It’s Not You, It’s Your White Coat
I recently went to get a basal cell removed, and when they took my blood pressure it was high; so high that the doctors wouldn’t do the surgery until it came down, and asked that I monitor my levels at home until then. I have what I found out is called White Coat Hypertension: a condition that occurs when the blood pressure readings at your doctor’s office are higher than they are in other settings, such as your home. It’s called white coat hypertension because the health care professionals who measure your blood pressure sometimes wear white coats!
Thankfully, Amazon exists, so I ordered this little gem to monitor my BP at home. Omron Silver is a genius Blood Pressure monitor that is able to store all BP readings via Bluetooth, with the option to manually enter readings done at doctor’s visits. Another plus is that I can print out, or forward, a chart of the readings, or a simple file, so no hand logging on paper necessary. Since ordering, thankfully my BP has gone down to acceptable levels.
Video Killed The (Traditional Marketing) Star
Hippo Video brings a lot, and I mean A LOT, to the table. It is a great service for creating a video to send your clients or prospects, along with a ton of other advanced features. Of all the different things it does, the ones I’m a big fan of are the ability to easily record or upload a video from either your computer or smartphone (thanks to the mobile app), being able to share and embed the videos pretty much anywhere, the email list signup feature and last, but certainly not least, the video teleprompter feature.
Interested in seeing it in action? Check out this video I made here.
The Single Biggest Shopping Day of the Year
If you thought Black Friday or Cyber Monday sends shoppers into a frenzy, then you haven’t heard of the biggest shopping day of them all: Singles Day. Selling more goods than Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined, China’s “anti-Valentine’s Day” has transformed from a movement dedicated to singles’ self-care into the world’s largest 24-hour shopping spree. While the main event is the 24-hour shopping window on November 11, in recent years Singles’ Day pre-sales have kicked off as early as October.
Want to get in on the single action, or just want to get some Holiday shopping done early? Here’s some of the deals we’re hoping to get our hands on today:
- Fire TV Stick 4K with Alexa Voice Remote (includes TV and Volume controls): List Price: ̶$̶4̶9̶.̶9̶9̶; With Deal: $24.99. By now I think almost all of us have at least 1 Alexa Device. I love this newest Firestick version as it controls everything from your streaming apps to the volume.
- 23andMe Health + Ancestry Service: List Price: ̶$̶1̶9̶9̶.̶0̶0̶; With Deal: $99.00. This 2-in-1 Kit allows you to discover your ancestry composition from across 2000+ regions, and how your genetics can influence your chances of developing certain health conditions.
- Echo Show 5: List Price: ̶$̶̶̶7̶9̶̶̶.̶̶̶9̶̶̶5̶̶̶;̶ With Deal: $39.95: If you’re like me, one of my favorite places to be during the Holidays is the kitchen. I love using the Echo Show for an easy way to follow along with recipes, to play music, or even to check on the game that’s on while I’m cooking!
What’sApp Doc?
I know I am very late to the game on this one, but I just discovered WhatsApp, and it quickly has become one of my most used apps. Whatsapp is a free messenger app for smartphones that uses the internet to send messages, images, audio or video. The service is very similar to text messaging services, however, because WhatsApp uses the internet to send messages, the cost of using WhatsApp is significantly less than texting. It is especially popular because of features like group chatting, voice messages and location sharing.
Definitely check it out, but if you have an older iPhone or Android, but be aware if you’re still clutching an outdated phone or your software is out of date, the app’s updated system requirements will block your ability to download it. Might be yet another sign that it’s time to upgrade.
The Last Word
That’s it from Brad’s Blog! I don’t know about you all, but I am still adjusting to the early darkness of Daylight Savings. It never ceases to surprise me when all of a sudden, the sunset begins at 4:30PM. But if you’re tired of changing your clocks twice a year, there could be some hope on the horizon to keep it lighter later throughout the year.
Finally, to all military service members, thank you for your contributions to our country. Wishing you all a safe and Happy Veterans Day!