We saw how working remotely across various time zones can be both rewarding and challenging. It’s important to take care of yourself and establish a healthy work-life balance. One of the most significant challenges of working in a different time zone is the potential for communication barriers.
Tools for Overcoming Time Zone Challenges
Then, I use my own time zone as well, so that I can ensure it shows up in the right time slot in my agenda. Similarly, think twice before scheduling a Friday afternoon meeting that might fall during the weekend for a colleague 12 hours ahead of you. When I’m setting up meetings, I make sure to get everyone’s input on timing before moving forward with a meeting time.
Maintaining stability is difficult due to erratic internet connections and changing workspaces, disrupting routines and productivity. Isolation can be a consequence, as remote work often lacks the social interaction of a traditional office. Digital nomads often have jobs or businesses that can be conducted entirely over the internet, such as freelance writing, web development, graphic design, digital marketing, online teaching, and more. They rely on a combination of laptops, smartphones, and internet connectivity to stay connected with clients or employers, complete tasks, and earn themselves a living. Be mindful of all team members working hours and schedule meetings at a convenient time for everyone.
- Over the years, though, I’ve developed a few tips and tricks that have helped me navigate the complexities of working across different time zones.
- That’s an easy way to double-check before expecting an immediate reply.
- Pinterest Coach Laura Rike works with a team of remote employees across time zones and has done so even before the pandemic started.
- It’s absolutely possible to do great work with a dispersed team, but you must plan work accordingly.
- There are more time zone tools at TimeandDate.com, too, so be sure to check it out if you want to find local times around the world for your event, convert times for any location, and more.
- For instance, we like to use Google Calendar and add the holidays of people around the company.
- It’s been studied extensively, and supplemental melatonin is commonly used for jet lag treatment—it’s been shown to help with both sleep and reducing jet lag symptoms.
Unintended Consequences of Ineffective Communication
Finally, you’ll want to adopt the habit of scheduling team meetings at optimal times for everyone. This will ensure all your colleagues can attend and participate in discussions without having to be up early or stay up late. If your team works in different time zones, then you will need to communicate asynchronously most of the time.
Despite the benefits, collaboration can get complicated when dealing with different time zones. A simple task like scheduling a meeting suddenly becomes a game of Tetris when trying to find a time that suits everyone. Open up a free account at Timezone.io and you’ll be able to see your entire team on a grid showing who’s in which time zone and what time it is there.
Be mindful of holidays elsewhere when offices will be closed
- Working with people from different cultures requires managers to be very clear in their communications.
- The video is also available to watch later and can allow you to use it on-demand or even build a training database.
- This is a true gem for digital nomads wanting to be more productive and avoid endless (and sometimes useless) meetings.
- So unless you’re a night owl, it’s impossible to sync well for communication.
- From the web interface, click the plus button next to Other calendars, then Browse calendars of interest, followed by Regional holidays.
This may mean that your employees need to work during the hours when it’s most convenient for them. That could mean starting work early in the morning or late at night so that their day aligns with their local time zone. It’s also helpful to let your team members know your work hours and when you are available for check-ins and brief chats. Buffer is another prominent remote company that has implemented effective strategies to manage time zone challenges for its remote teams.
Managing remote teams across time zones means setting clear expectations and using the right tools. One of the best things about remote work and being a digital nomad is that it gives you the freedom to travel and work in amazing locations. You could be in San Francisco for a month, the next in London, and Montreal after that. Quite often, your destinations will be in different time zones—day could be night, and night could be day. As digital nomads, an inherent part of the lifestyle is adapting to schedules with your team or clients. And to be successful at this, it’s essential to be productive when you get there – and there could be in a time zone 8 hours ahead or behind your normal office hour schedule.
Make things easier on yourself and your team by implementing the following tips and tools. The days of having three different clocks hanging on your wall are over. Now, you can have them displayed on Google Calendar whenever you’re planning your week. Scheduling a meeting or planning a project is definitely easier when you actually know if your colleagues are out for lunch or just had their morning coffee.
Tips for Remote Working Remotely in Various Time Zones
This means different views on gender, education, backgrounds, religion, etc. For an even simpler way to see what time it is around the world, check out Every Time Zone. It shows the current time in your own city, along with others in popular time zones around the world. The Couchsurfing team has a similar schedule to make sure everyone’s connected. “We have a bi-monthly full company meeting to make sure we all know we still exist,” writes designer Ben Hanna.
For meetings across multiple time zones, I’ve used World Time Buddy to help me visualize and find times that work for all of us. When working with a distributed team, it’s important to understand the differences between sync and async communication, and the extreme importance of asynchronous communication. Managing a global team is more complicated than managing one that works from the same office. You’ll need to account for different time zones, work styles, and cultural norms in your management style.
“It puts a little pressure on you to get your living and working in different time zones work done,” says TechCrunch’s Russell. A time difference gives you the freedom to code or write without distraction. Then, when the rest of the team is online, you’ll be more focused at what you need to discuss with them before it’s time to get offline.
When your colleagues or clients are asleep while you’re awake, it can be difficult to get the information you need or to convey your own ideas effectively. If you are headed towards the popular remote work destination of Southeast Asia, digital nomad hub cities there, like Bangkok, are six hours ahead of GMT (London). Let’s say you’re starting your day at 8am, which is 6pm US Pacific time… This is a time slot where you can sync up with clients over there quite easily despite the drastic difference in the time of day. An easy and straightforward way to track time is by using the time and date website. Don’t forget to factor in daylight savings time when it kicks in for the approximate 70 countries that use it. Time zones are geographical locations where people experience similar daylight hours at any given time throughout the year.