Editor, Publisher

Just imagine this, if you show up late for something as important as a meeting with your potential new employer, then just imagine what else the interviewer might consider you arriving late for in the future.  Will it be an important meeting where you’re expected to convince a highly regarded client to purchase additional products from the company or will it be when you’re needed to deliver important documents to a client who is departing for the airport in less than an hour?  Either way you’re already setting a bad first impression.

Okay, so let's say you've already made the big mistake of not planning ahead.  Let's say you didn't allot extra time for some unplanned mishap.  What can you do about it if your interview is just minutes from starting?  Well, don't panic.  Just open up your daily planner or whatever notebook you normally use for keeping track of your interview details and locate the phone number to the person that arranged your meeting.  (Just in case you're new to interviewing, you should always take your planner with you on interviews and your planner should always contain the following information:  interview date, time and location, interviewer's name and title, name of person that arranged the meeting and a phone number for this person).

Now, locate a payphone or hopefully you'll already have a cell phone with you.  Now, call the person that arranged your meeting and apologize for your lateness.  Also, let them know you're still very much interested in the job.  If you don't give a reason for your tardiness over the phone, you should make sure to have an explanation prepared to hand out when you get there.  Some excuses I've heard before as a recruitment manager were the following:  

"I was stuck in traffic because of a really bad car accident that ended up effecting two lanes of traffic."

"The weather caused delays affecting public transportation." 

"The cab driver got lost and that's why I'm getting here so late." 

"The train I was riding on had a passenger on it that suddenly took ill.  The conductor had to temporarily stop the train so the paramedics could get to the sick woman."  

While I definitely don't want to encourage you to lie, please make sure that whatever you say, you don't blurt anything that'll make you come across as seeming uninterested in the job.  If you slept late or your watch was running slow that morning, don't share this information with the interviewer.  While your answer may be an honest one, it'll unfortunately create the undesired impression that you're careless in keeping commitments.  And while you may've been able to save the meeting with your prompt call to the interviewer's assistant, you might not be able to salvage your chances at the job.

If you do happen to arrive late for your interview, you'll just have to plan on working twice as hard to convince the interviewer of your skills.  Don't casually sit back and point out your past achievements, but really work hard to wow him or her.  Make sure you speak with enthusiasm when describing your capabilities and how you believe you can help the company towards meeting its objectives.  Also, smile often and maintain eye contact during the meeting.  This will help you come across as friendly and confident.  Also, make sure to ask a couple of questions at the end, if the interviewer allows it.  This will conveniently help to make you seem more interested in the position. 

When the meeting is finally over, shake the interviewer's hand firmly and thank him for taking time out of his schedule to meet with you.  Also, 1 to 3 days after your interview, remember to shoot a thank you letter in the mail to him and don't forget one for the person that arranged your meeting(s).  Now, once all that's out of the way, get down on your knees and pray hard for a little good luck.  Wish hard that the interviewer wasn't too annoyed by your arriving late for the interview.  And while you're at it, go ahead and wish for him to have been so blown away by your talents that he's decided to offer you the job despite you showing up late.  That would be a really cool outcome, huh? 

Well, in case you're not lucky enough to be dealt this fortunate hand, like I'm sure most other late arriving applicants aren't, then suck up the loss and learn to plan ahead better next time.  In the future, get accurate directions to the company beforehand, that's if this happened to be your reason for arriving late.  Next time, watch the weather the night before and/or again the morning of your interview so you can allot more time for traffic delays and anything else unwelcome that normally accompanies bad weather.  Seriously think about how long it should take you to make your appointment under good conditions and under bad, and I'm sure these extra considerations will go a long way in helping you stick to future appointments. 

_________________________________________________

This article is © 2003-2005 by Tracy Miller and may not be reposted without written permission from the author and may not be reprinted for profit.