11 Time-Consuming Habits People Who Are Always Late Can't Seem To Quit
Being late is often about hidden rituals we don't even realize we're prioritizing.
Pixel-Shot / Shutterstock Some people seem to live in a constant battle with the clock. No matter how early they set their alarm or how many reminders they leave themselves, they still manage to arrive ten (or thirty) minutes late. It’s tempting to blame it on carelessness, but the truth is often more complicated. Chronic lateness is usually less about a lack of respect and more about a set of embedded habits that quietly steal time in the background. Many of these behaviors feel normal, or even necessary, but together, they make it nearly impossible to leave the house on time or switch tasks efficiently.
And here’s the surprising part: the people who are always late don’t always realize they’re doing anything wrong. They’re often productive, well-meaning, and even high-functioning, but they also engage in a handful of unconscious routines that chip away at their time without mercy. These are the habits that tend to show up again and again in people who truly believe they’re “just five minutes behind,” even when everyone around them knows that’s rarely the case.
These are 11 time-consuming habits people who are always late can't seem to quit
1. Underestimating how long things take
Keith Brofsky from Photo Images via Canva
This is one of the most consistent traits among people who are chronically late. Known in psychology as the planning fallacy, it's a well-documented cognitive bias where people believe they can complete tasks more quickly than they realistically can.
Even when people have experience doing a task in the past, they still tend to underestimate how long it would take them the next time. For people who are always running behind, this bias quietly shapes every decision they make, from squeezing in one more email to assuming traffic won’t be that bad.
2. Trying to maximize every last second
Petko Ninov from Getty Images Signature via Canva
To someone who’s chronically late, a spare five minutes is a chance to clean the kitchen, check messages, or start a small project. While this kind of efficiency may feel productive, it often backfires.
Behavioral economist Dan Ariely explains that people tend to overvalue what they can do right now and underestimate the cost of being late later. They over-commit to squeezing value out of every moment, even if it sabotages punctuality.
3. Lingering in transitions
Night View more by pixelshot via Canva
Whether it’s standing too long in the shower, getting caught up choosing an outfit, or staring blankly at the fridge, people who struggle with lateness often waste time during moments of transition. These are micro-pauses where the brain tries to reset.
Cognitive scientists have found that task-switching carries a measurable lag, especially in people prone to anxiety or ADHD. These minor delays add up quickly, especially when there’s no margin for error built into the schedule.
4. Getting stuck in elaborate pre-departure rituals
DragonImages via Canva
Some people can leave the house in five minutes. Others need a whole routine: feeding the dog, checking the locks (twice), adjusting the thermostat, fixing their eyeliner, grabbing water, switching shoes, and running back in for their charger. These rituals often stem from a need for control or comfort, particularly in anxious or perfectionistic personalities.
These behaviors can become self-reinforcing, creating the illusion that they’re essential to success or calm, even when they’re actually just delaying departure.
5. Over-personalizing time
sturti from Getty Images Signature via Canva
Chronic lateness often comes with the belief that time is flexible and they can “feel” their way through the day rather than following a rigid clock. This mindset is particularly common in people with creative temperaments or low time awareness.
According to Dr. Linda Sapadin, a psychologist specializing in time management styles, some people have what she calls “the absent-minded professor” or “the dreamer” personality, both of which struggle with the abstract nature of structured time. These individuals are rarely trying to be rude; they just don’t see time in the same mechanical way others do.
6. Getting emotionally stuck in the moment
pixelshot via Canva
Some people struggle to leave conversations, step away from tasks, or end pleasant moments because doing so feels emotionally jarring. Psychologists refer to this as temporal myopia, the tendency to overvalue the present moment and undervalue future consequences.
This habit can lead to delays that seem irrational from the outside but feel deeply logical from within. They’re not ignoring the clock exactly. It's more that they’re emotionally tethered to the now.
7. Always thinking they can beat the system
comzeal from Getty Images via Canva
There’s a strange optimism that runs through many chronically late people: they believe they can catch every green light, find parking instantly, or skip the line this time. It’s a form of magical thinking that is irrational, but seductive.
Studies have found that optimism bias plays a large role in time mismanagement, especially in people who score high in impulsivity. This belief that everything will just work out often leads them to shave their departure times thinner and thinner.
8. Using time-blind technology first thing in the morning
Walls.io from Pexels via Canva
Scrolling through a phone, checking social media, or even reading the news can easily eat up more time than it seems, especially first thing in the morning. Devices are designed to trap attention and distort time perception.
Frequent phone users often experience chronodistortion, a skewed sense of how long they’ve been using their device. Even a “quick check” can derail an entire schedule before the day has really begun.
9. Avoiding looking at the clock until it’s too late
Kaspars Grinvalds via Canva
You’d think someone who’s always late would obsessively check the time, but many do the opposite. They avoid it until panic sets in. This is often an emotional coping mechanism.
Pauline Wallin, Ph.D., a psychologist in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, noted that, "People who are chronically late are often wrestling with anxiety, distraction, ambivalence, or other internal psychological states." Not looking becomes a way to delay the moment when reality hits, but it inevitably makes things worse.
10. Relying on others to provide urgency
Milkos from Getty Images via Canva
Some people only shift into high gear when someone else is waiting, calling, or yelling. Over time, they train themselves to depend on external pressure to get moving.
Psychologists call this external regulation, where behavior is driven by outside forces rather than internal discipline. While this can get results, it’s also why these individuals are rarely early unless someone is actively watching the clock for them.
11. Never updating their routines, even when life changes
pixelshot via Canva
People often carry over time habits from past jobs, old schedules, or younger years, even when they no longer fit their current reality. They still think they can get ready in 30 minutes like they used to in college, or that the commute will take the same 12 minutes it did three years ago.
This mismatch between outdated routines and present-day circumstances creates a gap they can’t seem to close. Behavioral researchers at Stanford have emphasized that habit updating is critical to time efficiency, yet many people resist it because it requires rethinking familiar patterns, and that takes work.
Sloane Bradshaw is a writer and essayist who frequently contributes to YourTango.
