Procrastinating 101: Tardiness Meets the MythBusters

Unlike on the Discovery Channel TV show, no test dummies were harmed in the making of this blog post.

It's my birthday, and my grandson is enforcing a National Nana Day rule.  I'm not supposed to work, nor is anyone else who loves me, knows me, has ever heard of me, lives on my block. . .

I am supposed to spend much of the day with him.  So I'm going to make this short.  Luckily, Diana DeLonzor made her third chapter the same.

Today's Procrastinating 101 looks at "What Makes the Tardy So Tardy?," concluding Part One of Diana DeLonzor's Never Be Late Again!  7 Cures for the Punctually Challenged.

In this chapter, Ms. DeLonzor culls through 6 myths about the tardy, famous (like Bill Clinton, who supposedly runs on "Clinton Standard Time") and not-so (like me--two weeks late for my own birth).  Here's a quick run-through:

Myth #1--Looking for Attention: Apparently not many of us really get off on strolling in late and having everyone glare at us.

Myth #2--A Control Thing:  Seems some of us may prefer controlling the time of a meeting to having a say about nothing.

                

Myth #3--You Don't Value My Time:  Ms. DeLonzor's research identified some for whom this lack of regard for others was characteristic, but "the majority of late people really did try to show up on time" and were "troubled by their lateness."

Myth #4--Procrastination/Time Management:  "[I]n general, the punctually challenged do tend to procrastinate more than the average person and often embrace a kind of determined optimism when it comes to the clock."

Myth #5--Slackers:  While some of us may be goofing off, other would-be time-benders are actually pretty hard workers.

 Myth #6--Bad Morale:  Since most of us are either consistently on time, and others consistently late, regardless of our attitudes toward the activity involved, poor morale cannot explain all lateness.

DeLonzor closes with a preview of 7 types of late-niks:  The Rationalizer; The Producer; The Deadliner; The Indulger; The Rebel; The Absentminded Professor; and The Evader.

Let's see.  7 types.  7 "cures."  Coincidence?

Tune in next week, as we begin to deconstruct all this name-calling and dive into Cure One. 


And now, if you'll excuse me, I'm late for my party.