• THE COVID-19 CRISIS WILL FOMENT PERHAPS THE GREATEST WORKFORCE SHIFT IN MODERN HISTORY as result of unprecedented disruptions to our economy. Many who are presently furloughed or unemployed because of company distress or isolation restrictions are being forced to rethink their entire careers, even in this uncertain time. Change is difficult but may be necessary and could, for some, turn out to be a fortunate opportunity to reset career goals & objectives, considering aspects like: Would I rather have “more freedom & independence, or more stability & job security? More prestigious job position, or something I truly like doing? Work that nurtures my curiosity & knowledge, or that helps others? Would I rather avoid: working on meaningless, routine, repetitive stuff, or implementing ideas? Commuting to a long-hour job, or working on my own time from home or while travelling?  Being open to opportunities for career change may have a positive outcome, and it may be time for many to consider career redirection. [FAST COMPANY – 5/11/20]
  • LATEST STUDIES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACTS OF THE PANDEMIC suggest that one-in-four U.S. adults “met the criteria that psychologists use to diagnose serious mental distress & illness, with seven-in-ten experiencing moderate to severe mental distress… substantiating concerns for the specter of rising depression and suicide rates.” Researchers at San Diego State and Florida State Universities found that “social isolation, anxiety around health & economic problems” impacted all age & demographic groups, with young adults, experiencing the “most pronounced spikes.”  [TIME – 5/25/20]
  • “THE CONCEPT OF ‘COUNTRY’ is associated with attributes of geographical boundaries/ common people/ language/ government/ laws/ currency & systems that tie into a functional entity… but several technology trends, such as borderless economies, are beginning to complicate traditional government control over their citizens… and FACEBOOK is on the verge of creating its own ‘Virtual Country’ of two billion (users)… Much more than a conduit for info, it’s a brand, status symbol, form of entertainment, town-hall meeting, and in many ways a stamp of approval, which has now announced a new ‘Supreme Court’ – an oversight Board of 20 independent members representing a broad spectrum of varying worldwide interests (with racial, geographic & political agendas) to oversee content moderation guidelines… FACEBOOK already imposes an ‘eyeball tax’ on users, and has announced plans for creation of its own Libra currency which could enable creation of its own online banking system, perhaps with ability to provide home or business loans, and already with the ability to make risk assessments that are far more accurate than traditional credit bureaus… Competing for citizens is not a concept that will be easily accepted by existing countries, but it will be the ‘will’ of a constituency that determines a virtual country’s viability.” Just one more dimension of the New Normal?   [FUTURIST THOMAS FREY – 5/14/20]
  • STUDIES FIND “EVIDENCE OF EXCEPTIONALISM” IN LEFT-HANDED PEOPLE in sports, music, arts & other forms of creativity. About 10% of the planet’s population are lefties, of which nearly a third are dyslexics, but studies suggest that handedness is 25% inheritable, and that “fetuses preferentially turn to the right which may provide more sensory input to that side, reinforcing the preference.”  During the late 19th & early 20th centuries, the lefty percentage was reduced to 3%, by “forcible learning in schools to write with only the right hand, and also to accommodate work where machines were set up for right-handers only.” Smeared lettering aside, there seems to be no negative to left-handed workers.   [LUMINOSITY – 5/8/20]  

        Covid-19 cases per-population in your neighborhood: https://products.xtown.la/coronavirus?utm_source=sfmc_100035609&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Essential+California…+-+Osys+Campaign++%2321969-1586008658633&utm_term=https%3a%2f%2fproducts.xtown.la%2fcoronavirus&utm_id=3920&sfmc_id=42112

      Some reality-based Covid-19 infection and fatality rates derived from antibody testing by two Netherlands research groups found that under age 60, chance of hospitalization has been below 2% with chance of death at only .1% and a French study showed very similar estimates. Since “those who are sicker tend to stay away from blood donation, it could be that infection rate was even higher, thereby driving down the fatality rate even lower… and since almost all the actual deaths were among those with three or four very specific underlying health problems, the chance of death is still lower.” ‘https://www.realclearpolitics.com/2020/05/16/one_chart_exposes_lie_of_universal_lockdowns_511358.html?utm_source=rcp-today&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mailchimp-newsletter&mc_cid=9d43814932&mc_eid=afc66dfbec