Who Cares - What Matters
SOMETIMES
even the best Words
need not to be spoken or sung
but still understood
just the same. . .
P L E A S E
just listen
not to hear
not to reply
but to actively respond. . .
a n d
p l e a s e
s o m e t i m e s
the best poem is the one that
i s n ‘ t
SOMETIMES
the best poem is a
T r U t H
that goes beyond
idyllic pandemic
o r
iambic pentameter
past rhyme or reason
free verse
or some fancy syllabic haiku
Sometimes
poems forget themselves
. . .their nicely arranged words
and go directly to a
f e e l
without a touch. . .
sometimes
Physically
Emotionally
Mentally
Socially
Symphonically
Lyrically
All waysically
I am so lessically
Without you
The greatest take-away from the COVID-19 Pandemic. . . ?
BE THE PROOF
of this
LESSOR LEARNED
THIS BOOK
is about 4 years old. . .
Someone gifted it to me and I have never fully read it through;
I’ve thumbed through it,
read it’s
CONTENTS
page and
the following before putting it on
THAT SHELF
for further reading
and I picked it up over these past few days and read it’s own
DESCRIPTION:
Would you like to change the world but feel like there’s nothing you can do? What if you discovered you could change everything with just five breaths and one kind thought? Want to help heal America? Our planet? The Global Kindness Revolution is the way forward. You don’t even have to get out of bed to join. You only need to take five breaths and think a kind thought, each day, at noon. Kindness at Noon, Everyday, Everywhere is a call to action to all, regardless of beliefs, background or religion, who are craving a kinder, gentler world.
This is a guide to exploring those aspects of ourselves we’re unaware of, such as suppressed anger and racism, that keep us in the dark and prevent us from embracing our neighbor, or what we perceive as the “other.” Scientists call the primitive part of our brains the “lizard” brain from the times when we hunted dinosaurs. Now, in this tumultuous era where viciousness and apathy fills the airwaves, The Global Kindness Revolution aims to elevate our collective mindset, to nurture the “Kind Mind” where empathy and compassion are on automatic.
The book provides exercises and guidance for incorporating a kindness lifestyle. It includes practices to enhance our connection with Mother Earth, and perspectives on what it means to be kind to oneself. It drills down into social issues that impact us individually and as a whole, and how we can navigate our social interactions with more compassion. It suggests ways to improve our personal relationships and our community, and how to maintain a healthy existence with the domination of technology.
The magic of this revolution is its global appeal calling on millions around the world to pause for Kindness at Noon. More are joining the cause to diminish the violence, racism and meanness humanity has continuously been plagued with. What began as a simple experiment in a Pennsylvania prison has expanded into a global initiative making a mark in countries like Nepal, Afghanistan and Egypt, directly addressing the refugee crisis, violence against women, and other injustices in dire need of change.
Kindness at Noon, Everyday, Everywhere. Join us!
SOUNDS GOOD,
r i g h t. . . ?
A N D
nothing against this fine book
and the exercises it implores us to use,
B U T
now’s not the time for words
or books
filled with them. . .
WE ARE
far past needing books about
h e a l i n g
VIOLENCE
RACISM
MEANNESS
but
right on time about
B E I N G
A Volume of
PEACE
ACCEPTANCE
KINDNESS
. . .funny, huh,
THESE TOO, ARE WORDS. . .
and we need to not only be carriers of
SUCH LOVE
but
INFESTERS OF THIS LOVE
that knows
NO
antidote or vaccine
. . .A time
to stop drawing lines in the sand
to be sided against
or straddled
BUT CREATORS OF CIRCLES
that include
and never
e x c l u d e
US ALL
This is to be
A Caring Catalyst
not words
not ideals
not experiments
not wishes
not hopes
not philosophies
BUT A LIVE
ACTIVE
Circle making inclusive
FORCE
one compassionately kind act at at time
(UNCONDITIONALLY)
For Now. . .
It’s not a time to do things by
THE BOOK
and if words be necessary at all. . .
May it be
that we are all more
ADJECTIVES
and way less
NOUNS
Psssssssssssssssssssssssssssssst:
I HATE TO LOSE
I always have;
I’m not a sore loser;
a bad loser
but it has a way
of not just messing up my day
BUT DAYS. . .
In fact,
I’m so competitive
I’ll try and beat myself
trying to make it through a closing door
walking faster than I walked a route yesterday
doing one more thing than I feel is possible
YOU NAME IT
I’m ON IT. . .
