Firstly, we wish all our readers the best of health and to be safe.Here are some tips and things to do to stay healthy, be productive, advance your career, improve your business and even entertain yourselves:

Be Informed

Follow the new but don’t overdo it. It is important to keep abreast of current events since there are many things changing rapidly around this virus as is the case with any pandemic. But also keep in mind that there is a lot of fake news flooding the social channels. This can cause unnecessary panic so choose your news sources wisely. Here are some resources to help you detect and avoid fake news:

• https://www.snopes.com/
• https://www.factcheck.org/fake-news/

You can see emerging information about coronavirus COVID-19 in several places. Here are some:
World Health Organization Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation Tool to visualize statistics of COVID-19 in the USCenter Disease Control

Spend time with friends and family (virtually at least)

This is a good time to catch up with family members and friends. Call them up, schedule web meetings. If you are really bold and are at home with family play board games or bake a cake together.
If you are on your own call friends and family

Web conference apps are abundant and free and easy to use. These tools are also perfect for working from home.

Check your pantry before shopping

Make a list of what you need before shopping. Avoid panic shopping. There is enough food to go around (article here). Buying 2 weeks at a time is ideal.We recommend shopping online and getting groceries delivered to your home. There are many services that offer that service. Here are just a few:

Groceries

• Amazon
• Walmart
• Whole Foods
• Many local grocers and stores have delivery set up. Give them a call and support your local businesses.
  Dining
• GrubHub
• DoorDash
• Deliveroo
• UberEats

Follow a set schedule

It is easy to lose track of time when you don’t have your daily routine and you are enclosed at home. Keeping a schedule helps regulate your body and mind and it helps keep your spirits up.

Try something new

Read that big book that has been collecting dust on your bookshelf, watch a 6 part documentary, try new recipes, or do a thousand-piece puzzle. The fall in stock prices can also be an opportunity to learn how to invest and buy some bargains.

Exercise

Keep your body active, exercise stimulates the immune system and helps you sleep better at night. Get a workout mat and weights, TRX and medicine ball, all easy to use at home. There are many online gym classes you can take. There are also dance classes you can take.

Disinfect all you touch

Quarantine rules vary depending on your location. If you have the need to go out, remember to wash your hands. Disinfect anything you are going to touch with alcohol alcohol-based disinfectants. Avoid touching your face, take a bottle of disinfectant gel with you. Cover your mouth when you sneeze or cough with the sleeve of your shirt if you don’t have a kleenex. Throw away any used kleenex promptly.

It is normal to worry but keep panic at bay

There can be moments when one feels completely overwhelmed and helpless as the pandemic progresses especially if a friend or family member has gotten COVID-19. It is alright to feel all the emotions that come with that but do not let your emotions dominate you. This too shall pass.

Web Conferencing Software

If you are working from home here are several tools for web meetings:

• https://www.zoom.us/
• https://www.webinarjam.com
• https://www.skype.com/
• https://products.office.com/es-ww/microsoft-teams/group-chat-software?market=cr
• https://www.webex.com/
• https://www.gotomeeting.com/es-mx
• https://hangouts.google.com/

We have tried all these at impaKt.tech and they all do the job well. There is a cultural shift underway and it is now commonly accepted that meetings will be virtual.

Help for businesses, employees and self-employed

Loans and assistance for businesses

US Government’s SBA is offering disaster relief loans for businesses click here

Payroll Protection

Employees or workers that are under 1099, 1 person business, independent contractors, work for hire, self-employed and/or members of the gig economy are all eligible for payroll protection under the new legislation signed into law this month. Banks are said to be ready to accept loans by this Wednesday, April 1st, 2020 and can disburse the loans within 48 hours.

Business owners and managers: how can you increase sales during this tough crisis?

We know that as an owner or manager of a business you are facing a unique set of problems that require immediate solutions.
Your number one worry is probably the loss of revenue. Your company may already have the capability of selling online but you are more of a bricks-and-mortar type company. But now is the time to push your e-commerce capacity to the maximum level. Despite appearances, there are ways to keep revenue coming in during these hectic times. It’s not easy but some industries and some companies have found ways.

