oddities

Figuratively Speaking for April 27, 2008

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | April 27th, 2008

Percentage of workers in the U.S. and Europe who report Sunday night sleep loss, according to a Monster.com poll that asked whether the thought of going to work on Monday affects their Sunday night sleep: 78

Rank of work as the most frequent source of stress, according to a poll conducted by the American Psychological Association: 1

Source: Monster.com.

Percentage of Americans who prefer a dollar bill to a coin, according to a Harris poll: 76

Percentage who favor abolishing the penny: 24

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of Americans who complain that they pay too much in federal income taxes, according to Gallup's 2008 Economy and Personal Finance survey: 52

Percentage who say they pay the right amount: 42

Percentage who say they pay too little: 2

Source: Gallup.

Ranks of manager (20 percent) and educator (11 percent) as the two most prevalent careers among the $1 million to $5 million group of millionaires, according to a report by Spectrem Group: 1, 2

Ranks of entrepreneur/business owner (30 percent) and senior corporate executive (17 percent) as the most prevalent careers in the $25 million and higher category: 1, 2

Source: Spectrem Group.

Percentage of employees who are stressed due to financial concerns, according to a national survey of working adults commissioned by Workplace Options: 75

Percentage of respondents who report that their financial stress makes it harder for them to do their job: 45

Source: Workplace Options.

Ranks of bankruptcy, litigation, and ethics and corporate governance as the areas of law that will experience the most growth in the next 12 months, according to a survey by Robert Half Legal: 1, 2, 3

Source: Robert Half International.

Percentage rise in the number of facelifts performed for patients age 40 and over from 2006 to 2007, according to American Society of Plastic Surgeons statistics: 14

Estimated number of procedures performed in 2007: 116,200

Number of Botox procedures performed in 2007: 3.6 million

Source: ASPS.

Percentage of parents and teens who agree that kids are not as careful as they should be about information they give out online, according to a survey by McAfee: 80

Estimated percentage of 13- to 17-year-olds who have received messages online from someone they didn't know: 70

Percentage of teens who use social networking sites: 55

Source: McAfee Inc.

Percentage of Americans who say spending time outdoors makes them feel refreshed, healthy and excited, according to a Miracle-Gro Survey: 83

Percentage who admit they don't take enough advantage of the restorative powers of nature: 61

Source: Edelman.

Because of the impact of globalization, percentage of organizations that have already expanded the scope of their diversity and inclusion training programs, according to a survey of senior HR and training executives in the U.S. by Novations Group: 41

Percentage that had expanded their diversity and inclusion programming in 2005: 15

Source: Novations Group Inc.

Idle Thought

"It is better to sleep on things beforehand than lie awake about them afterwards." -- Baltasar Gracian, philosopher and writer (1601-1658)

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

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

oddities

Figuratively Speaking for April 20, 2008

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | April 20th, 2008

Percentage of surveyed school superintendents who believe that arts training is crucial to developing creativity, according to key findings from a report by the Conference Board and Americans for the Arts, in partnership with the American Association of School Administrators: 99

Percentage of surveyed employers who agree: 97

Rank of problem identification and articulation that employers identify as the most important talents indicating creativity: 1

Source: Conference Board.

Given free choice, percentage of Americans -- both men and women -- who say they would prefer to have a job outside the home, according to Gallup's annual Work and Education survey: 58

Percentage of women who say they would rather hold a job outside the home: 50

Percentage of men who say the same: 68

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of U.S. financial advisers who say their clients are still planning a timely retirement, despite current financial woes, according to a survey conducted by Brinker Capital: 46

Of those U.S. financial advisers who say their clients are off track, percentage who attribute this to their clients' starting saving too late: 63

Percentage of U.S. financial advisers who say their clients plan to work past age 65: 54

Source: Brinker Capital.

Percentage of the U.S. managerial work force that is comprised of women, according to a survey by the Simmons School of Management: 51

Estimated percentage of board membership of large, publicly traded U.S. corporations that are women: 15

Ranks of social network building (88 percent), self-promotion (61 percent) and career progression (56 percent) as the actions identified by women that they could take to increase their chances for board membership: 1, 2, 3

Source: Simmons School of Management.

Number of lifetime victories achieved by Cy Young, still baseball's winningest pitcher, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 511

Percentage of games he won in his 22 seasons: 62

When Cy Young retired, number of people who went to major league baseball games: 6.5 million

Estimated number who go today: 78 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of affluent U.S. households (households with $500,000 or more in investable assets) that are likely to change their budget and spending habits due to the current economic climate, according to data from Spectrem Group: 42

Percentage who fear they'll lose their jobs: 6

Source: Spectrem Group.

