Figuratively Speaking

Percentage of newlyweds who went into wedding debt who say money caused them to contemplate divorce, compared to just 9% of couples who did not go into debt for their wedding, according to a study by Lending Tree: 47

Percentage of newlyweds who wish they spent less on their wedding -- with their biggest regrets being too much spent on food and drink or the venue: 25

Source: Lending Tree.

Percentage of "Tooth Fairies" who indicate that the amount of money they pay for a lost tooth depends on how much cash they have on hand, according to a poll sponsored by Delta Dental: 31

Percentage of Tooth Fairies who are mindful of kids' recent behaviors: 20

Average cash gift for a lost tooth, down from $4.13 a year ago: $3.70

In homes the Tooth Fairy visits, percentage of parents who share that their children receive at least $5 or more: 37

Source: Delta Dental Plans Association.

Percentage of women who feel they do not have the same opportunities as men to show their worth in their workplace, according to a University of Phoenix survey: 25

Percentage of employed adults who believe that men and women have equal pay opportunities at their workplace: 73

Percentage of women who believe that they are not paid fairly: 32

When asked if they had equal opportunity to show their worth in the workplace, percentage of men who believed that they do: 82

Percentage of women who believed they have equal opportunity to show their worth: 72

Source: University of Phoenix.

According to Experian Automotive, average age of passenger vehicles on the road today: 11.61 years

Source: Experian Automotive.

Favorite "age in life" chosen by millennials, according to a survey by Farm Rich: 23

Age chosen by baby boomers: 32

Age at which respondents to the survey consider that men officially become adults: 26

Age they consider that women officially become adults: 23

Source: Farm Rich.

Percentage of retirement plan sponsors who believe market risk is the most important factor in target-date investments, according to research by American Century Investments: 40

Percentage of American workers who are much more worried about running out of money in retirement: 41

Percentage of employees who have at least a "little regret" about not doing a better job saving for retirement, while 20 percent express a "great deal" of regret: 85

Percentage who agreed that their workplace retirement savings plan is one of the most important benefits their employer offers: 90

Source: American Century Services Corp.

Percentage of Americans who love their car a lot, according to a Cars.com survey: 73

Percentage who admit they would rather take their car to the car wash than book themselves a haircut: 57

Percentage of Americans who would not allow their vehicle to be used for ride-sharing: 68

Percentage who wouldn't even loan their car to a friend or family member: 37

Source: Cars.com.

Percentage of employees who most enjoy learning new skills during work hours and at the office, according to a survey by Clutch: 46

Percentage who say they prefer learning new skills at in-person events: 57

Percentage of workers who believe the primary responsibility for employee development lies with direct managers and a company's leadership team: 66

Source: Clutch.

Percentage of managers who fail to have regular development conversations with their teams, according to a study by Lending Tree: 63

Percentage of managers and employees who do not perceive their performance management process as valuable: 59

While 39% of senior leaders responded that "in my company, employees do not feel overworked," percentage of managers who agreed: 22

Source: Betterworks.

Percentage of women who rate parental leave No. 2 on the list of top perks they expect, according to an employee engagement survey by GoodFirms: 79

Percentage of men who rate parental leave No. 4 on their list of top perks: 71

Source: GoodFirms.

Percentage of professionals who feel well-informed about what they should be making in their current position, according to research from Robert Half: 82

Percentage who say they've checked their salary against market rates through online resources, salary guides or job postings in the last year: 73

Source: Robert Half.

Idle Thought

"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination." -- Albert Einstein

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

Percentage of Americans who would give up a portion of their paycheck for unlimited vacation, with millennials (41%) even more likely to do so, according to a survey released by Allianz Global Assistance: 34

Percentage of Americans who already have unlimited vacation: 12

Of those who would forfeit a portion of their salary for unlimited time off, average percentage they would be willing to give up (with millennials willing to forgo 32%): 26

Source: Allianz Global Assistance.

Percentage of all drivers who admitted to dangerous driving behaviors within the past year, according to a ValuePenguin.com survey: 90

Percentage of car crashes that are caused by human error and dangerous driving behaviors, such as eating, talking on the phone or changing the music: 94

Percentage of respondents who admitted to talking on the phone: 58

Percentage who admitted to reading texts: 27

Percentage who admitted to sending texts: 24

Source: ValuePenguin.com.

Percentage of Americans who have faked excuses to get out of plans, according to a Harris Poll commissioned by Sling TV: 47

Percentage of individuals engaging in this behavior who wanted to relax at home and chose to watch or binge television shows or movies instead: 76

Percentage of excuse makers who said they felt guilty: 42

Source: Sling TV LLC.

When looking to relax and unwind after a long day, percentage of Americans who say chilling out at home and watching/streaming TV is part of their de-stress routine, according to a survey by Tranquility: 62

Ranks of listening to music, enjoying a nice meal, reading, interacting with social media or playing on their phones on the list of de-stressing options: 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Tranquility.

In the past year, percentage of Hotwire survey respondents between the ages of 23 and 38 who have booked spontaneous two- to three-night "quickies" one week or less out from their departure day, with 40% say they have booked the same day: 84

Percentage of "quickie trippers" who felt an emotional benefit from their travel: 95

Percentage who felt reduced stress at work: 43

Percentage who said the travel strengthened their bond with their partner: 41

Source: Hotwire.

