Masawa Minute 2
All about relationships | Loneliness | + More!
This is the Masawa Minute, a snippet of what we’re reading in the areas of mental wellness, social impact, and impact investing.
Podcast 🎧🤗
A positive workplace culture is a crucial element to maintaining mental wellness. In the inaugural episode of their podcast Culture First, Culture Amp chats with renowned psychotherapist Ester Perel about relational intelligence. The episode also highlights extra measures fully-remote companies Buffer and Zapier take so that distance can make the heart grow fonder. [Thanks, Huria!]
Short Clip 🎬🧠
The Science Behind Mindfulness Meditation
This animated clip of the science behind mindfulness meditation, an accessible skill for all, describes how it can change the brain by shrinking the amygdala (fear center) and reducing cortisol (stress hormone) levels so that we can decrease stress while increasing creativity, self confidence, and kindness. [Thanks, Christian!]
Research Study 📈💰
This research paper identifies the barriers and opportunities for better mental health financing in Ethiopia, India, Nepal, Nigeria, South Africa, and Uganda. Although low funding for mental wellness persists, there’s hope that an emerging political interest in mental health coupled with the potential for better mental health coverage in insurance schemes could start closing the funding gap.
Article 📝😢
“More people are dying alone — and the global economy isn’t prepared for it”
In this long-form article, author T. L. Andrews poignantly self-reflects on un- + intended consequences of his bachelordom, delves into the effects of modern independence on loneliness, and explores new models of friendship intended to abate the fallout from relational modernity. [Thanks, Tony!]
Impact Investing 🔥☮️
“Impact investing is hot right now. Here’s why”
Values-first investing is on the rise and MIT found that it actually leads to not only making your heart grow bigger, but to making your wallet grow bigger, too. Patient capital is gaining more popularity, and in direct contrast to shareholder primacy, stakeholder welfare is mattering more.
Commentary: More evidence is needed before we can say that environmental-, social-, and/or governance-based impact-focused investments categorically perform better, but we’ll continue to be biased until then. If interested in how you can impactfully invest, get in touch to take part of the Masawa Friends + Family funding round before it closes!
✨Masawa Update ✨
Holidays and the New Year are a great time to reconnect, rejuvenate, and reprioritize. We made sure to do just that.
The advisory board will be announced soon and includes visionaries in the fields of psychiatry, nutrition, finance, sustainability, organizational development, and blockchain! 🥳. The Friends + Family funding round is about 50% subscribed, so it won’t be open for very much longer. A lot of our current focus is on fund establishment and legal matters. We’re committed to a structure that maintains the purpose-driven mission of the organization which is reflected in everything we do. And we continue to engage with inspiring founders, investors, podcasters, coaches, activists, and family members working to make mental wellness matter.
Give someone a big hug today + take care of each other! 🤗😘
Joshua Haynes
Joshua is the Founder and Managing Partner of Masawa. He believes that investing in mental wellness, focusing on maximizing positive social impact, and founders’ mental health, and supporting their resilient organizations makes sense for society and for business.
