Figuratively Speaking

Percentage of Americans who had a pension prior to Congress passing the Revenue Act in 1978, which created 401(k) plans, according to the Employee Benefits Research Center: 33

Percentage who have a pension today: less than 2

Source: EBRI.

Percentage of Americans who drink caffeinated beverages from 3 p.m. on, according to the National Sleep Foundation: 42

Percentage who say they don't get any exercise in a given week: 18

Source: National Sleep Foundation.

Percentage of high-income earners who say they feel not at all supported at work when it comes to caregiving duties for family members, according to the Longevity Project: 5

Percentage of those earning less than $50,000 who feel not at all supported: 19

Source: Longevity Project.

Percentage of post-COVID home shoppers who said they would have extended family living with them full time, according to a survey by Realtor.com: 20

Percentage who said their new home would need to accommodate extended family staying with them part time or visiting: 30

Percentage who indicated a short commute time was a priority: 9

Percentage who were looking for smaller square footage: 4

Source: Realtor.com.

Percentage of Americans who agreed that the Summer Olympics in Tokyo should go ahead, even if the COVID-19 pandemic wasn't over yet, according to research by Ipsos: 52

Percentage of people globally who agreed the games should go ahead: 43

Percentage of the people in Japan, the host nation, who said the Olympics should go ahead: 22

Source: Ipsos Global.

Percentage of businesses that say they're experiencing higher supply costs than they had prior to COVID, according to a survey by Alignable: 80

Percentage that said costs have increased more than 25%: 27

Source: Alignable.

Number of hours Americans spend online annually just looking for deals, according to a survey by Slickdeals: 88

Percentage who do it just for fun: 68

Percentage who tell total strangers how much money they saved when complimented on their outfit that they bought on sale: 69

Source: Slickdeals.

Percentage of U.S. workers who believe that "employee experience" directly impacts their ability to serve customers, according to a survey from Eagle Hill Consulting: 64

Percentage who say that their organization places a great deal of importance on employee experience and satisfaction: 38

Percentage who agree that their feelings about their day-to-day work experience -- negative or positive -- impacts their productivity: 70

Source: Eagle Hill Consulting.

Among the 38% of Americans who worked from home at some point since the pandemic, ranks of fewer opportunities to network and interact with co-workers, lower productivity due to too many distractions, and limited opportunities for promotions and salary increases on the list of the most common negatives, according to a study from Bankrate.com : 1, 2, 3

Percentage of baby boomers who are much more likely to miss networking/interacting with co-workers: 54

Percentage of Gen Zers who say the same: 34

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of Americans not already receiving Social Security benefits who say they know exactly how to optimize their Social Security benefit, according to a poll conducted for the Nationwide Retirement Institute: 54

Percentage who know all the factors that determine the maximum benefit someone can receive: 6

Percentage who don't know the eligible age to receive full benefits: 39

Source: Nationwide.

Idle Thought

"It is perhaps a more fortunate destiny to have a taste for collecting shells than to be born a millionaire." -- Robert Louis Stevenson, novelist, essayist and poet (1850-1894)

Percentage of parents with children under 18 who say they are willing to accrue debt to treat themselves/their families, according to a survey by creditcards.com: 76

Percentage who plan to spend more money in at least one nonessential category in the second half of 2021: 66

Source: Creditcards.com.

Among people who eat at a sit-down restaurant, the average percentage tip amount they add to the bill, according to research by Bankrate.com: 20

Ranks of unfriendly staff, waiting too long and not receiving what they ordered/expected on the list of reasons that 77% of sit-down restaurantgoers will tip less: 1, 2, 3

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of today's shoppers who identify cost as the biggest barrier to healthy eating, according to research by Acosta: 30

Percentage of shoppers who say they are taking a proactive approach to living a healthy lifestyle: 65

Percentage of shoppers say who the cost of health insurance is the biggest barrier to living a healthy lifestyle: 37

Source: Acosta.

Percentage of Americans who are having more sex than before the pandemic, according to a survey conducted by Lovehoney in partnership with the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University: 30

Percentage who report more satisfying sex lives, including 46% of couples: 32

Source: Lovehoney.

With clarity about the upcoming school year and consumer sentiment continuing to rise, projected back-to-school spending for K-12 students, according to the 2021 Deloitte Back-to School survey: $32.5 billion

Approximate amount per student: $612

Projected back-to-college spending: $26.7 billion

Approximate amount per student: $1,459

Source: Deloitte.

