I curate articles from around the web that present an interesting perspective or helpful information at the intersection of technology and wellbeing. Each of these articles were featured in my April 2020 newsletter. I send out an update twice a month along with some notes on my latest work. Sign up for my newsletter here.
APRIL I
Becoming Super Human During Lockdown
If you're like most people, you're using this time for some sort of self-improvement or upskilling.
In a recent study, "60% of respondents said they are planning on, or already started, self-improving and becoming 'super human' during lockdown."
On my recommendations of tools and resources list, I organize these using the optimal performance framework of Mindset - Movement - Nutrition - Recovery - Learning. Here are a couple new tools that I've been trying out over the past month to add to my recommendations list:
Peloton App
Free for 90 days, the Peloton app isn't just for cycling classes. It's full of classes and coaching for outdoor runs, yoga, cardio, meditation, walking, bootcamps. You can filter by length, difficulty level, even music genre.
Like Peloton's high-end at home fitness equipment, these sessions are top notch. Why I like this app and the Peloton bikes (when I have the opportunity to ride one) is how well the designers integrated behavioral science into the product. The rewards, immediate feedback, coaching shoutouts, and community all contribute to keeping regular movement fun and motivating.
Did I mention the app is zero cost for 90 days? No brainer to check it out.
The 5 Minute Journal
One important tool for an optimal performance mindset is having a gratitude practice, which is even more essential right now.
Gratitude is a skill that leads to more intense and enduring gratitude as it's nurtured. Gratitude is a personality trait and most of all it's a filtering mechanism. As we practice, we filter more positive information from the external world. This moves our reality toward the positive, which in turn heightens positive emotion.
It also improves sleep, increases mental strength, improves work and team performance, and makes you overall happier and healthier.
“Any positive emotion is an opportunity to enjoy living and to feel satisfied here and now," Dr. Rick Hanson wrote in his book Hardwiring Happiness. "Positive emotions also have many physical health benefits, including boosting your immune system, protecting your cardiovascular system, and increasing the odds of a long life.”
You can practice gratitude in lots of ways, including writing in a regular paper journal or keeping a notepad document on your phone. I've mentioned before how I've used the journal feature on the Insight Timer meditation app to write a gratitude list after each session.
I've been trying out The Five Minute Journal app the past couple weeks and really like how it is organized. In the morning, it prompts you for what you are grateful for and asks how you will make the day a success.
What I really enjoy is the prompt for the end of the day:
What are 3 amazing things that happened today?
Answering this question every day is training your appreciation filter to look for good things. You're bending your reality toward what's amazing. Plus you can include a photo from the day in the app, which has me scanning for a beautiful picture to take. A pretty nice way to go about the day.
APRIL II
Things Keep Getting Scarier. He Can Help You Cope
“It’s important to know that you don’t have to believe all your thoughts. You can choose the ones that are helpful.”
Read this comforting interview with Jack Kornfield, one of the mindfulness pioneers, a clinical psychologist and a soothing voice to drop in with during these times.
"Let your heart open, and feel the web of physicians and nurses and front-line responders around the world who are willingly placing themselves at the service of humanity. You are showing how we can care for one another in a crisis. You have a team of a million who are voluntarily linking hands and saying, 'We know how to do this.' I could weep as I say that, because it's not something glib. It's true. I want to pause for a second, David [Marchese, New York Times writer]."
You can also listen to Jack give a short meditation with Dan Harris, author of 10% Happier and founder of its companion meditation app.
Live Covid Data Analytics Tools
Here are three live data analytics sites that I've been using to get a sense of where we are with this pandemic and what the immediate future looks like for flattening the curve to get out into the world again.
Covid19info.live - The goal of COVID19info.live is to provide the latest data on the COVID-19 coronavirus and to make that information more accessible.
HealthData.org - Providing worldwide data analytics on deaths and hospital resources and projections by the University of Washington and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.
Rt Covid-19 - These are up-to-date values for Rt, a key measure of how fast the virus is growing. It’s the average number of people who become infected by an infectious person. If Rt is above 1.0, the virus will spread quickly. When Rt is below 1.0, the virus will stop spreading.
[Jack Kornfield Illustration by Jules Julien for the New York Times]