I'm Going To Be On Time If It Kills Me by:Laura Stack, MBA, CSP

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A quiet amusement of mine is to watch the expression of people who arrive

late for my

time management seminars. (Now you're going to be worried every time you go

to one

of my programs!) The look resembles a child who just got caught with a hand

in the

cookie jar. Tail between the legs, these people shuffle in sheepishly

mumbling

something about traffic, while their friends jibe, "How can you be late for

a time

management class"?

The number one complaint I receive from managers who bring me in to coach

their

folks on performance is something around "the inability to meet deadlines,

is always

late, is constantly running behind, or he/she forgot." There are actually

three types of

people I see:

1. "Late" people are typically perpetually late, for everything.

2. "On time" people typically arrive a minute or two ahead or behind the

goal.

3. "Early" people are rare and are generally early to everything.

Victor Borge's famous comment in concert sums it up nicely. He was well

into his

performance when a woman came in late, fighting her way through the rows to

her seat

near the front. Borge stopped playing and as she proceededtrampling over

people,

embarrassing, rustling, and disturbing her way to her seathe said (much to

her

chagrin, as all eyes focused on her ill-timed arrival) "Excuse me, excuse

me, excuse me."

After she sat down, he walked over near where she was sitting and said,

"Where are

you from, Ma'am?" "Fifty-Seventh Street," she said. "Well, Lady, I'm from

Denmark and

I was here on time."

People are much more irritated by lateness than we ever know, it can

dampen

everything from promotions and raises to friendships. Late people crowd us,

physically

and mentally, all the time. We all hate the fact that their lateness undoes

our schedule

and disrupts our day. Showing up late for work or sending something in late,

no matter

how well done, still means a black mark against you.

For example, let's say that you hired me to speak at a conference you

were planning. I

was slotted to be the opening speaker, and I was scheduled to speak at 9:00

AM. At

9:05, I came rushing in, exclaiming that I was trapped in a major traffic

jam. Would you

care? NO! You could care less about my reason. You only care about your

conference

at the time. People expect you to honor their time and your commitments,

just as you

expect that from them. After I gave an incredible speech and everyone loved

me,

would you ever hire me again? NO! In fact, you would remember how

embarrassed

you felt when I was late. You would probably even tell other people about my

tardiness and recommend they don't hire me either!

So I'm an Early, not because I'm soooooo productive, but because I've

discovered the

benefits in doing so. For one of your New Year's productivity goals in 2006,

I'd like to

encourage you to become an Early. Why is it important?

- You get the first choice of many things

- You gain admiration and respect

- You are able to relax and not sweat

- You get good press and publicity

- You get the rest of the time to relax or read

Being an Early makes you look competent and lets others know you can be

depended

upon. Being a Late, however, makes people wonder if you'll come through this

time.

You'll always be bringing up the rear, never totally trusted, no matter how

skilled you

are. Even if you're on "on time," that's fairly typical...boring? It just

doesn't stand out.

It's okay...just expected...yawn. Don't be simply "average"!

LATE says, "I can't make deadlines." EARLY says, "I don't need deadlines."

LATE says, "I'm out of control." EARLY says, "I'm in control."

LATE says, "I can't look beyond the moment." EARLY says, "I look ahead."

Convinced? So how do you become an Early? It has nothing to do with

setting your

watch five minutes fast and "fooling" yourself, because psychologically, you

know it's

five minutes fast, and make up for it anyway. Keep your clocks on the

correct time. It

also doesn't really have anything to do with time management, but with

planning. In

fact, this simple, inexpensive principle will actually *prevent* 50% or more

of your

"time management" problems.

So instead of thinking, "I begin speaking at 9:00 AM," my thoughts rather

go something

like, "I should plan on arriving at 8:00 AM to set up and get prepared."

Then I have to

figure out how long it should take me to get there, a buffer in case there's

traffic, what

time I would need to be dropping the kids off at daycare, what time to get

them up, so

what time I'd have to wake up in order for all that to happen. And I have

lots of things

to do once I have arrived and set up...bills to pay, magazines to peruse,

that report to

read, or thank you letters to write.

Here's a quiz. If you had a speech to give in March, and it's January

now, when would

you begin preparing? The week before? If you started now and researched over

time,

you would be much less stressed and have prepared much more when the time

came.

If you have a trip coming up, do you pack the night before? Why not set the

suitcase

out and drop things in it over the week ahead? If you have to run to the

store for

something you're out of, no problem. You won't be in a last-minute rush and

picking

out clothes at midnight, starting your trip tired and grumpy. When did you

think about

your holiday cards????

Before you sit down to relax each night, ask yourself, "What's coming up

next week?"

"What can I get out of the way now?" I can never go to bed at night without

going over

the next day, knowing exactly where I need to be, what I need to have, and

everything

laid out in front of me. I have clothes selected, school papers signed,

lunches made,

briefcase packed, and schedule outlined. Each month, I plan for the next

month and

look ahead at what needs to be done.

Become an Early, and you won't have "deadlines." They will be unnecessary

since you

complete things early. Deadlines were made for people who would not get

things done

without it. Deadlines eliminate all the job of accomplishment as you work

for the

deadline, not the completion of a project or task. Deadlines are often

irrelevant anyway,

because the task is often put off until the deadline, but it could have been

done much

sooner.

It will take a bit to catch up, but once you're on top of things, stay

one step ahead. You

will experience a new peace of mind. If you are early (no extra cost, no

strain, no

explanations), you don't have to worry about deadlines. So make working

ahead and

early your style, convert "later" to "now," and you'll be much more

efficient in 2006.

Make it a productive day!

About the author

(C) Copyright 2004 Laura Stack, MBA, CSP. All rights

reserved. Portions of this newsletter may be reprinted in your organization

or association newsletter, provided the following credit line is present:

"Laura M. Stack, MBA, CSP, is "The Productivity Pro" and the author of

Leave the Office Earlier. She presents keynotes and seminars on time

management, information overload, and personal productivity. Contact her at

303-471-7401 or Laura@TheProductivityPro.com."

TheProductivityPro.com

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