JILL SUTTIE, a freelance journalist sort of brought things to light during a fairly dark time for us. In the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, we are seeing many acts of kindness and even heroism. Neighbors look out for one another by buying groceries or sing songs together. When doctors, nurses, and paramedics ran out of masks, people donated or sewed new ones.
But not all people act kindly when feeling threatened. There are those who hoard medical supplies or refuse to stay physically distant from others. Sadly, some become more selfish when they think we’re competing against each other for survival.
How can we avoid reacting in self-serving or vindictive ways during the pandemic? A new study suggests that practicing a little gratitude may be useful.
In this study, participants from the National University of Singapore played the “Trucking Game”—a research tool that measures how people bargain or cooperate in conflict situations. In the game, players try to get from point A to B as quickly as possible, while opponents can assist or block players at will. The game is over when both players reach their end point.
Before playing the game, some participants were asked to write about a situation that made them feel grateful, while others recalled events that brought them joy or were emotionally neutral (like their daily routine). When it came time for participants to play the game, they didn’t know the other player wasn’t a real person but a set of preprogrammed, highly competitive moves.
Participants had opportunities in the game to thwart the other player by blocking routes along the way or not stepping aside to let them pass, and many of the participants did so when faced with a competitive opponent. However, those induced to feel gratitude were much less likely to block their opponent’s progress than those who’d been primed to feel joy or no particular emotion.
While not entirely surprised by these findings, study coauthor Lile Jia was impressed by them—especially given how competition usually brings out our worst instincts.
“Showing that gratitude can ameliorate competitive impulses in this setting speaks to the potency of this emotion in reducing undesired competition,” says Jia.
To further test these results, he and his colleagues set up another experiment, this time using a random group of Americans of various ages (instead of the original group of Singaporeans, to see how culture might affect results). Participants were told they would be paired with another player (though, actually, there was no other player) to compete in a moderately difficult and timed word game. Before playing the game, they were induced to feel either gratitude or a neutral emotion.
After playing the game—in which participants were always told they lost—the researchers showed them a narrative describing their opponent as either competitive or not very competitive. The idea was that losing to a very competitive person might make participants feel more upset about losing and make them want to punish their opponent.
After “losing,” participants were told that their opponents would be entering another competition that involved solving anagrams for a chance to win a cash prize. The participants could choose one of three clues to help their opponent solve the anagrams more quickly, with clues ranging from least helpful (“it starts with the letter P”) to most helpful (“it starts with the letter P and it’s an organ in your body”). Choosing less helpful clues was considered a form of vindictiveness.
Results showed that participants induced to feel gratitude were much more likely to give the most helpful clues than participants in a neutral mood. Even under circumstances where they might want revenge, people who felt grateful were less likely to be vindictive.
“Sabotaging their partner’s chance of winning a lottery did not directly benefit the participants, who had already been eliminated from the competition—yet this harmful impulse existed,” says Jia. “Fortunately, the impulse got weakened among those induced to feel grateful.”
Gratitude JournalCount your blessings and enjoy better health and happinessTry It NowWhy would gratitude reduce feelings of vindictiveness? Jia says it might be because grateful people are less selfish and show greater empathy toward others, in general. Given that people often respond to competition by becoming more competitive themselves—at the expense of others—it’s little wonder that gratitude might reduce this tendency.
Jia’s study adds to our understanding of the power of gratitude by showing how it helps people be kinder to others in unfavorable as well as favorable circumstances. This could have huge consequences when we are in situations where we may be tempted not to cooperate or to lash out at others—like during the current pandemic.
“In such threatening interactions, destructive behavioral cycles are easily established,” says Jia. “The present research underscores the potential of gratitude in stopping such destructive spirals.”
Jia points to other ways gratitude can help during the pandemic, too—by strengthening relationships and building a sense of community.
Research suggests that practicing gratitude helps people “gel,” he says, encouraging them to coordinate their actions toward a particular goal—something relevant to our current need to shelter in place. So long as cooperation is the norm in this situation, and grateful people don’t feel that they are being taken advantage of, encouraging more gratitude is all to the (greater) good.
Jia’s research reinforces the importance of practicing gratitude as we go through this pandemic. Not only will it help us be more cooperative, it’s good for our personal well-being, too—protecting our mental health and making us feel more positive and optimistic about the future.
“If we take a broader look at the benefits of gratitude, then the argument for encouraging feeling more gratitude becomes all the stronger,” says Jia.
