Americans don't think their jobs will return to normal after the pandemic.
A study from the business advisory firm, Brunswick found that 47% of employees believe their workplace will not return to normal operations.
Employees can expect to see fewer colleagues in-office and changes to the physical workplace. For example, some companies plan to ditch the reception desk for mudrooms, a space for hanging up your coat, washing your hands, and changing your shoes.
Here are four ways the office could change once you return to work.
Employees believe the coronavirus pandemic will change their work-life forever.
A recent study of more than 1,000 US workers from the business advisory firm Brunswick found at least 47% of remote workers believe their workplaces will not operate the same way in a post-pandemic world. The report shows that 87% of those not going into work are concerned about another wave of office closures in the future.
The coronavirus has fundamentally changed how Americans work and experts are now reimagining workplaces with a host of new safety measures.
For example, before a vaccine for coronavirus is available, it's likely that employees will see fewer workers in the office, which will help prevent the spread of the virus. Employees can also expect changes to the office floor plan. This includes the addition of an "officle," a door-less space that's a mix between an office and a cubicle, Business Insider previously reported.
With some states in the US already reopening and others scheduled to ease restrictions on stay-at-home orders in the coming weeks, it's important to prepare yourself for how the workplace will change.
Here are four ways you will see the office change once you return to work, based on advice from CEOs and architects.
There will be fewer people in the office
It's likely that most employers won't have everyone return to the office at once. A dense space or large social gatherings can increase the transmission of the disease among coworkers.
Because of this, it's likely that there will be few employees working in the office. Some employees may work from home indefinitely. Managers may also consider staggering work schedules throughout the day, or even alternating days or weeks in the office.
Without a vaccine, you can expect a gradual reentry to the workplace. For example, over the next 12-18 months, there may be a cycle of lockdown and relaxation, with periods of 100% remote work, Business Insider previously reported.
You will have to wear a mask at work
Most states are ordering people to wear a mask in public. It's likely that these measures will include the workplace as well. Some workplaces will use one-way hallways to prevent close contact. Landlords or companies may also screen for fevers and other symptoms at the entrance to an office.
While undergoing these changes, Primo Orpilla, a cofounder and principal of Studio O+A, said workplaces must also prioritize making people feel comfortable.
"How do we tell our people that we're making them safe," Orpilla told Business Insider. "But not make it feel like you're going through immigration at San Francisco International Airport?"
No more checking in at the reception desk
Instead of using a receptionist desk for checking in, it's likely that employees will use a mudroom, or more of a home foyer where you take off your coat and wash your hands.
Also, some companies may forgo self-serving coffee machines, according to the architecture solutions firm Gensler. If the budget allows for this, you may see baristas serving up your favorite coffees in house, according to a sample floor plan from Gensler. Hiring a barista can potentially limit the spread of germs among colleagues, Business Insider reported.
You might be quizzed on new office protocols
When employees go back to work, you will also likely see an increase in communication from managers about the changes coming to a post-pandemic workplace. With these changes on the horizon, you will want to stay in the loop.
For example, the CEO of financial services company Discover, Roger Hochschild, has been sending employees daily emails to update them on the changes the company is making.
When it comes to following social distancing protocols, HR may quiz you on how well you can adhere to the rules. Some companies are even creating courses on new protocols, which employees will need to pass before operations resume.
Online dating is becoming more popular as social distancing becomes the norm.
According to data from OkCupid, daters sent more than 35 million intro messages in March, which is about 4 million more than in the same time frame last year.
Dr. Jess Carbino, a former in-house sociologist at Tinder and Bumble, told Business Insider that it's easy to overuse dating apps.
Carbino recommends not spending more than 30 minutes a day on dating apps, especially if you're not messaging anyone.
People are spending more time on online dating apps amid the coronavirus pandemic, data shows.
According to information from OkCupid, daters sent more than 35 million intro messages in March, which is about 4 million more than in the same time frame last year. And while people are using these apps now more than ever, experts say you shouldn't be on the app for more than 30 minutes a day.
That's according to Dr. Jess Carbino, the former in-house sociologist at Bumble and Tinder. She told Business Insider that daters should use apps 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes at night — especially once the novelty and excitement wear off, which tends to happen a month in. All in all, she says you shouldn't be spending more than an hour a day on dating apps.
"There has to be a boundary associated with how anyone spends their time," Carbino said.
Carbino's caveat is that if you're really active on dating apps and messaging with multiple people at once, 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the evening might be fine. The point is not to spend hours every day swiping through one profile after another without actually communicating with anyone.
Yet according to a survey by dating app Badoo, its users spend on average 90 minutes a day online dating, logging on 10 times a day for about nine minutes at a time.
"People are busy, and they need to think about dating as a part of their life, as a component of their life," Carbino said. "It shouldn't feel like a job. Dating should feel like something that you're doing in order to meet somebody."
A more effective way to use those hours (and hours) instead of swiping? Carbino said: "It would be better if you were spending a couple hours a week on a date, or two dates, or three dates, and trying to get to know people that you've matched with."
Interviews with Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Sundar Pichai, and other tech power players reveal that Silicon Valley parents are strict about technology use.
A book suggests the signs may have been clear years ago that smartphone use should be regulated.
There may be a way to integrate tech into the classroom, however, that avoids its harmful effects.
Psychologists are learning how dangerous smartphones can be for teenage brains.
The World Health Organization recently advised parents to limit screentime to just one hour a day for children under five. Though one large study found little correlation between screen-time and mental health impacts, other research has found that an eighth-grader's risk for depression jumps 27% when he or she frequently uses social media.
It should be telling, Clement and Miles argue, that the two biggest tech figures in recent history — Bill Gates and Steve Jobs — seldom let their kids play with the very products they helped create.
"What is it these wealthy tech executives know about their own products that their consumers don't?" the authors wrote.
Here's how Silicon Valley elites limit screentime for their own kids, despite helping sell tech to children across the world:
Bill Gates, one of the most influential tech leaders in the world, limited how much technology his children could use at home.
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In 2007, Gates, the former CEO of Microsoft, implemented a cap on screen time when his daughter started developing an unhealthy attachment to a video game. He also didn't let his kids get cell phones until they turned 14.
Other techies, like Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel, limit their kids' screen time.
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Spiegel and his wife Miranda Kerr impose an hour and a half of screen time per week on their kids, he told the Financial Times. Young people use Snapchat more often than any other social media platform, according to a 2018 Pew Research Center survey.
Despite the fact he created the iPad, Steve Jobs wouldn't let his kids use it.
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Jobs, who was the CEO of Apple until his death in 2012, revealed in a 2011 New York Times interview that he prohibited his kids from using the newly-released iPad. "We limit how much technology our kids use at home," Jobs told reporter Nick Bilton.
In an recent interview on Cheddar, iPod co-creator Tony Fadell speculated that if Steve Jobs were alive today, he'd want to address growing societal concerns about tech addiction. "He'd say, 'Hey we need to do something about it,'" Fadell said.
The CEO of Google's parent company, Sundar Pichai, limits the time his kids spend watching TV.
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Pichai told the New York Times in a 2018 interview that his then-11-year-old son did not have a cell phone, and that he limits the time his children spend watching television.
Even elite Silicon Valley schools are noticeably low-tech.
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That's at the average school at least, according to the coauthors. A number of specialty Silicon Valley schools, such as the Waldorf School in Mountain View, are noticeably low-tech. They use chalkboards and No. 2 pencils. Instead of learning how to code, kids are taught the soft skills of cooperation and respect.
At Brightworks School in San Francisco, kids learn creativity by building things and attending classes in treehouses.
Some low-income schools, meanwhile, have increased their tech usage to help solve for teacher shortage problems. Parents said a Mark Zuckerberg-funded web-based teaching platform caused physical and mental ailments, The New York Times reported.
Despite barring his own kids from using too much tech, some experts say Gates touts the use of electronic devices in schools.
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If there is any concession Gates has made on technology, it's in the benefits it offers students in certain educational settings. In the years since Gates implemented his household policy, the billionaire philanthropist has taken a keen interest in personalized education, an approach that uses electronic devices to help tailor lesson plans for each student.
In a recent blog post, Gates celebrated Summit Sierra, a Seattle-based school that takes students' personal goals — like getting into a specific college — and devises a path to get there. Teachers in personalized learning settings take on more of a coaching role, helping to nudge students back on track when they get stuck or distracted.
Technology in these cases is being used as specifically as possible — and in ways Gates recognizes as useful for a student's development, not as entertainment.
"Personalized learning won't be a cure-all," he wrote. But Gates said he's "hopeful that this approach could help many more young people make the most of their talents."
Authors Clement and Miles make the case that while Silicon Valley elites have made a profit off of selling tech to kids, they recognize how addictive and harmful these products can be.
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In "Screen Schooled," Clement and Miles make the case that wealthy Silicon Valley parents seem to grasp the addictive powers of smartphones, tablets, and computers more than the general public does — despite the fact that these parents often make a living by creating and investing in that technology.
"It's interesting to think that in a modern public school, where kids are being required to use electronic devices like iPads," the authors wrote, "Steve Jobs's kids would be some of the only kids opted out."
Jobs' children have finished school, so it's impossible to know how the late Apple cofounder would have responded to education technology, or "edtech." But Clement and Miles suggest that if Jobs' kids had attended the average US school today, they'd have used tech in the classroom far more than they did at home while growing up.
Chris Weller contributed to a previous version of this article.
Three weeks after Georgia lifted coronavirus-related business restrictions, business owners are divided on how to proceed.
Some business owners, like tea shop owner Brandi Shelton, fear the reopening of the economy was rushed and irresponsible.
Others, like salon owner Melissa Singleton, were comfortable opening with new safety precautions.
