How Long Does It Take You To Get To Work?-Tips To Be On Time

An average person takes anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes to get ready in the morning. The time may vary according to the number of things they do every morning. For instance, most people do not make their breakfast every morning. They either have cereal with some milk, instant coffee, buy it on their way to work and some even skip breakfast. Let’s know How Long Does It Take You To Get To Work?-Tips To Be On Time.

How Long Does It Take You To Get To Work? Tips To Be On Time

An average person would go through the following activities when getting ready in the morning  

  • Wake up, set your bed (approximately 5 minutes)
  • Go to the bathroom  (2-10 minutes, 6 minutes average)
  • Brush teeth (1-2 minutes)
  • Take a shower (5-10 minutes, 7 minutes average)
  • Choose an outfit and get dressed(approximately 10 minutes)
  • Make breakfast (10-15 minutes,12 minutes average)
  • Eat breakfast (5 – 10 minutes, 7 minutes average)
  • Walking to your car or subway (depends on distance 5-10 minutes in most cases)
  • Time on the road, on regular days (variable)
  • Time on the road, on busy days (variable)

This makes the total time to get ready equal to approximately 40 minutes. People who skip breakfast or get it on their way to work save 20 minutes, hence they only need 20 minutes to get ready in the morning. According to the “Wake me up” research published in 2015 by Edison Research about 79% of the United States population are awake by 7:30 am. Since most of the population is awake at this point the traffic is usually jam-packed and a simple 10-minute drive could easily take you 30-45 minutes and even more in some cases. 

Suppose you wake up at 7:30 am and go through all the above-mentioned activities, You would be ready to leave for work at 8:10 am. However another 5% of the population has awoken at this point and your chances of getting stuck in traffic are inevitable.  Even if you skip breakfast and leave for work at 7:50 am you still have to compete with all of the 79% population trying to get to work. 

Average Late Employees

According to Forbes

• about 20% (1 out of 4) of all employees show up late to work once a week. 

• 22% of millennials are late once every week.

• 62% of millennials are late sometimes.

• 52% of older workers are late sometimes. 

The workforce management software platform; Deputy in 2019 published the results of its 1-year long examination and analysis of research on how often employees show up late to work. According to the research:

  • Gen Z was the tardiest
  • Baby boomers were relatively punctual 
  • 6% of hourly workers across the United States would show up late for work.
  • There was an increase in tardiness as the week progressed and most employees would show up late on Fridays. 
  • 25% of the employees opened up about how they were struggling with time management.

To sum it up approximately 50% of the workforce are late at some point during the year and most employees are late on or close to Fridays.

Reasons for being late

There are 2 types of problems that lead to tardiness. People could have one or more of either personal or work-related problems. Some people have both personal and work-related problems.

Personal Problems

Work-related problems

Personal Problems

Someone who likes their job and everyone at their workplace can also be late to work. In such cases, they are struggling with their personal -problems. Here are a few of the most common personal problems that people struggle with:

Stressed /Experiencing Burn Out

Most people undertake several other commitments besides their jobs. For example, most of the employees are also part-time students, some have their businesses, and some have families they need to take care of. All their responsibilities require a lot of effort which can be draining. People who have too much on their plates experience burnouts very quickly without even realizing it. Most people who have too much to take care of are suffering from stress and its symptoms such as; poor sleep, loss or increase of appetite, and dehydration.

Employees who are stressed or experiencing burnout require some time off, to feel freer and have time to enjoy life and recover from the dark burnout hole. Employers should look out for employees who may be experiencing burnouts before they lose good employees either due to quitting or having to fire them due to frequent tardiness.   

Indolence

One simple reason why your employees keep rolling in late at work could be that they are indolent. It is a habit and they can’t help it, they evince tardiness in all aspects of life, they are not necessarily unhappy with their jobs. Such people require strong motivation or any other strong driving force that would help them stay motivated and try their best.

Poor time management

Published in 2021, “Time management statistics & facts” research conducted by Ben Richardson revealed that;

  • 82% of the population does not have a proper time management system.
  • More than 10% of the employees felt they never had any control over their work activities.
  • More than 20% of the employees felt that they either never felt in control or at most would feel in control 1 day of the week.

People who do not have appropriate time management systems struggle with time management and lack a sense of authority or control over their roles and duties. 

The Planning Fallacy

Some people struggle with time management even though they plan their days ahead of time. The reason for this is because they don’t even realize that they have been following “The Planning Fallacy”, and it is the reason they struggle the most with time management. 

