Relephant read:Elephants Continually-updating Coronavirus Diary. ~ Waylon

Like many people throughout the course of this week, I have received far too many messages regarding COVID-19 from Amazon, Toyota, Best Buy, and practically everyone I have ever purchased anything from in the previous decade.

Every printer, car lease, and non-fiction book comes with a free message of hope and responsibility should a global pandemic emerge unexpectedly. I wasnt moved.

However, when Eckhart Tolle burst onto the YouTube feed offering some much needed words of comfortthen, I was game. I needed to hear what he had to say.

Id like to share with you a short passage from the Bibleit doesnt happen very often that I read from the Bible as part of a teaching he began in his humble and quiet demeanor.

Then he continues:

everyone who listens to these words of Mine and does them will be like a man building a house who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And the rain came down, and the torrents came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; and it did not fall, for its foundation had been lain upon the rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.

This, a much quoted parable from Matthew 7:25, as Tolle goes on to explain, is where we can find all the comfort we need if we are willing to pay heed. We are the man and we are the house and the weather elements are the adversity. We are now in a period of great anxiety and fear and if we do not keep it in the momentif we allow ourselves to go floating off into the projected fiction of what could happenwe will be lost.

It is the message that Tolle has been espousing since he came to prominence as a teacher many years ago, but with a sage like Tolle, we do not expect, nor do we need anything novel. As with all great teachers, the gift lies in the practice of a simple and counterintuitive approach to life and, most especially, to less than desirable circumstances. Breathe.

In essence he is trying to remind us that our apprehension will kill us as fast as a virus if we allow it to. If we continue to approach this unprecedented situation armed with only our thoughts and our sense perception, we will be building our house on sand.

It clocks in at about 23 minutes and, as far as I am concerned, has been one of the most useful pieces of information that I have gotten off my computer since this all began unraveling in the last few weeks:

~

For more, check out some of Elephants most mindful, helpful COVID-19 articles: How to Enjoy Life Amidst the Coronavirus Fear: Your Go-To Guide from Books to Podcasts & Wellness Practices. What the Coronavirus is Teaching Me: 5 Lessons from Uncertain Times. The Artists Stay-at-Home & Stay Sane Guide. 10 Simple Ways to Boost your Immunity without Leaving the House.

author: Billy Manas

Image: Eckhart Tolle / YouTube

Editor: Julie Balsiger

Link:
Eckhart Tolle & COVID-19: Some much needed Words of ...

When Aditi Surana was 14 years old, a handwriting coach pointed out that she had spent the better part of an hour carefully drawing a string of zeroes on the page. Instead of feeling apologetic or embarrassed, Surana looked at the writing carefully and found that there was definitely a pattern there. And patterns usually say something or can be decanted for meaning.

Graphology seems a rather odd gateway to a podcast, but what Aditi Surana has done is combine her longstanding passion for handwriting analysis with her skills as a high-performance coach to create the context for conversation.

In each episode of IVMs new podcast series, Absolutely Write, Surana engages with a guest to unpack their personal journey while she peers into their handwriting for clues to their personality. The conversations are open-ended and somewhat winding, peppered with friendly banter and some serious reflective pauses.

Complicated conversations actually offer insights to the passive listener, says Surana, explaining what she hopes to achieve with her podcast. Just listening to someone talk about their journey in a non-judgmental space can create clarity.

Surprises, anyone?

Guests on the show so far have been IVM insiders, hosts of other podcasts, and hence there is a level of comfort and familiarity that comes through. This is also the limitation, precluding any real surprises for either the host or by extension the listener.

Surana is quick to note that this is by design, as the team wanted to include guests who were comfortable with the medium. To her credit, Surana is able to bring in a measure of the unexpected when she unravels the dots and crosses in the writing samples from her guests.

Trait and reason

Speaking with her first guest Anupam Gupta, host of the business podcast Paisa Vaisa, she points to his habits of close observation and attention to process as a basis for decision making, expressed in parenting styles as much as in advising on stock market moves.

Rather than becoming caught up with the handwriting itself, Surana then pulls back to ask Gupta on how he applies this trait to his work as a financial analyst. This is where, potentially, the learning for the listener takes place. Clearly, having a seasoned podcaster as a guest helps smooth awkward pauses, though tell-tale nervous laughter does punctuate some of the early shows.

Podcast episodes toggle between interviews with these selected guests and shorter pieces launched every Friday where Surana focuses on a topic that is essential to your personal growth. These deal with such themes as our relationship with money, building and breaking habits, and finding flow (recalling Eckhart Tolle), speaking, clearly, to an audience that enjoys self-help as a genre.

Achievers in conversation

If you are among those who enjoy listening to how someone found their groove, Id like to recommend another show that recently came to my attention. Former NPR journalist and U.S.-based leadership coach Chitra Ragavans When it Mattered engages achievers in conversation around their professional journeysand the personal moments that propelled them to success or brought them back from the brink of failure.

