oddities

Figuratively Speaking for September 02, 2016

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | September 2nd, 2016

Percentage of millennials who sleep with their smartphone by their side, according to coupofy.com: 78

Percentage who check their messages within an hour of waking up: 82

Chances that a millennial is checking messages 10 times or more an hour: 1 in 5

Source: coupofy.com.

Rank of IBM as the brand people in China would most like to work for, according to a survey by Randstad: 1

Rank of the Walt Disney Corp. in the United States: 1

Rank of BMW in Germany: 1

Rank of Ferrero in Italy: 1

Rank of Ikea in Sweden: 1

Source: Randstad.

Percentage of families who say they are surprised at how expensive child-care costs are, according to Care.com: 66

Percentage who say they just don't know where the money goes when it comes to spending on children: 60

Percentage who say child-care costs have influenced their careers: 67

Source: Care.com.

When advertising and marketing executives were asked which workspace arrangement they thought was most conducive to encouraging creativity, percentage of executives who chose open-concept office (unenclosed workspace for multiple people), according to research by staffing firm The Creative Group: 36

Percentage of workers who agreed: 26

Percentage of executives who chose a private office (enclosed workspace for one person): 18

Percentage of workers who agreed: 36

Source: The Creative Group.

In 2015, number of unmarried people in America age 18 and older, includes those who were never married, widowed or divorced, according to research by the U.S. Census Bureau: 109 million

Percentage of unmarried U.S. residents 18 and older who had never been married: 63

Percentage who were divorced: 24

Percentage who were widowed: 13

Number of households maintained by unmarried men and women in 2015, comprising 47 percent of households nationwide: 59 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

When Americans were asked if they could just pick one -- a yearly summer vacation or a desired outdoor living space -- percentage who chose the vacation, according to an Ipsos Reid Omnibus survey: 62

Percentage who said a yearly summer vacation is a real priority: 82

Percentage of respondents who said "peaceful, relaxing and stress-free" is their preferred type of summer vacation: 38

Source: Ipsos Reid Omnibus Services.

Percentage of executives who agreed that there is a long-term financial benefit to companies that make strong commitments to purpose-driven leadership, according to a Korn Ferry survey: 70

Percentage of respondents who reported seeing at least some degree of increased productivity when employees understand and embrace the mission and purpose of the organization: 97

Percentage who agreed to a great extent that their organizations engage employees with purpose: 50

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

During the school year, percentage of consumers who are making a concerted effort to buy healthier foods and take their kids' health into their own hands, according to a Nielsen survey: 64

Percentage of Americans who agree that breakfast is the most important meal of the day: 74

Despite morning being the most hectic part of the day, percentage of respondents who agree that breakfast is a meal made at home: 54

Source: Nielsen Insights.

Percentage of Americans who agree they love trying new things outside of their own culture, according to a Harris Poll: 78

Percentage of all U.S. adults who say it is at least very important that the foods they buy and consume contain multicultural flavors: 26

Source: The Harris Poll.

Rank of millennials (18 to 34 years old) on the list of the largest living generation in the country, according to research by Connections Education: 1

Percentage of children age 0 to 17 who had millennial parents in 2014, and this figure is expected to exceed 50 percent in 2016: 43

Source: Connections Education.

Idle Thought

"Life's too short to hang out with people who aren't resourceful." -- Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon

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

oddities

Figuratively Speaking for August 26, 2016

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | August 26th, 2016

Percentage of Americans who haven't taken a vacation (defined as leisure travel of at least one week to a destination at least 100 miles from home) in the past 12 months, according to an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Allianz Global Assistance: 53

Among those for whom an annual vacation is important, percentage who haven't been on one for at least a year: 41

Source: Ipsos Reid Public Affairs.

Number of digital devices owned by the average American, according to a Nielsen report: 4

Percentage of consumers who report that they've bought or rented one or more TV shows digitally in the past six months: 50

Percentage of consumers who reported that they have shifted entirely to digital means for their TV and movie consumption: 12

Source: Nielsen Online.

Date that the American Bar Association was founded in Saratoga Springs, New York, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: Aug. 21, 1878

Number of attorneys from 21 states who were present at its first meeting: 100

Today, estimated number of lawyers there are in the U.S.: 1.28 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who have combined their finances in a current/past relationship who admit to committing "financial infidelity" against their partner, according to a survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of the National Endowment for Financial Education: 42

Percentage who say that when financial deceptions occur there is an effect on the relationship: 75

Source: The Harris Poll.

When Americans were asked, "What is your No. 1 cause of financial stress?" percentage who cited "paying off my debt" (i.e., credit cards, loans, etc.), according to a survey commissioned by GOBankingRates: 21

Percentage who were anxious about not being able to retire: 16

Source: GoBankingRates.com.

