If You’re Always Late, Your “Time Personality” Might Be to Blame

Just as we have our individual personalities—which encompass traits such as extroversion, openness to experience, and neuroticism—we also have “time personalities.” These personalities capture our relationship to time: whether or not we’re punctual, how much time we believe we have, and specific time-related habits we may display.

What Is a ‘Time Personality’?

According to Kristin Anderson, LCSW, founder of Madison Square Psychotherapy, a “time personality” is our “natural style when it comes to managing time.”

“It dictates how you think about time, handle time, and different patterns around time that you have,” explains Anderson. She says for the majority of us, our “time personality” tends to fall along a spectrum, “from very rigid to very flexible.”

Dr. Ryan Sultan, a board-certified psychiatrist and assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University, weighs in further. “‘Time personalities’ can impact a person’s ability to function and have the potential to lead to certain mental and emotional disturbances.” He says they’re sometimes found alongside mental health conditions, such as ADHD.

The 4 Common Time Personalities

Are you curious about which of the four “time personalities” most closely fits you? Here’s a brief overview of each.

1. Time Optimist

A “time optimist” tends to believe they have more time than they actually do. Dr. Sultan says those with this time personality “don’t really feel pressure under a time crunch.” 

2. Time Anxious

On the other end of the spectrum, we have the “time anxious” personality. These people tend to be anxious to begin with, says Dr. Sultan. They also, according to Anderson, “assume everything that can go wrong, will go wrong (e.g., traffic, delays, getting lost on the way).” Therefore, they show up to commitments far in advance. 

3. Time Bender

Those in the “time bender” category are driven by adrenaline-seeking, their emotions, or inspiration (or perhaps a combination of these). Though they’re highly productive, they also thrive under pressure. “A ‘time bender’ is the person who seems to live in their own personal time zone,” says Anderson. “Being 10 minutes late basically counts as on time.”

4. Time Blind

For those who identify with the “time blind” personality, sensing the passage of time is challenging. This type is found frequently in those with ADHD or who possess executive function issues.  

“They might start a task and, by the time they check the clock, an entire hour has disappeared somehow,” says Anderson. “It’s not that these folks don’t care about being late or making other people wait. Without external reminders or cues, it’s easy for them to lose track of how long things take, which makes sticking to a schedule more challenging.”

Dr. Sultan further explains how this personality manifests in those with ADHD. For them, “‘time blindness’ isn’t just poor time management. Their brains actually have a difficult time registering and processing temporal information, causing impairments in working memory, executive functioning, and temporal discounting.” 

What Causes Differences in Time Perception?

What exactly drives our varying relationships with time perception? Personality is a key player.

“People with more ‘Type A’ traits may be more likely to be time anxious and rigid about schedules,” says Anderson. “In contrast, those with more ‘Type B’ traits tend to be flexible and may lean toward being time benders.” 

Neurobiological factors also play a role. “When the brain is on high sensory-alert due to anxiety, time appears to feel slower,” says Dr. Sultan. “Higher dopamine levels in the brain can speed up the brain’s internal clock, impacting our perception of time.” Finally, age can affect our time perception. This is because adults have fewer new experiences and slower dopamine metabolism, which makes times seem faster, according to Dr. Sultan. 

How to Work With Your Time Personality (Not Against It)

While each time personality comes with its set of pitfalls when not properly managed, the good news is that we can work with these tendencies.

• Use time management apps: Adva Shaviv, a writer living with ADHD, deals with “time blindness.” She struggles with being chronically late, and says a few strategies have helped her overcome her challenges. “I use a routines app (Routinery) to help push me from one task to the next each morning and evening,” she says. “This is meant to simply keep me aware of the time moving forward.”
• Account for prep time: Shaviv also regularly adds 30-60 minutes to preparation time before commitments. “However, I need to be cautious not to take too much extra time into account, as my brain will find something else to focus on, and I’m likely to miss the time again.”
• Shake up your schedule: Grace Ogren, a mental health writer who identifies as “time anxious” has found it helpful to break her internal schedule into small ways. “For example, I once started my bedtime routine 10 minutes late, and when the world didn’t end, I felt more comfortable adding flex time into my schedule,” she says. It’s also helped to communicate why timing matters to her, which has allowed loved ones to support her better.
• Keep one day of the week unstructured: Finally, she aims to keep one day a week schedule-free. “I can just go about at whatever pace feels comfortable and flow in and out of activities without pressure,” she says. 
• Schedule buffers into your day: Emily Mendez, a former therapist and founder of Priceless Copy, identifies as a time optimist. Living with bipolar disorder further complicates things. “When my mood is low, I tend to feel guilty and stressed about frequently running late,” she says. “This leads to a lot of self-blame.” To manage the issue, she’s turned to scheduling buffers into her day in order to have sufficient time between commitments. She also sets multiple reminders for her tasks.