We’ve all got that one friend or coworker that is always late. You can chalk it up to them being inconsiderate, but the truth is some of them can’t help it. This might not help with the rage you feel the next time they show up a half-hour late… with coffee… but here’s what their deal is.
- Timebending. Research shows that 20% of people fall into the non-punctual category and author Grace Pacie says it’s because “time seems to work differently for them.” Pacie calls the phenomena “timebending” and says late people tend to underestimate time by 20% to 30%. On top of that, timebenders also like to squeeze in things just before leaving and some even block out “transition time” altogether. They just kind of forget teleportation isn’t an option and leave roughly five minutes later than they intended.
- It’s Nature, Not Nurture. Tardiness is basically in their blood. According to Pacie, late-people are usually linked to the ‘P’ element of the Myers-Briggs test. “Ps have a deep preference for keeping options open [and] don’t like bringing things to a close.” Like, for example, whatever they were doing right before they were supposed to be meeting with you.