Data showed that more than 60,000 people visited Georgia from out of state after businesses reopened, leading experts to fear a spike in coronavirus cases.
Three weeks after Georgia became one of the first states to reopen its economy, business owners in the state are divided on how to proceed.
In late April, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp allowed gyms, hair salons, and some other businesses to open, and a week later, he lifted restrictions on most other businesses. The decisions came despite warnings from public health officials that lifting restrictions too soon could cause the number of coronavirus cases to increase drastically.
But for hair salon owner Melissa Singleton, the reversal was welcome news.
"I don't feel like it's too soon," Singleton, owner of Melissa's Salon and Spa in Blairsville, told Business Insider Today. "The economy has got to keep functioning, and we can't just sit back on our heels and wait for the government to supply all of our needs. That's not how America was built and that's not how it's going to survive."
In the first weekend after Georgia businesses reopened, the state saw 60,000 more out-of-state visitors, mostly from neighboring states that are still shut down.
Singleton works alone in her salon, and only sees one customer at a time. The rural county where she lives and works has had 36 confirmed coronavirus cases as of May 15.
"I check each and every person that comes in for their temperature to make sure they don't have a temperature when they arrive here," she said. "I take measures to wipe down the chairs, any chairs that they've come in contact with, all the door handles, the bathrooms — everything gets cleaned and sanitized after every customer."
Meanwhile, in Atlanta, Brandi Shelton isn't planning on opening her tea shop any time soon.
"This is not ideal. I want to be open," Shelton, co-owner of the Just Add Honey Tea Company, told Business Insider Today. "We want to service our customers and our community, but we also want to do it responsibly and not because of an arbitrary date."
As states continue to reopen, business owners across the US will soon be facing similar decisions.
People in some jobs confront death more often than others, such as those on the frontlines of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Nurses, EMTs, epidemiologists, and embalmers are all dealing with death during the outbreak, whether it be treating patients infected by coronavirus or conducting research on transmission.
Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we found 26 careers that encounter, study, try to prevent, or help us understand and cope with death as a major part of the job.
Death is an inevitable part of human life. And people in some jobs confront death more often than others.
During the novel coronavirus pandemic, some jobs on the frontlines are encountering death daily, such as nurses and surgeons. As of May 15, there are over 1,400,000 US cases and nearly 86,000 US deaths.
Doctors and hospital staff around the world are facing shortages of supplies and have had to quickly transform spaces that can be used to care for coronavirus patients. In April, Business Insider's Lydia Ramsey and Jeremy Berke spoke to New York City doctors who talked about New York hospitals running out of hospital beds and resources, such as ventilators and protective gear.
Embalmers are dealing with more bodies during the outbreak. Business Insider's Dave Mosher followed an embalmer around for a day in New York City, the epicenter of the pandemic in the US, and showed that embalmers are also overwhelmed by lack of space and other issues when dealing with such an unprecedented situation.
Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment Statistics program, we found the average annual pay and number of Americans employed as of May 2019, the most recent period for which data is available, for 26 occupations that encounter, study, try to prevent, or help us understand and cope with death as a major part of the job.
From protective workers like paramedics and police officers who sometimes tragically see death firsthand in the line of duty, to epidemiologists and actuaries studying causes and statistics of death, to the funeral directors and clergy who help us say goodbye to our loved ones, these careers all intimately touch the final stage of the human condition.
Average salaries in these kinds of jobs range from below the US average to high-paying. For instance, ambulance drivers and attendants made an average annual salary of $29,600 in 2019, while registered nurses made $77,460.
26. Lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective-service workers make an average annual salary of $25,380.
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Number employed in the US: 143,940
What they do, according to O*NET: Monitor recreational areas like beaches and ski resorts to assist, protect, and rescue participants.
25. Ambulance drivers and attendants make an average annual salary of $29,600.
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Number employed in the US: 14,740
What they do, according to O*NET: Drive ambulances to transport sick, injured, or convalescent patients.
24. Funeral attendants make an average annual salary of $29,830.
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Number employed in the US: 34,370
What they do, according to O*NET: Perform tasks during funerals, like arranging a casket and directing mourners.
23. Security guards make an average annual salary of $33,030.
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Number employed in the US: 34,370
What they do, according to O*NET: Guard, patrol, or monitor premises to prevent theft, violence, or infractions of rules.
22. Emergency medical technicians and paramedics make an average annual salary of $38,830.
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Number employed in the US: 260,600
What they do, according to O*NET: Assess injuries, administer emergency medical care, and extricate trapped individuals.
21. Police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers make an average annual salary of $44,310.
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Number employed in the US: 95,320
What they do, according to O*NET: Operate radio, telephone, and computer equipment at dispatch centers, and receive reports from the public about crime, fires, or other emergency situations.
20. Embalmers make an average annual salary of $50,100.
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Number employed in the US: 3,890
What they do, according to O*NET: Prepare bodies for internment and funeral ceremonies.
19. Correctional officers and jailers make an average annual salary of $50,130.
13. Forensic science technicians make an average annual salary of $63,170.
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Number employed in the US: 16,520
What they do, according to O*NET: Collect and analyze physical evidence for criminal investigations.
12. Fire inspectors and investigators make an average annual salary of $64,730.
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Number employed in the US: 13,710
What they do, according to O*NET: Inspect buildings for fire hazards and investigate the causes of fires.
11. Police and sheriff's patrol officers make an average annual salary of $67,600.
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Number employed in the US: 665,280
What they do, according to O*NET: Maintain order and protect life and property by enforcing laws and ordinances.
10. Occupational health and safety specialists make an average annual salary of $76,290.
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Number employed in the US: 92,780
What they do, according to O*NET: Review, evaluate, and analyze work environments and design programs and procedures to control, eliminate, and prevent disease or injury caused by chemical, physical, and biological agents or ergonomic factors.
9. Registered nurses make an average annual salary of $77,460.
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Number employed in the US: 2,982,280
What they do, according to O*NET: Assess patient health problems and needs and develop care plans.
8. Epidemiologists make an average annual salary of $78,290.
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Number employed in the US: 7,410
What they do, according to O*NET: Investigate the causes and distribution of diseases and other health outcomes.
7. Emergency management directors make an average annual salary of $82,530.
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Number employed in the US: 10,060
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan and direct disaster responses and crisis management activities.
6. Detectives and criminal investigators make an average annual salary of $86,030.
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Number employed in the US: 105,620
What they do, according to O*NET: Conduct investigations to prevent or solve crimes.
5. Postsecondary philosophy and religion teachers make an average annual salary of $88,970.
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Number employed in the US: 23,490
What they do, according to O*NET: Teach courses in philosophy, religion, and theology.
4. Health and safety engineers make an average annual salary of $94,810.
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Number employed in the US: 25,860
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, implement, and coordinate safety programs, requiring application of engineering principles and technology, to prevent or correct unsafe environmental working conditions.
3. Funeral service managers make an average annual salary of $95,220.
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Number employed in the US: 9,400
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, direct, or coordinate the services or resources of funeral homes.
2. Actuaries make an average annual salary of $120,970.
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Number employed in the US: 22,260
What they do, according to O*NET: Analyze statistical data, including mortality rates, to estimate risk and liability for insurance payments.
1. Surgeons make an average annual salary of $252,040.
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Number employed in the US: 36,270
What they do, according to O*NET: Treat patients using surgical methods.
The storied investment bank is seeing leadership shakeups under CEO David Solomon and a slew of partner departures.
Goldman has been moving away from high-risk businesses like trading and is making pushes into more stable areas like consumer lending, wealth management, and transaction banking.
There have been big cultural changes, too. Solomon is looking to create a more transparent workplace, while new tech execs are taking cues from Silicon Valley heavy-hitters.
Storied Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs is going through some massive changes under CEO David Solomon.
It's taken big steps involving transparency and inclusion to change up its culture. It has seen a slew of partner departures — many in the securities division. And it's making big pushes into businesses like wealth management and transaction banking.
Danny Meyer, founder and CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group, said many of his famed restaurants will likely remain shut until a coronavirus vaccine is available.
Meanwhile USHG, owner of New York City's Gramercy Tavern and Union Square Cafe, will start offering takeout services at two of its counter-service restaurants.
"There is no interest or excitement on my part to having a half-full dining room while everyone is getting their temperature taken and wearing masks, for not much money," he said.
Medical experts expect the earliest a vaccine will be widely available is next January.
Danny Meyer, head of Union Square Hospitality Group, which owns New York City hotspots Union Square Cafe and Gramercy Tavern, has said that some of his restaurants probably won't open until there's a coronavirus vaccine.
Most experts indicate that the earliest a vaccine would be widely available is January 2021.
Meyer didn't specify which of USHG's 18 New York City restaurants would keep its doors closed, but told Bloomberg that full-service restaurants like the Union Square Cafe would be difficult to make profitable in a restaurant at half capacity or less.
"There is no interest or excitement on my part to having a half-full dining room while everyone is getting their temperature taken and wearing masks, for not much money," he said.
USHG operates Gramercy Tavern, Cafes at Moma, and Union Square Cafe — Meyer's first restaurant, which he founded in 1985 at age 27. Meyer went on to found Shake Shack, which is not currently owned by USHG.
Still, USHG's counter-service restaurants, including Daily Provisions and Marta, could open for takeout service as early as next week, according to Eater New York.
Already, USHG has laid off 80% of its staff as revenue has nosedived on account of the coronavirus pandemic, as reported by Business Insider's Taylor Borden. The cuts and prolonged shuttering signal a significant weight on the restaurant industry that's not going away soon; The New York Times reported that US restaurants could suffer a $225 billion loss in the next three months alone.