Started in July 2019, the podcast has had guests including former FBI Director James Comey and physician-astronaut Shawna Pandya.

Ragavans long experience with radio and her training as a journalist comes through in her audio style, the research that informs the interviews, and the expert way in which she guides the conversation to yielding those decisive moments.

The Hyderabad-based writer and academic is a neatnik fighting a losing battle with the clutter in her head.

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The writings on the page - The Hindu

Tracee Ellis Ross New Royalty: Television

Ross wears an Alexander McQueen dress; Gianvito Rossi shoes.

Photographs by Mario Sorrenti, Styled by George Cortina; Hair by Recine for Rodin; Makeup by Kanako Takase for Shiseido at Streeters; Manicures by Lisa Jachno for Chanel at Aim Artists.

Earlier this month, Tracee Ellis Ross shared a video on Instagramnot a groundbreaking action necessarily, especially since many of our favorite celebrities have upped their social media usage in quarantine. But her message broke the so-called fourth wall. In her typical slapstick way, she let the leaf of her house plant flop around near her face. Using a faux-husky voice, she said, "I want to share something that's been helpfulit's not what you expect." Then, on a dime, she shifted, her voice normal again: "How are you guys doing, seriously? How are your hearts? I know my heart feels really heavy." For me, this clip epitomized the singular way Ross has balanced humorsomething we need desperately right nowand genuine outreach to her audience during the coronavirus pandemic, and made it into something of a salve for uneasiness. She is equal parts comedienne and activist.

When she got on the phone from her home in Los Angeleswhere she's currently working on five film and TV projects, along with her hair-care brand Patternour conversation went the same way. She'd dive into a goofy joke, and the next minute, deliver a credo on patience, humanity, and life itself that sounded straight from the pages of an Eckhart Tolle book. Her careful consideration and real interest in people calmed me down a bitsomething I haven't felt in a while. Needless to say, she took on a persona her followers bestowed upon her, and went full Aunt Tracee.

In this interview, Ross discusses her approach to social media during a crisis, the importance of her group text (it's called "Keanu Forever"), and why listening to David Sedaris audio books helps her sleep at night.

Where are you right now?

Im in L.A., at home, like most of us. I havent been out of the house since March 12, I dont think. Last week was a doozy. It was like, okay, wait a minute, is this still happening? This is still going on now? I feel like its the least amount of sacrifice considering what so many others are showing up to do to keep us all afloat. Being uncomfortable is a privilege when theres so much real pain and loss going on.

I just keep reminding myself that staying home is for a higher good. If I think of it as me being of service to people that are faced in a more immediate and direct way with danger, it relieves the pressure of feeling bad that youre feeling bad. My friend Kerby Jean Raymond reminded me of that when we were catching up on the phone last night. He always thinks about more than himself, it seems. Its really easy to forget the helpful things, and thats why I like to swim in a currency of good stuff, and good reminders. He was so helpful in reminding me of that: Youre being of service, and you can take the self out of it.

I also think theres a lot to be said for allowing yourself compassiontheres some space to give yourself on the feelings. This is a collective experience that none of us have ever been in before. Our physical well-being and our health is the overarching theme right now. But at the same time, theres also a mental well-being that all of us are navigating that is part of the whole experience. That is no joke.

How have you been keeping up with friends and family?

Ive done a lot more luxuriating on the phone and FaceTiming. Its been supportive to the experience. My core group of girlfriends are all in New York, and I dont see them all the time. Ive cooked dinner with them and talked to them more often than normal. Its been really helpful. Ive had dinner with Romy [Soleimani] and cooked dinner with my friend Monica, and we have a really fabulous text thread. I would have to ask them if its appropriate to tell you the name of our thread because its so good. You know what, Im gonna breach our privacy. Theyre probably gonna get so mad! Our thread is called Keanu Forever. It happened ages ago, because I rode in an elevator with Keanu during last years Met Ball. It was literally just Keanu and me in an elevator. It was such a short elevator ride. I thought so much was gonna happen. Like a proposal.

At the very least.

And so I went on our thread afterward, and was telling the story. I dont know which of us changed the thread to Keanu Forever. It just stuck and its hilarious. I have another thread called Cabo Bitches.

Those have been the most helpful: the friendships that Ive had continue to bolster me, and that love and connection has been so fulfilling. The group calls with my family make me cry. I have a very close relationship with my family and I dont just mean my mom and her kidswe do those regularly, and with all the grandkidsbut also with my aunts and cousins and uncles, and my mom and all of her siblings, and all of the cousins I grew up with. It is so special. I not only love my family, I really like them.

And theyre incredibly smart, one of my first cousins is a doctor, and she is in Detroit. Her specialty is OBGYN, but like most doctors with specialties right now, theyre leaning into just COVID 19. My cousin Stephen's wife, Gina, is also a doctor with a specialty in OBGYN and something that I cant pronounce, shes in Atlanta, in a hospital there. My cousin Alaina is a civil rights attorney. And the three of them are actually the ones I did a post on, my two cousins that are doctors and my aunt whos a doctor as well. They all helped me put together the post that I wrote about how this is disproportionately affecting the African American community in terms of mortality rate.

