Are you a Late Latif?

Are you one of those people, who is late for everything, be it school or a movie or party? You must be feeling awful about that, struggling with Monday Morning Blues, last-minute-homework, missing the school bus, the list is endless. And you also must have realised that you had to pay a heavy price for just one ‘bad’ habit. So, how do you kick it off?

Not-being-on-time is a syndrome which most of us suffer from and sometimes the habit consumes you so much that you wouldn’t know how to combat it . “Discipline , punctuality and sticking to deadlines is something I’ve learnt because of my army officer-dad’s upbringing,” says Avantika Mishra, model-turned-actress who is known in the modelling world for her punctuality.

“I remember my day used to start with a wristwatch as a kid! That’s dad, he would drive us to play since he believed exercise is the best way to start the day and I would end up late to school. When the report went to him, he said he’d like to be known as father of a daughter who knows the value of time. And after that he didn’t have the need to say it again. I would get up early in the morning for my badminton sessions and be on time for school. Years after that I relived the laziness again for which I had to pay a heavy price. I was trying to get into one of the best engineering colleges in Bangalore. I realised it was the last day to apply and rushed to the college. Fortunately I could manage the seat on merit in the last minute, again this happened because I was on time.”

Many youngsters today feel being on time gives a school-kid image to them and are looked down by their peers as someone not-so-cool. But Pranita, pursuing graduation in Life Sciences says, “When you are on time, your teachers actually look up to you, since you are respecting their time. I understand, time wasted is time lost. In fact, when I plan my day carefully I am left with ample time to actually laze around, so where’s the question of not having luxury?!”

Many educational institutions are known for their time-keeping policies. Says Sonal, special educator in Meridien school, “Our school is known for its efficient transport facility. Not only that, we constantly monitor latecomers and work hand in hand with parents in case the problem persists. Our assemblies focus time and again on being prompt. Mild punishments like standing out in corridors generally helps those with self-respect to amend their ways”

Says Lata, psychologist, “It pays to instil values like these at a very early age, I remember as kids we used to have punishments like ‘cane-stick’ remedy! It did work at that time, but as we grew up we realised making students responsible for their own deeds and misdeeds is better that corporal punishments. The former is long-term, latter is short-term”

Isha Yoga asks the participants to be on time, and the very first day of orientation the teachers asks, “What does 6 ‘o’clock mean to you, 6.15 or 6.30? To us teachers, 6 means 5.45 and true to that, the teachers would be at the place to receive participants. In spite of warnings and reminders if participants still come late, they are not allowed to take part in the programme, the fee would be reimbursed or they would be asked to attend the coming session”

Many schools have handled latecomers ‘smartly’ by denying or cutting down the break/snack time or sometimes cancelling the games classes. While this does help them to some extent, the best way is to tell students through various ways that time is important and its mandatory to stick to deadlines. St Peter’s School has a month devoted to punctuality where students prepare skits, essays, cartoons, assembly talks, etc., all based on time!

Tollywood hero Harshvardhan says, “ Being on time saves you from turning into a wreck with tension! I began to work at a very tender age of 12 and I learnt lessons the hard way whenever I was late. My acting guru, Barry John, always told me -- being on time is a part of your acting classes -- and he made sure I was on time. I still remember my first movie ‘Takita Takita’ audition in Mumbai for which I was spot-on and cleared through auditions. Being time-bound makes your life comfortable as well as that of others too!”