Current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines suggest reopening with strict social distancing measures, depending on recommendations from local authorities. And prominent NYC restaurateurs have expressed concerns on restricted openings to Mayor Bill de Blasio, which currently bar nonessential businesses from opening through June. New York guidelines set last week by Gov. Andrew Cuomo document seven requirements for reopening: a 14-day decline in deaths, a drop in hospitalizations, and sufficient testing and tracing.
As season 11 of the popular series "Shark Tank" wraps up, we've rounded up stories covering past participants that show key lessons and advice from the successful businesses that have appeared on the ABC show.
Check out these stories to hear how they prepared their pitches, negotiated their deals, and used the experience in the spotlight to their advantage.
This year you may take on a side job for a number of reasons. Whether you're doing it to pay off your student loans or pursue an unfulfilled passion and eventually become your own boss, you may be able to turn your side hustle into a high-paying career.
Business Insider talked to entrepreneurial leaders who earn nearly six figures or more at their gigs about their advice on building side hustles.
Emerging professions include:
Graphic Designer
Blogger
Reseller
Download this FREE slide deck to learn more.
Business Insider Prime is publishing dozens of stories every day that go inside the companies and industries that matter most to you.
Eight restaurants in the Bay Area received a windfall after Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, donated $100,000 dollars to each of their favorite spots, according to a report by SFGate.
It's undoubtedly a nice gesture. The $800,000 donation will likely help keep the restaurants afloat during the pandemic and is a solid cash boost for each of the owners. To their credit, the couple have never been stingy with their wealth — they've pledged to donate 99% of their Facebook shares before they die as part of The Giving Pledge.
But whenever a large donation like this is announced, it can be helpful to examine what a comparable donation would like from a nonbillionaire family. In this case, comparing the scale of Zuckerberg's wealth with the wealth of the average US household shows just how deep economic divides run between billionaires and everyday Americans.
Zuckerberg's net worth of $76.3 billion means each donation of $100,000 dollars is equivalent to about 0.000131% of his total wealth. For a typical US family with a net worth of $97,300, as of 2016, an equivalent share of total wealth works out to $0.13. The total donation of $800,000 to the eight Bay Area restaurants is comparable to the median US family giving about $1.02.
But the donations are a relief to restaurant owners that helps them forge ahead during the coronavirus pandemic and pay for expenses such as rent, payroll, and their own donations of free meals to healthcare workers and first responders, according to SFGate.
Other billionaires such as Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey have made similar contributions in the past.
Toxic relationships don't just apply to romantic partnerships. Sometimes, friendships with people can turn out just as abusive and damaging.
Rather than bringing company and comfort to your life, a toxic friendship will bring exhaustion and frustration, says psychologist and therapist Perpetua Neo.
One thing you can guarantee from a toxic person is drama. Chaos seems to surround them somehow, either because they're always arguing with someone and causing problems, or because unbelievable things keep happening to them.
"Drama is a very big thing when we talk about toxic friends," Neo said. "A toxic friend tends to be someone who sucks us in either by being very amazing, very grandiose, or by being this sad creature that needs our help."
Whatever their story, you can guarantee you'll hear about it, or worse, get dragged into it.
2. Everything is about them
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A toxic friend will never really listen to you. They will always be waiting for their turn to speak, or to turn the conversation back to them.
"In a novel conversation between people, you can say this thing happened to me too, which is OK because that's where empathy happens, and you form a connection," Neo said. "But then with a toxic person, everything revolves around them. They'll twist it."
A good way to test for this is by bringing up random topics that have nothing to do with either of you. A toxic person will have the uncanny ability to manipulate the conversation back around to them again, whatever the topic, without skipping a beat.
3. They constantly put you down
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Neo said a toxic friend will never compliment you. They'll never pick you up or congratulate you on your achievements. In fact, they're much more likely to kick you when you're down.
You'll realise you're never actually happy or relaxed around them because they don't make you feel good about yourself, Neo said. No friendship should be transactional, but if someone is draining all your energy, you should ask yourself whether you're getting anything out of it at all.
4. They compete with you
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Whether it's your job promotion, a romantic partner, or a new class you're doing, your toxic friend will compete with you. They won't like the idea of you having anything that doesn't involve them, and they especially don't want you to excel at something.
"They want to compete with you, even if you're not competing with them," Neo said. "Even if you're in a completely different field, they want the same things you do."
5. They secretly copy you
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The competition can go one step further, and a toxic person will start to mimic you. They might buy the same bag you bought the week before, or start using the same slang words as you.
"A very common thing I've heard, is this person really likes you, wants to spend all their time with you, and copies you," Neo said. "So it's not uncommon for toxic friends to be very jealous of you, tear you down, and to some extent try to steal your identity. In severe cases, they might pretend to be you and use your photos, like catfishing."
6. They cross your boundaries
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Toxic people do incredibly inappropriate things. For example, Neo said they may ring you on your house phone when you never gave them the number, or even show up uninvited.
They won't listen if you tell them something they're doing makes you uncomfortable. Instead, they'll make you feel mean or crazy for even bringing it up. They have no respect for your space, and make you feel like you're abandoning them if you push back.
7. Toxic friends are obsessively needy
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Neo said you might feel like you've gotten yourself an obsessive boyfriend or girlfriend without even asking for it. They'll call and text you at all times of the day, even if you said you're busy.
"They want all your time, so it's a very codependent kind of friendship," she said. "So they'll text you all the time and expect a reply. Even if you say I'm going to be really busy over the next six hours, they'll text you just before, and throughout. And if you don't reply, they will kick up a storm."
8. They're jealous of other friends
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A toxic person will probably start to blame your other friends when you don't respond to their texts and calls. Neo said they're likely to criticize your friends to your face, and try and isolate you from them.
"They are extremely jealous of your friends and will even go so far as to tell you you're their only friend, and you're the only person they care about," she said. "Even if you're on a date they expect you to drop everything for them."
9. You feel responsible for them
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Even though they're acting unreasonably, toxic people are skilled at making people feel bad for them. Their guilt trips know no bounds, Neo said, because they've probably spun a load of sob stories about how hard their life has been.
"You have this sense of support like you're a lighthouse for them, and if you collapse, they'll collapse," she said. "If you decide to spend your time with somebody else, what if they do something bad? If you don't answer them, what if they hurt themselves?'
10. They're hypocritical
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While they make you feel bad for not making enough time for them, toxic people won't ever feel bad for letting you down. But because they're so irrational and dramatic, you'll let them get away with it as you don't want to set them off.
"They might owe you money and pretend they never owed you, and rewrite history," Neo said. "So you may feel irritated and angry, but because you don't want to trigger them and their difficulties, so you take a step back."
11. They lie to get sympathy
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Toxic people tend to inflate their backstory. "They may play up the chaotic nature of their lives to get sympathy," Neo said. "They might tell loads of stories that make no sense, that don't quite add up." Still, always make sure to support a friend who constantly talks about drug use, alcohol problems, or abuse. Even the most toxic person might be secretly hiding a call for help.
12. You're always set up for failure
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Putting on public displays of drama are a toxic person's favorite activity. If you haven't done anything obvious toward them in a while, they might set you up for failure. For example, they could say you promised to go to the cinema with them and you stood them up, when that conversation never happened.
"They're very dramatic so they might publicly shame you in a place by screaming and shouting at you, so you feel bad and put in your place," Neo said. "They make you feel like it's your fault — if you don't want such behaviors, then don't do it again."
13. You'll feel something is wrong
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Neo said your body is good at picking up signals that something isn't quite right. It can be hard to pinpoint exactly what it is that's wrong, but if you are constantly feeling on edge, it could be because there's a toxic person around.
"You cannot figure out what the hell is going on," Neo said. "Your brain runs over time, and your mental energy is being sucked out by this person all the time. You don't only feel responsible, you feel destabilized around them. Some people make the room feel a bit energetically funny. Your body is a barometer telling you that they're trouble."
WeWork consulted the architecture firm Arup on how to change work spaces to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The company has released a 16-page document showing what its coworking spaces may look like after the pandemic.
WeWork's lounges, pantries, and meeting rooms will have reduced seating capacities, and stickers indicating where to stand will promote proper social distancing.
Collaboration spaces like WeWork offices are set to get overhauled after the coronavirus pandemic.
The coronavirus, which has infected more than 1 million Americans, has led to widespread office closures and work-from-home orders. Since the rate of infection has slowed, some employers are mulling reopening their workspaces.
But offices must limit the likelihood of people contracting and spreading the disease. The White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend employers close common areas, routinely disinfect surfaces, and enforce 6 feet of distance between people in reopened offices.
Given these parameters, coworking companies like WeWork will need to redesign offices to minimize contact.
WeWork confirmed to Business Insider that in consultation with the architecture firm Arup, it has produced a 16-page brochure envisioning what its future workspaces may look like. It will replace dishware with disposable plates and cutlery, place stickers that indicate where to stand for proper social distancing, and install touch-free hand sanitizers outside each work station.
Here's what WeWork spaces may look like after they reopen:
Elevator lobbies will now have footstep stickers that indicate where members should stand for optimal social distancing.
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Elevator lobbies will now have touch-free hand-sanitizer dispensers and office-hygiene guidelines displayed on TVs. WeWork will also place stickers outside elevators that indicate where members should stand and wait.
The presentation does not indicate whether the stickers will be 6 feet apart, the CDC's suggested distance to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Reception desks will now have touch-free hand-sanitizer dispensers nearby. WeWork will place stickers 6 feet apart in front of reception desks to promote social distancing.
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Community lounges will have reduced seating capacity. For instance, four-person spaces will be converted into two-person setups.
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WeWork will rely on "visual guides" to instruct members on how many people are allowed inside a lounge and where to properly seat themselves.
In pantries, WeWork will begin using disposable cups and cutlery. The soap and wipe dispensers will be touch-free.