Ohhhhhhh yesssss
I’m competitive
and most would never see or even imagine
that inner
F I G H T
always raging me
UNLESS THEY NOTICE
some of the good I attempt
(THIS IS MY BIGGEST DAILY COMPETITIVE EVENT)
just to be a little
better than the day
the afternoon
the morning before
the next one
and even when
I LOSE
. . .WE WIN
READY. . .
SET. . .
LET’S GO
(and never stop)
Last week during the mid-week blog
we took a look at
CAUTION FATIGUE
and the other side of
T H A T
Coin might be
How to Avoid Burnout in the Middle of a Pandemic
Rachel Fairbank, freelance journalist tried to extinguish something that’s very real over these past several weeks and especially, ongoing.
Burnout is defined as a state of emotional, mental and physical exhaustion brought on by prolonged stress. Given the nonstop barrage of stressors these past few months, many of us are probably well on our way to developing burnout, if we aren’t there already.
“Burnout is chronic stress gone awry,” says Sheryl Ziegler, a psychologist and author of the book “Mommy Burnout: How to Reclaim Your Life and Raise Healthier Children in the Process.”
The stages of burnout include a honeymoon phase, in which a person devotes extra time and energy to dealing with their stress; followed by mitigation strategies, when a person is crankier than usual but is still trying to juggle everything; followed by chronic stress, a point when people have an even harder time coping and often find ways to detach themselves from others; and finally, by full-blown burnout.
If these stages sound familiar, well, at least you’re not alone. As a society, we seem to be on a path to burnout together. We started in those ambitious first few weeks with big plans: We were going to learn how to bake and knit! After a few weeks of trying to juggle quarantine and work from home and homeschooling and job loss. Now we all seem to be stuck in a phase of chronic stress, either lashing out at the people around us or detaching from the world at large
“A lot of people are in the second and third stages right now,” Ziegler says. “We are all here.”
That said, there are strategies that we can employ, even in an era of physical distancing and omnipresent fears about our health and safety. These are some of Ziegler’s recommendations for avoiding burnout during a pandemic.
“Knowing the signs of burnout are really important,” Ziegler says. What stage you might be in will vary, and it’ll look a little bit different for everyone. People who are burned out are often detached from others, feel drained and unable to cope, and lack their usual energy. They also often experience physical symptoms such as headaches or stomachaches.
As Ziegler points out, it’s normal to be stressed and anxious, given everything that is going on. But just because this stress is understandable doesn’t mean we can’t find ways to cope.
We may have to practice physical distancing, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be creative about staying connected with others. When it comes to preventing burnout, strong social connections are key.
As Ziegler suggests, in addition to friends and families, lean on online communities that might share some of your concerns. Whatever your situation is, whatever your struggles are, there are people out there who can relate. Make sure to prioritize these connections, as they will help buffer you from burnout. How to Disconnect From Social Media but Stay Connected to the World
Social media is terrible, and social media is amazing. It inundates us with panic-inducing news and paralyzes us.
It is okay to cut down on the number of hours of school each day or to say no to extra job duties at work. As Ziegler points out, as much as we want to do everything, there just aren’t enough hours in the day. It’s important to be selective about what we take on as well as practical about what we can accomplish, given our constraints.
Boundaries are really important, especially in these times. Boundaries can help make your workload and home life a little bit more manageable. It’s okay to say no to things, it’s okay to adjust your expectations, and it’s okay to prioritize what’s most important.
Don’t feel guilty about it, either. If we put a meeting on our calendars, we do everything we can to make sure we show up to it. Caring for yourself, in whatever form that takes, is just as important; in fact, CALENDAR IT; put a self-care time/date on the calendar and don’t break it!
“Every day, schedule time for yourself,” Ziegler says. “When we are under stress, we don’t tend to squeeze in healthy things for ourselves.”
So carve out a time for yourself. Calendar it and give that time as much priority as a work responsibility. Your mental health and wellbeing is important. You Need to Walk Outside Every Day
In a time when our fitness options are limited, don’t discount the benefits of walking. Walking doesn’t have to be done in large increments, just steady, regular ongoing times of walking.
Even small changes of environment can help keep us from feeling overwhelmed. This could be as simple as moving from the living room to kitchen or going for a short walk around the block. Given that we are all at home all the time now, a small change of environment will go a long way toward helping us feel mentally refreshed.
