We were going to offices, we were dining out, we were meeting with our friends, we were meeting with our family, we were attending classes regularly, we were going for a run or a walk. We were doing everything else as normal people would. We were not afraid of getting a disease or of getting infected, there were no obligations to our movement, nobody was scared to touch someone else, nobody knew what masks were for anymore until the pandemic shook the world. Since this pandemic took over our routine and fun, we have been struck at our homes wondering what to do next. The beginning phase of the pandemic was the toughest. We had no work to do, the economy suffered a massive crunch, many of us lost our jobs, many big outlets shut their stores down only to recover some amount of debt. It felt like nothing would be normal again until we started to live with the new normal. Here, let’s know how to write Apology Letter for Being Late in Submission?
Stay at home became the new normal, work from home became normal and online classes took the world by storm. In this era of working and studying from home, online assignments became a major part of our work culture. Offices expect their employees to send in weekly or monthly reports on the work that was carried on during that time. There are assignments that offices asked for, to evaluate the working potential of their workforce. To get an idea if employees were as efficiently working at home as they were working in offices, to compare graphs of their success while working both ways. This report submission is assigned to a few people who are held accountable for the work of the brand.
Talking about educational institutions, assignments, and their submission became a part of this trend too. Not that assignments were not already a part of the education culture, but during this phase, they became significant. Schools and colleges showered students with assignments, to help them secure respectable scores as conducting exams became a challenge. Students became burdened with assignments, but there was a silver lining to all this, they could beg the best score based on their work.
But, but, but there has been a disadvantage that came with all the easy work. Schools, colleges, and offices want their work and assignments on time. The time to provide the work is always set, and in case of failure to do it time, there are hard compensations. Most of us are familiar with this pressure and timeline to get the work done. We have to work quite hard to get it on time; otherwise, it gets pushed to another day and then again to another day resulting in full-blown chaos in the end. The time that we are given to complete the given work is set after a lot of consideration and evaluation. It is kept in mind if all the students or employees will be able to work efficiently within the given time frame if the time provided to them is enough for any person who makes out few hours in a day to dedicate to their work. This time that is set before which a person is supposed to get their task done is called the deadline, and all of us are familiar with the term.
What is a deadline?
Deadline, a word that invokes fear and anxiety. A time that passes once, and then you are unable to achieve your goal. Grammatically speaking, a deadline is a time or day before which an assigned task should be completed. Historically a deadline was a practical word, and it advocated how it sounds. A deadline was a line drawn around a prisoner beyond which the prisoners were supposed to get shot. With time the meaning and usage of the word have changed to become less fearsome; otherwise, imagine the panic that a deadline would have caused. Thankfully our society moved away from its barbaric methods and became civilized, and deadline became just a time.
Imagine the panic of the prisoner who was about to be shot beyond the deadline; it is the same as what we experience when we are running behind time to complete our assigned task. Anxiety shoots up, and we blame ourselves, our planning, and our laziness. Why did I sleep an hour extra? I could have finished watching the episode later. Why do I never get things done on time? Why am I such a lousy planner? And whatnot. Humans are known for their tendency to blame themselves, but blaming oneself is justified when it is their fault. However, blaming never brings you back in the game. You can always learn from your ‘not on time’ experience to never repeat it in the future. But again, we are humans, we would rather repeat the same mistake and get blamed than work on time to get our deals done.
But there is another thing that we are good at, it is apologizing, not to ourselves though. We are not good at forgiving ourselves, but we have excellent skills when it comes to asking someone to forgive us. We bring up several reasons for our failure, none of which include laziness or lack of motivation. However, these reasons are explainable and reliable to get a pardon for our late work. But excuses do not always work; sometimes, we need to offer a formal apology for our reckless behavior. This formal apology is necessary when we are answerable to someone in a higher position than us. It could be a professor or the branch head of the company; or the president himself.
About apology letters
In situations where losing a job or grades are in question, one can never be too safe. To get out of such circumstances, a formal well-written, and persuasive apology that will vouch for you and get you out of trouble is essential. If not get you out of trouble entirely, a formal apology will reduce the anger of the person you are answerable to, and the punishment will be reduced manifold.
