Percentage of hotel customers who always tip their housekeeper (31 percent never do), according to a survey by creditcards.com: 27

Percentage of coffee shop patrons who always tip their barista (30 percent never do): 29

Percentage who always tip their hairstylist/barber (12 percent never do): 67

Source: creditcards.com.

Percentage of Americans who are married or living with a partner who admit to arguing over finances, according to a study on money and relationships from TheCashlorette.com: 48

Percentage of those in serious relationships who confess to arguing about money and say either one person is spending too much or one person is being too frugal: 60

Source: Bankrate Inc.

Percentage of parents who say back-to-school shopping for their children stresses them out, according to a survey by RetailMeNot and Kelton Global: 91

Ranks of money, finding the best deals and setting a budget on the list of stressors: 1, 2, 3

Source: RetailMeNot.com.

Percentage of government workers (local, state and federal) in Pennsylvania, the lowest in the country (Alaska has the nation's highest percentage at 25.1 percent), according to information from WalletHub: 10.8

Percentage of residents below the poverty line in New Hampshire, the lowest (Mississippi has the highest at 22.5 percent): 8.9

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of the 4 million people globally who are dying from health problems linked to being overweight who are not yet obese, highlighting that deaths are occurring almost as often in those considered overweight as those considered obese, according to a study from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington: 40

Source: CNN Money.

Percentage of young people who are far less optimistic about their ability to afford a home relative to their parents at their age, according to the findings of a Citi/Ipsos Global Survey: 57

Globally, percentage of young people who believe that a university education is needed to be successful: 67

Percentage who see education as beyond their financial means: 69

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs CJ.

Percentage of companies that do not offer corporate retreats -- offsite events where employees, commonly executives, meet to discuss the business -- according to a survey by Robert Half Management Resources: 80

Percentage of CFOs who said the greatest single benefit of retreats is that they increase teamwork and morale: 40

Percentage who said these meetings provide an environment that stimulates new ideas and perspectives: 20

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

Percentage of U.S. seniors who desire independent living at home with ease and convenience, according to research by Parks Associates: 60

Ranks of "living with independence and assurance," "living a healthy life minimizing the impact of illness and disease," and "living with ease and convenience" on the list of the most important aspects of their retirement, as cited by senior citizens: 1, 2, 3

Source: Parks Associates.

Percentage of professionals and executives who said the autumn of a college student's senior year is the best time to recruit top candidates, according to a survey conducted by Korn Ferry: 64

Percentage of respondents who said a college degree is a firm prerequisite for hiring professionals in their organization: 67

Source: Korn Ferry International.

Idle Thought

"Shadow owes its birth to light." -- John Gay, poet and dramatist (1685-1732)

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of CIOs who still think email will be the most common way to communicate internally through 2020, according to respondents in two surveys conducted by Robert Half Technology: 79

Percentage of office workers who agree: 53

Ranks of in-person meetings, email, instant messaging and phone calls on the list of communication channels most effective for planning, strategizing and follow-up, as cited by office workers from various industries and roles: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: Robert Half Technology.

Percentage of women who would consider a partner's credit score a major influence in a potential relationship, according to a study from Bankrate.com: 20

Percentage of men who said the same: 7

Percentage of Americans who think credit scores are never an important factor in a relationship: 19

Percentage of respondents who believe in waiting until after dating a few months to divulge their personal finances: 37

Source: Bankrate.com.

Ranks of credit card debt, overeating, social media and bad credit on the list of things people would like to declare independence from, according to WalletHub: 1, 2, 3, 4

Percentage of Americans who think the government tracks our credit card spending: 47

Source: WalletHub.

Among more than 18,000 citizens from 25 countries, percentage who rated the influence of the U.S. on world affairs as positive (a drop from 64 percent in October), according to an Ipsos survey: 40

Ranks of Canada (81 percent), Australia (79 percent), Germany (67 percent), the United Nations (64 percent), France (59 percent) and the European Union (57 percent) on the list of countries and groups of nations rated by global citizens as having a positive influence on world affairs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Ipsos Global Public Affairs.

Percentage of home cooks for whom internet food and recipe sites have grown to become the top recipe source, according to a survey by the Meredith Corp. on behalf of Allrecipes.com: 58

Percentage of digital home cooks who trade recipes: 75

Percentage of home cooks who report planning most meals the same day as the meal (up 10 percent from 1999): 63

Source: Meredith Corp.