As Ziegler points out, there’s a big connection between staying active and maintaining good mental health.
“People have to remember working out is good for your mental thoughts,” Ziegler says. As we are a lot more sedentary than usual, moving can help us stave off some of the effects of abrupt changes in our routines.
Even if you only have ten minutes, it’s worth fitting in a few calisthenics or a quick walk.
Being at home all day while stressed means a lot more snacking and a lot more unhealthy foods. Unfortunately, although in the short term, reaching for a bag of chips or a carton of ice cream feels good, when it comes to balancing stress, these snacks hurt more than they help. Being mindful about what you are eating will help in the long run.
If you have twenty minutes, consider taking a power nap to boost your energy and productivity. Find a quiet spot, set the alarm and do your best to relax. If it’s hard, Ziegler points out that power napping is something that gets easier with practice.
Early afternoon, when your concentration and ability to focus is suffering, is a good time for a power nap. Twenty minutes is the sweet spot, as 30-60 minutes can leave you feeling more tired than when you fell asleep. Of course, if you’ve got 90 minutes for a full nap, that also works, but that’s harder to carve out of your schedule. I’m a huge 10-20 minute cat-napper.
Words have a way of becoming reality. “We have to notice our words,” Ziegler says. Allow yourself to vent, allow yourself to release all your fears and worries, but then find a way to pivot and channel your fears and worries into something productive.
If you are worried about your job security—or if you have been laid off—developing a side hustle can be a productive way to pick up new skills while also giving you a way to regain control over your situation.
Now is the time to think about what other skills you have you can use to your advantage. If nothing else, this will help you regain a sense of purpose, which is key to weathering periods of potential burnout. For years I’ve had a job application from STARBUCKS and when people see it they ask me, “Are you looking for another job?” I tell them ‘No, but it’s powerful to know I have choices. Today, I CHOOSE to work here, but I have other options.”
BOOM–talk about FREEDOM. . .Instant Burnout Extinguisher.
There are so many fears and anxieties in the world right now, and for good reason. Instead of bottling up them all up, Ziegler suggests listing them all out and then—and this is the key part—coming up with strategies for how you would cope if the worst happened.
“Give yourself your moment,” Ziegler says. “Then, stop, and make a plan around it.”
Are you afraid of losing your job? Not being able to pay rent? Getting sick and needing someone to care for your children? Name these fears, then start making plans. Just the act of thinking through them will help your regain a sense of perspective and control.
Right now, the world is a scary and stressful place. There is no avoiding it. However, even in the middle of all these worries and anxieties, there are still actions we can take to help mitigate the worst effects. Adjust your expectations, carve out time for yourself and do whatever is in your power to preserve your sanity for the long run. Because it’s going to be a long run.
Psssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssst:
We all know where to get it. . .
B U T
we don’t always take the time to actually go out and
GET IT!
We are way beyond the
SURREAL
aren’t we. . . ?
For the last 7 weeks we have had it put upon us to do
The New,
N E W
and it’s done everything it can
to not just cripple us
but destroy us
by merely
SOCIALLY DISTANCING US. . .
Have you ever felt like you are just coasting through life and missing out on becoming the person you were destined to be
especially now in this
UN-Normal, NORMAL?
Or have you felt like you’re trying your hardest to live up to your greatest potential — to make a difference – to live out those dreams in your heart that seems now to forever be beating differently. . . ?
But something keeps getting in your way
Holding you back
Road blocking you. . .
This can be
DE- Couraging. . .
Somewhere along the way we might lose sight and motivation to pursue what really makes us happy. . .
we’re lighting our Candle
only to have it immediately
s n u f f e d
We might resign ourselves to being okay with just getting by in life
And worst
accepting that some people
get to live their dreams
as we get robbed of our
V I S I O N
Sometimes the weight of our daily lives can deter us
from taking the first step towards manifesting our heart’s desires
Towards living a life of abundance.
And towards truly living up to our greatest potential. . .
While that might sound pretty heavy – today’s video
isn’t. . .
I saw it years ago
but the perspective has all changed
and so has my
V I S I O N
I’ve lived them on this journey in being of service to you. Following our dreams doesn’t come easy. It comes with the price of hardship and challenge. . .
Fortunately, in just 380 seconds of this video you can learn what each and every truly successful person has done to elevate themselves from the hardships up to living their dreams. 🙂
Now here’s a tough question…
When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
The way we look at ourselves also reflects how we interpret life. The way we think about ourselves shapes how we respond to life.
