Good Habits – OneLifeCares

Remedy is an urgent care provider out of Austin, TX. They generously shared their top tips for staying healthy this flu season. If you’re in the Austin area and need urgent care, give them a call! They do house calls and they are cash pay friendly.

As the days get shorter, football season is upon us, and Halloween seems to have gotten even bigger, we find ourselves plunged into fall. And with these latter months of the year, we also enter into a much less fun ritual, the advent of the dreaded “flu season”.

One question we get a lot here at Remedy is, “How do I avoid the flu?” So, here briefly are three ways.

1. Get the flu shot

This seems like a no-brainer. But it’s estimated that only about 37% of adults in the US get their flu shot. We understand. It can be a hassle to take time off to go to the clinic and get it. But it is so important at protecting you from the flu.

Some years (like this one), it will be reported that the flu shot isn’t expected to be as effective as in years past. Why does this happen? Well, there are two “types” of seasonal flu virus – A & B. Those are further divided into “strains” – of which there are hundreds. The flu vaccine combines three or four of the strains based on what is being observed globally as the dominant strains. But sometimes a wild card strain predominates that is not covered in the shot.

Even so, health professionals recommend that you get the shot because there is good evidence that even if you “still get the flu”, the shot confers some immunity that can make your illness milder. Also, the more people who are vaccinated, the population develops something we call “herd immunity” which helps halt the transmission of the diseases among us.

2. Stay home if you are sick

If you have the flu, by all means, do not go to work. You don’t have to “sick shame” them, but if someone comes to your office with a fever and hacking cough, send them home! The flu virus is transmitted in aerosolized secretions – which is a scientific way of saying the mucus that gets sprayed into the air when the sick person coughs and sneezes. There is a zone of about six feet around a sick person that the virus can travel in these particles and land in your mouth, nose, or even inhaled into your lungs. Then, boom, you’ve got the flu.

The period of infectivity is as long as five to seven days from the onset of symptoms. So make sure that sick colleagues are staying at home as long as they need to.

We are looking forward to sunny days reading and relaxing by Barton Springs Pool and we hope you are making time for rest and recreation too. At Sedera, we celebrate taking time to invest in one’s spiritual, social, physical and mental health. That is why we created the Sedera 2019 Summer Reading List, a collection of our team’s favorite books to inspire healthy minds, hearts and lives.

This first section of book recommendations corresponds with our core values.

Health Champions: We promote the whole health of our team and members.

Health-Wealth for You: 11 Steps to Save Big & Live Health by Dr. Josh Luke – this book identifies eleven simple concepts that individuals and families can implement to improve health and save money on health care costs.

Genius Foods: Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive While Protecting Your Brain for Life by Max Lugavere – this NYTimes bestseller discusses groundbreaking research on how lifestyle can affect brain health. It is an accessible and informative read.

Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker – described as, “compelling and utterly convincing” by the Sunday Times, this book describes how good sleep can be a massive benefit to our health and how to get the best sleep possible.

Present over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, Soulful Way of Living by Shauna Niequist – Shauna uses her own life as the basis for a collection of essays on leaving behind busy, mindless living to be more purposeful in mind, body and spirit.

How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Gene Stone MD and Michael Geger MD – in this book, nutritionists and doctors Stone and Geger discuss the top fifteen causes of premature death in the US and how to avoid them through diet and lifestyle.

Intentionally not Status Quo: Our service and product experience is distinctly refreshing and always excellent.

Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover – this inspiring read tells the story of a young woman who was raised by a survivalist family who did not believe in formal education. Yet she was able to earn prestigious degrees from Harvard and Cambridge Universities.

Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcom Gladwell – learn how successful and renowned individuals gain their claim to fame in this in depth look at how to become an outlier.

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D Vance – the author of this memoir is a true testament to hard work paying off and provides a compassionate perspective on his Appalachian roots.

The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life by David Brooks – Brooks examines how individuals stay joyous during the turmoils of life. He offers wisdom on how to pick a vocation, how to live out a philosophy, and how we can begin to integrate our commitments into one overriding purpose.