Online Sales – E-commerce – A Way to Make it to the Other Side

For instance, there has been a huge growth in online sales during this crisis. In fact, Amazon just hired one hundred thousand workers to help with this surge. We can help you prepare your company virtually overnight to take advantage of this giant wave. 

Door to Door Delivery Services

Delivering your goods to other businesses and homes has never been easier with many options available throughout most of the United States and Canada:

• UPS
• Uber
• FedEx
• USPS
• XPO
• Postmates
• Deliv
• Hitch
• Darkstore
• ShipHawk
• Narvar

Stand Out Above the Crowd

On the other hand, as more of your competition gets online or is in the process of doing so it is harder for your products and services to be noticed. This is where impaKt.tech comes in. We help companies be much more visible and get the right prospects by using artificial intelligence. So you can use bleeding-edge technology to help you get through these difficult times. Once we are over the worst impaKt will help you soar to new heights by increasing sales by 200% in 3 months in some cases. So despite all the chaos, it may be a good time to consider sharpening your marketing tactics.

Whether your product or service is sold traditionally and/or online we enhance your brand perception and increase trust in your company.
There are several key benefits:

• use of world-class artificial intelligence to get to a much larger amount of qualified prospects than traditional marketing methods
• Automation to nurture leads and follow through until the sale is complete
• Live support channel with your sales team during office hours

Jobs 

Many people are being laid off here are some things you can do and some resources:

Mortgage brokers – some are actively hiring such as people rush to refinance their homes. See an article about their growth here

Restaurants are working to stay afloat by offering their menu online and providing home delivery and/or pickup. Local businesses can also help local restaurants, for example, this effort in Dallas by Mavericks owner Mark Cuban: 

“We in! I just sent the email for Mavs and my companies. Anyone who buys from small local, independent (sorry big company-owned chains), will get reimbursed for their lunch and coffee/teas. We will start this week and go from there.” 

Some restaurants are issuing bonds – pay $50 now and get $75 in meals in September. 

Better.com the mortgage company is hiring hotel workers – they like the service level hotel employees are accustomed to giving and their patience. 

Grant Cardone offers these useful tips and free access to his online coaching:”at this time of world crisis, you cannot panic… but you do NEED to act!

Here are 5 tips I’m telling those close to me as we go through this economic turmoil:

1. Operate with 10X levels of action. Literally out work everyone now as though you are about to enter the Great Depression of our lifetime.
   
2. Stop ALL spending except on those things that can increase income. Do NOT spend to consume; spend only to increase income
   
3. Keep your firewood dry and add to it. Accumulate cash—wood for your fire—at all costs spend nothing, preparing to invest when real assets get cheaper (they will). Prepare to steal when the market capitulates (throws up). Build your fire so big others stare in amazement.
   
4. Do whatever it takes to increase income. Take on other income opportunities to increase your monthly income and save it all.
   
5. Learn ‘how’ think rather than ‘why’ think and act like an entrepreneur. That means sales, marketing, negotiating, follow up, and branding.
   
   I opened up FULL ACCESS to Cardone University for free to help you during this time of “sheltering in place”.
   
   You’ll get access to over 800 courses to help you 10X your business and income + come out of this contraction stronger than when you entered into it a few weeks ago.

Harvard Business Review

Coronavirus + Business
80 pages of insight to help your business for free download here now (pdf)

Advice for running a business during a recession 
Go all out with your marketing. Costs are lower than they have been in a long time.

We started WordStream during the 2008 recession and 10 years later it is huge at $55M in revenues in 2018. 

Larry Kim, WordStream and MobileMonkey

Ways to Help

It is important that we all pitch in it helps us feel like part of a community when we are practicing social distancing. Together we can get through this. Here is a list of places you can contribute to:

General causes:

• The CDC Foundation
• Ronald McDonald House Charities
  The WHO’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund
• GlobalGiving’s Relief Fund
• Center for Disease Philanthropy’s Response Fund
• The Gates Foundation lets you pick your cause
• Charities that are active on Twitch

• Example: Direct Relief’s Mustaches Against Coronavirus campaign

Hunger

Help deliver meals to people who shouldn’t leave their homes with Shopping AngelsVolunteer with #ChefsforAmerica, José Andrés’s projectCook, deliver meds, and more with Humanity First
Support Feeding America…

