Being late tells people your time is worth more than theirs. Nobody forgets that message.

Arriving late says something you never meant to say, which is that the other person waiting was acceptable to you. They rarely mention it and they always register it, and it builds quietly across months into a general sense of whether you can be counted on. Most lateness has nothing to do with disrespect, and it still gets read that way.

Aim to arrive early enough that a small delay still lands you on time. If something genuinely goes wrong, send the message the moment you know, rather than when you walk in.