What has been top of mind these days?

That pain is not something that you compare. For some people, boredom and discomfort does fall into other categories, where it really is more than boredom and its more than discomfort. Its a real mental anguish. So I have deep compassion for all this, because I feel like theres such collective trauma were all making sense of with no roadmap. None of us have experienced anything like this before. Its hard to wrap your mind around and your heart around. Its like a sci-fi movie. And it doesnt seem like anyone has any answers. That in and of itself is difficult. The unknown is always difficult, but we have the illusion of some sort of plan. And now, theres not even an illusion of a plan. Were just figuring it out as we go. Its just like, Okay, my god! Whos the parent here?!

With that in mind, how do you go about figuring out what you want to share on social media?

Ill be honest, I have not been on social media as much as I am when Im working. When Im working, social media is such an easy place to kind of scroll through, because of the pace we work at. And I can never really dive into a book or e-mails, or other work because Ive got lines swirling around in my head. Ive been going on to look at my DMs, to post, and I kind of swipe around a little bit, but I havent been intensely connected through social media.

When I do post, I try really hard to research my information and to go to people that are experts and actually know what theyre talking about, to give that information credibility and share accurate information. Share joyful information, share a loving, connected, honest, accurate information. Because I find that theres a lot thatit could be true, but we dont really know, because it hasnt been researched.

Its interesting to me that youre saying youre staying off of social media, because it feels like youre giving people an inside look at your lifewhich youve always done, but in a way, it seems really personal right now.

Its funny, because its hard for me: Ive picked particular places in my home that Im comfortable sharing. Its not that Im a private person, I just have a real sense of what sacred means. And I honor those things with great care. Those things that are sacred to me are not for public consumptionhowever, I have grown to be somebody who enjoys sharing how I hold myself emotionally. And now, some of those things have been really fun to share. I really loved sharing the socks on my hand. People were writing me: You know, you can buy gloves for that. Im like, I know! But I got socks! So why I gotta buy the gloves? I get it, I know I can. But, like, I got the socks. So were good, right? These seem to work just fine. Theyre like a mitten, with no thumbs!

I dont know if you know how many articles were spawned from that Instagram post. There are three pages worth of Google results.

Are you serious?

Yes, people are like, Check out this life hack that Tracee Ellis Ross does for her hands!

People were like, I dont know if you know whats in Bag Balm. I was like, no, I dont know whats in Bag Balm! Am I in trouble? Whats happening? You can use whatever you want, its the socks! Thats the key, the socks, people!

Do you know how much people use your likeness in photos and videos as memes? Like that video of you with the Ulta bag is so widely used as a reaction meme.

That kills me. That shit is hilarious. And I get it, because I do think that to a certain extent, I move like a cartoon character, and I feel things in very big ways and Im an animated, gesture-filled human being. My personality is probably perfect for memes.

One thing I really love about your approach to social media is that youre able to have this, at times, comedic approach while youre talking to your followers, but also maintaining a sensitive message. Im wondering how youre able to balance that.

Someone asked me the other day: Do you think theres a place for comedy in this? I dont even know if comedys the right word. Theres always a place for laughter. Theres always a space for joy. I think that is a revolutionary act, in all honesty. Its a choice thats about perspective and how you look at things. I think I am truly being very mindfulI really am just very aware of all of the different responses and experiences that people are having. I think social medias old use does not match where were at. The crassness of some of the humor at other peoples expense, all of those kinds of things, the glimpse into extravagance and all that, just doesnt match where were at. We do have to be extremely mindful of everybodys vulnerabilities and sensitivities right now, and the fact that everybodys nervous systems are a little bit shot.

I dont know about you, but most everyone I know has gotten a nice big, basket or tunnel of fear just sitting there, waiting, and it takes everything in my power to keep turning my attention somewhere else and to a different narrative. One thats like, What can my hands actually do? What do I actually have control over in my world and in my mind? What am I going to eat today? Who can I call to check in on someone else, particularly when I need to be checked in on and nobody seems to be checking in on me in that moment? How can I take that feeling and turn it around toward somebody else and find a connection there?

Today, it seems the biggest joys I get are deciding what Im gonna make to eat, how Im gonna prepare it for myself, so that when I sit down to eat it, it actually looks beautiful. I have found that my mindful practice of being present with what Im doing when Im doing it, knowing where my hands and my feet are, has been extremely helpful. Allowing myself to let my heart feel the heartbreak and anguish that so many are feeling and not try and push those feelings away but give them space, but not let them be the full story, because that will make anyone go down a rabbit hole. I know weve done a lot of thanking of the first responders and all of those that are doing essential jobs that are keeping us all afloat. But i also feel a real call to continue to remember that although this virus is invisible for the majority of us, for the first responders and the healthcare workers, it is not invisible.

