Better Late Than Never

Well, fellow procrastin8r, don’t you just  hate time limits? Whether it’s a teacher giving you a limited time to hand in your homework by assigned date or  your boss screaming at you to be at a meeting at 8 o clock SHARP tomorrow morning, or societal pressure to get married and have kids by your late 20s, there are these expectations of fulfilling certain tasks or accomplishments within a certain time frame.

I’ll tell you what though, I have no problem turning in an assignment late or showing up to a scheduled meeting/appointment fashionably late or even making some big life achievement much at a much older age than expected of me, that is “late” in life.  After all, I wouldn’t be living up to the name “procrastin8r” if I tended to do things “on time”. 
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But ya know what? Truth is, I do do things “on time”. My time. Not someone else’s, not a third party’s. Mine. Time is my own thing and I choose what to do and when to do it.

 And that’s the beauty of being late -- building your own schedule, building your own *life*, calling your own shots.

If you can comfortably do things late, it shows that you effectively do not give a fuck about what anyone else thinks or expects of you. You do your own thing *regardless* of any expectations or consequences that come about for not meeting those expectations. You’re *unfazed* by the terms of others and do things *on your own terms*. That’s an important mindset to strive for.

Of course, there’s no denying that there’s a stigma around being late. Being late means ya ain’t got your shit together; it means you’re a complete mess. You lack discipline and diligence if you’re the type of person to be late.

But I say, contrary to that popular belief, that being late shows confidence. It shows you don’t dick around with arbitrary schedules and instead make time for what you find to be important. No one can tell you what to find important and when. You don’t follow orders. You follow your own way. You abide by your own Dude. You walk your own pace. You take life slow and don’t make it a rush from one obligation to the next. You’re here to *live* and not exist.

By being late, you communicate that you value your own freedom. You prefer doing things “at liberty” rather than “on schedule.” Running late tells people “I got better things to do.” It shows you prioritize your own wants and needs first. It also shows you are taking in life rather than booking in another thing to do.

Now one of the criticisms you may receive  in regards to doing things for yourself and choosing to be late is that it’s selfish. You aren’t respecting *other people’s* time by showing up late.

Though it may be true that it comes across as disrespectful (and perhaps even lazy), I find making it clear to people not to expect you to ever be punctual goes a long way. Let them know up front that it may not happen “on time” but it will happen “at some point”.  Eventually is when it will happen. You’re not trying to disrespect anyone. You’re just trying to be laid back about the very nature of time. You feel no rush to do things immediately and entice people with your slow n’ steady pace.

In general, “Either let me do it when I want to, or I won’t do it at all.” is the attitude you want to take. Of course, you don’t necessarily want to explicitly say it that way, but that’s the sort of vibe you want to give off. You tell them, in a bit of a polite way-- “Look, you can choose what’s more important to you: getting it within a certain time frame or getting it period.” Again, don’t use these words verbatim, but make those principles clear in whatever the situation calls for. Be sure to also express your intention to actually follow through (eventually), just not “on time”. You’re aiming to take things slow is all instead of blitz from one event to the next.

“I’ll be at the party. I may arrive late, but I promise I’ll be there.”
“I’ll get this done. It’s not going to happen by the date you gave me, but it will get done.”
“Let’s shoot for 7-ish”

“Ish” is a good little idiom to use. It says that’s the time we’re aiming for, but it’s not that deep if it doesn’t happen exactly *that* minute. It could be 7:15. It could be 7:30. Who knows? Shit happens. Shit comes up. Let’s make it happen, but let’s not make a fuss over where the clocks’ hands are pointing when we do it.

Being late shows you have flexibility. You’re not so hard pressed to fulfill a certain obligation within a dead set timeline. You’re relaxed about it, easy about it. You’re laid back about getting things done, just as long as they get done...eventually. 

Doesn’t matter if it’s today or tomorrow or maybe next week. Doesn’t matter if you’re running “behind schedule” by a few minutes or even a few hours. You’re completely okay with  not counting every single second. You live in abundance. Time, while indeed limited, is not something that dictates you. You’d rather actually live, rather than sit there and count numbers until the day you die.

