Punctuality tells you more about a man than any compliment. It has nothing to do with strictness, it is simply observation. I run an agency and I know how evenings begin. And how they unfold is surprisingly often decided in the first few minutes.
Someone who is punctual has given it some thought. About the route and the traffic, perhaps even about how he walks into the room. That is anticipation you can actually see.
Someone who arrives ten minutes late and shrugs it off says something else: your time is worth less than mine. It can always be wrapped up charmingly, but it changes nothing. In my conversations with the ladies I hear it regularly: an evening can be planned beautifully, and its mood is still decided at the door.
I plan my days tightly, which comes with running an agency. That is why I know what an appointment is worth when it starts on time: it gives the other person the feeling of being taken seriously.
At PURE this is no coincidence. Date, time and exact location are settled in advance, including the floor. That serves our safety and is, at the same time, a form of respect on both sides. Our ladies shape their evening around it, from the journey to the quiet beforehand. Two hours is our minimum, and they begin at the agreed time, not whenever the guest happens to arrive. Anyone who throws that planning off with a quarter of an hour's delay gives away something that cannot be made up.
That doesn't mean every delay is unforgivable. Traffic is traffic. A short message, honest and without excuses, takes the edge off. What matters to me is the attitude behind it.
The best thing about punctuality: it costs nothing. No money, no effort, no style you would first have to learn. You only have to decide that the other person is worth it. That makes a stronger impression than any watch on a wrist.
My Monday began at seven this morning, by the way. I was on time.
Discreetly yours,
Lena