Yesterday was National Doctors’ Day here in the States, and it could not have landed on a more apropos day. Doctors and healthcare workers are manning the frontlines of this pandemic, risking their own safety to work to save the lives of their fellow citizens. They’re working incredibly long hours—sleep deprived and likely homesick, but they’re answering the call to battle COVID-19.

As I type this, the State of Florida has eclipsed 5,500 cases. It has more than doubled since the weekend. It will continue to rise over the coming days. April is likely to be a very difficult month for the entire country as states and municipalities play a cruel game of whack-a-mole with this virus. Contain an outbreak here, just to have another appear over there.

It will take all of our cooperation to stay indoors to limit its spread to allow these heroes among us the time to do their thankless work. If the healthcare system becomes overwhelmed, we’re limiting taking our first-line defenders out of the fight.

You’ve seen the photos of these healthcare professionals and the message they’re imploring us to heed: “We come to work for you, please stay at home for us.” There’s very little that we can do right now—we’re unfortunately at the mercy of this virus. But we can limit our exposure to others and do our part to protect the doctors and nurses and lab techs that are working tirelessly on our behalf.

So thank you, doctors, for your bravery and your relentless drive to fight this for us. You’re our line of defense against this disease, and true heroes in a time when we desperately need them.  

There’s simply no way to put it: The whole world has changed in the last week. With the COVID-19 pandemic enveloping the globe, it’s threatening the population and disrupting the economy. Many cities and states are on virtual lockdown—including here in Orlando, where the governor gave the order that all bars and restaurants can only operate in a take-out capacity.

Things are quieter. There’s an eerie still in the air with the lack of cars on the road, the decrease in movement. We’re all doing our level best to contribute by remaining at home and working to flatten the curve and stem-the-tide of this disease. We know that people are hurting. We’re naturally social creatures—we crave face-to-face interaction with others.

And since that’s not entirely possible at the moment, we’ve taken to tech—and it’s been invaluable during this period of social distance. Musicians are hosting Facebook Live acoustic sessions, professionals are offering online Q & A’s, and most importantly, it’s allowed us to decrease the feeling of separation by video chatting with friends and loved ones.

Without the benefits of social media and technology at this point, I’m sure we’d all be going absolutely stir crazy. It’s not the same as hanging out and enjoying another’s company, but it sure beats complete social isolation. People are hosting online happy hours using Google Hangouts to stay connected with friends, and businesses are using online meeting software to keep their workforce engaged and productive.

It’s our new normal for the time being—there’s really no blueprint for this type of pandemic in the 21^st Century. But we’re all in this together, and we have to do what we can to support one another. That involves checking in on your friends and neighbors, making the calls to people you’ve lost touch with, and offering words of encouragement during this unsettling and surreal moment.

PR/PR is eternally grateful to the first responders keeping us going during the COVID-19 pandemic. The healthcare workers, the grocery employees who keep the shelves stocked with food, the police and fire departments keeping our communities safe, the sanitation workers and mail carriers and janitorial staff. These everyday heroes are working so hard right now, and we cannot thank them enough for their efforts.

Stay tough, stay strong, and we’ll get through this together.   

This is an incredibly unsettling time. COVID-19’s global impact has laid bare our vulnerabilities—it respects no border, it does not discriminate between generation, sex, creed, or political ideology. It is something we are all forced to face head-on, by adjusting our behavior and the way that we go about our lives each and every day.

That means practicing social distancing to protect the population at-large, and doing all that we can to stop the spread of this virus. We hold every one of our friends in our thoughts during this moment, and wish you all the absolute best as we work together through the days to come.

PR/PR does the majority of our work on the phones and online, so while we are respecting all of the guidance from the government and healthcare officials, we are still working tirelessly for our clients to deliver on the specific goals of their publicity campaigns. We’re still we’re still garnering and sending along article placements, and still crafting pitches and press releases—just remotely for the time being.

Please be safe during this time of uncertainty, and look after your friends and family. We’re keeping to relative normalcy here at PR/PR, and will continue our diligent work on our clients’ behalf.  

What happens in Vegas can change your career. We’re attending Stage Time LIVE next Friday and Saturday, March 20^th and 21^st—and you should join us!

With a slate of World Champion speakers like Darren LaCroix and Ed Tate, Stage Time LIVE is packed with presentations that will provide the steps to create lasting impressions, deliver memorable messages, and get paid.

Stage Time LIVE will be held at the Seven Hills Conference Center in Henderson, Nevada, and registration is still open. If you haven’t secured your seat there’s still time! If you’re unable to join us for the event, you can also register for virtual attendance and enhance your career from the comfort of your home. Register for either option right here.    

With the eye-opening and insightful speeches delivered at Stage Time LIVE each and every year, it truly is one of the highlights on our calendar. We hope to see you there!  

You’ve likely heard this familiar refrain from your friends and family: “I swear Apple is slowing down my old iPhone!” That conspiratorial tech lament is a common one, but the result of a recent lawsuit may lend it some credence. The New York Times is reporting that Apple has agreed to a proposed settlement of up to $500 million—one that will net some iPhone owners $25 apiece—from a lawsuit that alleged the company did indeed slow down older model iPhones.

The lawsuit was filed in 2018 after a group of customers became frustrated with their iPhones and the seemingly slower processing power with older models. After a two-year court battle, Apple acquiesced to simply make the issue go away and avoid lengthier (and costlier) litigation. They also admitted no wrongdoing.

There’s a chance you’ve experienced a similar issue with earlier model iPhones after newer editions have been rolled out. The software lags, your mail seems to take longer than usual to populate your inbox—frustrating, to be sure. But is it possible that there’s some subconscious bias driving your interpretation of your phone’s performance, or it’s just … out-of-date? Also possible. And that mix of uncertainly probably contributed to Apple’s motivation for agreeing to settle.

The cost-benefit of continually dragging the case through the courts just doesn’t make sense.

Smartphones run the world, and when they begin to operate in a less-than-optimal way, it can cause intense frustration—frustration enough to file a lawsuit about it. We don’t really know if Apple was intentionally slowing down its older iPhones, but we do know that the issue was enough of a PR headache for them to agree to issue the cash to make it disappear.