We need people. And I think part of what all of us have been navigating in our own private ways is how do you find comfort for yourself? Where do you go when you are frightened? Without a hug, without the distraction of making a plan to go to dinner, without the ability to hear an impulse inside you and know all of the ways that we used to answer those impulses, What do you do in this? And how do we want to envision what it will be after? What are we making sense of, while still honoring the human experience and the reality of what that is? And it really does highlight the compassion that all of us should have always been dialed up on, surrounding so many different parts of how our society treats people and responds to people.

How did the transition to working from home go?

It was a little bumpy for me, 'cuz Im not going to lie, I am not the most technically savvy human being. When it comes to Zoom, and Blue Jay, and all these other things, Im like, I dont fucking know what Im doing. I thrive in isolation, and I am a person who plays an extrovert in my job, but Im really a bit of an introvert. And I will also admit that I dont spend a lot of time at home. When I started quarantining, I was like, why the fuck is this Internetmy mom told me I should stop using so many curse words, so hold onwhy for goodness sakethere we gois this Internet so slow? I finally got on the phone with the right people at my Internet provider; and that man was so kind. We checked my Internet speed, and he said, Yeah, thats very slow, maam. I dont think your equipment is up to date. Its from 2010. I was like Oh! Goodness me. So the beginning of transitioning to online work was not easy.

But now, I am great. I do all the Blue Jays and Zooms and FaceTimes. Keeping up with the work has actually been very encouraging. It gives me something to look forward to. Its given me an opportunity to continue to use my mind; I have more time to think creatively right now, I have more courage to think creatively. One of the things I had to remind myself, which has also reminded friends of mine, is momentum and the course that we are on, the energetic journey of what we were all doing in our livesif that is a path you enjoyed and were happy about, whether that was you in college and getting a degree, or you on the path to getting married, got halted and shifted during this time, remember that has not stopped. Its just changing. Because there was a real sense of grief and disappointment, that of course you have to temper, because it is not the grief of loss of a human, of somebody you love, but of a way of living, or dreams. Theyre not gone, theres just a transition in how those things are going to happen.

I read an article in which you said youve been listening to David Sedaris audiobooks. Are there any other titles youve been loving?

David Sedaris is wonderful for going to sleep, because I kid you not, I go to sleep laughing. And for some reason, during this pandemic, falling asleep has been very difficult for me. I get tired, and usually cannot get myself to fall asleep until about 1:30 a.m. It seems that is when I am most acutely aware of the collective sadness and trauma thats happening, and its really hard for me to settle my heart and my mind. So David Sedaris has been really wonderful in the evenings. It distracts you in the right way. I can turn off the lights, and just allow that to be what Im hearing, instead of my thoughts.

I usually read multiple books at a time, so Im still in process with Untamed by Glennon Doyle. I started by listening to that as an audio book, but my sister suggested I switch to the actual book, because she said there are so many pearls in it I'd want to underline, highlight, and earmark. I also have not finished The H-Spot by Jill Filipovicits really worthy and its been fantastic. I just finished The Nazi Officers Wife by Edith Hahn Beer, which I enjoyed, and Less by Andrew Sean Grier, which I loved.I am a huge Ann Patchett fan. For anybody who hasnt read Bel Canto, it is a must-read. I have read every single one of her books. An all-time favorite is The Bluest Eye, which is actually read by Toni Morrison and Ruby Dee. It is like going to the theater; theres music, it is literally like going to see a Broadway play, but you get to use your imagination.

What music are you listening to in quarantine?

Okay, Ill be honest: Yo-yo Ma (laughs). He gets me every timelovely for a Sunday afternoon. Theres a great new Frank Ocean song. And I was a huge Fiona Apple gal growing up, and Fiona Apples new album is wonderful. Theres a song called Heavy Balloons that shatters me open. Im always a fan of Drake, and Rihanna. I've gone back to the favoritesI have a Bill Withers essentials album, and thatll get you through any cleaning experience, I can tell you right now. Bill Withers will take you through the bathroom. You will make it through the toilet with Lovely Day going. You will forget what youre doing, and you will absolutely make it to the other side, no problem.

Related: With The Long Lockdown, Riz Ahmed Gives Fans an Opportunity to Connect

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Tracee Ellis Ross Is Here to Soothe Your Frazzled Nerves - W Magazine

Picture a teenage girl sitting in a neon lit clinical room, having had her doctor excuse himself to an incoming emergency. Hear the sounds of the medics running back and forth in the corridor outside, while she stares down at grey-chalky stained t-shirt and hands following a rather spectacular vomiting session induced by liquid charcoal, the treatment of choice for patients taking an overdose. Thats quite an image, right? Welcome to my first suicide attempt.