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WeWork will also limit seating capacity in kitchens to prevent close contact.
WeWork will continue to allow public printing for its members, but it will install hand-sanitizer dispensers and provide hand wipes in the "high-touch" space.
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Single-use phone booths will be cleaned by staff "routinely," and guides will instruct members to wipe down stations before and after each use.
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Meeting rooms will have decreased seating capacity and table stickers to instruct members where to sit to ensure limited contact.
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Restrooms will have no-touch soap dispensers and printed guides instructing members to wash their hands for at least 20 seconds.
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Bathrooms, like other shared spaces, will undergo increased cleanings throughout the day.
WeWork partnered with "industry-leading" engineering firms to revamp their heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems to circulate fresh air throughout the building.
Morgan Overholt is the founder and owner of Morgan Media LLC, a graphic design agency, and brings in $300,000 in revenue and $200,000 in take-home pay.
Downtime created by the coronavirus pandemic is a great time to bolster your business, she says.
Put your slow days to work by learning new skills to kickstart or improve your small business, or update your marketing materials to attract new clients.
Consider creating new revenue streams to tack onto your current services and take time to invest in yourself.
As someone whose business was literally born from a hobby, I firmly believe in the power of putting your downtime to work — and turning playtime into profits.
Before becoming the six-figure freelancer and small-business owner I am today, I was a geeky teenager hogging the family LAN line while learning how to design and build a custom GeoCities website. (It was a "Harry Potter" fansite. I was, and still am, obsessed with the book series.)
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I would occasionally get in trouble with my parents for spending "too much time on the computer." But unbeknownst to all of us, I was actually teaching myself the design and computer skills which would become a business generating almost $300,000 in annual revenue.
At a very early age, I learned that great power lies in the ability to invest in yourself and pursue your passions — which is why I've spent the entirety of my professional career constantly growing and using my "downtime" to do so.
My team and I have fortunately not been significantly impacted by the effects of COVID-19, but we have seen a few more slow days than normal.
Unfortunately, many of my peers have had it far worse — experiencing a significant decline in business, being furloughed, or losing their jobs entirely. Others are simply finding themselves with an unusual amount of spare time, or feeling an incredible amount of uncertainty about the future.
I've always believed it's possible to turn these scarier moments in our lives into opportunity. Downtime gives me a chance to reinvent myself, invest in my business, or even create something new.
Here are a few real-life examples of how I've used my downtime to reinvest in myself and my business and put my slow days back to work.
I taught myself the skills needed to start and grow my business
If you've ever thought about starting your own business, you may never get an opportunity like this again.
People always say to me that they would love to start a business like mine, but that comment is usually followed by a list of excuses including, but not limited to:
I can't afford to learn graphic design
It's impossible to find clients
I don't know how to market myself
To which I normally reply:
I'm self taught
I'm self taught
I'm self taught
I taught myself most of what I know about graphic design with free tutorials online. I knew nothing about client acquisition or how to market myself when I was first starting out, so I read blogs and books on the topic and simply experimented with different techniques until I found a strategy that worked.
People mistakenly believe that a lack of professional training is a barrier to entry. And graphic design isn't the only career you can learn on your own without a professional degree or certification. You may also want to consider:
With spare time amid the outbreak, you can learn how to excel at any of these skills. I started my business as a part-time freelancer working nights and weekends to build up the client base, skills, and experience I needed to turn it into a full-time career. When I left my last salaried position, I was making $75,000 per year. Today, I make more than double that amount (with a top line revenue of almost $300,000 and a take-home of nearly $200,000) from the business I started with some good old-fashioned hard work and hustle.
I look for additional revenue streams
I'm always thinking about new ways to add additional revenue streams to the company.
This task is a bit easier said than done, as you never want to pull yourself in too many directions or take too much time away from your core business. That's why I try to select projects that I know will mostly run themselves after putting in the initial time and/or financial investment, or will ultimately enhance the services I already offer.
For example, when I first started out in graphic design, the majority of my revenue came from just a handful of design contracts. Today, I've expanded into multiple revenue streams — from multiple sources and sectors of my business.
Having multiple revenue streams is not only a great way to earn some extra cash, but also it builds in a bit of extra security; if any one of these income sources dissipates, I still have others to lean on.
My monthly revenue streams currently include:
Self-acquired graphic design contracts (average of $10,000 a month)
Graphic design contracts on Upwork (average of $14,000 a month)
And most of these additional revenue streams were acquired by putting in the legwork on my downtime.
When I originally set out to purchase an office space for myself, I was really just looking for a way out of overpaying for my tiny colab space. I quickly realized with my ability to design and market myself it would be much more profitable to purchase a space large enough to accommodate myself and a handful of other tenants.
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(Full disclosure, my office space was the hardest hit during this pandemic because of the Florida government nonessential business shutdown. We had to close our doors on March 18 but plan to open again soon.)
I've also established a small additional income through writing and blogging about my freelance journey.
I started by writing a bit in my spare time on my own blog while occasionally submitting articles to more established brands and publications for consideration.
Projects like these are perfect for my small business because I am able to utilize the skills and resources I already have to generate extra income while simultaneously enhancing the core company.
I challenge myself and my team to learn new trades
I am a big believer in personal growth. I see each skill in my and my team's arsenal as a mini superpower.
Every skill we acquire is a new service we can offer to our clients. Which is why, every time we find ourselves with a spare moment, we try to focus on education and training.
These resources have helped us expand our services to include compliance and PDF tagging, social media marketing and management, and Wordpress development and design.
Free advice is also hugely important to tap into: For instance, I learned how to grow this Facebook page from 500 likes to over 8,000 likes in two weeks using the advice from a Forbes article. Paid courses like those I've mentioned above can be great resources, but nothing beats free — and there are tons of professionals across fields online who are willing to share their stories and expertise.
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I update my portfolio and marketing materials
Let's be honest, updating your professional website and marketing materials can feel like a chore.
But no matter what industry you're in, maintaining an up-to-date website, LinkedIn profile, and portfolio is crucial when it comes to winning work and making professional connections.
Whenever I find myself with a spare moment, I re-evaluate and update materials, including my website, portfolio, proposal templates, cover letters, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.
An impressive portfolio will improve your ability to attract quality clients. It's the first thing they're looking at when trying to figure out whether or not they are going to hire you. Everything else is secondary to the quality of work you can produce, so your portfolio and proposals need to speak for themselves.
Earlier this year, I dedicated almost an entire week of my time to converting each item in my portfolio into a 3D style mockup, resulting in an almost immediate uptick in work. My clients frequently comment that they find the 3D mockups helpful.
I also found that the new and improved portfolio was easier to send and view from a functional standpoint. I've easily shaved off 10 minutes or more of my time every time I click send with these templates.
If you or your business have experienced downtime during the past couple months, start viewing that time as an opportunity for growth instead of as a setback. Remember, investing in yourself is one of the best investments you can make.
The founders of The Bronx Night Market weren't able to open their monthly food festival this spring, but they continue to engage their followers on social media.
They also send daily email newsletters to their 25,000 subscribers and are working with local government to advocate for small businesses in New York City.
Amanda Celestino and Marco Shalma explained their marketing strategy and plans to reopen the weekend large public gatherings are allowed.
It's the time of year when weekends begin to fill up with summer festivals, concerts, barbeques, and fairs. But with just a few states in the beginning phases of reopening, most Americans will have to wait for bass-booming and funnel cakes to return to their neighborhoods.
The founders of The Bronx Night Market, a free foodie festival in New York City on the last Saturday of the summer months, are among the millions of entrepreneurs left in limbo, waiting for a return to normalcy. As shelter-in-place orders remain throughout New York City, the season is at a standstill.
In the meantime, founders Amanda Celestino and Marco Shalma are planning their next move and staying in touch with their community, all while supporting small businesses through the pandemic. They host live trivia and happy-hour events on Instagram, and they're sending daily email newsletters to their 25,000 subscribers. The founders are also working with local government to advocate for the small businesses in their community and encourage locals to continue ordering takeout.
Celestino and Shalma remain optimistic, so they've been preparing for the weekend when New Yorkers can finally get back out to socialize — though at that time, attendees may be fewer and farther apart.
Here are the steps The Bronx Night Market founders are taking to engage with their community despite social distancing and the plan to reopen when New York City gets a little "normal" back.
Email newsletters invite two-way communication
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Part of the team's communication strategy is year-round outreach to engage its foodie community, highlight its vendors and promote local businesses. "We don't act as if we were a seasonal series," Shalma said.
At a time when The Bronx Night Market can't connect with its audience through in-person events, this consistent digital commuicatio is key. A daily email newsletter with 25,000 subscribers spotlights a local restaurant or vendor, gives recipes to make at home, and links directly to merch like tees and hats. It also provides updates on how The Bronx Night Market is helping other businesses during COVID-19.
The founders say they prefer email marketing to actively engage people in a deeper way than a passive swipe up or double-tap on social media. "There's an action to be made, somebody has to open the email, somebody has to click on that to even delete it," Shalma said. "If you don't have that two-way communication, your brand might as well be dead."
Stand-out branding in the sea of social media
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Without strong marketing, tens of thousands of people wouldn't have gathered in Fordham Plaza for The Bronx Night Market throughout the last two summers. The company uses bright and playful graphics. Its Instagram page is full of "food porn," starring melted cheese, saucy meat, and gooey chocolate.
Shalma said it's important for brands to be ahead of the curve. "If you're following a trend, you're too late," he said.
Celestino said it was key to find a strong brand identity and voice early on, to then follow that consistently so people would know what to expect. "We were able to find more people who resonated with it, and build a community around that," she said.