Again a problem arises, and it is likely to be experienced by most of us. Since we passed high school who of us has ever written even a letter? None of us, right? In such cases, we need supervision and guidance because persuasive writing is a lost art these days. What you might need in such a condition is a little help with writing a formal apology that will explain your reason and will not hold anybody accountable for your mistakes. You require a guide on how to write an apology letter for being late in submission. There are apology letters for different purposes, you can be late in submitting a thesis, you can be late in submitting some documents, you can be late in submitting a report, you can be late in submitting your resume, you can be late in submitting a project related to business or schoolwork, you can be late in submitting anything and that always requires an apology to make sure that if once you commit a mistake it does not make your profile look bad in the future.
Here are some tips on writing an apology, some samples, and some frequently asked questions, so that you never mess things up. The best part about this piece is yet to begin, so do not abandon reading it. You will learn something new which will help you forever.
Tips and tricks of the trade
An apology letter is always written to someone who surpasses us in position; most of the time, it is an employee writing to the employer. Very few of us can apologize in a way that makes others feel that we are feeling genuine guilt and will never repeat such behavior in the future. Sometimes we think of dodging the apology because it might reflect badly on our character. However, this is not the truth; not apologizing for our mistake is even worse. It affects our professionalism and credit.
The silver lining to writing an apology is that you get a chance to reframe your thoughts and convey what you mean precisely. Here are some factors that make a good apology letter:
• Explain the reason behind the failure in the late submission of your assignment or report.
• If you are at a mistake, own up to it. Never make excuses for your mistakes.
• Blame game should be avoided; if you were late to submit something you are to be blamed.
• Apologize politely and directly. Include ‘I am sorry’ in your apology letter.
• Let your superiors know if you need extra time or when will you make the due assignment available to them if you have not done it already.
• Ask them for forgiveness, when you do so your superiors develop trust in you and believe what you say.
• Promise them that you will never repeat the mistakes that you have this time.
• Never defend your own mistakes, as it might give your unprofessional image to your superiors.
Common types of apologies
This article is concerned about discussing apology letters for being late in submission. This brings us to two types of apology letters that are focused on the same issue.
1. The personal apology letter
This letter is written to own up to something you are responsible for. Here is a sample for the same:
Date
To whom it may concern
Occupation
Name of the company
City
Respected, Sir/ Madam,
I sincerely apologize (state your fault). It was expected of me to complete the task assigned to me; however, because of (state reason here, I was not able to finish the task.
I assure you that this mistake of mine shall never be repeated. I hope you will forgive me for my mistake and will replace your trust in me.
Respectfully yours,
Sate your name here
Signature
Sate your designation here
2. The mass apology
The heading defines itself. But to give it clarity it should be stated that there are two types of mass apologies.
• Apologizing to a group of people
When you are late in finishing up a task you might offend a board of company members or a department in particular. You must not know everyone you need to apologize to, sometimes you do not have the way to contact them. This is when you write a single apology letter to everyone concerned. Here is a sample:
Date
To whom it may concern
Occupation
Name of the company
City
Respected Board of Members/Members of the Department
My failure to complete the task on time has resulted to cause you disappointment. I am ashamed of the delay. The reason behind the delay is ( state your reason here).
I give you my word that I will never repeat such mistakes in the future. I look forward to your consideration.
Obediently yours,
Sate your name here
Signature
Sate your designation here
• Apologizing on behalf of a group of people
Sometimes a team of people dedicated to working towards a cause fails in giving the best of their efforts. If you are the leader of any such group then you must apologize on behalf of everyone, even if it is not your mistake. Here is a sample for your reference:
Date
To whom it may concern
Occupation
Name of the company
City
Respected, Sir/ Madam,
We as a team try to provide you with the best of our services; however, sometimes, we might fall short. These are the occasions we regret the most. We failed to live up to your expectations because of (state reason here).
We assure you that such mistakes will never happen again and you will not find any reason to complain.
Looking out to help you with your further endeavors,
Sate your name here
Signature
Sate your designation here
Common examples for apologies
These are the samples and examples of common types of apologies, these can be used to apologize for any mistake. There are some letters for specific reasons, and such types of apologies are listed below. The rules of the game are the same: accept your mistake, do not blame anyone else, plan to win their trust back, do not defend your mistakes, and promise to never repeat them. Read the samples attached to get a better idea so that you can write your letter without much trouble.
1. Apology letter for late submission of documents
These letters are generally written by an employee to the employer for being late in the submission of documents. These letters are aimed at regaining the trust of your superiors and at making good relations with them. The late submission of any type of documents can hurt the performance of the company as a whole if you are at fault own up to it entirely. Here is a sample for the same:
Date
To whom it may concern
Occupation
Name of the company
City
Respected, Sir/ Madam,
I apologize for the late submission of so and so documents. It was expected out of me to submit the same on (state your deadline here). I could not complete the task because (state your reason here).
