How to Stop Being Late

A constant struggle to be on time could be because of your personality or ADHD, but there are strategies for overcoming it.

We’ve all got those friends who are never on time.

Kimi Goffe: “This hilarious and insightful illustrated essay made me feel so seen. And also so fed up with myself as a ‘CLIP’ or ‘Chronically Late Insane Person’ as Tim calls it. He depicts the irrationality of chronic lateness so well—and understanding this aspect of it is key to starting to improve.”

Every friendship group has at least one person who is known as ‘the late one’. But why do some people struggle so much with punctuality? BBC Reel’s Dan John speaks to authors Grace Pacie and David Robson about the psychology of being late – and whether we can train our brains to be more punctual.

Time blindness is more common in people with ADHD. It might explain some people’s lateness.

KG: “Listen to this interview with a productivity consultant while you’re en route—and probably running late—to your next appointment. It’s part of NPR’s ‘Life Kit’ series, where they provide ‘tools to help you get it together,’ something us chronically late people definitely need.”

KG: “This article breaks down six different procrastination-prone personality types, from the perfectionist to the poor planner. Each one’s lateness is rooted in different reasons, so the improvement strategies suggested are specific to each type.”

BONUS READ: The Best Books on Time Management, via Five Books.

KG: “Being chronically late is a bad habit, and no one knows habits better than author Nir Eyal. In this collection, he provides resources to help you overhaul your habits by first understanding how they’re formed and why they’re not set in stone.”