The shame I felt as I heard the medics deal with someone who had not chosen to be in hospital, was equal only to the shame I felt as I saw the distress on my friends and relatives faces as they found out what I had done. This shame only served to drive me back into the hospital at a later date this time, in a less serious physical state, but a severely deteriorated mental state, having called an ambulance myself and told them I was going to kill myself.

Between the ages of 16 and 25 I bounced between therapists, concerned teachers, doctors, psychologists, and two crisis teams. Their combined efforts, along with a few select friends and family, made sure that my suicidal thoughts remained just that. Thoughts.

These dark thoughts, or as I like to refer to them, my doom demons thrive on uncertainty. Given the opportunity, my doom demons feed on worry, and panic, and gradually chip away at my morale until I struggle to see the positive in any moment. Eckhart Tolle wrote in The Power of Now that the thing that brings humans the most pain is holding onto the illusion of control in their life. For me, that spoke volumes. What would happen, if I stopped trying to control what is happening, or what will happen, and instead focussed on how to respond to it. What would happen to my demons?

In 2019, I attended a workshop with a Jack Canfield, and he uttered one simple equation that changed my life. Event plus response equals outcome. You cannot change the event. So the only thing affecting the outcome, will be your response. Change your response, change the outcome. As simple as that. Before I knew it, I was living my life with an entirely new mindset. I chose to take a learning experience from everything that happened to me. I chose to assess my reactions, to see how they affected the outcome, whether positive or negative. I chose to complete a certified course that allowed me to have such a deep understanding of mindset work that Im able to teach it to others. I chose to start accepting that while I could hear my doom demons making noise, I didnt need to feed them.

Skip forward to 2020, in the middle of a global pandemic, and I find myself locked down in Italy, with no idea when life will return to a normal state. My doom demons are rattling the bars of their cages, gnashing their teeth in hunger. They are the loudest they have been in a long time, and who can blame them. Their perfect meal is right outside. A world in conflict, an unsure economy, social media rife with judgment, negativity, worry and misinformation. Contradictory media, lonely isolation, and fear for the health of my family and friends. In the past, this situation would have empowered my doom demons into a state I would certainly struggle to come back to. But Ive learned that my mental strength matters. My doom demons cannot break out of the cages Ive built; using mindfulness, accountability, and most importantly empathy and forgiveness. Its ok that I didnt want to live before. Its ok that I missed opportunities because my mind was in a mess. Its ok that Im scared and worried, and its ok that sometimes I wake up feeling like a superhero and sometimes I wake up feeling like a sofa burrito. Forgiveness has forged the strongest bars. I might be in lockdown, but so are my doom demons.

Life certainly wont return to what it was before and I have no control over what will be. But for the first time in my life, Im alright with that.

Read the original:
Your Life as You Know It Has Ended Here's Why You Shouldn't Let That End Your Life - Thrive Global

Like many others right now, Selena Gomez is occupying her time with a little help from friends like Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, and the complete cast of Saturday Night Live - virtually, that is. The singer recently shared her list of entertainment recommendations in an earnest Instagram post featuring candid photos of herself cooking. "I shared a few lists in my stories of things I'm watching, listening to and reading to keep me positive and help pass the time," Gomez wrote. "Hope it helps you."

"Hope it helps you."

Gomez's extensive list of movie recommendations includes recent releases like Invisible Man and Uncut Gems, in addition to cult classics like Clueless and Election. Gomez also appears to be filling her feed with hilarious content, as her list of Instagram accounts to follow includes a nostalgic basement-based video store and one that is a near-perfect re-creation of Gomez's own account, except starring a doll in her place. Perhaps the most intriguing recommendation, however, is on the music list, which includes "Snowchild" by The Weeknd, whom Gomez dated for nearly a year in 2017. Hey, maybe she's just relieved to not have been the entire subject of his recently released heartbreak album, After Hours. (That's for a different ex to worry about.) Later, she shared a playlist with even more tunes for Spotify's Listening Together collection, including songs by Taylor Swift, Kacey Musgraves, and Dolly Parton. Browse all of Gomez's suggestions ahead.

Related: Selena Gomez's Carefree Music Video For "Dance Again" Makes Me Want to Dance Along With Her

"If the World Was Ending" by JP Saxe feat. Julia Michaels

"You Say" by Lauren Daigle

"Snowchild" by The Weeknd

"The Blessing" by Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes, and Elevation Worship

"The Box" by Roddy Ricch

Story continues

Invisible Man

Jennifer's Body

American Hustle

Uncut Gems

Clueless

Sugar & Spice

After the Wedding

Zodiac

Election

Flirting With Disaster

Becoming by Michelle Obama

The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

Signs: The Secret Language of the Universe by Laura Lynne Jackson

On Purpose With Jay Shetty

Wait Wait . . . Don't Tell Me!

Oprah & Eckhart Tolle: A New Earth

Get Sleepy

See the original post:
Clueless, Good Girls, and . . . The Weeknd? Selena Gomez's Surprising Entertainment Suggestions - Yahoo Lifestyle

In an InstaLive interview, Elizabeth Osho had a chat with a renowned photographer, Seun O, one of the many COVID-19 survivors who got people talking after attending a high profile award event in Lagos.

