Got spare change?

A strange thing happened last Tuesday. Students showed up. People that I haven’t seen in weeks or months came for class. One guy had a reasonable excuse, he broke his wrist at work. To be honest, I guess I don’t really care about why people stop coming to class. I just want them to show up. What kills me the most is that I am guilty of the same thing. What a hypocrite I have turned out to be.
When only two or three students have shown up by 8:30am, I think about how good it will be for those who actually came to class. Then, more students start strolling in later and later. It drives me crazy when students are late, but in pure hypocritical fashion, I shouldn’t expect them to. The truth is, I don’t always start class at 8:30am. So, why should I assume that people will keep showing up for the beginning of class at 8:30 when it doesn’t always actually start at 8:30?
I have also found it to be more difficult to show up for my own classes at UTA. I have come to realize this semester that taking classes four nights a week is not for me. In the same vein, I think that the students who show up for ESL Monday through Thursday and computer class on Friday get burnt out after a certain number of weeks of the same thing. Having to get up every single weekday morning and be somewhere ready to go at 8:30am may not be everyone’s cup of tea.
I know that people are going to occasionally miss class due to illness or car trouble, etc., but as the instructor I feel that if they miss class then they are missing an opportunity to learn more English. While I know that is true, a desire to learn isn’t the only component needed. A counselor once told me that in order to change, there are four necessary elements:

1. Acknowledge that a change needs to be made
2. Seeing the “post-change” potential
3. Knowing the steps needed to fulfill that potential
4. The willingness to complete those steps

The final one is definitely the most difficult. It certainly has been for me. I know I need to go to class more often. I know that I would understand the material better if I went to class. The trouble is, when it is time to leave for class, the will is hard to come by.