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The past, present and future are represented by the indefinite continued progress of existence and events. Time is progressive and we can’t really go back in time to try to change things but we can make better use of our time. Like the wise say, you can’t cry over spilt milk, time lost cannot be recovered. I want to talk about two things: showing up on time and using time wisely to produce excellent results.
Show up on time!
I don’t watch a lot of TV but when I do, I always have a takeaway and sometimes the lesson I learn is not to watch a particular show again as it is a complete waste of time for me. I have been watching The Blacklist, and in one of the episodes I heard this quote: “Early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable”. It reminded me of a time when I was taking my driving lessons and my instructor, after a few weeks asked me this, “Did you grow up in a European-dominated environment, you’re always early for your lesson and there’s never a day I got here and you were not waiting already?”. I just laughed and responded, “my African parents taught me the importance of being on time”. It’s quite unusual for events in Africa to start on time, I mean 10:00 (Central African Time) is 12:30 (African Time). Most Africans have that, “I am operating on African time” attitude. Most of us, have a friend or two who are famous for being late comers to everything. Well, I personally don’t have such friends in my circle, they have learnt to step up and show up to dates on time. If we are meeting at 10:00, we actually mean 09:45 and we respect each other’s time. If we’re running late, we communicate, truthfully.
On the business end, we have clients who will show up late for a meeting because it has been widely accepted that, “Customer is king!”. Well, my submission is that, while you are waiting for that customer/client, they are busy signing another deal that will add value to their business, while you lose value from your business. The ripple effect of one late appointment is unpleasant and that’s why in my business dealings, I advise the client that we should we reschedule, that is if they fail to show up on time and they fail to communicate that they are running late. This enables me to go ahead with my day as planned and service my other appointments.
When running late, most people don’t even have the courtesy to call and let you know they are running late, and when that African bug bites, they will tell you they are 5 minutes away, when in actual fact they are an hour away. I deem this to be a sign of disrespect to the other person as you would have clearly shown that their time is not valuable. Let’s work towards keeping our time and using it wisely. Let one of your goals in 2019 be to show up early for everything. It will help you get settled and even network before you begin your meeting, or tasks for the day.
Do it right the first time.
Are you producing half-baked goods so you can save time? This quote by John Wooden, serves as a great reminder to do things whole-heartedly and excellently the first time. “If you don’t have time to do it right the first time, where will you find time to re-do it?” I have one rule, no matter how much I want to be a part of something, if I can’t commit to serving that cause whole-heartedly, I’d rather not be a part of it. It’s unfair for other people to pull your weight because you don’t have time to commit to the cause. Sometimes, it’s okay to say no, maybe next time.
When we don’t do something right, we will have to make some corrections. Remember in primary school, if you got something wrong, you had to write corrections. This is true of most things in life, especially when we perform below average for the sake of getting it done. At some point in the future, we have to redo that task. Be honest about your delivery period even if it means losing the client. Don’t compromise on the quality of your products or services because it will cost you more when you have to redo it.
