If You're on Time, You're Late

This concept needs to be taken literally. Punctuality is certainly one of several prerequisites to a successful meeting, but it doesn't seem to be taken very seriously. Many salespeople arrive at appointments with barely 30 seconds to spare before sitting before a potential A or B opportunity. Not a wise thing to do. We are all time-starved, but don't compensate for it at the expense of short-changing mental preparation time. If you have a 10:00 AM meeting, be there no later than 9:50. Don't come flying in at 9:59, out of breath, and still dealing with road rage. You need those few minutes to mentally prepare for the meeting. Although you are there physically, you are not there mentally. You may even want to take a few minutes in the washroom to give yourself a final check before the meeting.

Don't be late. Customers accept very few excuses for tardiness—bad weather doesn't cut it. I once overheard a sales manager quip to a rep who was 15 minutes late for a meeting: "There are only two 8 o'clocks in the day. How can you screw it up?" If you are unavoidably late, even by one minute, call ahead to inform the customer of the situation. It's very professional and it's appreciated.