Seun spoke about his experience, what happened, his time at the isolation centre, and how he overcame the virus.

Heres what we learned:

He left the UK on the 12th of March, and arrived Nigeria on the 13th of March. He was an official photographer for the award event which took place on Saturday, March 14. Carrying out his task during the event, he was all fine, in good spirit and felt no symptom of the virus. The next night after the event (Sunday night), he started to feel ill with symptoms of tiredness and fever.

When he suspected hed contracted the virus, he got in touch with people he was in close contact with, and one of his conversations with a trusted friend got leaked and made the rounds on social media. He was in isolation for five days, and later went to the hospital to get tested.

Upon visiting the hospital and providing the necessary information such as his symptoms and travel history, the hospital then contacted Lagos State and the NCDC about him. Describing how the COVID-19 test procedure went, he said a stick-like instrument goes up the nostrils, a very uncomfortable and painful process.

When the Lagos State Commissioner of Health, Akin Abayomi, contacted him about his COVID-19 positive status, he was scared. He said he felt like his world was crashing down because he had the virus that was killing people around the world.

Did anyone he came in contact with test positive for the virus? Seun O said, Not one single person has tested positive for the coronavirus.

The isolation centre: For Seun, it was an experience he will not regret. The people in his ward were exceptional characters, he said, and all 15 to 16 patients in his ward are now COVID-19 survivors.

His treatment: Everyone in his ward had different symptoms. The first time he got to his ward, after dinner, he had his first antiretroviral, antibiotics, calcium and paracetamol.

Stigmatization: It is a very serious issue for Seun. He met people in the isolation centres who didnt want their families, friends or colleagues to know they had coronavirus.

Watch the full interview here!

See the original post here:
Surviving COVID-19: What We Learned from Seun O's Interview with Elizabeth Osho - BellaNaija

Caroline Purser | Photographer's Choice | Getty Images

The economic shock of the coronavirus pandemic has caused unprecedented strife.

More than 22 million Americans have lost their jobs, the markets are roiling, and Americans, stressed about all this uncertainty, are left with many unanswered questions.

Two of CNBC's Financial Advisor Council members Lazetta Rainey Braxton, co-CEO of 2050 Wealth Partners, and Carolyn McClanahan, a certified financial planner and founder of Life Planning Partners along with Josh Brown,CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management, listened to viewers and answered their questions on CNBC's "Markets in Turmoil" Monday night.

Here is how these experts responded to viewers' most pressing concerns.

How do investors determine asset allocation and the level of risk that's for them?

According to McClanahan, there are two factors that should drive portfolio allocation. The first is, how long do you have before you need to use your money? If you need your money in the near term, meaning that you are approaching retirement age or you recently retired, McClanahan says investors should be consecutive and dial back their risk.

Younger investors who can stomach swings in the market should be more aggressive with their allocations.

Braxton says that now is a good time to figure out your risk tolerance. Investors have had a wide range of reactions to this market. Some might be indifferent to the roller coaster right now, while others are fearful they won't be able to get through their retirement years. Braxton said to use your reactions as a way to gauge your tolerance and then couple that with your timeline and goals.

While there is software available to help ease investors' fears, the No. 1 test an investor needs to pass to understand their risk tolerance is the sleep test, according to Braxton. Can you sleep at night? If not, you may need to adjust your investment allocation.

But risk tolerance is not static; it, too, changes with your age and goals. McClanahan suggests that investors always keep track of how much they could lose, especially when markets are rallying. Being conscious of how much you could lose, especially during the rally, will have you prepared for when the market dives.

How should I manage my investments in my 401(k)?

McClanahan's first piece of advice for investors invested in a 401(k) is to make sure the fees are low. If not, talk to your employer about lowering them.

Next, make sure that you are diversified. McClanahan acknowledges that this can be difficult for investors that do not have a lot of money invested in their 401(k)s and are probably on a life-cycle fund. As you invest more money into your 401(k), you will need to determine the asset allocation that is right for you.

More from Invest in You: Here's a tax break you may not get during the coronavirus pandemic If you left or lost your job, here is what you can do with your 401(k) Received your $1,200 stimulus check? How to avoid spending it like a lottery win

How do I determine the amount of allocation I should have in cash?

There are a lot of advantages to being a professional investor, but according to Brown, there are advantages to being an individual investor. Unlike the pros, individuals don't have to answer to quarterly earnings reports. "As an individual investor, I only answer to myself, as that is decades away."

For young investors, volatility is the source of future returns. Cash should be saved in savings accounts where it will be the most liquid. Young investors should take on as much risk as they can tolerate. However, older investors may want to sit on more cash, as they will likely need to start withdrawing soon. "Risk is all about how much you can afford to lose, and young people have a long period of time. They can take more risk, and ideally, in the long run, it is going to make a lot of money for them."