Known as "continuous candidates," percentage of employees across the globe who are always looking for their next job opportunity, according to a global study conducted by ManpowerGroup Solutions: 37

Percentage of continuous candidates in Mexico and the United States, far exceeding the global average: 50 and 41, respectively

Percentage of continuous candidates who are millennials (18 to 34 years old): 60

Source: Source: ManpowerGroup.

Percentage of students who have at least one credit card, according to a study from Sallie Mae and Ipsos: 56

Percentage of students who pay their bills on time: 77

Percentage who never spend more money than they have available: 60

Source: Sallie Mae.

When families were asked in advance of actual back-to-school shopping if they will follow a school-provided list, percentage of moms who said either "completely" or "very closely," according to a poll by Field Agent: 67

Percentage of moms who said clothing topped their shopping lists of items they intend to purchase for the new school year: 96

Source: Field Agent.

Number of smartphones in use today, according to CCS Insight: 3.3 billion

Estimated number in the year 2020: 5.4 billion

Source: CCS Insight.

Percentage of working Americans who state they are saving more for retirement than they were last year, the highest level reported in the past five years, according to research by Bankrate.com: 21

Number of working Americans this percentage represents: 31 million

Source: Bankrate.com.

Idle Thought

"Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." -- Mark Twain

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

oddities

Figuratively Speaking for August 19, 2016

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | August 19th, 2016

Ranks of Germany ($53,619), United States ($48,270), Australia ($47,397), Netherlands ($45,626) and the United Kingdom ($39,946) on the list of countries with the highest salaries for new university graduates across the globe, according to an analysis of entry-level professional salaries by the Hay Group division of Korn Ferry: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Ranks of the Russian Federation ($8,448), Brazil ($11,306), China ($11,936), Mexico ($12,433) and the Czech Republic ($13,040) on the list of countries with the lowest salaries for new university graduates: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Estimated number of extra days of work per year put in by managers, effectively canceling out the typical holiday entitlement of 28 days, according to CMI's Quality of Working Life report: 29

Percentage of managers who say their working hours have a negative effect on their stress levels: 54

Source: Global Wellness Institute.

Percentage of Americans who feel immigration is good for the economy, the largest percentage to date, and a 13-point increase from 23 percent in 2011, according to the findings of the Ipsos Global @dvisor Immigration tracker 2011-2016: 36

Percentage of Americans who feel immigrants play a positive role in the community, up from 18 percent in 2011 and nearly six times that of Turkish and Hungarian citizens, where just 6 percent believe immigration has had a positive impact on their country: 35

Percentage of Americans who are confident that refugees will successfully integrate into the U.S.: 53

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of senior managers who said they find it annoying when parents are involved in their kids' search for work, according to an OfficeTeam survey: 35

Percentage of respondents who prefer mom and dad stay out of the job hunt, but would let it slide: 34

Percentage who said this parental guidance is not a problem: 29

Source: OfficeTeam.

Number of foreign-born U.S. residents in 1967, with Italy as the leading country of origin, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 9.6 million

Percentage of the population this represented: 4.7

Number of foreign-born U.S. residents in 2016, with Mexico as the leading country of origin: 42.4 million

Percentage of the population this represents: 13.3

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of workers who say they would struggle to meet emergency expenses of $400, according to a survey of household economics and decision making commissioned by the Federal Reserve Board: 46

Percentage who say they are juggling two or more jobs: 22

Source: Federal Reserve Board.

Rank of the back-to-school shopping season on the list of the largest shopping periods of the year in terms of consumer spending, according to the statistics company Statista: 2

Rank of the winter holidays: 1

Source: Statista.

Percentage of respondents who say they reach for a bottle after a breakup, according to a Harris Poll: 40

Ranks of wine (53 percent) -- with 38 percent reaching for sparkling wine and 37 percent for table -- liquor (46 percent) and beer (41 percent) on the list of drinks chosen when it comes to celebrating something special: 1, 2, 3

When it comes to a plain old really good day, ranks of beer (40 percent), wine (33 percent) and liquor (27 percent) on the list of drinks of choice: 1, 2, 3

Source: The Harris Poll.

Percentage of Americans who said they would be uncomfortable driving in a foreign country on the opposite side of the road, according to the results of the Expedia 2016 Road Rage Report: 68

Percentage who "somewhat or strongly agree" with the statement, "I treat my rental car worse than I treat my own car": 15

Percentage of drivers who resent having to share the road with bicycles: 13

Source: Expedia.

Rank of Vina del Mar, Chile, with an average annual high temperature of 66.2 degrees Fahrenheit and yearly average nighttime low of 55.1 degrees, and with only slight variation in temperature throughout all the months of a given year, on the list of the best weather places in the world for humans, according to an article by Ed Darack published in Weatherwise: 1

Ranks of Las Palmas, Gran Canaria; the northwestern coast of Morocco; Sassari, Sardinia, Italy; Barcelona, Spain; and Lisbon, Portugal, on the list of the Best Weather Cities around the world: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Source: Weatherwise.

Idle Thought

"I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually." -- James Baldwin, writer

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

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