Trying to schedule a meeting at a time that's great for your team is difficult even if everyone everyone’s in the same city. But if your team works remotely — or you’re collaborating with a freelancer or company in a different country — you’ll need a lot more than just luck to get a meeting scheduled. And it’s not just meetings: if your family or friends live around the world, just planning a Google Hangout for the holidays can be quite the stressful undertaking.
There’s a ton of apps to help navigate the time zone issue, but the new World Meeting Time app is the best I’ve seen yet. Built by the Tectonica design team, World Meeting Time for once makes it simple to figure out what time it’ll be in any locations you need on earth at once. You just drag your markers to the spots where you and your colleagues live, and it’ll show the locations and current times on the left. Then, set your meeting time in your own personal local time on the top, and you’re set. You can then email each of the collaborators with the schedule right from the app, or use the time info on your own. It’s simple and easy.
Another great time zone app I’ve recommend for years is Every Time Zone, which is quite a great visual reference for the current time in major cities around the world. It’s what I use when I need to quickly think about times in other places without precise scheduling. But World Meeting Time has the edge in quickly finding the current time in a number of places at once, and the built-in email tool to finish scheduling the meeting seals the deal.
For your next conference call or family holiday video call, be sure to give it a try. It’ll help you keep your sanity without having to remember what GMT± everyone lives in.