Percentage of Americans who would voluntarily go into debt to pay for their child's college education, with the average person willing to take on $31,000 in debt, according to a survey from Country Financial: 56
Percentage who believe it's important to have a college degree when looking for a job: 75
Percentage who believe a college degree is worth the investment: 65
Source: Country Financial.
Percentage of newly trained physicians who said they received 51 or more job solicitations during their training, while 45 percent received 100 or more: 66
Percentage who said they were contacted too many times by recruiters: 64
Source: Merritt, Hawkins and Associates.
Percentage of people who said that passengers donning extra clothes to avoid fees charged for overweight baggage is not an acceptable practice, according to a survey conducted by The GO Group: 42
Percentage of respondents who admitted to having layered on extra clothes rather than pay: 6
Source: The GO Group.
Percentage of bridesmaids and maids of honor who felt pressured to spend money on bridal party-related expenses, according to a CompareCards survey: 58 and 61, respectively
Percentage who say the financial pressure strained their relationship with the bride: 32 and 42, respectively
Percentage of groomsmen and best men who said the same: 43 and 50, respectively
Source: CompareCards.
Percentage of Americans who did not take a leisure trip longer than four nights in the last year, with millennials leading this "micro-cation" trend, according to the 2019 Vacation Confidence Index released by Allianz Global Assistance: 57
Percentage of Americans who said their longest trip in the last year was three to four nights, while 11 percent took no trips longer than just one to two nights: 18
Percentage of the general population who said they took at least three micro-cations in the last year: 25
Source: Allianz Global Assistance.
Percentage of Americans who don't think about what they're going to eat for lunch until they realize they're hungry, according to a survey by the California Walnut Board and Commission: 53
Of those, percentage who choose to eat foods that give them energy to power through the day: 27
Of those who bring their own lunch, percentage who said they eat fruits and vegetables: 54
Percentage who bring a salad: 50
Source: California Walnut Board.
Percentage of American pet parents who believe that having pets in the workplace would benefit company culture, according to a survey from Wellness Natural Pet Food: 65
Percentage who believe that pets would diffuse a stressful situation in the workplace: 75
Percentage who feel they would get to know their colleagues better if there were pets present: 59
Source: Wellness Natural Pet Food.
Percentage of Americans who say that they would rather open a small business than retire (if money or health were not a factor later in life), according to a UPS Store survey: 54
Percentage of Americans who say they have hoped their child or a child they know would grow up and start their own business: 62
Among survey respondents who are also small business owners, percentage who say the same: 81
Source: UPS Store.
Percentage of consumers who admit blowing their budgets while online shopping in the past six months, according to research from CouponFollow: 42
Percentage who reported they'd gone into debt in the past six months due to online purchases: 29
Source: CouponFollow.
Percentage of people who indicated they will take at least one solo vacation this year, according to a nationwide survey by Princess Cruises: 36
Source: Princess Cruises.
Idle Thought
"We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." -- Plato
(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)