How Not To Be Late For a Date

Being late happens. Sometimes traffic accidents happen. Sometimes the MTA decides it wants to run as slow as molasses. Sometimes life just happens. Being late for a date isn’t the worst thing you can do, being late and NOT saying anything about it is the worse thing you can do. Here are some ways you can prevent being tardy for a date:

1. Think Five Minutes Early – In New York our clocks are always 12 minutes ahead (or 4 minutes behind). Someone once told me, if I was five minutes late, then why didn’t I leave the house five minutes earlier? The point is, think five minutes ahead of time. If you have a date planned for 2, it’s really planned at 1:55. You’re late if you make it at 2.
2. Communicate At Least An Hour Ahead – You generally know, an hour ahead, that you may be running late. It’s best to tell your date that you’ll be running behind. I recommend at least an hour head start. Make sure they know, or else they will think you’ve ditched them.
3. Don’t Plan Around a Hectic Schedule – Sometimes I want to fit dates and events into a tight schedule. This never works for me. One event usually spills over into another one and I usually end up running late to everything. Give yourself a breather between events, maybe an hour or two hour buffer.
4. Plan Your Wardrobe Ahead of Time – I recently went on a date, where I was late because I forgot my wallet at home. I had to run back home, grab my wallet, and run to the train station. My mistake was not laying out my wardrobe ahead of time.
5. Become Familiar With The Area – Getting lost sucks. It’s a horrible feeling, and its even worse when you’re lost in an area you don’t know. Either plan dates in the area that you’re comfortable with or visit the area beforehand and get a feel for the ins and outs. Pay special attention to the time it takes you to walk from the train, parking garage or bust stop to the location of the date.

Image Source: sunnyUK on Flickr