No matter where we begin, the next step in our journey of living our dreams starts inside each and every one of us.
And what keeps us going when times get hard and it seems like our heart’s dreams are merely that. . .
just dreams?
W H Y
Dream only when you sleep
. . .If you’re only dreaming when you’re asleep
you’ll never have vision;
BE THE PRIMARY PROOF
of it. . .
I recently read an article from Harvard Business Review
that spoke some
RIGHT WORDS
at some
WRONG TIMES. . .
When New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that all nonessential workers should stay home to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, a reporter asked why he had decided to issue a “shelter-in-place” order. Cuomo corrected him:
“It is not shelter in place. Words matter, because people are scared, and people panic. Shelter in place is used currently for an active shooter or a school shooting. We are fighting a war on two fronts. We are fighting the virus, and we are fighting fear. When we act on fears, then we’re in a dangerous place.”
Throughout much of human history, leaders have relied on their words to spark action. And many economists and CEOs today swear that words are the most important tool in a world where “command and control” leadership has given way to power by persuasion.
Cuomo has mastered the skill. His press briefings demonstrate how in times of crisis, words are essential to capturing the attention and trust of your audience. Business leaders who want to serve as beacons of clarity and hope for their teams during this uncertain time can follow his lead by applying a few best practices to their speech.
Replace long words with short ones. . .
In his groundbreaking book Thinking, Fast and Slow, Nobel economist Daniel Kahneman writes, “If you care about being thought credible and intelligent, do not use complex language where simpler language will do.” Effective leaders speak in simple language — and simple means short.
This is especially true during a crisis, when attention spans are flagging and noise levels are high. People are being bombarded by information, some of which is misleading or false. The clearer and more concise you are, the better your chances of getting your message across and persuading people to act on it.
In mid-March, when Cuomo issued the order that would upend life for millions of New Yorkers and shut down the world’s financial center, he had to make the news instantly clear and understandable. So he tweeted this message: “Stay Home. Stop the Spread. Save Lives.” The post spoke volumes — in just 39 characters amounting to seven one-syllable words.
If Cuomo had tried to come off as what many consider “professional,” his message might have sounded like this: “For the preservation of public health and safety, I hereby order all residents not engaged in essential activities that impact critical infrastructure to remain in their residences in order to mitigate the propagation of the coronavirus and to minimize morbidity and mortality.”
Consider the two messages side-by-side. The “professional” version is confusing and convoluted, full of the bureaucratic jargon effective communicators avoid. The Twitter message uses simple Anglo-Saxon words such as “stay,” “home,” and “lives.” Compared with words derived from Latin, Anglo-Saxon words are more likely to be monosyllabic, concrete, and easy to understand.
As you think about how to share your next message, remember that language influenced by the Anglo-Saxon period has been used by many great leaders. Winston Churchill once said, “The shorter words of a language are usually the more ancient. Their meaning is more ingrained in the national character and they appeal to greater force.” In a memo titled “Brevity,” he urged government administrators to replace long “woolly phrases” with single conversational words, pointing out that brevity equals clarity and that directness makes things easier to understand.
Find analogies. . .
Neuroscientists have found that our brains process the world by associating the new or unknown with something familiar. When presented with a novel idea, our brains don’t ask, “What is it?” They ask, “What is it like?”
Isn’t this why Dr. Amy Acton is so effective in her daily appearances along side Governor Mike DeWine of Ohio? Analogies answer that question. They serve as mental shortcuts that help us understand complex events. Leaders who are great communicators in a crisis are skilled at finding analogies, because they have to persuade people to act quickly.
Cuomo used that strategy on April 4, resurrecting President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “fire hose” analogy to explain why it was in Oregon’s best interests to send 140 ventilators to New York. “We’re all in the same battle,” he said. “You want to contain the enemy. Oregon could have a significant problem towards May. Our problem is now. It’s smart from Oregon’s self-interest. They see the fire spreading. Stop the fire where it is before it gets to my home.”
Let’s look at the original context. In 1940, with Nazi Germany having set its sights on England after conquering France, Churchill appealed to Roosevelt for arms and supplies. In response, Roosevelt proposed the Lend-Lease program, under which America would loan war supplies to allies while remaining neutral itself. Here’s how he sold it to the public: “Suppose my neighbor’s home catches fire, and I have a length of garden hose four or five hundred feet away,” he said. “If he can take my garden hose and connect it up with his hydrant, I may help him to put out his fire.”