 You’re adaptable in your approach if you are the type to be “late to the party”. No one’s going to get sweaty when you make plans because they know you’re not gonna lay down a strict deadline to get there.

People that insist on meeting deadlines and due dates can’t handle unexpected circumstances. Why? Well because they just can’t do what they were planning to do “on time”. A flat tire that makes them late for work is enough to set them off. 

Whereas you, a procrastin8r, who has no qualms about being late finds no reason to worry or get frustrated over such trivial matters. You see unexpected circumstances as opportunities, mini adventures. 



Anyway,  punctuality is particularly overrated in society and we’re going to talk about that in today’s blog, which given the point, you may decide to read later. Either way, let’s dive….right into it.
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​Due Dates are just Suggestions

Take it as such.

Due Dates aren’t some sort of law you must follow. They’re not a contract you’re bound to (I mean unless you are freelancing or run a business and have some sort of client contact, but even then, you can still choose to be late; it’s just a matter of facing the consequences of doing so).

You have free will and the power to choose whether or not to complete something by a specific due date. Don’t feel like your soulbound to that date. It’s just a suggestion. You don’t have to embrace it.

When someone tells you to get something done by a certain time, well, that’s just, like, their opinion man. Yeah, even your boss, even your own mother.

Don’t let anyone tell you when you have to do something. Certainly, there may be consequences you face for not completing say a PowerPoint presentation for your boss by the set due date, but it’s whatever, man. You don’t let it faze you.

Rules are meant to be broken and so are due dates.

To clarify here, I’m not suggesting you *literally* write off every assignment and do it later. What I am suggesting is that you acknowledge that due dates are recommendations NOT requirements. 

There’s nothing you “have to” do at all. You’re free to choose not to. You’re free to choose to do it later. Don’t feel obligated to perform a certain feat by a very specific time.

You see, this is more of an attitude thing and less of a practical thing. Free yourself from feeling locked into due dates and see them more as a sort of proposal that you can choose to decline

Better Late than Corrupt or Dead
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You shouldn’t get yourself so wrapped up in *when* something must get done that you negate how well, safe, and ethical it is done.

I mean think about how many car accidents are caused by someone rushing a red light to get to work on time. Think about how many video games are rushed to the shelves that are bug ridden and unplayable. Think about how many college essays are plagiarized in order to meet a due date instead of writing original content that would take longer. Think about how many people go to school or work sick and spread their germs because they couldn’t face coming in late to rest.

All of these scenarios are easily avoidable by accepting tardiness, by embracing the act of being late.

Insisting on always being on time leads to reckless decisions. People can get so worried about the numbers on the clock that they ignore everything else, even their own goddamn safety and wellbeing as well as the safety and wellbeing of others.

Earlier we mentioned how being late can come across as selfish, but I’d say it’s more selfish to be punctual, like you’re so concerned about your reputation of being punctual that you abolish any other responsibility you would normally hold yourself accountable by, like following traffic laws, for example.

Be okay with being late. I mean, we talked about the consequences of being late, but sometimes, ya gotta keep in mind, there are far more severe consequences for being on time than there are for being late.
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Walk Your Own Pace
You ain’t gotta try and keep up to anyone moving faster than you. Just because your best friend got married last year, doesn’t mean you have to get married to the next person you meet waiting in line at a coffee shop. Just because your younger cousin graduated college, doesn’t mean you gotta rush and get your degree. This isn’t a competition.

Take your time, slow n’ steady, to do the things you want to do, when you want to do them. Don’t compare yourself to others. This isn’t a race or you very well shouldn’t make it out to be. Make life a smooth steady ride, not a quick jolt from birth to death.

One. Step. At. A. Time. That’s all ya gotta do. Go at your own pace. Move to your own groove.