Ranks of the Bible, "Gone With the Wind," the "Lord of the Rings" series, the "Harry Potter" series and "The Stand" as Americans' favorite books, according to the results of a nationwide Harris Poll: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of small business owners/managers who say they still look for help with their taxes, according to a survey conducted by American Express Small Business Monitor: 79

Percentage who say they do their taxes themselves: 17

Percentage who do them by hand with a pen and paper: 6

Source: OPEN: The Small Business Network -- American Express.

Percentage of the world's heroin and other opiates that originate in Afghanistan, according to the magazine Newsweek: 93

Estimated number of Afghan families who support themselves by raising poppies, according to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime: 500,000

Estimated total amount those growers received for their crops in 2007: $1 billion (about $2,000 per household)

Source: Newsweek.

Percentage of U.S. consumers who say they are more likely to do business with a company that offers the flexibility to interact using self-service -- whether via the Internet, on a mobile device or at a kiosk or ATM, according to a survey by NCR and BuzzBack Market Research: 86

Percentage of respondents who say their likelihood to use self-service has increased over the past year: 56

Source: NCR Corp.

Idle Thought

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." -- Margaret Mead

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

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

oddities

Figuratively Speaking for April 13, 2008

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | April 13th, 2008

Percentage of prospective graduates who expect to "boomerang" and spend at least some time living with their parents, according to a survey conducted by MonsterTrak: 48

Percentage of 2007 graduates who are still living with their parents: 43

Of this group, percentage who say it is due to limited financial resources: 75

Source: MonsterTRAK.

Percentage of travelers who said money is the biggest barrier when it comes to taking family vacations, according to TripAdvisor's Family Travel Survey: 51

Percentage of respondents who take trips with their children who said the hardest part of taking a family vacation is staying on budget: 30

Source: TripAdvisor.

Percentage of job-seeking executives who said they would be comfortable setting their sights on new employment opportunities even while on their current employers' payrolls, according to a survey by Accountemps: 75

Source: Robert Half International.

Percentage of Americans who classify themselves as "early birds," according to a survey conducted by Braun Research for Panera Bread: 46

Percentage who say they are "night owls": 24

Source: Panera Bread.

Year the comic strip "Mutt and Jeff" first appeared in the nations' newspapers, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1908

Estimated number of daily newspapers that were printed at that time: 2,600

Estimated number printed today: 1,450

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of homeowners who have received reverse mortgage loans who said they needed the funds because their budget was too tight, according to a survey conducted by Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta: 19

Percentage who said they needed more liquid assets on hand: 16

Percentage who said the money was needed for repairs and maintenance: 15

Percentage who needed to care for dependents and/or pay medical bills: 8

Source: Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta Inc.

Percentage level of employee engagement -- measured as overall satisfaction with their jobs, pride in working for their employers, whether they would recommend their organizations as a place to work and their willingness to put forth extra effort -- by traditionalists, those employees 63 and older, according to research by Sirota Survey Intelligence: 84

Percentage employee engagement level of baby boomers (ages 43 to 62): 77

Percentage employee engagement level of Generation X (ages 28 to 42): 78

Percentage employee engagement level of Generation Y (ages 27 and younger): 80

Source: Buchanan Public Relations.

Percentage of C-level U.S. executives (CEO, CFO, CIO, owner/partner) who say they want to take their business completely virtual in the next five years, according to a survey conducted by TIE Commerce and The Mishra Group: 53.4

Percentage of U.S. executives who say they are familiar with the advantages of e-commerce: 80.8

Percentage of U.S. executives who say that they would take their company virtual right now if their business could afford the cost: 30.1

Source: TIE Commerce.

Percentage of Americans who say that fashion shows are "over the top" and that they wouldn't wear any of what they see on the catwalk, according to a survey conducted by BIGresearch: 86

Source: BIGresearch.

Percentage of Americans who say that they would rank spending to raise energy efficiency and develop alternative fuel technology as a top priority for future investment, according to a survey conducted by the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in Virginia: 37

Percentage of Americans who say that they would rank spending for medical breakthroughs as most important: 30

Percentage who rank spending on the environment as the most important: 14

Source: Fairfax County Economic Development Authority.

Idle Thought

"To want to be what one can be is purpose in life." -- Cynthia Ozick

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

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

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