And that identity isn't just about visuals. Other than Shalma, the mostly part-time and volunteer team is female, which Celestino said is a strength that's helped them connect with their 68% female audience. "We are all about women empowerment and female entrepreneurship and bettering our communities through that voice," she said.
'Small businesses are a big f---ing deal'
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Without a definite date to reopen The Bronx Night Market, the two founders' main mission during the pandemic became helping small business owners in their area, especially those who depend on seasonal events and festivals for the majority of their income.
They created an online guide with over 700 local restaurants and vendors offering take-out and specials. They made t-shirts that say "small businesses are a big f---ing deal" to donate the proceeds to small business owners and employees in their community.
The founders are surveying business owners to identify and communicate major pain points to local government. They're working directly with Senator Alessandra Biaggi to advocate for those who haven't received PPP loans, unemployment benefits, or SBA disaster loans. They also hope to ease permits and regulations to allow vendors to sell in city streets, parks, and plazas.
Planning for extended hours, lower capacity, more spacing
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The founders have a gameplan to reopen as soon as the government allows large gatherings again. First, they'll have to cut their max capacity down to 500 to make room for social distancing, though they don't expect this will impact the total number of attendees. To accommodate the demand, they'll extend the hours of the market and create a schedule of two-hour time slots.
"It's going to be scaled down, but we know that we're going to go a little bit bigger to make sure that it's more attractive, it's more fun, and it's effective as well," Shalma said.
They also plan to limit the number of vendors to 20, so they can space them 15 feet apart. They'll also space seating areas farther apart, clean seats and tables regularly, add hand-washing and sanitizing stations, and use barricades and trained volunteers to help with crowd control.
The founders said they've always held their vendors to high cleaning and operating standards, but they plan to host a webinar to train vendors, their team, and their suppliers on their new solutions and operating procedures.
Celestino said she's confident people will be anxious to get out of their homes and socialize from a safe distance once New York lifts its stay-at-home order, which Governor Cuomo has extended through June 13.
"We know that the minute the large-gathering ban is lifted and it is safe, we are ready to come back," she said. "I think we'll see more attendees than we've ever seen before."
Shalma said it's their responsibility to open the market as soon as they can. "Don't forget we're in New York and even more than that, we're in the Bronx and people are resilient. We don't have the luxury of being in large homes," he said. "This is our livelihood."
On a recent episode of the podcast "The Side Hustle Show," hosted by Nick Loper, real estate investor Dustin Heiner explained how he was able to retire at the age of 37 by investing in rental properties.
Heiner breaks down the steps investors should take before buying a new property, and how those rental properties can make them money.
He stressed picking the right city and state, assembling the right team, and the importance of the $250 monthly passive income benchmark.
Dustin Heiner is a seasoned real estate investor who retired at the age of 37 and makes roughly $15,ooo a month in passive income from his rental properties.
On a recent episode of the podcast "The Side Hustle Show," hosted by Nick Loper, Heiner revealed how he went from working in a local government office to working for himself, and laid out the steps investors should take before deciding where to buy property.
Back in 2006, Heiner bought his first rental property in Ohio for $17,000 in cash. He explained on the podcast that in his first month of renting out a home, he made around $350 after expenses. That number would prove significant as Heiner began investing more and more.
In order to turn the side hustle into a full-time gig, he explained, he had to invest in more properties that gave him the same type of monthly cash flow.
"If I were to multiply that out, one property is $300, 10 properties, oh my goodness, that's $3,000 a month. That is $36,000 a year."
In 2016, he had around 26 properties, so he quit his day job and focused full-time on rental property investments. He said that today, he owns over 30 properties.
Heiner admitted he was lucky with that first deal he found in Ohio. "I did everything wrong," he explained. However, over 10 years and many properties later, he said he had developed a system of steps he suggests everyone takes before making a new purchase.
First, pick the state you want to invest in
Once the state is decided, Heiner uses Zillow to do research on the cities within that state. He looks at highly populated cities with a lot of available properties, he explained. Then, once the city is narrowed down, he looks at all the properties within that city to see if they meet his criteria. This means looking for a property that matches up with the amount of money set aside for the investment and high rental income rates.
"Here's a principle for everybody listening, you want to buy for $250 or more in passive income [a month] after every single expense," he said on the podcast.
The next thing to do is build the business
This step requires "finding the right people to actually run the business for us," Heiner explained.
These people include the property managers, realtors, wholesalers, investors, insurance experts, and handypersons.
The most important hire, according to Heiner, is the property manager. He suggested interviewing at least six different property managers before narrowing in on one.
One time, Heiner explained, "I flew to Illinois, I went to Springfield, Illinois, a great town, a great place, but I literally could not find a good property manager."
While the town was great, he said he left emptyhanded because he wasn't able to secure a manager he trusted. When it comes to finding the right one, Heiner explained, there are three things to look for: someone with personality that meshes well with your own, someone who is trustworthy, and someone who is good at communication and doesn't take long to respond to phone calls.
"A big pro tip is to ask them, 'If you were to invest your money right now in this city, where would it be? Where would you buy?' Those are great key areas of where you should start looking," he said.
After the Illinois experience, Heiner said he realized he didn't need to fly places to build out a business there, he could do it remotely.
"Now, I literally do everything remotely," he continued. "I found there's no need to actually fly to another city ever again to start in a brand new place."
But the key to being able to stay remote is to have a solid team so that the business runs automatically and makes money every month. In fact, Heiner said this system allows him to work just 30 minutes a month.
Here's why $250 a month is an important benchmark
Making $50 or $100 a month off of a property is too little, according to Heiner.
"If you extrapolate that out, $100 a month is literally $1,200 a year. If you have one bad thing, like a roof go out, there goes your entire profit," he said.
Of course it is important to have savings set aside to cover things like repair expenses, but, at $100 a property, that doesn't leave a ton of money to live on, he explained.
If you only seek properties that are going to make you $250 or more, once all other expenses like capital expenses, repairs, and property management fees are paid for, then you will have a "life-changing business model," according to Heiner.
But the key here, of course, is to have multiple properties in different areas making you passive income each month. Not only will this bring in more money, but it will limit the risk of the investment.
"I've literally not paid any money for my properties out of my pocket, I want to say for 10 years because I have so many properties now that make me so much money that if there are any issues with any of these properties, that is coming out of the rents I'm getting from the next month."
Five other ways investors make money off of a rental property
Picking up properties at a discount means that when they are sold again, the sellers will realize the equity gains. This is called equity capture, Heiner explained.
"We're investors, if the property is worth $100,000, we're going to offer $78,000 and then work our way to were we're probably going to be settling for $85,000 or $88,000, so we're getting the value down," he continued.
Then, there's forced appreciation and market appreciation, which means an increase in property value either through renovations that increases the value or through a natural increase in value over time as the market goes up.
The other two ways to make money off of a rental property are tax advantages offered to investors and mortgage buydowns, which means the monthly rents from tenants cover the mortgage expenses.
Heiner explained that he doesn't pay insurance, taxes, or property managers out of pocket. Those expenses are covered by the rents he collects from his tenants.
Law firms normally have hands-on summer programs for law students, mostly after their second year in law school, that lets them bond and get a feel for law-firm life.
But some of the top firms in the country, including Kirkland & Ellis, Davis Polk, Cravath, and Sidley Austin, are moving summer associate programs online, partly or fully, and cutting them short.
Many of the most profitable firms are paying students for the full length of the program – more than $3,600 per week – even if they're shortening it.
Less profitable firms tend to be pro-rating pay, or offering stipends or advances, causing some summer associates to stress about their finances.
The top law firms in the US tend to have a regimented hiring process that has been drastically disrupted by the coronavirus, leaving hundreds of rising lawyers with little to do this summer – even if they're still getting paid $3,600 a week.
Summer associate programs are a rite of passage for thousands of law students wrapping up their second, or 2L, year in law school. The recruiting process for such roles starts in the fall of the 2L year, and most summers can expect to eventually get an offer for full-time work once they graduate, assuming they pass the bar exam after their 3L year.
The pandemic has led to delays throughout the process, however. States including New York and California have canceled the July bar exam, and several law firms that normally start their first-years in the fall have said they won't be onboarding the incoming class until some point in 2021.
Law firms that typically start their programs in May – like Davis Polk & Wardwell, which had planned to have 133 summer associates worldwide starting on May 4 – are delaying them to June or July.
Most are trimming them down to six, four, or even two weeks and moving them online, at least to start. Cravath, Swaine & Moore is starting its six-week program virtually on June 15, although it's possible that it may transition to the office. And Sidley Austin, whose program will run from July 6 to July 31, has told summers that it will still pay them for 10 weeks and is designing a "robust and engaging" virtual program
One reason firms say they're cutting back is because the social aspect of the summer associate experience – a big part of it — is hard to replicate virtually. Kevin Iredell, a spokesman for law firm Lowenstein Sandler, said the firm's summers traditionally go to happy hours, dinners, a cruise around Manhattan and a Major League Baseball game. But the MLB has indefinitely delayed the start of its season, and bans on large gatherings have all but eliminated prospects for dining out.
"Right now it'll be mostly virtual, but we're still holding out hope that we'll be able to host some in-person events," Iredell said in an email. "That will all be dependent on the state restrictions."
Another compelling reason to cut back on summer programs is financial. Law firms large and small have already trimmed salaries and furloughed staff and lawyers. While summers might have hoped to spend more time doing supervised legal work – drafting memos and the like – some firms just don't think it's worth the investment of time.
"Most in-house legal teams do not allow law firms to charge for summer students, nor first-year associates," Nancey Watson, a legal pricing consultant, said in an email.
One of the strongest predictors of which law firms are offering their summers full pay is the firm's profit per equity partner, or PPEP. Many of the firms that are promising to pay their summers in full, regardless of the length of the program, netted more than $3 million per equity partner last year. Less profitable firms have been more likely to shrink pay to match the shorter programs or to provide a small stipend, although there have been exceptions.
