Those who know me know that I currently split my time between the San Francisco Bay Area and Fussa, a suburb of Tokyo Japan. Every time I make the transition, I am suddenly very cognizant of time zones, especially in my use of Social Media. As an active Blogger and Social Media geek, my process requires me to keep up with the news of the day, contribute to ongoing conversations in Social Media, write my take, and then get the story out there. But, with an 18 hour time difference, if I do these things in real time, it's likely most of my intended audience will not see my work. To make up for the time problem I use a number of tools that help me adjust--
World Clocks Gadget on iGoogle This is a great little Gadget courtesy of Jerome Moutson out of Huntsville Alabama. Even if you are not a world traveler but want to keep track of multiple time zones, this tool will show you labeled clock faces for the places that matter for you. I always keep this gadget at the top of my iGoogle page.
TweetDeck Schedule Updates TweetDeck is a great tool on multiple levels. But when I travel it is especially useful to schedule blog update tweets at a time when my intended audience might actually see them. When in Japan, I tend to post blog updates in the evening and schedule the Tweets for mid morning PST. Once I get over my jet lag it usually proves to be a good strategy. I also schedule ReTweets to go out during normal stateside business hours.
Meds While I'm not usually an advocate for medicinal solutions, I've found that when traveling, the right combination of analgesics (Ibuprofrin), antihistamine (Diphenhydramine), and a good vitamin load (vitamins B & C) make all the difference in the world in battling fatigue and jet lag. Analgesics help with stiffness acquired from extended air travel, antihistamines both prevent nasal issues and help you sleep at the right times along the way (be sure to drink plenty of water) and vitamins B & C help restore your energy and ward off infections. I've also found that giving up meat while I travel is very helpful at preventing those unusual digestions problems that always seem to crop up.
Being in another Time Zone can make my work both complicated and challenging. But with a little planning, the right tools and some preventative measures it's not hard to pick up where you left off with your social media buzz.