Time not on your side? These nine solutions can help you beat the clock

Are you one of those people who battle the clock every day? Being chronically late not only is annoying to and inconsiderate of others, but it’s also bad for business. Making co-workers—or even shoppers—wait because you couldn’t find your keys doesn’t reflect well on you or your store. In fact many employers find tardiness inexcusable. According to a recent Harris survey, 41% of employers have fired someone for being late.

The following tips by Samantha Zabell were posted on Realsimple.com. Based on nine habits of people who always are on time, they should help keep you punctual.

1. When it’s time to get up, they get up. Try to resist that tempting snooze button. If you can’t resist, put the alarm clock across the room.

2. They plan breakfast at dinner. Get organized the night before. Put your keys by the door, pack your lunch and set the coffee pot to brew.

3. They end tasks on time. Map out your chores in advance and know how long you should spend on each project before moving on.

4. They recognize patterns and correct them. Know your bugaboos. If you’re always hunting for your sunglasses, learn to leave them by the door or toss an extra pair in your car.

5. They embrace downtime. Sometimes people are late because they have a fear of waiting or having nothing to do, says Julie Morgenstern, author of “Time Management from the Inside Out.” Use the time in line or in waiting rooms to catch up on a book or send networking emails so you feel like you’re accomplishing something.

6. They are immune to “just one more thing” syndrome. Often something as simple as sending that one last email will lead to 15 other emails. Before you know it, you’re off track.

7. They schedule built-in overflow time. Inevitably, things come up that are out of your control. Planning overflow time, such as a chunk in the morning and one in the afternoon, enables you to whittle down to-do lists and handle crises.

8. They master the skill of calculation. Time masters are serious planners. They know how long everything will take and plan for it. Morgenstern recommends timing yourself doing routine tasks for three days in a row. By the end of those three days, you should know exactly how long it takes you to get from bed to store.

9. They know when they do their best work. Timely people understand when to schedule meetings and when to tackle hard projects based on their flow of energy over the day.