Percentage of Americans who support medical aid in dying, including 55 percent of weekly churchgoers and 60 percent of conservatives, according to a Gallup poll: 73

Source: Gallup Organization.

Rank of toys on the list of the largest durable dog and cat pet care categories with sales crossing the $1 billion threshold in 2016, according to Packaged Facts: 1

Percentage share of sales accounted for by dogs: 75

Percentage of dog owners who agree they enjoy pampering their pet with new toys: 88

Source: Packaged Facts.

Percentage of manufacturers who said they are more optimistic about the U.S. economy compared to last year, according to the 2017 Manufacturing Report from professional services firm Sikich LLP: 66

Percentage of respondents who claim addressing workforce challenges is a top priority: 49

Percentage of companies that conduct IT risk assessments: 63

Source: Sikich.

Percentage of Americans who make at least one or more common mistakes when cleansing their face, according to a national survey by CeraVe: 80

Percentage of consumers who report they feel uninformed about proper skin cleansing methods: 60

Percentage of consumers (66 percent of men and nearly 40 percent of women) who use bath wash or hand soap to cleanse their face: 52

Percentage who use only water: 35

Source: CeraVe.

Idle Thought

"A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." -- Antoine de Saint-Exupery, author

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of recent college grads who wish they had picked a different field of study now that they are in the job market, according to a survey by Ameritrade: 29

Percentage who would choose a major in a higher-paying field: 22

Percentage of grads who said they would have studied harder: 26

Percentage who would have earned money while in school: 19

Percentage who would spend less money/accumulate less debt: 24

Source: TD Ameritrade.

Number of interest rate hikes already in the books this year (with another expected by the end of the year), according to WalletHub: 2

Percentage of Americans who don't know when the Fed last raised rates: 44

Percentage of Americans who think rate hikes make existing mortgages more expensive (90 percent of mortgages have fixed rates): 50

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of executives who said the top reason highly skilled professionals would choose one employer over another is the promise of meaningful work, according to a KornFerry survey: 68

Percentage who said better compensation is the top reason these professionals would choose one employer over another: 4

When asked why skilled professionals would leave an organization, percentage of executives who said the top reason would be a lack of their organization's willingness to recognize the value of their expertise: 53

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Percentage more days than their peers that workers with substance use disorders miss (and up to six weeks of work annually), according to analysis from the National Safety Council, NORC at the University of Chicago, and Shatterproof: 50

Percentage of employers who view prescription drug use as a threat to safety: 39

Percentage who feel it is a problem: 24

Within the construction, entertainment, recreation and food service businesses, number of times higher than the national average the rate of employees with substance use disorders: 2

Source: National Safety Council.

Percentage of finance professionals who believe strong analytical skills are a critical competency in their profession, according to research by the Association for Financial Professionals: 54

Despite the fact that finance professionals consider leadership and people skills to be important competencies, percentage who believe that finance professionals at their own organizations lack these specific skills: 40

Source: Association for Financial Professionals.

Percentage of professionals who said their work-life balance has improved from three years ago, according to the Robert Half Management Resources survey: 52

Percentage who reported their manager is very or somewhat supportive of their efforts to achieve this balance: 91

Percentage who said their boss sets a good or even excellent example: 74

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

Percentage of Americans who report that some of their favorite outdoor memories have occurred right in their own yards, according to a survey conducted by Harris on behalf of TruGreen: 65

Number of Americans this represents: 162 million

Average number of hours Americans spend per week in their yards during the summer: 12

Percentage of Americans who consider flowers blooming to be the first sign of spring: 35

Source: The Harris Poll.

Ranks of Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Tyrion "The Imp" Lannister and Sansa Stark on the list of favoured candidates for the "Iron Throne," according to an Ipsos survey: 1, 2, 3, 4

Trailing even further behind her brother -- rank of incumbent Cersei Lannister, who ascended the throne amidst some controversy following the unexpected deaths of most of King's Landing: 6

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Average amount of money the youngest adult generation reports spending per month on groceries, compared to $724 for those 37 and older, according to research by bankrate.com: $797

Average amount millennials spend per month on gasoline, versus the $211 per month spent by those older than them: $254

Average monthly spend by millennials on both dine-in and takeout meals, against $182 for older generations: $233

Source: Bankrate.com.

Idle Thought

"One can never pay in gratitude; one can only pay 'in kind' somewhere else in life." -- Anne Morrow Lindbergh, writer

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)