• Nationally
• Locally

Schools

• A computer and tech drive-thru for new distance learners
• Keep kids healthy and safe with Save the Children
• Email Eric James CFO of the NEA Foundation at [email protected] to support school communities
• Medical supplies, workers, and hospitals
• Help clinicians get meals
• Medical supplies from UNICEF
• CARE’s Emergency Surge Fund for hygiene in underserved communities
• Donate to the Red Cross indirectly by shopping on smile.amazon.com instead of the main siteWork
• Aid grassroots organizing from the Emergent Fund
• Give direct relief and loans for restaurant workers
• Support domestic workers, like house cleaners and nannies
• Give financial assistance with Hopelink
• Buy a gift card on Rally for Restaurants
• Support out-of-work musicians
• Another great fund for musical artists

Local Causes

• New York, NY: Help local nonprofits; Food Bank NYC
• Raleigh, NC: Provide relief for Raleigh restaurant workers
• Washington, D.C: Donate to Chef José Andrés’s D.C. Central Kitchen
• Los Angeles, CA: Assist Project Angel Food
• New Orleans, LA: Evacuteer needs virtual and IRL volunteers
• Seattle, WA: Prepare food for Lifelong or email [email protected] to help assemble grocery bags
• Minnesota: Sign up to be a mobile pantry driver for The Open Door
• New Mexico: Pack food boxes with ECHO
• Georgia: Help Golden Harvest Food Bank pack food boxes or distribute food

Bonus: For businesses

• Become a Giving Partner with Bombas
• Contact Amy Bachman, Director of Procurement [email protected] to donate food to Chef Jose Andres’s DC Central Kitchen
• Here’s a roundup of corporate goodwill efforts to inspire your company

Click here to find out more about impaKt.tech, see case studies and see a video and find out how we can grow your sales 

Why you should use a VPN

Laptop. Check. Good wifi signal. Check. Fast internet. Check. Comfortable working clothes. Check.

Now all you need is a VPN.

A virtual private network or VPN as they are commonly known is a service that redirects your internet connection to private servers so that your connection is secure. A VPN masks your IP address hiding it from unwanted visitors and it also encrypts your data so no one can intercept valuable company documents.

Many companies provide remote workers with a VPN. But if yours doesn’t do not worry, there are many good providers.

• Surfshark Save 83% right now on a 24-month plan pay only $1.99 per month
• PureVPN
• Private Internet Access
• CyberGhost VPN
• ExpressVPN
• NordVPN

Study online

There have never been more resources available to study online. And investing in yourself may be the best use of your time during this crisis. Here is only a partial list including free offerings from Harvard and MIT:

Programming, Data and IT

• CS50’s Introduction to Computer Science
• CS50’s Computer Science for Business Professionals
• CS50’s Understanding Technology
• CS50 for Lawyers
• Using Python for Research
• CS50’s Web Programming with Python and JavaScript
• Statistics and R
• CS50’s Mobile App Development with React Native
• Data Science: R Basics
• CS50’s Introduction to Game Development
• Quantitative Methods for Biology
• Data Science: Visualization
• High-Dimensional Data Analysis
• Data Science: Machine Learning
• Data Science: Linear Regression
• Causal Diagrams: Draw your assumptions before your conclusions
• Data Science: Wrangling
• Data Science: Productivity Tools
• Data Science: Probability
• Data Science: Inference and Modeling
• Data Science: Capstone
• Principles, Statistical and Computational Tools for Reproducible Data Science

Humanities

• Religious Literacy: Traditions and Scriptures
• China’s First Empires and the Rise of Buddhism
• Modern China’s Foundations: The Manchus and the Qing
• Literati China: Examinations, Neo-Confucianism, and Later Imperial China
• Buddhism Through Its Scriptures
• Creating Modern China: The Republican Period to the Present
• Invasions, Rebellions, and the Fall of Imperial China
• Cosmopolitan Tang: Aristocratic Culture in China
• Global China: From the Mongols to the Ming
• China and Communism
• Contemporary China: The People’s Republic, Taiwan, and Hong Kong
• Masterpieces of World Literature
• Christianity Through Its Scriptures
• Shakespeare’s Hamlet: The Ghost
• Poetry in America: Whitman
• Ancient Masterpieces of World Literature
• Hinduism Through Its Scriptures
• Judaism Through Its Scriptures
• Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice: Shylock
• China’s Political and Intellectual Foundations: From Sage Kings to Confucius
• Introduction to Digital Humanities
• PredictionX: Lost Without Longitude
• Poetry in America: Modernism
• Book Sleuthing: The Nineteenth Century
• Poetry in America: The Civil War and Its Aftermath
• China Humanities: The Individual in Chinese Culture
• Sikhism Through Its Scriptures
• Modern Masterpieces of World Literature
• Women Making History: Ten Objects, Many Stories
• Shakespeare’s Life and Work

