12 Simple Tips for Chronically Late People

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We’ve all been late before and we’ve all waited on someone who was late. It’s usually not the end of the world, but tardiness should not be a habit.

Being late here and there is forgivable. Being late to every single thing is stressful, disrespectful, and unnecessary. If you’re chronically late to everything, we have helpful tips and tricks to implement into your routine. With a little effort, you can curb your tardy habits and become pleasantly punctual.

Surround Yourself With Clocks

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One of the top ways to work on your tardiness is to surround yourself with clocks. Don’t be shy here; put at least one clock in every room in your home, get a watch, and make sure you have a clock at work or anywhere else you spend considerable time. The first step to being on time is ensuring you’re always aware of the time.

Prep and Plan as Much as Possible

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People are often late because they try to get something done before leaving or are delayed by a task. Set yourself up for success by planning ahead, so figure out how long it’ll take to reach your location, the parking situation, and other factors. Prepare by picking your clothes out the night before, completing any tasks you might need to do in the morning, and anything else that could slow you down.

Keep a Detailed Schedule

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Whether you use your iPhone calendar, a fancy app, or a traditional paper planner, you need to keep a detailed schedule. Guessing what time something starts is a great way to be late. Forgetting you had plans almost guarantees you’ll show up after the expected time. Make life easier; create a scheduling system that works for you so you have a better handle on your time and commitments.

Use Time Buffers

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This classic hack for being late is one of the most effective. If something starts at 10 AM, pretend it starts at 9:30 AM. If you must leave your house by 8 PM, try to leave by 7:45 PM. The idea is to give yourself some leeway so that if anything slows you down, you can hopefully still make it on time. Basically, don’t arrive on time by the skin of your teeth; give yourself some wiggle room! This will reduce that stressful, hurried feeling.

Set Timers for Tasks and Activities

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If you’re often late because you get distracted by what you’re doing, set timers and alarms. It could be a one-hour timer for folding your laundry or an alarm 30 minutes before you must head out. The ideal timer or alarm depends on the situation, but the point is to set time limits on tasks and activities so they don’t bleed into the time when you should be getting ready to leave.

Reduce Screen Time

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Doom scrolling, playing video games, and binge-watching TV shows often cause people to lose track of time and be late. Try to limit your screen time overall, as it can massively drain your time. Specifically, don’t head to a screen to kill time before an event; odds are, you’ll get pulled in and become “time blind.”

Reward Your Self for Earliness

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An excellent way to combat tardiness is to swing the other way. Show up to everything early, whether it’s ten minutes or 45 minutes. You might be surprised by the feeling of relief being early brings you. Reward yourself with time on your phone before everyone else shows up or a cup of coffee after the meeting. The reward can be anything that makes being early worth it!

Reframe Your Punctuality Mindset

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You might not think being on time is a big deal, but it is. Being late implies you don’t respect other people’s time. Being early is not a waste of your time. Punctuality shows respect, attentiveness, and credibility, so it’s more important than you might think.

Assume Everything Takes Longer

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We often try to squeeze “quick” things into our schedules. Pumping gas should only take a minute; running inside to use the bathroom will just take a second! These things may seem like they take “no time at all,” but that’s simply not true. When adding these small things to your schedule, overestimate how long they’ll take you.

Practice Patience

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Funny enough, many chronically late people are very impatient. Being early and waiting for someone or something drives them nuts. They often become irate if caught in unexpected traffic since they’re probably already running late. Practicing patience can make some of the inconveniences of being punctual more palatable.

Stop Procrastinating

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Procrastination often results in frantic rushing and a late arrival. Get things out of the way as soon as possible so nothing is hanging over you when it’s time to go. So, do not leave your dishes until five minutes before you need to head to work, and do not wait until the last minute to shower before plans with someone.

Consider Why You’re Late

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While all our tips and tricks can help you be on time, determining the cause of your chronic lateness can be highly beneficial. Are you running late because you don’t want to go? Are you late because someone rushed you and you’re rebelling? Do you not think time is valuable? Find the root cause and take steps to address it.

Acknowledge Your Lateness

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One of the most frustrating things about chronically late people is how they don’t seem to think their lateness is a problem. If you still struggle to be on time, at least do your best to take accountability for your lateness. Don’t make excuses. Acknowledging lateness to yourself and others can encourage timeliness and possibly show you how your tardiness affects everyone.

Make Punctuality a Habit

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Like anything, punctuality takes practice. If you try to be on time, and it doesn’t work, don’t call it quits. If you start falling back into old habits, make efforts to course correct. Eventually, all the tricks mentioned here will become habitual, and you’ll be known as the friend who is always on time!

Try These 14 Yoga Poses To Manage Emotions

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When you get nervous, you might get a tummy ache. Or you may feel red hot when angry. Our physical bodies and emotions are entangled, so you can manage your emotions through your movement.

Yoga poses can release or create feelings, from joy to rage to grief. The emotional power of each pose can be wielded to achieve emotional balance. The following poses allow you to address common emotional states — positive and negative — to stay centered and grounded.

13 One-Minute Habits To Streamline Your Workflow And Increase Productivity

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Every day, you get 1,440 minutes. Use them wisely, and you can skyrocket your productivity.

Hidden in those minutes is the chance to make a big difference with tiny habits that take just one minute. These super easy habits fit into your day so smoothly you’ll hardly notice them. But don’t let that fool you. Their simplicity is what makes them stick.

You have all over 1400 minutes every day—why not spend a few on habits that pay off big time? Here are 13 micro-habits that promise to streamline your workflow and maximize your output with the least effort, proving that sometimes, the smallest tweaks lead to the greatest gains.

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Veronica is a lifestyle and culture writer from Boston, MA, with a passion for entertainment, fashion, and food. She graduated from Boston University in 2019 with a bachelor's in English literature. If she's not in the kitchen trying new recipes, she's binging the latest HBO series, catching up on the hottest trends in Vogue, or falling down a research rabbit hole. Her writing experience ranges from global news articles to celebrity gossip pieces to movie reviews and more.
Her byline appears in publications like The Weather Channel, The Daily Meal, The Borgen Project, MSN, Wealth of Geeks, and Not Deer Magazine. She writes about what inspires her — a stylish Wes Anderson film, a clever cleaning hack, a surprising fashion trend. When she’s not writing about life's little joys, she’s keeping her dog away from rabbits and spending too much money on kitchenware.

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