Percentage of U.S. adults who haven't spoken to anyone about financial planning, according to a Northwestern Mutual study: 30

While 64% of Americans agree there are likely to be more financial crises in the future, percentage who say their retirement/financial plan has not been created to endure ups and downs in the market: 20

Percentage who report they don't have clarity on how much they can afford to spend now vs. how much they should be saving for later: 48

Source: Northwestern Mutual.

Percentage of kids who feel closer and more connected to their family vs. their friends, according to research from Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews: 49

Source: Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc.

Percentage of working Americans who say little white lies about Wi-Fi are acceptable in order to avoid checking into the office while on vacation, according to a survey released by Allianz Global Assistance: 49

Percentage of workers who are affected by "email creep," referring to when work obligations encroach on personal time: 65

Percentage of all working Americans who make a point not to go on vacation in places where poor cell reception or Wi-Fi access could disrupt their connection to the office: 24

Source: Allianz Global Assistance USA.

Percentage of adults with current K-12 children who who say their children complete homework faster when workspaces are clean, according to research from Clorox: 50

Percentage who say their children are more productive: 83

Percentage who say they are less stressed: 77

Source: Clorox Co.

Percentage of American workers who think that their co-workers could behave better in the workplace and that it is impacting productivity and morale, according to a Kelton Global study on behalf of National Business Furniture: 77

Percentage of respondents who say that consistently being late to work or meetings tops the list of workplace annoyances: 75

Percentage of workers who said playing loud music is unacceptable: 74

Percentage who believe that having smartphone ringers on for calls, notifications or alerts is annoying: 57

Source: National Business Furniture.

Percentage of people across 28 countries who said it is the responsibility of the companies that produce packaged goods to reduce unnecessary packaging, according to an Ipsos survey: 20

Percentage who said dealing with the amount of waste we generate is one of the top three environmental issues facing their country -- after global warming and air pollution: 34

Ranks of Colombia (70%), South Africa (69%), Mexico (63%), Argentina, Brazil and Peru (58%) on the list of countries where most are willing to buy recycled products: 1, 2, 3, 4 (tie)

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Idle Thought

"There are two ways to slide easily through life: to believe everything or to doubt everything; both ways save us from thinking." -- Theodore Rubin, psychiatrist and writer

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

Percentage of Americans who have argued about the need to declutter and get rid of things, according to a survey by TaskRabbit: 41

Rank of cleaning the bathroom on the list of the most despised of all chores: 1

Percentage of Americans who dislike yard work: 43

Percentage who hate cleaning up after pets: 42

Source: TaskRabbit.

Percentage of American consumers who think back-to-school shopping is more stressful than holiday shopping, according to a CompareCards study: 36

Percentage who said it's more expensive: 32

Percentage who said back-to-school shopping has at least somewhat damaged their relationship with their child: 23

Source: CompareCards.

Percentage of Americans who canceled their cable television subscription within the past two months, according to a nationwide survey about cable-cutting and subscribing to streaming services by the market research team at Colling Media: 20

Percentage of consumers who have subscribed to a streaming service in the past two months (such as Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video): 39

Percentage who have watched a program, movie or video on a desktop or laptop computer, tablet, smartphone or other mobile device within the past two months: 87

Source: Colling Media.

Percentage of homebuyers with children under the age of 18 years who considered a neighborhood based on the quality of the school districts within that neighborhood, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors: 53

Percentage who selected a neighborhood based on its convenience to schools: 50

Source: National Association of Realtors.

Percentage of teens who receive money from parents or caregivers who say it is in the form of cash, according to research by Junior Achievement USA: 80

Percentage who say they have made purchases in cash: 75

Despite the use of cash, percentage of teens who said they do use mobile or online apps to manage their money -- for budgeting and planning purposes: 48

Source: Junior Achievement.

Percentage of employees who feel like they have a career, while the remaining 50% feel like they have just a job, according to a survey from CareerBuilder: 50

Percentage of employees who are satisfied with the opportunities for career advancement at their current company: 32

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

According to a survey by Zillow, percentage of residents in major U.S. metro areas who believe climate change will affect their homes or communities within their lifetime: 50

According to a Zillow analysis, number of existing homes (worth $451 billion) that will be at risk of a 10-year flood by 2050: 800,000-plus

Ranks of Miami, San Jose and Los Angeles on the list of cities most likely to anticipate climate change impact: 1, 2, 3

Source: Zillow.

Estimated number of college students ages 18 to 24 who die each year in cases where alcohol is involved, according to statistics from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism: 1,519

In addition, estimated number of assaults by another student who has been drinking: 696,000

Estimated number of cases of sexual assault or date rape each year: 97,000

Source: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Percentage of employers who are concerned about holding on to top talent, with 1 in 3 being very concerned, according to research by Robert Half: 81

In a separate survey, percentage of professionals who plan to look for a new job in the next 12 months: 43

When workers who said they intend to leave their jobs were asked what would entice them to stay, percentage who said more money: 43

Percentage who said more time off or better benefits: 20

Source: Robert Half.

Percentage of teens who get news at least a few times a week from social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, according to a poll by Common Sense Media and SurveyMonkey: 54

Percentage who get news from YouTube: 50

Of teens who get news of current events from news organizations, percentage who say it helps them better understand what is going on: 65

Percentage of teens who say that "seeing pictures and video showing what happened" gives them the best understanding of major news events: 64

Source: SurveyMonkey.

Idle Thought

"The art of life is to know how to enjoy a little and to endure much." -- William Hazlitt, essayist

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