I will start by posing this question:
When you’re late for a meeting or appointment, how do you react?
If you’re like most of us, it probably depends.
Are we late for a meeting with our team or our boss? A vendor or our friends?
Moreover, when we are late, what signal are we sending to others?
Perhaps we are silently and naively disrespecting others to our own detriment.
Let’s dig further to find out.
The Lateness Culture
Years ago, I worked for a company where lateness appeared to be the desired culture.
Here was a common occurrence:
It was 2:00 p.m. Time for the weekly team meeting. I had arrived a few minutes early, along with six of my peers. But our boss was nowhere to be found.
By 2:05, still no sign. At 2:10, we asked his assistant if he was coming. No clear answer.
By 2:15, we all left.
Sadly, this wasn’t a one-off. It was habitual.
At 2:30, I got the call from his assistant to reconvene. No apology. Just a message: He was busy.
So, after scrambling to rearrange our own schedules, we all dutifully trampled back to the conference room for the meeting.
Now, none of us were stupid nor petty. We didn’t complain since we “understood”.
Yet, I can honestly say it was not motivating. It was not trust building.
And it was highly annoying.
The culture turned being late into a badge of honor. We’ve all seen this at some point in our careers. And I will admit there are times when tardiness is difficult to avoid.
But the issue I see is this:
Each time we are late, we send a signal: I’m more important than you.
We may not like to admit this, especially if “they” said it was no problem. “They” understood how busy I was…right? In isolation or done infrequently, we probably don’t need to be too concerned.
However, when we make tardiness a habit, along with other time-wasting behaviors, we rip apart the fabric of our relationships.
And we lessen the ability of our teams (and ourselves) to perform well.
The Cost of Wasted Time
I think we can all relate to a “higher up” being late to a meeting.
And, if we’re being honest, many of us can also all relate to being late ourselves.
And in either situation, lateness wastes time.
And, while a few minutes here and there seem like a small thing, they add up.
For example, if someone told us they could instantly boost the productivity of our team by at least 5% a day, we’d at least listen.
Yet, we have that ability under our control. For example, if we had five (5) meetings in a day, and we were five (5) minutes late to each, that’s 25 minutes. 25 minutes in an eight-hour day is 5.2%.
I know many of us are scoffing at this computation, silently rejecting the concept.
So, let’s move beyond the concept of “time saved” to what this is really signaling.
If I was five minutes late to five meetings in a day, that’s at least five people I signaled that I did not respect their time. Consequently, a lack of respect for them.
Extrapolate that.
Create Time Through Respect
Essentially, when we waste time, we communicate that we are entitled to steal someone else’s time — in an ill-fated attempt to have more time ourselves.
Yet, it’s a fallacy. Time is fixed. Time is a scarce resource
And we can’t manufacture more time by stealing it from others. So, let’s stop trying.
Rather, we need to focus on making our time more productive for ourselves and our teams.
We can start by respecting time as the scarce resource that it is.
Signal Respect Through Time
To build this respect for time, we need to consider elements beyond just showing up on time. With that in mind, here’s a starter list to consider:
- Be present. Give the person in front of us our full attention. Best practice says to look people in the eye when they are speaking.
- Come prepared. Take the time in advance to think about what is to be discussed.
- Be clear and concise. Communicate with a purpose. Avoid rambling or talking for the sake of hearing ourselves.
- Follow through. Do what we said we’d do, when we said we’d do it. Don’t make them chase us.
- End on time. We should not assume someone’s else schedule matches ours. If only 10 minutes remain in a meeting and we don’t think we’ll finish, ask for permission to extend or schedule another meeting.
When we treat others’ time with care, we model the behavior we want to see in return. Respect scales when it’s seen in action.
None of this is groundbreaking. But it’s far from habitual.
And when we fall back on “I’m busy” to excuse poor habits, we send the wrong message. Everyone’s busy.
The question is what will we prioritize?
Will we prioritize respecting time?
The Hidden Benefits of Respect
And, finally, let’s talk about why respect matters.
We’ve all been on the receiving end of disrespect. It doesn’t feel good.
Which is why the opposite stands out so clearly.
When someone treats our time like it matters, we remember it.
Now imagine if entire teams felt that way—every day.
What would you see?
- Faster trust. Not just between individuals, but across the whole team.
- Stronger engagement. When people feel respected, they lean in.
- More empathy. Mutual respect builds care—and with care comes deeper support.
Respect isn’t about tone or titles. It’s about how we treat someone when they’re waiting on us.
And when respect becomes the norm?
We get the one thing every leader hopes for but can’t force:
Discretionary effort.
The initiative people take—not because they’re told, but because they want to.
And it often starts with something simple:
Respect their time.
Key Takeaways (TL;DR)
Time is the ultimately equalizer. No matter who we are, we have 24 hours in a day.
Each day we have a choice on how we use that time.
And we can use that time to build respect with and amongst our teams.
The simplest and seemingly smallest act can have the biggest impact.
Respecting the time of others signals we respect them.
Being on time, being present in discussions and following through, on time, signal we respect the people involved.
And respect motivates others. Respect gives people confidence and trust.
And, if we truly want more productive teams, respect pays more divides than power or fear.
Time for One Last Thought
Every leader wants more initiative, more trust, more ownership from their team.
Start by asking:
What’s one thing I could do this week to show my team their time matters?
Then do it—on time.
