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You’ve got a meeting in the office at 9am and it takes exactly half an hour to get there, so you set off in good time to avoid being late. But the traffic is heavy because it’s a Friday – which you forgot to factor in – and there are roadworks that cause more delays. As the minutes tick by, you get increasingly anxious and end up rushing in late, feeling sweaty and frantic.
Sometimes, things go wrong and despite our best efforts, we end up being late. But being habitually late can result from a number of factors, including time management, personality and external factors – like having too much on your plate at work and home.
Another psychological phenomenon called ‘time optimism’ may also explain why some of us are always late. Put simply, a time optimist – otherwise known as a tidsoptimist – underestimates how long something takes, and also overestimates how much time they have at their disposal.
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It’s hard to estimate exactly how many of us have a tendency to be tardy, but surveys suggest it’s a common issue. In a 2023 survey, 35% of full-time office workers admitted being late to work, a figure which rose to 40% for hybrid staff.
So why are we always running behind and how does time optimism affect whether we’re on schedule?
“When planning for certain tasks, time optimists have a tendency to focus on the best-case scenario, and fail to take into account any potential delays or complications,” says Dr Sophie Mort, a mental health expert at Headspace and clinical psychologist.
“For example, if we’re writing an essay or work assignment we might convince ourselves that it’s possible to write it in a week, but actually when we sit down to do it we realise how complex the topic is and the amount of research that needs to be done. And then other factors might intervene like getting sick or our laptop dying on us.”
What causes time optimism?
There are a number of reasons why we might underestimate how long things take, including different kinds of cognitive biases. These are systematic errors in thinking that occur when we are processing information and making decisions and judgements. Often, we don’t have the time or mental capacity to think through all the options clearly and make an informed choice, so we rely on shortcuts – which can lead to mistakes.
“Time optimism can occur because of the planning fallacy, where we tend to underestimate the time it will take to complete an action due to relying on overly optimistic scenarios,” says Mort.
Memory bias is another cognitive bias that may contribute. Research shows that when we consider past experiences and how long similar tasks have taken us in the past, we often remember them incorrectly. We may forget about any delays we encounter, so we expect a positive outcome next time around.
Deirdre Orr, a US-based careers expert and psychologist, says the ‘overconfidence effect’ can also contribute to time optimism. “People often overestimate their abilities and efficiency, leading them to believe they can complete tasks faster than are realistic,” she says.
“Also, temporal discounting – in which people value immediate rewards more highly than future rewards – can lead to underestimating the time needed to complete tasks that have distant deadlines. For example, you may postpone starting a long-term project because the deadline is far off, and you prefer working on tasks with immediate rewards.”
Are more of us experiencing time optimism?
It’s difficult to judge how many of us underestimate how long we need to do things. But it’s possible that our workplaces – and our work culture as a whole – are contributing to our lateness.
“The prevalence of time optimism might be increasing due to several factors, including heavy workloads,” says Orr. “As workloads increase, employees may be more likely to underestimate task durations in an attempt to manage their responsibilities more optimistically.
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There is also an increased pressure to perform, so employees may feel compelled to provide optimistic estimates to demonstrate their capability and reliability. And, Orr adds, while technology can help us be more productive, it can also create the illusion that tasks will take less time than they actually do.
Trying to multitask – something we’re not actually adept at doing – can also contribute to time optimism, says Dannielle Haig, a career expert and business psychologist.
“Employees often juggle multiple tasks, leading to a misjudgment of the time each task will take when interruptions and switching costs are not considered,” she explains. “For instance, while you might estimate that writing a report will take two hours, this doesn’t account for the frequent interruptions from emails, meetings and urgent requests.”
How to avoid time optimism
Given that time optimism is largely driven by unconscious factors, it can be challenging to notice when you’re experiencing it. However, there are a few things to consider when estimating how long something will take.
Orr recommends thinking about the complexity of a task, as often, things are not as simple as they seem. It’s also helpful to consider any distractions you may encounter and to give yourself more time than you think is necessary.
“The modern workplace is full of interruptions and distractions, such as emails, meetings, and co-worker interactions, which can significantly extend the time needed to complete tasks. To help combat this I always recommend time blocking, and using a scheduler for meetings,” she says.
Also, while it is tempting to give an unrealistic deadline to impress a manager, it’s always better to be honest. Giving yourself more time will lead to less stress and better work, instead of a rushed job.
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