Sometimes it feels like the only perk of being early is the fact that you’re never late. You feel like you value people’s time more than they do, and being made to feel like you’re uptight is never good. However, you know it’s better to show up five minutes before something starts than to waltz in five minutes after. If you’re perpetually early for pretty much everything in life, you’ll relate to these 13 things.
- You regularly wonder if you’re being stood up. You panic a little when people aren’t precisely on time. The “Hey, where are you?” texts start going out when they’re two or three minutes late, just to make sure they’re still coming.
- You have to deal with getting hit on by creepers. Being alone in a bar as a woman doesn’t mean you’re desperately looking for some D. Men aren’t always great at reading your body language, which is a shame since it so obviously says, “Please don’t talk to me.”
- You waste a ton of time. It’s not like you can be super productive every time you have 10 minutes to kill because you’re early. Ten minutes a day is 60 hours a year!
- Expensive restaurants won’t let you sit at your table. That pesky “we won’t sit you until your whole party is here” rule drives you crazy. You can see your table from the host stand and could use a drink while you’re waiting!
- Late people annoy the crap out of you. You don’t understand why people can’t plan ahead. Like, they know how long it takes them to get ready and how long it takes to get somewhere. Where did they go wrong? Why don’t they respect your time? You managed to get there on time, so what’s their excuse?
- You psyche yourself up a lot. You’re early to dates, job interviews, important fundraisers, and doctor’s appointments. Those extra minutes give you a lot of time to contemplate what could hypothetically go wrong, or excuses to bail before anyone else even shows up.
- Getting out the door is a nightmare. You subscribe to the “if you’re on time, you’re late” way of thinking, so getting out the door is seriously anxiety provoking. When getting ready isn’t going smoothly, you stress about the possibility of winding up late, even when you’re on par to be just slightly less early.
- Everyone counts on you to fill them in. “What did I miss?” is a question you’re asked constantly. Just because you’re never late doesn’t mean you want to always share your lecture notes or explain the opening scene of a movie.
- You’re ready to leave before everyone else is. If you’re 15 minutes early and your friends are 15 minutes late, there’s a good chance you’ll be bored of whatever venue you’re at about half an hour before anyone else. You’re probably that person in your group of friends who wants to pay up and switch locations first.
- You’re automatically responsible for your friends. If you’re around, everyone seems to forget about the whole concept of time and expect you to let them know when it’s time to go. You have to stop them from ordering another round when there’s a movie you’re all trying to catch, or pester them to stop straightening their hair because the Uber is 30 seconds away!
- Free coffee is a waste. You know you’re generally early, so you tend to stock up on drinks and snacks for while you wait. When there’s surprise coffee and pastries at any given event, it feels like the late people are being rewarded while you’re the only one who came prepared.
- You spend way too much time on your phone. What else are you supposed to do while you’re waiting on everyone else? Cue the mindless scrolling and unnecessary texting.
- People regularly accuse you of speed walking. It’s just your normal pace. Why would you slow down? You have somewhere to be!
