Figuratively Speaking

Rank of financial security on the list of the most important attributes for a positive outlook on life, according to research by Northwestern Mutual: 1

Percentage of Americans who agree that nothing makes them happier or more confident than feeling like their finances are in order: 87

Source: Northwestern Mutual.

Ranks of a candidate's interview performance, resume and previous work experience as key areas of focus for advertising and marketing executives looking for a new hire, according to The Creative Group: 1, 2, 3

Percentage of executives who prefer reviewing traditional resumes over other formats, like social or online, infographic and video: 74

Average number of interview rounds that top candidates go through: 3

Source: The Creative Group.

Percentage of Americans not taking all of their vacations who say they do so because their "workload is too heavy": 56

Percentage who believe they "lack coverage at work": 56

Percentage who say "the cost of travel" is an impediment to their taking vacation: 53

Source: DataTrek Research

Percentage of Americans who do not think we get good value for what our country spends on health care, according to a poll from NORC at the University of Chicago and the West Health Institute: 75

Percentage of respondents who said that over the last year they had to choose between paying for medical bills or basic necessities, such as food, heating or housing: 30

Percentage of people who fear the medical bills that come with a serious illness more than fear the illness itself: 40 percent

Source: NORC at the University of Chicago.

Percentage of professionals from varying industries who agreed that the retention of new hires in their organization is an issue, according to a Korn Ferry survey: 93

Percentage of respondents who said that offering more money to a new hire who wanted to leave would not make them stay: 55

Percentage who said challenging and rewarding work is what keeps them on the job: 70

When asked which generation would be most likely to leave a new job if they were not satisfied, percentage of professionals who said millennials: 82

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Number of children who have died in 2018 so far because of being left in a hot car, according to research by the National Safety Council: 9

On an 86-degree day, approximate amount of time it takes for the temperature inside a vehicle to reach 105 degrees: 10 minutes

Average number of young lives claimed each year through children being left in a hot car: 37

Percentage of all pediatric vehicular heatstroke (PVH) deaths since 1998 that have happened when the vehicle was at home: 56

Percentage that have happened while the parent's or caregiver's vehicle was parked at their workplace: 25

Source: National Safety Council.

Ranks of corruption, unemployment, poverty or social inequality, crime and violence, and health care on the list of the top five global concerns, according to research by Ipsos Public Affairs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Ranks of health care, crime and violence, terrorism, immigration and corruption on the list of issues that most concern Americans: 1, 2, 3, 4 (tie)

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Cost of retail thefts, fraud and losses (also known as retail "shrink") in 2017, according to the annual National Retail Security survey by the National Retail Federation and the University of Florida: $46.8 billion

Ranks of shoplifting and organized retail crime (36 percent), internal employee theft (33 percent), administrative paperwork errors (19 percent) and vendor fraud or mistake (6 percent) on the list of the most frequent causes of losses: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: NRF.

Of those Americans who are saving some of their income, percentage who say they are saving more than 10 percent, according to a study from Bankrate.com: 27

Percentage who say they are putting away more than 15 percent of their paycheck: 16

Percentage of younger millennials who are saving more than 15 percent of their incomes: 23

Percentage of older boomers who are saving more than 15 percent of their incomes: 27

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of college students who think they'll be worse off financially than their parents, according to WalletHub: 33

Percentage who say excellent credit is worth more than a college degree: 25

Source: WalletHub.

Idle Thought

"A prince who is not wise himself will never take good advice." -- Niccolo Machiavelli, political philosopher and author (1469-1527)

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

Percentage of Americans who won't go on vacation this summer because they can't afford it, according to a Bankrate.com report: 24

Percentage who won't take a vacation because they have too many family obligations: 12

Percentage who say they are too busy at work: 11

Source: Bankrate.com.

Ranks of physical/health (30 percent), career (23 percent) and relationships (13 percent) on the list of areas where Americans most want to make meaningful change, according to a survey conducted by Brant Menswar and Jim Trick, co-authors of the book, "Rock 'N' Roll With It: Overcoming the Challenge of Change": 1, 2, 3

Percentage who said that the most difficult change happened unexpectedly: 60

Percentage who experienced difficulty when they were intentionally trying to make a change: 39

Source: "Rock 'N' Roll With It: Overcoming the Challenge of Change."

Percentage of parents who agree that their child is more interested in toys that encourage curiosity for a longer period of time than toys that don't encourage discovery or exploration, according to a survey commissioned by Baby Einstein: 90

Percentage who note that nothing makes them feel more confident in their parenting skills than watching their child explore something new: 97

Source: Baby Einstein.

