Percentage of side hustlers (those who have a job on the side) who do it at least monthly, according to a Bankrate.com report: 86
Percentage of those who earn more than an additional $500 per month doing so: 36
Of those who earn money on the side, percentage who use the extra cash to help pay for expenses, rather than as disposable income for other things: 54
Source: Bankrate.com.
Projected total spending for all school and college supplies combined, according to the National Retail Federation's annual survey conducted by Prosper Insights and Analytics: $83.6 billion
Average amount that families with children in elementary through high school plan to spend: $687.72
Source: NRF.
Percentage of workers who said they know someone who included false information on a resume, a 25-point jump from a 2011 survey, according to an OfficeTeam survey: 46
Ranks of job experience and duties on the list of the areas most frequently embellished: 1, 2
Percentage of senior managers who suspect candidates often stretch the truth on resumes: 53
Source: OfficeTeam.
Ranks of Utah, Iowa, South Carolina, Washington and Nebraska on the list of the best states in which to grow old, according to a Caring.com study with emphasis on financial, health care and quality-of-life categories focused on senior care: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Ranks of Wyoming, North Dakota, New York, Indiana and West Virginia on the list of the worst states: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Source: Caring.com.
Percentage of Americans who say no amount of money -- not even $10,000 -- makes up for getting bumped from a flight, according to a new survey from PolicyGenius.com: 20.7
Percentage who said they required between $2,000 and $10,000 to feel compensated for the inconvenience: 49
Percentage who said any amount below $2,000 wasn't worth the hassle: 70
Source: PolicyGenius.
Percentage of the U.S. general population who could name a food or nutrient associated with their most desired health benefit, according to research by the International Food Information Council: 44
Percentage of "foodies" -- defined as someone who sacrifices convenience and cost in search of a quality product -- who were able to do so: 60
Source: IFIC.
Percentage of Americans who report they aren't getting the sleep they need, according to the results of a survey by Wakefield Research for Princess Cruises: 49
Percentage who say they don't set aside time to relax each day: 78
Source: Princess Cruises.
Percentage of consumers who use their personal smartphones to conduct business, according to research by Strategy Analytics: 50.4
Percentage of business users who utilize their personal smartphone over 50 percent of the time to conduct business: 20.5
Percentage of business users who are compensated by their employer for their network wireless operator charges: 20.8
Source: Strategy Analytics.
Percentage of homebuyers who would be willing to sacrifice a larger house to gain a larger yard, according to a 2017 consumer survey conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of Taylor Morrison: 56
Rank of "distance from neighboring homes" on the list of the most important exterior features of a home: 1
Source: Taylor Morrison.
Percentage of American consumers who believe seafood is important to their health and nutrition, according to a 2017 Cargill Feed4Thought consumer survey: 72
Percentage who are willing to pay more for seafood that is certified as sustainably and responsibly sourced: 88
Percentage who are adding salmon, shrimp and tilapia to their lunch and dinner plates: 82
Source: Cargill.
Idle Thought
"We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like?" -- Jean Cocteau, author and painter
(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)