Roosevelt emphasized that he wouldn’t ask his neighbor to pay for the hose ahead of time. If it was intact after the war, the neighbor would return it. If it was damaged, the neighbor would replace it. The message, in short: Although both sides are acting out of self-interest, they can work together to stop chaos from spreading.
After drawing on Roosevelt’s analogy from 80 years before, Cuomo observed that “FDR had such a beautiful way of taking complicated issues and communicating [them] in common-sense language.”
Personalize the crisis. . .
The human brain is also wired for storytelling. In his best-selling book Sapiens, historian Yuval Noah Harari argues that it was only through stories that our species was able to conquer the world. Our advanced language skills — specifically, our ability to connect with one another through narrative — allowed us to cooperate in ways other species could not.
Cooperation is essential in a crisis, so effective leaders need to be strong storytellers.
Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House’s Coronavirus Response Coordinator, is a case in point. She has built a reputation for using personal stories to connect with her audiences. On March 25 she told a heart-wrenching story to underscore the importance of social distancing.
Birx’s grandmother, Leah, was just 11 years old during the 1918 flu pandemic, which killed some 50 million people. Leah caught the flu and infected her mother, who had a comprised immune system and died from the disease. “[Leah] never forgot that she was the child who was in school who innocently brought that flu home,”Birx said. “My grandmother lived with that for 88 years. This is not a theoretical. This is a reality.”
Birx told the story to reinforce her key message: All Americans play a role in protecting one another. The message appears to be working. On April 8, she announcedthat expected deaths from Covid-19 had dropped from earlier forecasts because “Americans are…following through on these behavioral changes.”
Observe the rule of three. . .
Scholars of rhetoric and persuasion argue that people like things grouped in threes, because we can hold only a few items in short-term memory. If you give people three instructions, they’re likely to remember them all. Give them five, six, or more, and they’ll probably forget most of them. And people can’t act on what they can’t remember.
In a crisis, leaders who give fewer instructions — but more-concrete ones — are more likely to see people act on their words.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease at the National Institutes of Health, is widely admired for his straight talk and steady demeanor. CNN has called him “a public force” who translates complex medical information into everyday language. His strategy? “You don’t want to impress people and razzle-dazzle them with your knowledge,” Fauci says. “You just want them to understand what you’re talking about.”
To that end, Fauci often limits himself to three key points. For example, in an April 5 appearance on Face the Nation, he said the country would be able to relax social-distancing guidelines only when three things were in place: “the ability to test, isolate, and do contact tracing.”
Fauci also stressed that Americans must continue to “physically separate” from one another by doing three things: staying six feet apart, limiting gatherings to 10 or fewer people, and avoiding mass interactions, such as in restaurants, bars, and theaters.
Like a virus, words are infectious. They can instill fear and panic or facilitate understanding and calm. Above all, they can spark action. So choose them carefully.
It’s so easy to
get our
WIRES CROSSED
these days
which makes it all the more important
To not just say the
RIGHT WORDS
at these
WRONG TIMES
but to make sure
they’re not so much
H E A R D
as they so desperately need to be
e x p e r i e n c e d
from
mouth>ear>heart=EXPERIENCED=KNOWN=SHAREABLE to the nth degree
a most uncomplicated Math
that not only can be understood
but taught
learned
experienced
known
s h a r e d
I don’t know if this is a noun or a verb. . .
But I know I’m always reaching
to be more of a verb. . .
Y O U ?
D I S T A N C I N G
Whether it’s SOCIAL
Whether it’s PHYSICAL
Whether it’s EMOTIONAL
Whether it’s SPIRITUAL
is still
d i s t a n c i n g
and like any ripple
it causes other
w a v e s
BUT
There are many Experts now explain how to socialize in the time of
COVID-19.
In part, this is how MELISSA MATTHEWS recently shared some insights out of how this is effecting us all. . .
ROXANA VALLE / EYEEMGETTY IMAGES
The COVID-19 pandemic has postponed Coachella, cancelled the NBA, shot down March Madness, NHL, Soccer, Churches, as it’s closed Bar’s, Restaurants, postponed Golf tournaments, Parades, The Kentucky Derby, MLB, sent kids home from schools, colleges, universities, daycare centers, gyms and just about anything else that allows anymore than 10 people together and spawned a new phrase: social distancing.
In the United States, public health officials are recommending that even healthy people stay at home as much as possible. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all events with more than 10 people be canceled in the U.S.