McClanahan reminded investors that when they invest in stocks, they are investing in companies. Every year, some companies fail, she says, but most are successful, and unlike the 2008 crash, this market crash was started by a global pandemic. Just because a company's stock price plummeted doesn't mean the company was in bad shape, she says.

Risk is all about how much you can afford to lose, and young people have a long period of time. They can take more risk, and ideally, in the long run, it is going to make a lot of money for them.

Carolyn McClanhan

founder of Life Planning Partners

What do I do if I need to take a loan or withdraw from my 401(k)?

According to Braxton, the first thing everyone needs to do before taking out a loan is to determine exactly how much money they need to live. You don't want to take out more than you need, because not only are you the borrower in this case but you are also the lender. The next thing you'll have to do is check with your employer to see how much you can take out and what the interest rate on repayments will be.

The recently passed CARES Actnow allows you to borrow up to $100,000(previous loan limit was $50,000) from your 401(k) and delay repayment for up to one year. After you borrow, you'll typically have to repay the loan within five years, depending on the terms of your 401(k) plan. Under the CARES Act, loan payments due in 2020 can be delayed for up to one year from the time you take out the loan.However, if you can't pay back the loan within the time frame designated by your plan, your outstanding balance will be taxed like a withdrawal, and you'll also have pay a 10% early withdrawal penalty.

What are you telling investors in order to reassure them at this time?

A lot of investors are nervous about what the future will hold. Braxton reassures her clients by showing them a slide of market performance over the last century. Over the last century, there have been crashes, but each time, the economy rebounds and the stock market expands. "If you made it through 2008, you can make it through this," she says.

Through all the volatility, though, McClanahan still sees a silver lining: The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a lot of weaknesses in our markets, she says, adding that post coronavirus recovery offers us the opportunity to build stronger and more equitable systems.

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Financial pros offer smart investment tips during the coronavirus crisis - CNBC

Hope in the details!

US durable goods orders plunged 14.4% in March, but the details are much better. Transportation orders took a huge hit (-41% month on month), which is once again attributable to Boeings woes (civilian aircraft orders fell 295.7% MoM!!!). There were just 13 Boeing aircraft orders in March, but they also experienced 295 order cancellations, which are subtracted in the durable goods report the Census Bureau uses net orders in its calculations.

Excluding this component orders fell only 0.2% a fantastic outcome given what has happened to manufacturing surveys. Electrical equipment was up 1.5% and capital goods rose 1.3%.

The Fed is known to follow the non-defence capital goods order ex aircraft component closely given this is typically a good lead indicator for investment in equipment and capex in general. It actually rose! Only 0.1% admittedly, but this is much, much better than the -6.7% consensus expectations and offers hope that our -6% annualised GDP estimate for next weeks 1Q GDP report may be a touch too pessimistic.

Read more from the original source:
US investment - finally some good news - ING Think

Investment

oi-Sunil Fernandes

'Savings are the income of future', and there is no better time than our current situations to realize and address the above fact. With businesses being halted, and cash flow slowing down; having a source of income which helps you maintain a significant savings amount for unseen circumstances in future is becoming an essential resource to possess.

People with well-to do regular incomes are constantly in search for promising grounds of investment. There is no better investment opportunity than the one that comes with myriad choices of long term returns. One such option is industrial plots. These are lands spanning across a vast area with some of the distinct characteristics like location, price value and infrastructure that help the businesses and industries achieve a growth in manifolds. Here is a list of five top reasons that make investment in industrial plots a smart choice for a secure future-

Industrial plots come with the added advantage of a resourceful and an organised infrastructure that leads to the development of businesses located on it. An industrial plot will be equipped with ramps, parking lots, elevators and transportation facilities for easy movement of goods and workers around the entire campus.

The developers purchasing these mass pieces of land, specially look into this aspect due to multiple reasons, major one being deciding of the market value for plot allotments. An industrial plot/park is generally located centrally in the city or at a location, with easy and accessible connectivity of public and private transport, which makes it an attractive avenue for investors, end-buyers and incorporations.

Every industry/business depends on its human resource. An industrial plot is worth investing when it holds the capacity to attract all kinds of working force- skilled or unskilled. As requirement of both is crucial for all type of industries to sustain and expand.

Since such a varied range of small, medium big scale industries are located in the vicinity, when you invest in an industrial plot; the exposure to new sources of raw materials and alternative supply chain arrangements are possibilities. You also get a comparing ground when you are near to so many players, and a fair idea about the working of different sectors.

An industrial plot works as an amalgamating ground for different types of industries to come together under one location, utilize the same resources, work under same property guidelines. This is a profitting position to be- as client acquisitions and exploring more business opportunities becomes comparably easier.

With so many characteristic features being taken care of by the developers who are in the business of building industrial plots. A smart working professional will be more than ready to invest there, as it could be rented/leased out to a budding industry/business. This will not only guarantee him an extra source of income in present, but will also act as a fundamental future asset.