Introduced by Daniel Kahneman & Amos Tversky “The Planning Fallacy” is the idea that we underestimate the time it takes to do a task regardless of previous experience with the same job. It is also called the “optimal bias” because we are very optimistic when planning. The optimal bias in most cases works against us. The same task when viewed by a third party, they overestimate the time needed by others to complete a job. They undertake the “pessimistic bias”.  

Priorities not set

People often have too much on their plate and don’t have proper schedules to deal with all their problems. They do not set their priorities and often struggle with deciding what to do. They also lose time when deciding what they need to do and what is important. With no proper schedule, people often sleep late or sleep in and hence are late for their commitments and don’t meet their deadlines. 

Work-related problems

People who are unhappy with their jobs or have other work-related issues often show up late to work. Let’s have a look at different work-related problems that are the cause of tardiness. 

Too much workload

When employees are handed too much work or have to meet strict deadlines, they work extra hours, work at home, sleep very late, are drained of fortitude, and have a hard time keeping up with the consistent tough schedule.

Don’t like their job/Not motivated

People who do not have a passion for what they do, don’t like their jobs would be constantly dragging themselves to work. They struggle with staying motivated for work and often show up late.

Not compensated properly

People who are not given enough incentives to work hard or are not compensated properly for the work do feel exploited and depressed. These people have a hard time keeping up with their commitments.

Don’t like their boss

People try to avoid any possible encounter with hard to deal with bosses or bosses that give them a hard time, Most people even leave their jobs because of their bosses. One million employees participated in a recent Gallup poll. The poll was to test the most common reasons people leave their jobs. About 75% of the participants claimed that having a bad boss or manager was the main reason they left their previous job or want to leave their current jobs. This just shows how much influence a bad manager has on the employee.

Tips to be more punctual

There are several techniques and habits that punctual and disciplined people exercise to maintain a work-life balance and meet their deadlines. Let’s have a look at some of them

Understand your problem

The first and the most important step to solving any problem is to first identify the problem. Analyze your situation and understand whether you have a personal problem, a work-related problem, or both, and then develop a solution. 

To-Do List

Make a list of all the tasks you need to complete tomorrow or in the week. This helps you see all your tasks and not forget or miss a deadline. It is the easiest and commonly practiced technique to manage time.  Research published in 2021″Time management statistics & facts” by Ben Richardson revealed, to manage time 33% of the participants made to-do lists. 

Plan ahead / set priorities

Craft your to-do list regularly. Make tomorrow’s to-do list the night before and set priorities. Put the most important things at the top of your list and eliminate any irrelevant activities. This helps structure your day. It also helps you eliminate decision and procrastination time.  When planning your day ahead of time keep “The Planning Fallacy” in mind and do not allocate time to your tasks with the optimal bias. 

Time-Audit

It is the practice of analyzing the day to keep a track of all the activities carried out. It helps you evaluate your progress and understand how much time is needed for a specific job. Using this method you get a fair idea of how you are spending your time compared to how you want to.

Eisenhower matrix

The matrix helps you set priorities and eliminate activities that are not important. It is considered as the most effective time management technique. . Time management statistics & facts” research conducted by Ben Richardson revealed that about 50% of the people who practiced this technique felt in control of their work every day and 50% of the users felt in control 4 out of 7 days. 

POMODORO Technique

The technique requires you to break your time into blocks of 30 minutes out of which 5 minutes is break time. It promotes regular breaks to maintain focus and motivation. According to the “Time management statistics & facts” research conducted by Ben Richardson revealed that the POMODORO Technique is considered as the second most effective time management technique. 50% percent of the participants who used this technique felt in control of their 4-5 days out of 7 days.

Conclusion

It takes an average of 40 minutes for a person to get ready for work in the morning. If someone decides to skip breakfast it would only take them 20 minutes to get ready. . According to the “Wake me up” research published in 2015 by Edison Research about 79% of the United States population are awake by 7:30 am add another 40 minutes to get ready and you will be leaving for work at 8:10 am but there is a catch at this time another 5% of the population has gotten up and your chances of being late to work are very high. According to Forbes 1 in 4 employees would be late to work once a week. There are several reasons why an employee evinces tardiness. To be more punctual you have to understand what type of problem is causing you to be late whether it is a personal or work-related problem. Some of the most effective techniques for time management are making a to-do list, planning ahead of time, and setting priorities, time auditing, using the Eisenhower matrix to help make quick decisions, and using the POMODORO technique to stay motivated and maximize productivity in minimal time.

How Long Does It Take You To Get To Work?-Tips To Be On Time

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