Looking back, percentage of parents who say they were not financially prepared to have a child, according to a survey from Policygenius: 45

Percentage of parents who say their biggest financial stressor is saving for retirement: 30

Percentage who say educational expenses put the biggest strain on their budget: 23

Source: Policygenius.

Percentage of U.S. adults who do not have a will, representing nearly 140 million people, according to research by GoodTrust: 67

Ranks of "I haven't gotten around to it" and "I don't have enough assets to leave anyone" on the list of the top excuses people cite for not creating a will: 1, 2

Source: GoodTrust.

Percentage of U.S. broadband households that are unlikely to subscribe to another video service to watch new movies, according to Parks Associates: 44

Percentage of U.S. broadband households that are now comfortable going back to movie theaters, including 50% or more of consumers aged 18 to 34: 41

Source: Parks Associates.

Percentage of professionals who are uncomfortable sharing workstations, according to a survey by Robert Half: 53

Percentage who want a hybrid work structure, where they can divide time between the office and another location: 49

Source: Robert Half.

Estimated number of students annually whose lives could be changed by a free community college, according to a survey from BestColleges.com, a Red Ventures company: 5.5 million

Percentage of Americans who believe the government should provide two years of tuition for first-time students who attend public community colleges: 69

Percentage of supporters who agree that students should have to qualify under specific requirements: 37

Source: Red Ventures.

Idle Thought

"Patience is also a form of action." -- Auguste Rodin, sculptor

Percentage of millennials and Gen Zers who plan to use money saved during the pandemic toward a down payment on a house, according to a survey by Zillow: 59

Percentage of young adults who say they somewhat or completely preferred a home in a remote area: 44

Number of young adults who moved back home since the spring of 2020: 3 million

Source: Zillow.

Number of cigarette-equivalents of tobacco (combining smoked tobacco products include manufactured cigarettes, hand-rolled cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, pipes, shisha, and regional products such as bidis and kreteks) that were consumed in 2019, amounting to 20.3 billion each day worldwide, according to research by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation: 7.4 trillion� Globally, percentage of male and female smokers who consume 20 or more cigarette-equivalents per day: 33 for men, 20 for women� Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

Percentage of professionals who plan to take more than three weeks of vacation time this year, according to research from global staffing firm Robert Half: 33� Percentage who are ready for an "awaycation" to travel and completely disconnect from work: 57� Percentage who prefer a staycation: 32� Source: Robert Half.

Percentage of 13- to 17-year-olds who say they have had some sort of financial literacy class in school, according to a survey conducted for Junior Achievement: 38� Percentage of teens who agree with the statement, "Every student should have at least one financial literacy class before graduating high school": 87

Source: Junior Achievement.

Percentage of Americans who say they are confident they will take a vacation this year (up from 42% in 2019 and 26% in 2020), which is defined as a leisure trip of at least a week to a place that is 100 miles or more from home, according to Allianz Partners: 60� Source: Allianz Global Assistance USA.

Percentage of Americans who said global warming is a serious and pressing problem, according to the results of a Long Island University Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling and Analysis national poll: 73� Percentage of respondents between the ages of 18 and 29 who said it was: 80� Percentage aged 45 years and older who agreed: 68� Source: Long Island University Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling and Analysis.

Percentage of U.S. workers (and 54% of European workers) who believe vaccines will not completely stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus: 47� Percentage of U.S. workers (and 34% of European workers) who feel that their employers have a plan in place to provide vaccination: 39� Percentage of workers in both regions who are not comfortable with employers collecting their personal data specific to the pandemic: 66� Source: Forrester.

Among vaccinated travelers surveyed globally, rank of dining indoors, visiting a museum and visiting a theme park on the list of activities they feel more confident attending, according to a survey conducted by TripAdvisor: 1, 2, 3� Percentage of U.S. respondents who plan on taking a summer vacation somewhere in the U.S., while 22% plan on taking a summer vacation abroad: 51� Source: TripAdvisor.

Percentage of homeowners who expect to spend more than $10,000 on upcoming interior projects, while 71% of respondents plan to spend $5,000 or less on interior work: 17� This year, percentage of homeowners who plan to finance about half of their project, up from 20% of respondents in 2020: 31� Source: Modernize.com.

Percentage of students who believe their post-graduate plans may have been different if not for the economic recession, according to a report from BestColleges.com: 45� Percentage who feel apprehensive about entering the current job market: 52� Percentage of graduates who feel the pandemic impacted their immediate employment goals: 56� Percentage who reported feeling prepared to work remotely as 2021 college graduates: 59� Source: BestColleges.com.

Idle Thought

"A brother is a friend given by nature." -- Gabriel Legouve, French poet (1764-1812)