Employee Guide - How To Minimize Tardiness
Tardiness is one of the most common problems among employees today. Since more companies are taking serious battle against tardiness at work, certain policies are implemented which can make an employment status become jeopardized. According to a study, one in three employers have fired an employee due to tardiness. While 48% of employers are expecting their employees to report on time everyday, 34% say they allow their workers to be late once in a while for as long as being late does not become a habit in the long run. On the other hand, 18% waived their right to care about being late for as long as the job is perfectly done and finished on time.
It is quite interesting to note the most common excuses why people report to work later than their expected time. The most common excuses are as follows:
- heavy traffic
- lack of sleep
- public transportation problems
- bad weather
- dropping kids off to school
In this modern time, people seem to be very busy on so many things that they tend to forget how to manage their time wisely. They spend long hours on the internet just to check their social media newsfeed, or to read new posts on twitter. Some people tend to watch the latest movies at hand while others are often busy with their mobile phones in exchanging messages with friends. I am not saying that these are to be eradicated in our lives, and I am not an anti-social person, just in case you're curious. All I want to point out here is that people now lack self-discipline and time management. Why? They usually do these extra activities in the evening until midnight or 2 o'clock in the morning, which eventually lead to lack of sleep and of course, tardiness. The worse part is, they keep on doing this again and again in the expense of their own employment.
There are also unpreventable factors which can cause you delay for work. They are inevitable, and we don't have control over these circumstances. Few examples are untoward accidents, emergencies, and bad weather which bring so much inconvenience on your part. Having these reasons are quite acceptable, but remember, companies have different policies regarding lateness and it's all up to the human resource personnel or to your superior to decide whether your reason is valid or not.
Effects of Tardiness
When you come to work late, what you do not know is that you are actually destroying yourself physically and mentally.
When we are late, we tend to beat the time, and the only thing to achieve that is through rushing things up - skipping breakfast, stressful running towards the office, and sacrificing personal hygiene (not taking a bath and not brushing teeth) just to make it on time as possible. Aside from that, the negative habit of tardiness also ills our mental state. Based on experience, when you know that you're already delayed, you surely feel anxious and stressed when you are on your way to the office. This is because you are afraid of the consequences and penalties that might be imposed on you for violating a company policy. Much more afraid of your boss who will be mad at you. Most of all, a sense of embarrassment is felt when co-workers stare at you when you pass by the hall way, making a grand entrance with sweat and disastrous look. Sounds stressful, isn't it? That doesn't stop there. Being tardy can also ruin your honesty! Yes, you read it right. Some are forced to make false stories just to make their excuses sound to be valid to anybody else. They are doing this to avoid committing violations thus saving them from punishments or penalty charges.
Tips On How To Avoid Tardiness
The causes and effects of tardiness have been discussed earlier. Now, let me give you the simple tips on how to end that habit of tardiness. Read through the tips below, and together let's live a healthier, more productive life.
1. Try using an alarm clock to wake you up
This one is literally simple. Since lack of sleep is a common reason for the delay, then it wouldn't be a surprise if I'd say that an alarm clock can be your best buddy. You can use this to wake you up on time. Just be extra careful in setting the alarm. I've been through that experience before when I wrongly set the time. Instead of 6AM, I entered 6PM and then every thing else turned bad after that such bad mistake. Most of us have smartphones so i guess we should utilize the alarm clock application on it.
2. Set your built in body clock
Believe it or not, we do have a built in body clock. Our bodies respond differently at certain period of time. Have you ever asked yourself why you feel hungry during lunch time? Your mind and stomach is actually telling you that its noon time, and you should have your lunch or else you'll be having stomachaches. The reaction is periodic because it has been done that way, that is, to eat foods during lunchtime. In short, your body is getting used to it as you are constantly doing it everyday. You can utilize this body feature in helping you to get up on time. Let's say you'll sleep at 10 pm and wake up at 6 am the next day. Continue doing this everyday, and you'll see that your body starts to get used to it. When this becomes a habit, you'll probably not need an alarm clock anymore.
3. Avoid the heavy traffic
I know traffic has been listed as the most common excuse, so I guess, we should tackle this subject in this article. Please avoid the heavy traffic by using alternative routes leading to your destination. You can ask help from friendly traffic enforcers as to what particular streets are less susceptible to traffic during the time of your travel. Also, avoid rush hours as they bring you stress from heavy traffic jam. Make it a habit to allocate an allowance of 30-60 minutes, just to make sure you'll never end up late again.
4. Check the weather news
Will it rain? Weather forecasts will help you determine the weather condition of the following day. Our experience would tell us that bad weather is literally a bad day because it causes inconvenience such as heavy traffic and flooded streets. When you know about the weather condition, you can surely prepare yourself by coming early to work the next day.
5. Work out your day-to-day schedule
Make a list of daily important activities that you want to accomplish. Focus your attention to this list and please avoid procrastination. If you can do it, better do it now and you'll be much happy afterwards. On the other hand, always make it a habit to prepare all your necessary things at night (before going to sleep). Pick out the best suit/dress and check your bags, just in case you forgot to bring something important for work. Being an organized person is the key here. It might be difficult at the start, but constant practice makes it a perfect solution for your problem.
6. Consider flexible working schedule
When the above tips fail, and you've found out that you are not really available for work, say early in the morning, then why don't you ask your boss for a flexible schedule? In this set up, you are free to choose a working time schedule appropriate to your lifestyle and convenience.
This article serves as a guide to those people who want to improve their working habits. I suggest that you should have strong determination and self-discipline in order to achieve long-term goals such as this one. If this helped you in any way, please don't hesitate to share this to your friends, or drop by your valuable comments below.
Photo credits:
All photos from pixabay, CC0 Public Domain