We live in such a fast-paced society. It’s no wonder you feel compelled to want to try and keep up. But man, I tell you, that’s all hogwash. You’ll find life a lot more relaxing, a lot more enjoyable, when you take the time to do things *slowly* than you ever will tryna rush to get it done ASAP.
A NAP is a lot better than ASAP!

Tardiness ain’t a Big Deal

It really isn’t. I mean we’re lead to believe that being late is one of the most  immoral acts imaginable.

But it’s really not that deep at all.

Somehow, tardiness is up there with cheating, lying, and stealing in the eyes of society. A person who is late is on the same level as a thief, robbing people of their time.

C’mon now! First of all, being on time robs you of your sanity, so there’s that. Also, judging a person solely on their ability to get on time or not ignores a lot of other factors concerning their ability to perform.

Like a person who is late can actually perform a lot better than someone who is very, very punctual.

Personally, I’d rather have a mechanic that takes weeks to fix my car and have it running for years after  than a mechanic who takes less than 24 hours to quote on quote “fix” my car, only to have it break down again within a few days, for example.

Sure, I need a car, but I can use public transit or Uber in the mean time.  Quality over punctuality is the point here.

So yeah, I’d reckon tardiness ain’t that big of a deal.

You know what’s actually a big deal though? Not getting it done AT ALL. That’s what’s *really* the bottom line here. As long as it gets done, who cares?

Who cares if you start a new career in your mid 30s? Or pick up a new hobby in your late 60s? Who cares if you don’t get married until you’re 40 or don’t go to college until you’re 50?

As long as it’s something you set out to do, and it gets done *eventually* there’s no rhyme or reason to feel bad about being tardy.

 
​Better to Delay Success than Get Started with Failure

People get so concerned with upholding a certain schedule that they wind up making a mess of things in complete disregard to any sort of standard *other than* fulfilling the requirements of said schedule. All other practices and care for quality go completely out the window - just as long as it gets done. ON TIME. 

I play the game Dead by Daylight and recently they released the Resident Evil Chapter. Upon release, the new map of Raccoon City Police Department was completely unplayable, causing so much lagg and crashes -- to the point where they had to temporarily “turn off” the map as an option. On top of that, console players experienced massive lagg and glitches with specific character abilities that made them impossible to use. It was overall, just a complete fuckery, and quite frankly, just NOT ready for launch.

But they went ahead and launched it anyway? Why? To meet a goddamn due date, to follow a freaking schedule.

The down side of prioritizing a schedule over prioritizing functionality and quality is that you’re so focused on the due date that you wind up doing a shitty job anyway.

Look, I’d rather wait a bit for something of good quality, yet alone actually freaking functional. Put off things. Just do it...later.

Now to clarify, you shouldn’t let the fear of failure prevent you from moving forward or trying. See, there’s a difference between hesitation and procrastination.

Hesitation is reacting to your own emotions of fear and anxiety, whereas procrastination is deliberately deciding, through thoughtful *reason* to wait ‘til later. But that’s another topic for another day.

For now though, the takeaway is that meeting a deadline shouldn’t be a top priority thing and you should know when to delay a launch, to procrastinate that kickoff for another time.

Tomorrow is an Opportunity

If it didn’t happen today *on time*, well tomorrow’s another day, another opportunity, another chance to make it happen.

Locking yourself into a deadline means you’re saying to yourself “I have to get this done by this time or else I won’t do it at all.”

But if you’re not opposed to turning things in late, if you’re not opposed to being a procrastin8r and waiting ‘til tomorrow, well that just opens up the doors of possibilities and seeing it through at some point

You essentially dodge that ultimatum of “now or never” and say...

​It’ll Happen….Eventually!

You’re not giving up. You’re not dismissing it. You’re not saying it won’t ever happen. You’re just putting it off...til later.


It’s better late than never, folks. Forget about the stigma associated with being late and embrace it. Don’t pressure yourself so hard to get something done within a certain time frame. Just take your time and do things nice n’ slow.

And remember, life was meant to live, not rush on by.





Take it easy,


​N8