I promise that this mistake will never get repeated. I sincerely pray for your forgiveness.
Respectfully,
Sate your name here
Signature
Sate your designation here
2. Apology letter for late submission of assignment
This letter is generally written by a student to their professor or teacher, apologizing for the late submission of assignments or homework. Teachers and professors know how lazy and occupied students are so, they never buy our excuses; hence, it is necessary to write a convincing letter. Promise them that you will submit the due assignment soon. One thing to always remember; give an explainable reason as your teachers can sometimes cross-check with your parents too. Here is a sample for your reference:
Date
To whom it may concern/ name of professor or teacher
Occupation
Name of the college/ school
City
Respected Sir/ Madam/ Professor,
I apologize for failing to submit my assignment/ homework at the assigned time. I was unable to submit it because I was sick. My parents had to rush me to the hospital.
I am extremely sorry for being late; however, I promise to submit the due work as soon as possible. I am looking forward to your consideration.
Your sincere student,
State your name here
Signature
3. Apology letter for failing to submit a thesis
Theses are written by students and submitted to their professors. Submitting a thesis on time is necessary as it contributes to your grades. If you fail to do it on time, do not take it for granted and apologize for the same and tell your professor that you will submit the thesis within the given period. Here is a sample to help you out:
Date
To whom it may concern/ name of professor
Occupation
Name of the college
Address of college
City
Subject: Apology for late submission of thesis
Respected, Sir,
I sincerely apologize for the late submission of my thesis. I was supposed to present in on (state the deadline here), but I failed to do so because of some personal issues that needed my attention. I regret not being on time, and I feel ashamed to inform you that I will require extra time to continue with my thesis. I will cover up for my mistakes, and I will make sure that there is no delay this time.
I hope you forgive me so that I can continue with my thesis.
Your obedient student,
State your name here
Signature
4. Apology letter for being late in submission of a report
Reports are an important asset of a company, these reports determine a lot of factors. Superiors or heads ask for reports to track the working of every employee and to see how the different branches of a company are doing. Submitting a report is an important duty and is given to one person or the staff as a whole. Here is a sample to help you if you are apologizing for yourself:
Date
To whom it may concern
Occupation
Name of the company
City
Respected, Sir/ Madam,
Subject: Apology letter for late submission of the report
As a member of the team, it was my duty to submit the monthly report; however, I failed to do so as I was presented with some important information later on. This information was to be added to the report and editing it consumed extra time.
I understand that this delay must have put the panel and the company in a vulnerable position. I apologize for the delay, and I promise that the report will be made available in two days. I also promise that this mistake shall never be repeated. Kindly accept my apologies.
Your sincere staff,
State your name here
Signature
State your designation here
5. Apology letter for being late in submitting a resume
A resume helps you bag a job or a spot in the company. If you are late to submit your resume, you might miss the opportunity to get what you have always dreamt of. If you don’t apologize for the same, your prospects of getting a job or position in the same company decrease. Make sure you try to make your point clear. Here is a sample for your reference:
Date
To whom it may concern
Occupation
Name of the company
City
Respected, Sir/ Madam,
Subject: Apology for late submission of resume
There had been a delay on my side in submitting my resume because of (state your reason here). I had prepared the resume on time; unfortunately, the event led me to cause a delay.
I hope I am not too late to submit the resume. I request you to forgive me for my naive mistake.
Sincerely yours,
State your name here
Signature
State your designation here
There are not only the above-mentioned reasons that require you to apologize for your mistakes. There could be some times when you might think that you are not at fault but, your superiors might think otherwise and, it is your situation to apologize to stay in the clear for the sake of your job. Always be sincere in your apology, do not try to exaggerate things for the sake of gaining sympathy as it might negatively affect the opinion of the people you are answerable to. You can use the above-mentioned samples for apologizing for different reasons too.
Conclusion
An apology is an art that not everyone can master. It is never expected out of you to master it. You must be ready to acknowledge your mistakes, and that will be enough on your side. Sometimes you are not at fault, in these situations, it is better to apologize rather than argue. An apology always brings out your positive aspects in front of everyone. Never shy away from apologizing, as it will not reduce your status in front of anyone.
