Is being On-time Late, Early or On-time?

Some cultures worship time and in a few others, time is a secondary or even a tertiary factor. Isn’t it hard to know how time works in different places? Especially in multi cultural places like the USA and bi-cultural places like Singapore? People say that Asians are late but aren’t the Japanese always on-time? Do you know how to differentiate people and their time orientations in a multi-cultural context?

As confusing as it may seem, I have noted down the most common notions of what being on-time is… AND Guess what? It is common across cultures!

Understanding Time-Orientation

We can divide most cultures into two – future-oriented cultures and past/present oriented cultures.

Countries like USA and Japan have a future oriented culture – they take up time very seriously and time is considered to be a very important factor in developing their future and perhaps even making a legacy.

Time is Money and time cannot be wasted.

Countries like India have a past/present orientated culture. This kind of culture is prevalent among countries that have rich culture that has lasted for a long time. They gain “inspiration and comfort” from the past and focus on building relationships over stressing on time.

As the quote goes – “Time you enjoy wasting is not time wasted.”

Then, there are exceptions and outliers – each culture has its very own diversity. A person in that culture can be an outlier of that culture or a whole community can be an outlier.

Tread on the lines carefully

But, I’m not going to leave you guys in a dilemma!

There are some cases that you can never go wrong with time in most cultures and countries in the world.

When is being on-time Early?

Parties & Late-night events

A party or a soirée is always happening later in the day. Unless it is a formal party with officials and authorities of high importance, the guests are most likely to come after they finish work and other duties. So, it tends to start later than the time it is intended to start. When you are on-time,  you might actually be early!

P.C. Google Images

When is being on-time Late?

Shows, Appointments,  Interviews

The Fashion Show starts at 7pm? Go at 6:00pm to get the good seats! Got a flu and have an appointment to meet the doctor at 6:00pm? Be there at 5:45pm (at least). Interviewing a celebrity? You need two hours to get through the security! Even casual interviews need you to be early to be on time. Did I forget to mention about exams?

S.C. Google Images

Weddings too! Never go on-time to a wedding – Wedding may go on earlier than scheduled or later, and it all depends on the day. You don’t want to miss the celebration! In almost all cultures, going early is to a wedding is mandatory as there are usually many things to do before a wedding, especially when you are someone who the bride/groom depends on. If you are just a guest, it is a great time to meet family, friends or just network. It is also courtesy to go early. But, know when early is too-early! Nobody wants you to be there too early too!

Edit: Thanks to my fellow blogger Carmen for opening my eyes to this!

When is being On-time On-time?

This is the hardest to decode. In place like Singapore and Japan, public transportation is always on-time. So, honey, you are going to miss your bus if you don’t go at 8:02 am sharp. But yes, I still have one common thing in mind that even across cultures is famed for keeping on-time on-time.

Can’t guess?

Reservations!

When you make a reservation at a hotel, yes, you are granted a grace period but you are expected to be on time – Not late or early!

S.C. Google Images

 

Yep, so there it is! These are the common rules and norms in almost all the societies and cultures AND countries in the world!

Remember that if you really want to know about how time works with a particular person, you are need to spend time with him/her to understand his/her perception on time.

Pro-tip #1: It is easy to understand how time is seen from a person’s lens within the first hour of talking to them – if they are willing to extend that 1 hour into 1 hour and 10 minutes, you know how it works and on the other hand, if they are limiting it to 59 or probably 55 minutes, you know how it works.

Pro-tip #2: Sometimes, the job they do may dictate them to have rigid time schedules. So meet them during the weekend or off-days to find it.

Pro-tip #3: If people are cruising across cultures, the bigger influencer of success – the country that they are in or the culture they are currently immersed in – will indicate their time orientation.

See you soon!

❤

L.R.

P.S. Words like “soon” and “later” has different meanings across different cultures!