Rooted in Love: Love is central, so we strive to treat everyone as we’d like to be treated.

An Unexpected Turn: Inspired by a True Story by Ellen Carlisle – This is the story of a crude oil ship captain who is prevented by the WWII from returning to his family in Holland, and instead circles the Southern hemisphere delivering oil to Allied forces. He meets a special woman in South Africa, and the tale unfolds between her home and his home in Holland. It’s a compelling story with several questions of what’s right and wrong at a time when everyone was challenged. Most importantly, this novel was written by one of our very own Sedera Members! How wonderful is that?

Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion by Gregory Boyle – author Gregory Boyle describes his experiences founding and running Homeboy Industries, a gang-intervention, rehabilitation, and reentry program in Los Angeles. This story reminds us how to maintain a loving heart, even in times of failure.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho – this slim, yet beloved book is a must-read for everyone. It is a simple story of self-discovery that dives into the complex concepts of following dreams and listening to one’s own heart.

Gilead: A Novel by Marilyn Robinson – this artfully crafted piece of fiction is the story of a retired minister reflecting on his past. It raises questions about how people reconcile faith in a challenging world and most importantly, stay rooted in love.

Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World by Bob Goff – this dynamic memoir follows Goff through his adventures touring the world, making friends in Uganda and talking his way into law school, all along the way making lasting impacts in so many lives with his compassionate and loving demeanor.

Solution Shapers: We lift ceilings, pave runways, and forge a better new way.

The Life of Pi by Yann Martel – no need to plan summer travels after reading this book. The Life of Pi is truly transportive in both space and emotion. Gear up for an adventure that will rock your boat. This is an incredible story of finding solutions to impossible problems.

The Power of Positive Thinking: 10 Traits for Maximum Results by Norman Peele – sometimes the best solution to a problem is a change of perspective. This straight-forward, no-nonsense guidebook to success is written with the sole objective of helping the reader achieve a happy, satisfying, and worthwhile life.

Meaningful Work: A Quest to do Great Business, Find Your Calling and Feed You Soul by Shawn and Lawren Askinosie – this book will leave your mouth watering and your spirit inspired. Learn how a high-powered lawyer decided to embrace a career change to follow his passion of chocolate making.

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg – NYTimes investigative reporter, Charles Duhigg explains the latest research on behavioral science and how we can start and maintain habits that create huge, impactful results.

Community Builders: Every day we create authentic connection with our members and one another

Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives our Success by Adam Grant – this book deeply resonates with our values at Sedera. The author takes a close look at the forces that cause some people to rise to the top while others sink to the bottom. We’ll hint as to why: it has a lot to do with lending a helping hand in times of need.

Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts by Brené Brown – a beautiful read that clarifies the roll of leadership inside and outside the office. Brown, in her signature way, distills research and anecdote into a highly readable book that will empower everyone to be better community members.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni – reveals why leaders often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and actionable steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team.

Everybody, Always: Becoming Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People by Bob Goff – Goff takes readers on a journey into the secret of living without fear, constraint, or worry. The path toward the liberated existence we all long for is found in a truth as simple to say as it is hard to do: love people, even the difficult ones, without distinction and without limits.

Business Books: most of the books we’ve already listed will enrich your professional life, but here are a few more that our office loves.

The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers by Ben Horowitz

The Dream Manager by Matthew Kelly

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight

Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott

Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek

Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future by Peter Thiel and Blake Masters

Noteworthy Novels: if you need a full escape to a new reality.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Origin by Dan Brown

The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown

Dune by Frank Hebert

Animal Farm by George Orwell

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

The Lord of the Rings Series by JRR Tolkien

Honorable Nonfiction Mentions: here are a few more reads that our team recommends.

The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1963 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown

The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Morgan Crone and Suzanne Stabile

The Alhambra by Robert Irwin

The Culture of Honor by Danny Silk

Becoming Beyonce: The Untold Story by J Randy Taraborrelli