is of the same value. Generally speaking, the person who is paid the highest wage for what they do or whose decisions and work affects the most people, should be most honored in regard to time.
If you are making your boss wait on you it is NOT good! It would be far better for you to wait on the boss. If those in authority cannot trust you with time, do you think they’ll be comfortable trusting you with important projects and budgets? Not likely.
More next time.
Dane's Blog 