Every minute you hold the meeting for stragglers, you punish the people who showed up on time. And you teach everyone else that being late is fine.
Half an hour of people's time, just so one person didn't have to feel awkward walking in late. They'll do it again next week.
Waiting makes lateness the smart move
If the meeting starts without you, showing up late costs you something: you miss the beginning. But if everyone just… waits? Then being late is actually more efficient. You skip the awkward small talk and arrive right when things get going. You didn't mean to, but you made punctuality the bad strategy.
The people who showed up on time did nothing wrong
They blocked their calendar. They showed up. They're sitting there ready to go. Making them wait to protect someone else's comfort tells them their time matters less. That's not a great message to send.
It only takes a few meetings to fix
The first time you start on time, it might feel abrupt. By the second or third, people start to notice the pattern. Pretty soon everyone's on early, because they know the meeting actually starts when it's supposed to. The culture sorts itself out.
Start at the time on the calendar. Every time.
Not "once most people are on." Not "let's give it two more minutes." Right on time. If someone joins late, great. Keep going. No recap, no pause. They'll catch up.
Know someone who needs to hear this?