I was reading one of the employee’s (Vietnamese) biography in my workplace and she mentioned an apparent difference between East and West is punctuality. Indeed! In KL, everyone is always late for everything including meetings, appointments, dates, the typical Chinese weddings, you name it. This is because in the West, time is perceived as linear, in Asia, it is seen as cyclical hmmmm.

Since I’m a typical Asian, I am not exempted from being on time. Although my lateness is often excused coz it’s usually in the 5-10 min range, but late is still late. I realised that a lot can be gained even in a mere 5 minutes especially in meetings. It might not mean a lot to me but it may mean a lot and precious to others. Now it’s not just starting on time but also ending on time. A common example is again meetings. In the west, 1 hr = 1 hr or less. In the east, 1 hr = 1 hour or more (usually the latter). I am of course being brought up in the Eastern culture, so working with a different culture to cover all agendas efficiently within a scheduled time frame and the capability to prioritise discussions spontaneously have always been challenging but it’s definitely more productive and beneficial. At least I know that I do not need to reschedule my subsequent plans. That’s why people in the West tend to leave work on time because everything usually works according to plan and besides, there is no time to waste for personal activities. In short, they have life lah! But there are no ‘tani’ (yum char/coffee) or ‘pat’ (chit chat) sessions during office hours..ha ha…how boring. However, it takes all relevant parties to make punctuality a success but if it’s already embedded deep within our roots, it is almost impossible to change. After all, that’s what it takes to form a culture - mel.