The cuts can be difficult for some rising lawyers – many of whom are in the midst of final exams – to handle. On online forums like Reddit and TopLawSchools, they fret about canceling leases and paying debts with far less income than they'd budgeted for. Some say they've managed to find research-assistant work with professors, while others are still looking for other sources of income.
One summer associate at a large law firm whose expected income was cut by more than $20,000 told Business Insider he's considering taking on additional work in a grocery store or a warehouse to make up for it.
For summer associates who are more financially secure, boredom could become an issue. At Kirkland & Ellis, the country's top-grossing firm, which last year had more than 300 summer associates, what for many was a 10-week program has been trimmed to just two weeks of virtual programming. They are still being paid for the original length of their commitment.
Kirkland and some other firms that have shortened or canceled their summer programs are also trying to assuage summers' concerns by guaranteeing that they'll have a job at the firm once they graduate.
Many firms are encouraging their rising lawyers to volunteer. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett has trimmed its 10-week program to five weeks online, and it will pay summers for eight weeks. But it will also tack on a $7,500 stipend – just over two weeks' worth of pay – for summers who commit to pro bono legal work, like helping poor criminal defendants, or other volunteering, like food drives, it told summers in an email seen by Business Insider.
"Our hope is that each of our summer associates will contribute in a safe and positive way to their communities, or other communities in need, as we all look for ways to ease the burden brought on by the pandemic," the email said.
Nathan Peart, a recruiter at Major, Lindsey & Africa, said many firms are trying to structure pro bono opportunities on top of their virtual programming. He said law firms can't replicate the "natural connections" that can happen in an office, but are still trying to build bonds with summer associates by setting up one-on-one conversations with lawyers and other mentorship activities.
"It's a rolling-our-sleeves-up attitude," he said. "Everyone's trying the best they can."
Hormel Foods, the creator of Skippy and Spam, has one of the top retail and consumer products internships in the US — and the coronavirus pandemic wasn't going to stop the company from hiring students.
All 60 interns will now work remotely, and the curriculum will offer more virtual training, such as time management, Excel tips, and remote work foundations.
They'll be able to connect with each other and other team members on Microsoft Teams and Webex, and events like a 30-day and final intern feedback session will be used to gauge the remote program's effectiveness.
Incoming interns are both grateful for the opportunity and excited for the new challenge; some even think it will be a more powerful learning opportunity on working from home.
In the face of a pandemic, Hormel Foods had a decision to make.
The global food behemoth, known for helming popular brands like Skippy and Spam, is ranked by Vault.com as having the second-best internship program for retail and consumer products in the US.
Like many organizations that had planned to offer in-person opportunities to summer interns, its team needed to pivot as coronavirus threatened the workability of traditional internships.
While many companies ended up cancelling their summer programs and even went as far as rescinding post-college job offers, Hormel decided to honor their commitment to the 60 college students nationwide who had already been accepted into the company's internship program, which usually receives more than 3,000 applicants.
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"Our hire rate is upwards of 70% for students completing the internship program, so it's a big part of building the future of Hormel Foods," said Amy Sheehan, the company's director of talent acquisition.
But there was one catch in moving forward with the offers on the table: All interns would need to work remotely.
Sheehan and four of the incoming Hormel interns shared with Business Insider a behind-the-scenes look at the revamped, first-ever virtual internship opportunity.
Bringing the internship home
Interns who are joining Hormel's summer program have a full agenda awaiting them in their various remote locations across the US. Sheehan explained that because the curriculum will provide more virtual training than the company has ever offered before, this will allow managers to address a plethora of professional development opportunities in detail on screen, such as time management skills, Excel tips and tricks, and remote work foundations. It will also include job-specific training such as how to manage a P&L statement and working on state tax filings. Sales interns will receive additional product training.
"The sales interns will be able to cook up Hormel products in their home for product trainings with their teams," Sheehan said. "They will focus on learning the features and benefits of the products and best techniques when selling these products to our customers."
To connect team members in their distributed home-based locations, Hormel will utilize Microsoft Teams and Webex to include interns in regular meetings and projects. The company will also use these tools to conduct product trainings, including "product cuttings," where staff will teach interns about Hormel's products, their features and benefits, and — like the sales interns — even have them cook up the products in their own home.
Sheehan identified one of the highlights of the program as Hormel's intern orientation day, where the student group will get to meet the company's CEO virtually and have an informal Q&A with him to learn more about the organization's culture. Former interns will also be invited to participate in a virtual panel discussion, with virtual breakout sessions offered for online networking.
"The ability to be connected without being in-person is critical, and the way we have organized this program will allow for this interaction across all levels," Sheehan explained.
Another unique component of the virtual internship will be hosting weekly virtual "lunch and learns" with various functional areas of the company, including Hormel's international division, the corporate innovation team, and the mergers and acquisitions team.
Measuring effectiveness and success of the virtual program
Sheehan explained that the first step in having a successful virtual internship program involves offering training to the company's managers regarding how to manage a remote team. Each division is working on creating a structure that will provide interns with exposure to leaders, business initiatives, and networking opportunities.
"Each division will be hosting weekly events that will give the interns the opportunity to network with other team members and interns," Sheehan said. "These events could include virtual game nights, scavenger hunts, and trivia contests."
In terms of measuring the success of Hormel's virtual internship program, one area will match what the company has done in the past for traditional internships: conducting 30-day and final intern feedback sessions with every intern.
"This allows interns and supervisors to have open dialogue throughout the internship on the work that they are doing," Sheehan noted. As part of this process, the recruiting team will also meet with each intern halfway through the internship program to gather feedback on the experience they're having and areas that the students believe can be improved.
Another way that the company is measuring success is by using their offer rate and acceptance rate percentage.
"We measure the success by the number of full-time offers we are making and how many of the interns are accepting these full-time offers," Sheehan explained.
At the end of the internship, each intern is responsible for delivering virtually a final presentation.
"This is an opportunity for them to highlight the work they've done throughout the summer that has impacted the company," Sheehan said.
Interns are grateful, though some are disappointed to miss out on the company culture
Hailing from the University of Maine at Farmington, Emma Payson is one of the accepted students awaiting her Hormel virtual internship, which will be as a category development analyst intern reporting into Hormel's corporate office in Austin, Maine. Payson will be based in her hometown of Cumberland, Maine, during the internship.
Payson expressed that she was "incredibly grateful" that Hormel Foods decided to move forward with the internship.
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"I was looking forward to being able to immerse myself in the culture at Hormel, and I am excited to see how that culture will translate in an online format," she said. "This virtual internship also gives my peers and me a future advantage with a unique online experience that will help pave different ways of working and connecting with others."
Payson said that she looks forward to navigating the same opportunities and benefits associated with working from home that other associates at the company are currently experiencing. While curious about the tools the company is using or has developed to help interns stay connected and informed, she feels confident in her online skills — including Skype, Zoom, and screen sharing — to help contribute to the "new normal" of online working.
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Cecelia Nancarrow of Kansas State University will be serving as a foodservice sales intern through Hormel's Kansas City sales office. She will be working from home in Overland Park, Kansas. Nancarrow admitted that although she felt "saddened" by the fact that she will not be moving to Dallas, Texas, to participate in a true outside sales role, as had been the original plan for her internship, she felt excited to still complete similar work in a virtual format.
Nancarrow added that she hopes to have the opportunity to virtually shadow Hormel's sales representatives, via phone calls or video conferencing tools, to see how they communicate the value that Hormel's products have to offer to their customers virtually.
"I think it will be interesting to hear how the sales representatives have adjusted their sales cycles during the COVID-19 crisis," Nancarrow said.
Preparation for interns starts before their first day of work
University of Georgia's Kenyatta Hutchinson is set to serve as a consumer product sales intern. Like Nancarrow, Hutchinson will report into the Kansas City sales office, but she will be based in Greensboro, Georgia. Hutchinson shared that she has witnessed many friends and classmates have their internship offers rescinded.
"My heart truly aches for them and everyone who has been affected by this situation," Hutchinson said. "So I am extremely blessed to still have an offer because it has been my one constant in the midst of the chaos."
She shared that she appreciated the company's transparency throughout the process and extra efforts in getting the virtual internship ready for her start date.
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"The process started at the end of March with my recruiter informing us that Hormel is assessing whether the internship would be on site or virtual while ensuring interns will still be paid," Hutchinson said. "I thought it was comforting and thoughtful when my recruiter went the extra mile and checked in on my mental health and how I was processing all the changes that were happening in my life."
After hearing confirmation at the beginning of April that her internship was going virtual, Hutchinson has been in "constant communication" with her regional supervisor, who updated her team about the major project they will be working on this summer along with their normal duties. Some current employees have also arranged a virtual meet and greet with new hires, past interns, and incoming interns — and more recently, Hutchinson has joined some of the other interns who have started a group chat to stay connected and network with one another.
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Monx Cullen from the University of Tennessee, who will be working virtually from Knoxville, Tennessee, as a consumer product sales intern and reporting to Hormel's Bethlehem sales office in Pennsylvania, confessed experiencing "a wave of thoughts and feelings" about having a virtual internship.
"On one hand, I'm disappointed because my primary driver for joining Hormel was the phenomenal culture and inspirational people, and I am sad that I will not be able to experience this first hand or collaborate with these employees in close quarters," Cullen said. "On the other hand, coronavirus has acted as a catalyst across all industries by promoting changes that have been a long time coming."
Cullen also felt excited to be part of this inaugural class of interns that's navigating the question, how do we excel in a digital environment?
