It’s NOT Fashionable to be LATE!
In every interview I stress the importance of attendance. This is covered once again during enrollment at which time students sign off on their chosen schedule. Here in Rochester, school begins promptly at 9am for full time students and, in general, they are all quite good at arriving on time. Just like us, I’m sure every school has their collection of students that clock in after 9:01 nearly every day. No matter how you slice it, 9:01 is late.
This is a hard concept for some students to digest; they feel that one or five minutes late doesn’t count. I’ve heard the phrase “close enough” too many times to remember the exact number. The issue is quite simple; even if you come in at exactly 9am you are punching in when your class is starting and there is no magical grace period. Imagine you are going to the movies and the movie starts at 4pm. Would you want to get there at 4 when the movie has begun and you are just buying your tickets? You still have to make your way back to the theater in which your movie is playing and hopefully you’ll quietly sneak in the back while the others are watching.
Now imagine you are the person who arrived on time; you got there ten minutes early, had time to pick the exact seat you wanted, watched all the previews, and were having a lovely time. How would like it if for the first ten to fifteen minutes of the actual movie you had stragglers opening up door in the back, letting all sorts of light in, making noise, and trying to find a seat. You would probably find that extremely annoying. This is why “close enough” is not a valid excuse. Your fellow classmates have settled in and begun their day it’s unfair to habitually cause an interruption.
We try to do a lot of little things to get you ready for your professional life after you graduate. One of them is to teach you how to be where you need to be on time. No boss is going to tolerate hiring someone who finds it difficult to have his or her station set up every morning because they arrive late, even if just by a minute or two. What happens if your client arrives before you? I’ve seen it happen at our salon and boy is it unfortunate. This person set aside their time first thing in the morning to come see a particular stylist and we have to inform them that they’re late. From someone who has witnessed that client’s frustration, trust me, it’s not something you want to cause.
We all understand that things happen and that once in a while you’ll be late. If you think it’s going to be more than ten minutes, call the school. It lets us know that you’re on you way and demonstrates responsibility. If it turns into a pattern, look over your morning routine; it may need some tweaking. Always remember, your school’s staff is there to help and routines are one of our specialties. So stop by! Before class begins, of course.