Ranks of greeting cards -- many of them with cash inside -- (43 percent), gift cards (32 percent), apparel (14 percent) and electronics (10 percent) on the list of the most popular gifts for graduates, according to the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: NRF.

Percentage of workers who can't unplug while on vacation and regularly check in, according to research from Accountemps: 56

Average number of workdays employees plan to take off this summer -- down from 10 days last year: 9

Percentage of respondents ages 18 to 34 who plan to maintain contact with work this summer, compared to 39 percent of those ages 55-plus: 70

Source: Accountemps.

When consumers in an Equifax survey were asked to grade themselves on their basic level of financial literacy, percentage who gave themselves a "B": 39

Percentage between the ages of 18 and 29 who gave themselves a "B": 29

When asked the source of their finance and credit knowledge, percentage of respondents who selected their parents: 43

Percentage of respondents who said they would willingly participate in a financial literacy education program if it were free and easily available: 52

Source: Equifax.

Rank of the Bulleit old fashioned on the list of the most popular cocktails in bars today, according to a survey of the world's best bartenders by Diageo: 1

Ranks of Negroni, whiskey sour, margarita and Moscow mule: 2, 3, 4, 5,

Source: Diageo.

Percentage of credit card holders who have carried a balance within the past six months, according to a new CreditCards.com report: 66

Of these, percentage who definitely know the interest rates on all of the cards on which they owe money: 39

Percentage who admit they definitely don't know any of their rates: 32

Source: CreditCards.com.

In an online survey of home cooks, ranks of "large product variety," "low prices" and "convenient location" on the list of the top points cited when asked what influences their preferred grocery shopping location, according to Allrecipes: 1, 2, 3

Percentage who said home grocery delivery was "very important" in determining where they shop: 10

Source: Allrecipes.com.

Ranks of Holland, Michigan; St. George, Utah; Aberdeen, South Dakota; and Wilson, North Carolina, on the 2018 list of the best cities to start a small business, according to research by WalletHub: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: WalletHub.

Idle Thought

"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all." -- Oscar Wilde

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

Percentage of working hours that CFOs estimate they spend coaching underperforming employees, according to research by Robert Half: 26

Percentage of CFOs who thought making a poor hiring decision negatively affected the morale of their team: 91

Source: Robert Half.

Percentage of Americans who would switch political parties for a tax-free future, according to research by WalletHub: 22

Percentage who would move to a different country: 37

Percentage who would get an "IRS" tattoo: 24

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of people who say traveling to their destination is often as much fun as the actual vacation destination, according to a study by the National Association of Convenience Stores: 69

Ranks of travel by car, air and train on the list of the ways vacationers travel: 1, 2, 3

Source: National Association of Convenience Stores.

Number of legal medical marijuana patients in the United States, according to research by ProCon.org: 2.1 million

Per capita legal medical marijuana patients in Maine (the highest in the U.S.): 38.42 per 1,000

National average: 10.79 per 1,000

Source: ProCon.org.

Percentage of employers who say they plan to hire college graduates this year, according to a CareerBuilder survey: 80

Percentage who plan to offer recent graduates higher pay than last year: 47

Percentage who will be paying a starting salary of $50,000 or more: 33

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of Americans who said the main trigger for impulsive purchases is a fear of missing out (on a deal, to a run on stock, would later forget, etc.), according to a survey by Finder.com: 53

Percentage who said they simply didn't have a reason not to make the purchase: 37

Source: Finder.com.

Percentage of Americans who say they grill, with 41 percent grilling at least once a week, according to results from a Cargill survey: 72

Ranks of steak, hamburgers, chicken and pork chops/ribs on the list of America's favorite grilling options: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: Cargill.

Percentage of Americans who agree that the design of a product's packaging often influences their purchase decisions when selecting which products to buy, according to an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of the Paper and Packaging Board: 72

Percentage of Americans who also agree that paper and cardboard packaging is less wasteful than other packaging and more in line with today's expectations than packaging made from other materials: 84

Source: Ipsos Observer.

Percentage of enterprises that are considered digitally "superior," having fully implemented technologies like automation, artificial intelligence and collaboration tools in the workplace, as well as having invested in strategies for training or "reskilling" workers to be digitally savvy, according to results from Randstad's Workplace 2025 -- The Post-Digital Frontier study: 10

Percentage of companies that are still "developing": 52

Source: Randstad.

Percentage of consumers who have experienced a cyber attack in the previous 12 months, according to a survey by Zogby for The Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company: 33

Rank of a computer virus or other type of unwanted software on the list of the most common type of damage: 1

Percentage of victims who reported this type of damage: 81

Source: Zogby International.

Idle Thought

"When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become president. I'm beginning to believe it." -- Clarence Darrow, lawyer and author (1857-1938)

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