#127 Inconsideration (Time)

Time is incredibly valuable; you can never get it back. What we do with our personal time is sacred these days, so when someone is inconsiderate of my time I get really frustrated.

I recently borrowed a vehicle from someone to use for a specific purpose. They knew I was coming to pick it up at least a few hours in advance. They knew approximately what time I would be arriving and they knew that I only had a short amount of time to pick it up and leave since I was on my lunch hour from work. They also knew that I had to rely on someone else to take me there, therefore using up someone else’s valuable time.

When I arrived, they were completely ill-prepared. They didn't greet me at the door when I arrived. They took their time coming outside. They didn't have the keys ready. They didn't have essential items cleared out of it. They couldn't locate the key fob. They proceeded to engage in a lengthy conversation about some random crap that had nothing to do with the vehicle.

Something that could have literally taken less than 5 minutes took nearly 20 minutes.

Then another incident happened with the same person. This person needed something that I had in my possession, and called me at 10:15 pm to ask me to bring it with me to work the next day. This person was going out of town and needed what I had. Since I was nearly in bed by this point, I had to get dressed to go outside to the garage to fetch what they needed, then put it in my vehicle to take to work the next day.

Once I got to work the next day, they called and said they were coming to pick it up from my place of employment, but that they needed to shower first but they would be there in 20 minutes. With this person, 20 minutes = at least 35. I was leaving work in 30 minutes (again, they waited until the very last possible moment) and I was not about to be late because I have commitments that need to be kept. There was NO WAY this person was going to make it by the time I left. Instead, this person had to go out of their way to get what they needed rather than making a compromise with me, which ended up making them irritated and put off because of the situation.

IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY, PEOPLE.

Simple preparation and adequate communication solves lots of headaches down the road. Just take a couple minutes to prepare for the situation ahead of you, discuss the details with those parties affected, and you will make those around you happy.

If you don't have time to prepare ahead of time, at least let the other person(s) know. They may be able to adjust their schedule to better accommodate the situation, and won't be so disappointed and frustrated when they arrive and have to deal with your lack of preparation and wasting their precious time.