 |
||||||||||||||
|
|
State Employees Take Punctuality Lessons SAN FRANCISCO, December 13, 2006: That was five years ago. Now she’s giving lessons to employees in Bay Area corporations and government agencies on overcoming lateness and procrastination. Her methods have become so popular with State organizations such as the Franchise Tax Board and the Department of Food and Agriculture that other state groups are clamoring to learn the secrets of getting to work on time and for dealing with punctually challenged employees. More than 500 State employees have attended the standing room only seminars, with managers subtly and not-so-subtly encouraging staff members to attend. “Approximately 15 to 20 percent of the U.S. population have trouble getting to where they’re going on time,” explains Ms. DeLonzor, author of the recently published Never Be Late Again, 7 Cures for the Punctually Challenged. “It’s a huge drain on productivity when meetings consistently start ten or fifteen minutes behind, and tardiness has a snowball affect as one person’s lateness affects the productivity of his or her colleagues.” Ms. DeLonzor notes that tardiness costs American businesses more than $3 billion dollars each year in lost productivity. “One of the easiest ways to increase productivity is to cut down on tardiness, both in terms of the time-clock arrivals and meeting starts.” But managers beware. “Although it’s tempting to say, ‘Just get here on time,’” warns Ms. DeLonzor, “that’s a little like telling a dieter to simply stop eating so much. Chronic lateness is typically a life-long habit, one that’s surprisingly difficult to shake.” Contrary to popular opinion, most chronically late people don’t enjoy being late, she explains, but have difficulty with time management and procrastination in general. In a 1997 San Francisco State University study she headed investigating chronic lateness and its causes, Ms. DeLonzor found that the punctually challenged often shared certain common personality characteristics such as anxiety, low levels of self-control, or a penchant for thrill-seeking. “People who tend to who have low self-control, for instance, will tend to procrastinate more in general because they have difficulty motivating themselves,” she says. In her seminars, Ms. DeLonzor focuses on helping participants identify the reasons for their lateness and procrastination habits, and helps them focus on specifics such as overcoming what she calls “magical thinking”—the tendency to consistently underestimate how long tasks will take. “We work on overcoming procrastination in general, but give specific exercises geared toward helping people learn to get out the door on time” About Never Be Late Again: In this funny and practical book, the author recounts her own journey from terminally tardy to perfectly punctual, and reveals seven unique and simple secrets to successfully managing time and overcoming procrastination. Drawing from psychological studies and extensive research, Ms. DeLonzor reveals that chronically late individuals often share certain personality characteristics, and may even perceive time differently. Through true anecdotes and easy exercises, Never Be Late Again helps readers assess their tardiness type, uncover time traps, and overcome the psychological stumbling blocks that thwart effective time management. An end chapter for earlybirds offers effective tips for dealing with chronically late friends, family, and colleagues—a must read for the timely. ####
Sample Print: New York Times, Good Housekeeping, Family Circle, Allure, Fitness and Child Magazines, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Boston Globe, Houston Chronicle, Dallas Morning News, Detroit Free Press, Sacramento Bee, Charlotte Observer, Seattle Post Intelligencer, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce newsletter, and hundreds of other national. and international print media.
KGO, San Francisco NPR (Fresh Air) KSTP, Minneapolis WGN, Chicago KCBS, San Francisco World Talk Radio – Get Wise, Get Organized KRON TV, San Francisco NBC11 TV, San Jose (in 2003 and 2004) KSTE TV Sacramento KMAX TV, Sacramento KOVR TV, Sacramento CBC (Canadian National Public Radio)
|