(CNN Business) Most jobs don't require attending meetings at 1 a.m., giving presentations at 2 a.m or dialing into conference calls at 3 a.m.

But business travelers crossing time zones often must accomplish these tasks in what essentially feels like the middle of the night for them. It's a brutal fact of life for globe-trotting professionals, who often don't even have a full day to adjust before heading to work

Luckily, there are ways to combat the brain-fogging exhaustion that accompanies jet lag, so you can work effectively wherever you've traveled.

Plan ahead

"If you can, plan for the time change for trips by getting up and going to bed earlier several days prior to an eastward trip and later for a westward trip," says Natalie D. Dautovich, Ph.D., environmental scholar at the National Sleep Foundation and assistant professor of psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University.

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