Art and Design

• 18th-Century Opera: Handel & Mozart
• First Nights – Beethoven’s 9th Symphony and the 19th Century Orchestra
• First Nights – Handel’s Messiah and Baroque Oratorio
• First Nights – Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo and the Birth of Opera
• First Nights – Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring: Modernism, Ballet, and Riots
• First Nights – Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique and Program Music in the 19th Century
• 19th-Century Opera: Meyerbeer, Wagner, & Verdi
• Pyramids of Giza: Ancient Egyptian Art and Archaeology

Science

• Fundamentals of Neuroscience, Part 1: The Electrical Properties of the Neuron
• Science & Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science (part 1)
• Fundamentals of Neuroscience, Part 2: Neurons and Networks
• Principles of Biochemistry
• Super-Earths and Life
• The Climate-Energy Challenge
• Case Studies in Functional Genomics
• Cell Biology: Mitochondria
• The Health Effects of Climate Change
• MalariaX: Defeating Malaria from the Genes to the Globe
• Fundamentals of Neuroscience, Part 3: The Brain
• Backyard Meteorology: The Science of Weather

Social Studies

• Justice
• Contract Law: From Trust to Promise to Contract
• Tangible Things: Discovering History Through Artworks, Artifacts, Scientific Specimens, and the Stuff Around You
• Monasteries, Schools, and Notaries, Part 1: Reading the Late Medieval Marseille Archive
• Making and Meaning in the Medieval Manuscript
• JuryX: Deliberations for Social Change
• Monasteries, Schools, and Notaries, Part 2: Introduction to the Transitional Gothic Script
• Scrolls in the Age of the Book
• The History of the Book in 17th and 18th Century Europe
• Central Challenges of American National Security, Strategy, and the Press
• Print and Manuscript in Western Europe, Asia and the Middle East (1450-1650)
• U.S. Public Policy: Social, Economic, and Foreign Policies
• Citizen Politics in America: Public Opinion, Elections, Interest Groups, and the Media
• American Government: Constitutional Foundations
• CitiesX: The Past, Present and Future of Urban Life
• U.S. Political Institutions: Congress, Presidency, Courts, and Bureaucracy
• Child Protection: Children’s Rights in Theory and Practice
• Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies

Education and Teaching

• Leaders of Learning
• Saving Schools
• Introduction to Family Engagement in Education
• Introduction to Data Wise: A Collaborative Process to Improve Learning & Teaching

Medicine and Health

• Humanitarian Response to Conflict and Disaster
• Improving Global Health: Focusing on Quality and Safety
• United States Health Policy
• AnatomyX: Musculoskeletal Cases
• Global Health Case Studies From a Biosocial Perspective
• Readings in Global Health
• Health and Society
• The Opioid Crisis in America
• Strengthening Community Health Worker Programs
• Practical Improvement Science in Health Care: A Roadmap for Getting Results
• Innovating in Health Care
• Prescription Drug Regulation, Cost, and Access: Current Controversies in Context
• Lessons from Ebola: Preventing the Next Pandemic
• Improving Your Business Through a Culture of Health

Business Books

• Business Adventures by John Brooks
• Tap Dancing to Work by Carol Loomis
• Awakening Joy by James Baraz
• Where Good Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson
• Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer
• The Most Powerful Idea in the World by William Rosen
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• The Remote Worker’s Guide to Excellence
• The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss

MIT

• MIT Open classes online

Tutorials

• What is artificial intelligence?

We hope you and your loved ones and your companies stay safe. These are times when staying together is important and this list will hopefully help you with some useful resources and ideas.

Please email us at [email protected] with any resources we will share them with our clients and partners. 

And of course send any questions – we are standing by.

#weareallinthistogether