"As an adaptable person working for an innovative company, there is a lot of opportunity for both parties to be creative, to grow, and to pioneer not just [consumer packaged goods], but the nature of how work is done," Cullen said.
Dr. Tista Ghosh is the senior director of impact evaluation and regional medical director for Grand Rounds.
Even in an ideal recovery scenario, she says, we'll need to practice careful social distancing, use personal protective equipment, and reduce the number of people in a given workspace.
The main coronavirus tests available are polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and antibody testing; each of them have their issues that managers should be aware of if they choose to use them.
PCR leads to a lot of false negatives, meaning you should test employees often. Antibody tests can test for immunity, but not the strength or length of it.
As many businesses face reopening, they are pondering ways to keep their workplaces safe. For many, the question of testing is top of mind. Should they offer testing? If yes, given all the concerns on test reliability, what kind of testing should they offer? Furthermore, who should be tested and how often?
In an ideal world, we would have rapid, highly reliable, relatively inexpensive tests available that would let us know who was currently infected. We would also, in theory, have accurate antibody testing, to tell us who was recently infected and potentially immune. Based on these types of tests, only those without current infection and/or evidence of previous infection or immunity would be allowed to return to work. This would decrease the likelihood of viral transmission in the workplace.
But even in that ideal scenario, we would still need to practice enhanced infection control by continuing to maintain at least six feet apart between workers, reducing the number of staff working at any given time, using masks or other protective equipment where close contact is impossible to avoid, and more.
Symptomatic employees should be immediately excluded from entering the workplace, as should close contacts. And re-testing should occur periodically, at least for some initial length of time, to ensure that infection control measures are working.
Unfortunately, we are far from this ideal scenario. The main tests that are available as of the writing of this article are polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and antibody testing, both of which either have challenges with sensitivity (the ability to detect true positives) or specificity (the ability to detect true negatives).
Here are what the two tests are, the problems with each, and how employers should use them.
1. PCR tests and the danger of high false negative rates
COVID-19 PCR tests directly test for the presence of the COVID-19 virus. This test is usually obtained by a nasal or throat swab, and just recently the FDA approved saliva testing. PCR testing indicates whether a patient is infected at the time of testing.
In theory, PCR testing of employees could help employers know who was currently infected. Infected employees would then isolate at home, according to the latest CDC guidelines, and those who were not infected could return to the workplace. In essence, the worksite would reopen virus-free.
Sounds straightforward, right? Unfortunately, the nasal or throat swab PCR test can have a false negative rate of up to 30%. That means for every 100 employees who are infected with the virus, 30 would be missed and could then spread the virus to others when let back into the worksite.
Here's what employers should do if they choose to use PCR testing:
Protect your high-risk employees. Knowing that you might miss up to 30% of people who are carrying the virus, it is especially important to keep high-risk people working from home, along with people who live with or care for high-risk individuals. Start by bringing back only low-risk employees who test negative for the virus. Another option might be to require two negative tests which are 24-plus hours apart, to reduce the chance of a false negative.
Re-test every 14 to 28 days. Testing cannot be one and done. PCR testing only tells you if you are infected at one point in time. So, if you get infected a few days after you took the test, you may falsely assume you are still free and clear. And we are learning more and more that people can be asymptomatic with COVID-19, and still spread the virus. Therefore, the best thing to do is retest those employees who are coming to the office, every one to two incubation periods (14 to 28 days), to ensure that they are still negative.
Budget accordingly. Cost may certainly become an issue as a result of re-testing. Some employers may consider testing a random sample of employees to reduce costs.
2. Antibody testing cannot determine who is immune or not with certainty — yet
Antibody (serology) tests measure the presence of virus-fighting antibodies that indicate immunity. These tests require a blood sample, either through a blood draw or in some cases a finger prick. Unlike PCR tests, which detect the presence of the virus itself, serology tests show whether an individual has ever had the virus. In theory, the presence of these antibodies indicates a person has a low likelihood of being infected again.
However, we do not yet know the degree of immunity that people could have from these tests. Initial animal studies do suggest that protective antibodies are produced, but there isn't much human data yet. There have been some reports that antibodies from the plasma of people who have recovered from COVID-19 can help severely ill COVID-19 patients. This suggests that human antibodies, at least initially, do effectively fight the novel coronavirus, but more rigorous studies are needed.
In addition, we need to learn how long COVID-19-protective antibodies last. Antibodies to seasonal, common-cold coronavirus have been found to decline steadily within a year of being infected, so some people can be re-infected a year later. But with the coronavirus that caused SARS in the early 2000's, immunity was found to last for up to three years. We don't yet know what pattern will emerge with this novel coronavirus.
Another issue is with the testing itself. There are accuracy concerns with some of the antibody tests currently on the market. One major worry is a potentially high rate of false positives, depending on the manufacturer. A false positive result might wrongly give someone the impression that they have already had the virus and are producing antibodies to it (at least in the short term).
Here's what employers should do if they choose to offer antibody testing:
Vet the test carefully. Ask testing companies specifically for their false positive rates and for information on any independent evaluations that have been conducted on their tests.
Protect your high-risk employees. Knowing that you might have some falsely positive employees, keep people at high-risk for severe COVID-19 related illness working from home, along with those who share a home with high-risk individuals. Or consider doing PCR testing too, to see if anyone might have an active infection despite having a positive antibody test.
Re-test every two to four months. Even if the antibody test you choose is relatively accurate, we still don't know how long these antibodies last. So, the best thing to do is retest those employees who are coming to the office, to ensure that they are still producing antibodies. Again, costs are a consideration, which can be addressed by testing a random sample of the employee population.
Newer tests have recently come online, such as rapid antigen tests — which detect fragments of viral proteins — and CRISPR tests — which latch onto RNA sequences from the virus. There is limited information available on how accurate these tests are and when they will be widely available. But as we have learned from the past few months, the situation is rapidly evolving. Employers should continue to monitor updates in this arena, in the event that these offer more viable testing options.
Regardless of whatever combination of testing — or no testing — an employer chooses, it is important that they provide as safe an environment as they can for employees. Follow enhanced infection control practices as previously mentioned: maintain the six feet physical distancing, monitor employee symptoms, conduct regular temperature checks, etc. Planning ahead and being prepared to re-close if the number of symptomatic employees increases will be crucial. And continue following the CDC guidelines, as well as those from local and state health officials.
Dr. Tista Ghosh the senior director of impact evaluation and regional medical director for Grand Rounds. Her role is to help maximize and quantify Grand Rounds' population health impact. She is also an assistant adjunct professor at the University of Colorado.
She is a physician trained in both internal medicine and preventive medicine, with her MD from Indiana University and her master's degree in public health from Yale University. She also has had specialized training in applied epidemiology and public health practice through the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has served our country as a Lieutenant-Commander in the United States Public Health Service.
Maureen White, RN, is the executive vice president and chief nursing officer at Northwell Health, the largest healthcare provider in New York, which has treated the most COVID-19 patients in the US.
Coronavirus will change the healthcare industry forever, and we must be there for nurses in the aftermath.
Nurses have banded together to develop a successful COVID-19 playbook to effectively combat it on the frontlines.
But with that will come long-term health impacts, and we should establish wellness opportunities to assist their recovery.
There are defining moments in all of our lives — moments that have the ability to fundamentally alter a person, process, and organization. COVID-19 is one of those moments. And, if we have learned anything from this crisis, it is how truly awe-inspiring the strength of our combined team members can be when faced with the unknown.
Our nurses, and others, have endured unique war-like circumstances since the first week in March. One confirmed case turned into a thousand within mere days. Empathic and compassionate caregivers were turned into combatants who had to face "the invisible enemy." Our response was courageous, having to put aside our fears for ourselves and our loved ones, to answer the call to action. Ingenuity, creativity, and fortitude forced us to think differently and change care models as patient statuses rapidly deteriorated. Had our team members not been there, the numbers of casualties would have been far greater, which can't be underscored enough.
This newfound sense of camaraderie has made us stronger, with an enhanced ability to move swiftly and adapt to ever-changing situations.
COVID-19's playbook continues to be written by nursing teams throughout the continuum of care. When the patients present in the emergency department, we are now able to distinguish the early signs and differences between the coronavirus and the flu. We know how to treat less severe cases, advising them when to return to hospitals if their condition worsens. We know which respiratory treatments work, how they should be delivered, and how often. We also know that proning patients can be the difference between intubation and regular oxygen.
Unfortunately, we've been conditioned to the dramatic, intense, and long workdays. But even the hardest of situations come to an end. We've turned a corner and entered a stage where each "code" called overheard during the pandemic's early days has been replaced by chiming bells for a patient who was extubated, or hearing The Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" when patients are discharged.
Distress has transitioned into perseverance, evidenced in the smiling eyes visible through a nurse's mask as they line our hallways to celebrate key moments in this fight. This is what resilience and hope looks like.
The stark truth is that nurses won't come out of this unscathed. We already have a greater appreciation for humanity and the fragility of life. Empathy and compassion have not changed. Neither has our mission. But what will be the pandemic's final toll on nurses?
During times of decompression and reflection, fears, anxieties, and concerns will arise. There will be physical and mental health issues, too, both of which need to be quickly identified and remedied. We need to establish tranquility and wellness opportunities for our nurses, and provide them with avenues to talk about what they are feeling and ensure them that they are not alone. We need to support these valiant team members just as they have been there for our patients and the community throughout this crisis.
I couldn't be prouder of our frontline team and how our nurses have responded. Through the chaos and uncertainty, caring and compassion never failed. We've been on both sides of recovery and unfortunate death. It's been heart-touching and heart-breaking all in the same breath.
We can only hope we don't have to do it again.
Maureen White, RN, is the executive vice president and chief nursing officer at Northwell Health, the largest healthcare provider in New York, which has treated the most COVID-19 patients in the US.
