From my earliest years I can remember my mother telling me to never make people wait for you, and always be 15 minutes early. To this day, whether I have an appointment, I am going to work, or meeting someone I am always about 15 minutes early. My daily work hours are from 8:30 to 5:30. There is rarely a day where I have not been at the office at least 15 minutes early.
Why is the 15 minute rule important? It is important because you do not want to make someone wait on you! Everyone's time is valuable. When you arrive late you are implicitly telling the person you are meeting a couple of things. The first is, that they are not a priority. Try getting a job after you are late to an interview. Try keeping your job after coming in late every day. Good luck! Secondly you telling them that your time is more valuable than theirs. Not a good move when you are meeting with a potential client. When you are early you are telling the person you are meeting that you see value in them, and that your meeting with them is important to you.
Now you may ask, what can you do with all of that extra time? Great question. How about reading a good book that can help you in your line of work? Spend that time educating yourself. If you are meeting with someone why not use your fancy Android or iPhone for something other than playing a video game or chatting on Facebook with your friends? Read up on your client, or potential employer and make that 15 minutes a productive 15 minutes!
My mom's rule has helped many times over the course of my life and has played a role in making me successful. My advice is to apply mom's 15 minute rule to your life!
