Time Respect

Last week in our workplace, a Ministry of Education Advisor met with a small team from our school. Her meeting was scheduled for 9:30–11:00 a.m. a generous slot, I thought, given how precious those small windows of release time are for teachers.

She arrived around 15 minutes late, which I completely understand, traffic happens, and life can throw little curveballs into even the best-laid plans. But at 12:15 p.m., she was still there, running the meeting. The meeting had gone an hour and fifteen minutes over time.

At that point, I was genuinely curious to chat with our teachers and unpack how this happened.

I’ll be honest: I’m a stickler for time, especially meeting time. In schools, it’s one of the most precious resources we have, and once it’s gone, we don’t get it back.

We teach people how to treat our time. And in education, where meetings can fill up our week if we let them, it’s so important they’re purposeful, efficient, and respectful of everyone involved.

Time is one of the greatest signs of respect we can show each other—and how we manage it says a lot about what (and who) we value.  

Here are my boundaries around meetings;

• Always set a timeframe. I rarely let meetings run past 60 minutes. A small buffer is fine, but not if it starts eating into someone’s valuable work time. 90 minutes in the maximum for me!

• Start on time. If someone’s running late to a team meeting, it’s their responsibility to catch up, not everyone else’s to wait. (unless it's the person facilitating the meeting1)

• Set the tone early. A quick, “Thanks for gathering, everyone. We’ve got an hour together, so let’s make the most of it,” creates clarity from the start.

• Have an agenda and stick to it. It’s amazing how much smoother things flow when everyone knows the direction.

• Take good minutes. They keep the group accountable and help anyone who missed the meeting stay in the loop.

• Circle back. Revisiting previous minutes helps ensure actions actually happen.

• Avoid Friday meetings. Unless it’s something urgent, Fridays are best left free for finishing the week well.

  
  

Time boundaries aren’t about control — they’re about care. When we respect time, we respect people.

If you are in a position where you lead meetings, next time you schedule or attend a meeting, pause and ask yourself: Does this need to be an hour? Does it serve a purpose?

A little awareness goes a long way in creating workplaces that feel lighter, calmer, and more focused.