This is where the practice of social distancing comes in.
Think of social distancing as the middle ground between quarantine and doing whatever you want, whenever you want, says K.C. Rondello,M.D., Clinical Associate Professor of Public Health & Emergency Management at Adelphi University.
“Social distancing involves all the choices we make that create a barrier of space between us and others,” Dr. Rondello tells Men’s Health.
According to the CDC, you’d want to maintain about six feet of personal space and avoid public places like shopping centers.
You may be hearing the term for the first time, but societies have deployed the technique in the past, says Dr. Rondello. It’s particularly helpful when there’s no treatment or vaccine available for a rapidly spreading pathogen, he says.
If you’re healthy, you might think that you don’t have to limit your interactions with other people. After all, the risk of developing pneumonia or needing hospitalization from COVID-19 is low for the average healthy person, according to the CDC.
But limiting your social interactions reduces the risk of spreading the virus to people who may then spread it onto more people. This helps “flatten the curve,” or influx of new cases in a given time period. Slowing the spread of the disease reduces the strain on the healthcare system by limiting the number of people who are severely sick and need hospital care. It also gives researchers more time to develop treatments and vaccines
Research from previous pandemics show that this method works. In 2009, closing schools for 18 days in Mexico helped reduce transmission of H1N1 by 29 to 37 percent, according to a 2011 study published in PLOS Medicine.
That said, you can be cautious without letting the pandemic dictate your entire life, according to William Schaffner, M.D., and infectious disease specialist at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN.
Empty store shelves and internet memes may lead you to believe you can never leave the house. This isn’t true.
“I think it’s kind of up to you to decide how much risk you want to put other people in and how much risk you want to acquire for yourself,” Dr. Schaffner tells Men’s Health. “There is not a transmission policeman out there.” Still, it might not be bad for each of us to imagine that we actually infected and just by being with another person, old or young, we could not just infect them, but actually may cause their deaths. . .
People who are older than 60 and individuals who are immunocompromised, meaning they have a difficult time fighting infections, should be more cautious, says Dr. Schaffner. The CDC states people at-risk of becoming seriously ill from COVID-19 should limit their exposure to groups and even look into grocery delivery.
But not everyone has access to grocery delivery or the freedom to work from home.
Here’s how to implement the method realistically:
There’s no need to buy six month’s worth of toilet paper now. . .which I’m still not completely understanding;
In fact, stockpiling makes it more difficult for people to purchase essential items. However, you should head to the store with a plan, says Dr. Rondello. Make a list of everything you need and purchase the items in the same trip instead of going to multiple stores on separate days. This reduces your exposure and helps you be more efficient, he says. Shopping during off-peak hours when stores aren’t crowded further reduces your risk of exposure to viruses.
“Along with social distancing, you’re going to implement good infection prevention,” says Dr. Rondello.
In other words, refrain from touching your face and wash your handsthe minute you get home.
Many corporations such as Twitter, Google, and Box implemented work from home strategies in response to the current pandemic. But not everyone has the luxury of remote work—and some of these people may need to use mass transit.
“There are times when social distancing is not going to be possible. You’re going to do the best that you can,” says Dr. Rondello.
In a subway, bus, or train that means seeking out the place with the fewest amount of people. Again, it’s vital to pair this with all the other recommended ways to avoid getting sick: washing your hands, using hand sanitizer (in a pinch), and not touching your face.
Running and walking are great ways to stay active while getting fresh air—as long as you keep your distance. Again, the CDC recommends keeping six feet of personal space.
It’s easy to get a full-body workout indoors using free weights, bands, or a yoga mat.
You’re probably wondering whether you need to sacrifice socializing for the sake of the pandemic.
“There is no wrong answer, and there is no right answer,” says Dr. Schaffner. Still, with all of the social media outlets we can still keep in touch
According to Dr. Schaffner, walking in the park with a friend is less risky than sitting in a crowded enclosed space.
Given the recent bar and restaurant closures throughout the U.S., this may be a good time to catch up with friends and family over video chat instead of dinner.
Ultimately, there are no absolutes. You simply need to weigh the benefits versus the risk and make a personal choice about which strategies you want to employ, according to Dr. Rondello.
And remember, social distancing is about helping other individuals—not just yourself. . .
The problem
(of which sometimes we are its main ingredient)
is that
t e m p o r a r y
FEELS
so Permanent. . .
Psssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssst of the Day:
Even
Permanence
isn’t
permeant. . .
DISTANCE
yourself from that
and re-member:
“FEAR IS THE CHEAPEST ROOM IN THE HOUSE;
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE YOU LIVING
IN BETTER CONDITIONS.” -HAFIZ
I M A G I N E
What would it be like
if we never
c a t e g o r i z e d
people;
If we never put them into boxes
so that we could not only
describe
define
but literally
box them up. . .
Our world has changed dramatically
over the past week
and the
c H a n G e
is not over
. . .not ever day
but ever moment
it seems to continually be
evolving in a way
at a speed
none of us have ever
e x p e r i e n c e d
illustrating in a way we’ve never known
that there is no longer
A THEM
but an
U S. . .
The World
is literally yelling for us to
S T O P
just for a little bit of
N O W
while the we come to understand
with a little discomfort
that
T E M P O R A I L Y
never is
permanently. . .
With THIS certainty:
There is no need waiting for
L O V E
to take Shape
when it is
boundlessly
Shapeless
Thinking outside the box challenges, agitates, even frightens most of us,
and worst of all:
KEEPS US IN THE BOX
I recently saw this amazing video from a post of Chris Cade and it came with some other smash-up-get-rid-of-the-box thoughts:
One thousand and five hundred kindergarten children were given a test in divergent thinking.
98% of those children scored at genius level.
Divergent thinking is what allows you to see lots of possible answers to a question.
If you ask your average person how to cook an egg, he’ll come up with about ten different ways you can do it. Frying pan, poacher, pot of boiling water, in a cake, etc.
Someone good at divergent thinking will come up with 200 ways to cook that egg.
How?
Because she thinks outside of the kitchen. He’ll cook the egg on the back of sunbather at the beach. At the end of a lightning rod. Or how about putting it in a indestructible container and throwing it into the center of the sun?
80% of the answers will be impractical… but it’s how you find the perfect answer nobody has thought about yet.
According to this one study (from the book “Breakpoint and Beyond”) we’re all born with a natural ability for divergent thinking. 1,470 out 1,500 children are brilliant at thinking up endless possibilities.
The same study tested the same kids ten years later.
As you can imagine, most lost their ability for divergent thinking.
“This shows two things,” says Sir Ken Robinson (world renowned education and creativity expert). “One is we all have this capacity. And two, it mostly deteriorates.”
“Now, a lot of thing has happened to these kids as they’ve grown up. Al lot. But one of the most important things that has happened to them, I’m convinced, is they’ve become ‘educated.’ They spent ten years at school being told there’s one answer – it’s at the back.”
That’s what today’s “Paper Airplane” video is all about.
And do you know why divergent thinking is so important? Because no two situations are exactly the same.
Whatever troubles, challenges or goals you are facing in life… they are like no one else’s. You’ll never find the exact answer to your problems in a book.
You need to think for yourself.
And you need to think of not 10 or 20 or even 40 different solutions for your problem.
You need to think of 200.
You need to think way outside the box. . .
Because life doesn’t come in a box with a instruction manual
even though we keep acting like it does
in the worst possible way
BY LOOKING FOR SAID INSTRUCTIONS
JUST THE SAME. . .
what tends to happen is we end up putting our life in a box supplied to us by society.
It even comes an instruction
“one-size fits all”
manual. . .
Of course, it’s never going to get you very far
Living in someone else’s box
following their instructions
At best, you’ll be average. . .
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm:
this video is about the
“science of making paper airplanes.”
Interesting because the airplane was invented by two bicycle repair men – the Wright Brothers. . .
They specialized in divergent thinking. . .
Other inventors at the time — with far more money — were focused on building a bigger and more powerful engine for their gliders. The consensus was. . .
“if you get a powerful enough engine, the thing would fly.”
The Wright brothers instead built a six-foot wind tunnel in their bicycle shop. This allowed them to test different wings and propellers. On December 17, 1903 they won the race while competitors were going bankrupt.
But today’s “Paper Airplane” movie puts even the divergent thinking of the Wright brothers to shame. Because a paper airplane is not what Wilbur and Orville flew south of Kitty Hawk…
So why put a paper airplane in the Kitty Hawk Box?
Psssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssst:
The Best way to think
OUT OF THE BOX
is to
GET RID OF THE BOX
Besides. . .
why’s everyone settling for flying
when you can soar
and why soar
when you can
ascend
and why ascend
when you can
T R A N S C E N D