Authored by-

Tejpreet Singh Gill, Executive Director, Gillco Group.

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How Investment In Industrial Plots Can Be A Smart Option? - Goodreturns

The COVID-19 case has created massive uncertainty in global capital flows.

Governments might be wise to introduce short-term protections, but they must not be over-cautious.

The post-crisis winners will open early to foreign investment.

Just over a year ago, InvestChile the South American countrys Foreign Direct Investment Promotion Agency welcomed 300 foreign investors of 21 nationalities in Santiago. In a two-day event, they attended plenaries, workshops and over 200 meetings including with the president, advancing over $7 billion in potential projects.

Fast-forward to today, and the view from Chile could not have changed more radically.

FDI roadshows in Santiago, and every other capital, are a picture of the past. InvestChiles work shifted almost overnight. In confronting the coronavirus emergency, priorities changed: from attracting FDI overseas to deploying a crucial domestic effort to help international companies ensure their business continuity in Chile, thus keeping the economy running.

This is not an isolated case. All over the world, foreign investors are navigating uncharted waters. The COVID-19 pandemic is leaving not only desolation for the lives that are being lost, but also many questions about the post-coronavirus economy, such as how global investment flows will behave as the emergency clears.

Among all the issues that matter right now, FDI should not be forgotten: It has historically been a barometer of health of international companies, and their ability to bring about global growth. With the current freezing over of foreign investments, a spectre looms on the horizon once the health emergency subsides: a deeper economic recession to confront.

There is a possible silver lining: Investors attracted by good value may kickstart a "virtuous cycle", fresh capital in one sector benefiting the next, as soon as economies open again. After all, one should never let a good crisis go to waste.

But the immediate news are bad. The UNs trade and development arm (UNCTAD) recently revised its forecasts about the effects of COVID-19 on global FDI flows from a conservative -5 to -15% drop, to a decisive -30 to -40% contraction. Even without further downward revisions, those losses are potentially more dramatic than at any time in modern history.

The reference point, of course, is the financial crisis of 2007-08. In its immediate aftermath, FDI flows fell by 37% in 2009, down to $1.1 trillion, and the Great Recession took hold. Today, at the onset of the pandemic, the virus has already wiped off some $500bn in foreign investment, and worse is very likely to come. That doesnt bode well for whats next.

Consider also a second indicator: protectionism. Already, the COVID-19 crisis is hitting at the high point of one of the fiercest trade wars on record, arguably since the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 introduced after the Great Depression which led to a 61% dip in US exports by 1933. If a study by the University of St. Gallen about massive new export curbs on medical supplies which today are costing lives directly is any indicator, the crisis will lead to even more restrictions.

The state of global FDI from 1998 to 2018

Image: UNCTAD

In one way, safeguarding makes perfect sense: The COVID-19 crisis has already wiped off trillions of dollars off companies valuations. It may well be in a countrys best interest to put up temporary barriers on investment as a protective measure. With companies losing so much value, foreign acquisition bids may be possible at bargain-basement price in key industries that need to remain in domestic hands.

A first sign of this came from Australia, as the country announced the temporary tightening of conditions for entry of foreign investment, with a strengthened review process lasting between 30 days and six months. The goal was clear: We do not want predatory behavior, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg stated.

While such measures make short-term sense, the tricky part is not to make them stick once the health emergency subsides. If the global economy was in a Prisoners Dilemma, the clear optimal outcome would be to be collaborative and open borders as quickly as possible. But its also clear the first mover to lift restrictions may get the short end of the stick, if its initial openness isnt reciprocated.

In the coming months, we will find out how much these measures and the prospect of deglobalization is further impacting free flows of FDI, and if what we are seeing today in terms of restrictions is only the tip of the iceberg. For now, and until we figure out the long-term impact of the pandemic on foreign investment, the only option for host countries and investors alike is to keep on navigating the storm.

It aims to help governments in developing and least developed countries implement the World Trade Organizations Trade Facilitation Agreement by bringing together governments and businesses to identify opportunities to address delays and unnecessary red-tape at borders.

For example, in Colombia, the Alliance worked with the National Food and Drug Surveillance Institute and business to introduce a risk management system that can facilitate trade while protecting public health, cutting the average rate of physical inspections of food and beverages by 30% and delivering $8.8 million in savings for importers in the first 18 months of operation.

As for InvestChile, their next investor conference will happen virtually, which is likely to become the new normal. Although governments today need to first and foremost work with established investors in keeping their projects afloat, the silver lining for Chile, and emerging markets alike, may reside in being moving early to attract foreign investment with opportunities, incentives and promotion agencies ready to go as the emergency eases.

In this new normal, the winners will be those governments that pioneer novel ways to help investors, in a world where prosperity remains depending on open economic borders.

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Foreign investment is drying up thanks to COVID-19. But there may be a silver lining - World Economic Forum