How to react when someone is late for an appointment
Do you respect other people’s time? Or are you always running late? Do you know how it feels when someone is late for an appointment?
I understand that every now and again we can be late for appointments or meetings. However, when we continuously show up late, expect the other person to wait for us and don’t inform about our delays we are being disrespectful!
When you’re late you are disrespecting another person’s time
So how do we react when someone is late for an appointment? Below I come with my personal opinion on how to react when someone is late for an appointment. This is based on the many times I’ve experienced delays or people not showing up for scheduled appointments.
How to react when someone doesn’t respect your time
- Set your boundaries. Don’t be afraid to contact the person and tell them exactly how you feel. If someone doesn’t respect your time, let them know
- If you are trying to partner up with someone on a business project, and they keep showing up late, perhaps it’s time to look for someone else. I personally don’t think it’s healthy to work with anyone who doesn’t respect my time.
- Let people know what time means to you. Be clear and set boundaries from the beginning.
- Your behavior shows the world who you are. If you always come late, it shows you’re unprofessional, disrespectful and careless. One day you’ll realize how little progress you’ve done in your life or your business. It is hard to trust someone who’s always late.
- If you want to gain respect, stick to your commitments. If it’s difficult for you to be on time, and you always have an excuse, you basically have no self-discipline. You are most probably unorganized, unsettled inside, and confused about what you want in life.
- Stop being too nice. Be real and honest! Trying to please everyone and saying “okay, no problem” all the time, will attract those people who will take advantage of you, and they will keep disrespecting your time. Remember, when someone disrespects your time, they disrespect you!
- Be open and understanding. You don’t have to go through life being hard as a rock. Simply set healthy boundaries, and communicate clear. When you put out clear information, you show the other person what is important to you. It’s okay to speak up.
- Don’t blame the other person for being late. Know the difference between reacting and responding. Just be clear and let the other person know that you can’t wait any longer, and let them know they’ve disrespected your time.
Start thinking about others. It’s not just about you. If you see you’re running late, call or inform the other person about it. Don’t just ignore it. Try to put yourself in the other person’s shoe, and imagine how it must feel for them, when they’re waiting for you in the burning sun, in a cafe, in an office, on the street or in a work space. If you respect other people’s time they will respect yours.
Treat other people’s time just the way you would like other people to treat your time. This is called respect! By constantly being late you communicate that you don’t value other people.
If you can’t be on time, then be early,
