We have something in my family called Tognoli time – always be at least 5 minutes early for every appointment.  It is something that has been ingrained into me since I was a kid by my dad.  I don’t care what it is – going golfing, going to church, going on vacation, going to the doctor, coming over for dinner – going anywhere or doing anything, my dad has always been and continues to make sure no one ever has to wait for him for anything.

I am proud to say, the apple has not fallen far from the tree, because I am the exact same way – for that matter, so are my boys.  I cannot stand being late and making other people wait for me. Time is the most valuable asset any of us have in our life and being late tells people you do not care about them and their most valuable asset, their time. Remember, you never get a second chance at making a first impression and your first impression is what time you show up…early, on time, or late.

As important as being on time or a little early can be, I never realized how just how valuable it was until I read the following story. It is a classic and really drives home the point:

A priest was being honored at his retirement dinner after 25 years in the parish.

A leading local politician and member of the congregation was chosen to make the presentation and to give a little speech at the dinner. However he was delayed, so the priest decided to say his own few words while they waited.

“It is said that your first impressions are the most powerful,” he began, “and upon my assignment to this church so many years ago, one of my first duties was to hear confessions and, I must confess, after hearing the very first one, my impression was that I had been assigned to a terrible place. The person who entered my confessional told me he had stolen a TV set and when questioned by the police was able to lie his way out of it. He had also stolen money from his parents, embezzled from his employer, had an affair with his boss’s wife, taken illegal drugs, and gave VD to his sister. I was appalled.”

The priest’s eyes then turned misty as he continued, “But as the days went on I learned that my flock was not at all like that first penitent and that I had, indeed, come to a fine parish full of good and loving people.”

Just as the priest finished his talk, the politician arrived full of apologies at being late. He immediately began to give his presentation and opened with the following:

“I’ll never forget the first day our parish priest arrived, in fact I had the honor of being the first person to go to him for confession…”

Moral of the story – never, never, never be late!