Reading can provide an escape during the pandemic and inspiration for entrepreneurs looking to thrive during tough times.
These 19 books picked by successful founders, leaders, and coaches offer advice for remaining resilient amid a crisis.
From the newly-published "This is NOT the End: Strategies to Get Through the Worst Chapters of Your Life" to the classic "Man's Search for Meaning," these books will help you self-improve from your couch and stay positive and productive.
If any situation heralds an era of uncertainty, a global pandemic certainly qualifies. With unknowns about when life will truly get back to normal swirling around us, it can be helpful to ground ourselves in reading for solace and solutions.
These CEOs, company founders, and leadership experts' book recommendations can offer calm, comfort, and clarity in times of crisis.
Jessica Day, cofounder of IdeaScale, an innovation management platform dubbed one of the fastest-growing companies for four out of the five past years by Inc., recommended "Factfulness" as a book that shares trends about how the global community is improving, how to keep progressing forward, and how, as Day explained, to collectively "interrogate our own blind spots and biases" that gear people toward pessimism.
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"Optimism doesn't have to be an act of willpower anymore — there are a lot of data-driven reasons to hope and to pay attention to what's working," said Day. "As someone who's founded a company on the idea that solutions are out there, this book felt like a reason to keep on looking."
Elizabeth Zaborowska is the founder and CEO of Bhava Communications, a B2B technology public relations and marketing agency that has helped clients achieve category leadership and billions of dollars in high-profile exits, from IPOs to acquisitions by industry leaders including Microsoft, HPE, Symantec, and Ericsson.
Zaborowska first noticed this recently published multi-generational memoir on a friend's Instagram feed. And when she saw that the author's book tour had been suspended due to COVID-19, the CEO immediately downloaded the audiobook.
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Noting the writing as masterful, Zaborowska said that the author's complicated story in Europe during WWII has many parallels with what people are collectively facing in this transitional time in the world today.
"While it's not a business book, it provided a much-needed sense of perspective, humanity, and call to action," Zaborowska said. "The entrepreneurial journey of Arianna's family, and especially her father, looms large throughout and serves as a testament to the indomitable power of the entrepreneurial spirit in the face of the greatest adversity imaginable."
Eric Kim is the cofounder and CEO of digital innovation firm Quantum Mob, which enables companies to build user-validated digital products through the lens of a startup. Kim listed a popular read by Silicon Valley entrepreneur and cofounder of Andreessen Horowitz as his first choice for a pick-me-up.
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Kim suggested "The Hard Thing About Hard Things" because "it's all about dealing with difficult situations as a business owner and speaks about equipping yourself as a 'wartime CEO.'"
Another one of Kim's favorites for when he needs a dose of hope is "Radical Candor," which the CEO said "explains about being able to gauge difficult times and accordingly rally troops to course correct and take the required actions."
Kim added that the book "helps you understand effective communication at a time when communication is needed more than ever," and noted that the author helps companies develop a culture and environment "where employees can grow and are encouraged to be more involved."
Kim also suggested reading the New York Times bestseller "Homo Deus."
"It is not a typical business book, but I like how it strikes thought-provoking, existential questions about the place of humanity and technology," Kim said. "However, the book does mention that humanity has overcome famine and disease."
Another recommended read from Kim to address the current economic and social climate is the classic "Only the Paranoid Survive" by the former president and CEO of Intel.
"It speaks about how to survive in a crisis, how a company must adapt almost overnight to survive keeping everybody safe and together," Kim said.
Thalia Toha is the CEO of business strategy firm Good Grow Great, which advises entrepreneurs and seven- to eight-figure national brands on ways to scale and grow. Toha explained that "The Obstacle Is the Way" reminds her about how much control we have while overcoming obstacles, even if it doesn't feel like we have any.
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"An athlete will have a split second of decision making that will either make or break the game," Toha said. "A CEO will have a minute or so to say yes or no to an offer that he or she felt conflicted about. Or someone who's just lost their business will have a moment when they can choose to drown in a mountain of debt and misfortune. That split second of looking at the obstacle not as an enemy of our life but as the way, where opportunities to do good things are born, will determine their destination and outcome."
Alan Silvestri — founder of Growth Gorilla, a UK-based agency that provides link-building outreach for SaaS companies that reported going from churning $10,000 per month in revenue to $20,000 per month eight months later — also picked Holiday's book, noting that tip No. 1 during a crisis is to control your emotions.
"In a nutshell, we don't control external events; we only control how we react to them," Silvestri said. "In every crisis lies an opportunity to improve our current situation."
"While this is a classic book that you may have read back when you were in school, it's more applicable today than ever," said Toha.
She added that questions that Frankl asks in his book — which was written in the 1940s based on his experiences in Nazi death camps — resonate with Holiday's book as well: in particular, changing a challenge into something positive.
"Frankl's message was clear: You can do this at any point — even if you think you can't," Toha said. "Attitude and perspective is what will change your situation."
Toha added "Superfans" to her list of inspirational reads for current times, noting that courage and bravery manifest when you rise to the occasion in service of others.
"In the age where everyone is obsessed with follower counts and vanity metrics, Pat's emphasis on deepening relationships and focusing on the smallest groups of people you can serve is the most refreshing take I've seen in all business books to date," Toha said, emphasizing the importance right now of taking one of Flynn's messages — "default to generosity" — to heart.
Silvestri added "The Road Less Stupid" to his list of inspiring reads for crisis periods. He highlighted the author's description of his "thinking time" practice — "basically, blocking time to think about specific issues and asking yourself questions to probe your mind and creativity in search of answers," said Silvestri — as particularly useful in feeling better in difficult moments.
Silvestri described this reflective book by legendary basketball coach John Wooden — which explains the coach's life principles based on humility, hard work, and balance — as "perfect for the situation we are living in."
"Success, according to Wooden, is 'giving 100% of our effort, body, mind, and soul, to the struggle. That you can attain, that is success,'" Silvestri said.
Hot off the press, this book by a former world-class gymnast who found a way back to success after a traumatic, headline-gripping accident caught the attention of Jacquelyn Mahalick, founder of JM Communications, a PR and communications firm that she launched 17 years ago, as a hopeful approach to life's worst situations.
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"Nina's dynamic experience shows your leadership team how to identify their style of facing adversity, their role in their own success and their organization's success, how to power through these difficult day-to-day challenges and stay on track, and strategies to increase productivity and job satisfaction during the coronavirus struggle," Mahalick said.
"As my wife will confirm, I often have several (incomplete) projects in flight at the same time. The same can be said for the books I am reading," said Jacob Reider, CEO of Alliance for Better Health and former deputy national coordinator of the Office of the National Coordinator of the US Department of Health and Human Services.
For solace in this time of crisis, Reider is currently reading "The Art of Choosing," which he calls "a thoughtful review of the science of choice."
Reider is also reading Vivek Murthy's book, which he described as "a wonderful summary of the science behind our need for social connection" that "offers guidance for how we can address these needs even in times of physical isolation."
Therapist and life coach Risa Williams has been recommending to her clients "How to Relax" — part of "The Mindfulness Essentials" series by Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh — as a book to re-read nightly to increase hopefulness when feeling anxiety rise before bed during this challenging time.
"While all of Hanh's books are great for gaining a mindfulness mindset during stressful times, this small and simple book is his easiest read, and one that is sure to calm you down when you feel your stress rising," Williams said. "It includes helpful reminders on staying in the moment, breathing through our emotions, and taking time for self-care."
Laura Deaton is an executive director at high-touch nonprofit accelerator Multiplier, which she said has grown from $6 million in annual revenue in 2013 to more than $22 million in 2019.
Deaton said that "Bouncing Back" has been a game changer for her personally and professionally. She first purchased the book after the unexpected death of her father in 2013 and found it so useful that she began using many of the techniques with her team at work as well — and she has turned to it again in the current global turbulence.
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Adding that it provides an escape from "COVID fatigue," Deaton explained that Graham's book reminds us to use mindfulness and empathy as we traverse this challenging time, and provides practical exercises and guidance to build up mental and physical resilience.
"Whether we're grieving for the loss of loved ones, coping with unemployment, or navigating increased workplace pressures, this book pulls us out of the abyss and provides a solid approach to getting back on a positive path forward," Deaton said.
Lynell Ross is both founder and managing editor of educational-advocacy site Zivadream and a certified health and wellness coach. One of Ross's favorite books for inspiration in uncertain times is "A Daily Dose of Sanity": a collection of life stories, questions to help you think, and an affirmation to tie it together.
"Alan Cohen is a master at taking life experiences and helping you look at them in a new way," Ross said. "He helps us stand back and look at the bigger picture when we feel like the world is in a mess, people are living in fear and mistrustful. His wisdom helps if you would like to maintain a clear mind and open heart."
Business mentor and success coach Lacey Sites is the founder and CEO of A Lit Up Life, which helps high-performing women entrepreneurs build and grow service-based businesses. Sites shared that "The Surrender Experiment" is one of the most impactful books she has ever read to regain hope in times of crisis.
"I recommend this book because it helps us see how being deeply in the practice of surrender will always serve us and our lives," Sites said. "If you need permission (or support) surrendering to what you cannot control so that you can move through this time of crisis and come out the other side better off than before, this is a great place to start."
Sites also picked the Buddhist classic, "When Things Fall Apart," stressing that as many people are spending more time consuming news during the global pandemic, it's important to also increase the amount of time you spend consuming more uplifting content, as can be found in Chodron's book.
"This is one of those little things we sometimes tend to ignore (for example, what we're listening to on a walk or while doing dishes), yet these are the hacks that make a big difference in how we feel and, therefore, how we show up," Sites said. "This book is a great read if you're looking for more hope and inspiration."
