Percentage of HR managers who feel most employers put too little emphasis on emotional intelligence during the hiring process, according to a survey by OfficeTeam: 30

Percentage of HR managers who identified increased motivation and morale as the greatest benefit of having emotionally intelligent staff: 43

Ranks of reference checks and behavioral-based interview questions on the list of the most common ways companies gauge job applicants' EQ: 1, 2

Source: OfficeTeam.

Average financial loss through divorce (in cash and assets), according to a survey by Experian: $20,000

Percentage of respondents who say their former spouse ruined their credit: 44

As a result, percentage of respondents who say the financial loss of a divorce has them going so far as to say they'll never marry again: 39

Source: Experian Marketing Services.

Percentage of American workers who are saving, but saving no more than 10 percent of their pay, including one-quarter who are saving between 1 percent and 5 percent of their incomes, according to a Bankrate report: 48

Percentage of working Americans who say they don't need to save more: 5

Percentage of working Americans who aren't saving any of their incomes: 21

Rank of "have a lot of expenses" on the list of the biggest reasons for not saving: 1

Source: Bankrate.com.

Percentage of American credit card holders who had their annual fee waived or reduced upon request, according to a new CreditCards.com report: 82

Percentage who had their annual fee waived entirely: 51

Percentage who were successful in negotiating the fee to a lower amount: 31

Percentage of cardholders who have ever made that request: 11

Source: Creditcards.com.

Ranks of health care and the economy on the list of issues that most concern Americans, according to Ipsos research: 1, 2

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Number of children under the age of 5 who are killed by environmental pollutants (that means 1 in 4 deaths of children aged 1 month to 5 years old) every year, according to the World Health Organization: 1.7 million

Source: World Health Organization.

Number of hours of sleep that is recommended per night, according to the American Academy of Neurology: 7 to 9

Percentage of women under 45 who have children who reported getting at least seven hours of sleep, compared to 62 percent of women without children: 48

Number of days per month that younger women with children reported feeling tired: 14 days

Number of days per month that women without children reported feeling tired: 11

Source: American Academy of Neurology.

Number of people who died in alcohol-impaired driving fatalities in 2015, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: 10,265

In 2016, percentage who admitted to driving when they thought they were over the legal limit one or more times within the previous 12 months, compared to 8.0 percent in 2015: 11.7

Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Year that Alexander Graham Bell made the first local telephone call, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1876

Today, number of cellphone subscriptions there are for every 100 people in the U.S.: 118

Of America's 118 million occupied housing units, percentage that have no phone service available: 2.5

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of pay-TV subscribers in U.S. broadband households that are bothered by the fact that advertisers use residents' personal viewing data to push personalized ads to them, according to research from Parks Associates: 59

Percentage of pay-TV subscribers who worry about the safety and use of their personal data when they use an online video service: 40

Source: Parks Associates.

Idle Thought

"And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight inside the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." -- Anais Nin, writer

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

Percentage of workers who say that the extra perk of half-day Fridays would make them more willing to join or stay with a company, according to a new CareerBuilder survey: 40

Percentage who said an onsite fitness center: 27

Percentage who said being able to wear jeans: 23

Percentage who cited daily catered lunches: 22

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

When asked to imagine their life in 20 years, percentage of Gen Xers who still see themselves traveling or vacationing, according to a study conducted by Ipsos on behalf of MDVIP: 67

Percentage who would pursue personal passions or hobbies: 59

Percentage who see themselves socializing with friends or actively meeting new people: 52

Percentage who believe that they will still be sexually active: 49

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of occupied housing units across the country primarily heated by wood, according to research by the U.S. Census Bureau: 2

Percentage of occupied housing units across the country using solar energy as their primary source of heat: 1

Percentage of occupied housing units across the country primarily heated by utility gas: 48

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of shoppers who believe they're more knowledgeable than retail store associates, according to a survey from Tulip Retail: 83

Percentage who say knowledgeable store associates are "important" or "very important": 79

Percentage of consumers who believe physical retail locations will be part of the shopping journey in the future: 64

Source: Tulip Retail.

Percentage of employees who browse Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets while at work, according to a poll conducted by ComPsych Corp.: 78

When employees were asked how many times a day they checked their social media, percentage who selected "0 times per day": 12

Percentage who selected "1-5 times per day": 60

Source: ComPsych.

Percentage of today's workforce that has been unable to progress in their careers due to a lack of skills, training or certifications, according to a survey commissioned by Wyzant and Recruiter.com: 48

Percentage of workers who feel that opportunities for advancement in their industry are simply passing them by: 67

Percentage who say that if access to professional training and education were not an issue, they would prefer to work in another industry: 61

Source: Toluna QuickSurveys.

Percentage of CIOs who said their companies are early adopters of technology, according to research from Robert Half Technology and The Creative Group: 17

Percentage of technology executives who agreed it's at least somewhat important for leaders in their department to try out technical innovations: 94

Source: Robert Half Technology.

Ranks of print ads in newspapers and magazines, TV ads, direct mail and online pop-ups on the list of the most trusted advertising channel when consumers are making a purchase decision, according to Marketing Sherpa: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: MarketingSherpa.

Percentage of employed adults across the globe who value their job over a good night's sleep, according to the results of an international survey conducted for Philips: 10

Percentage who say that some things (including spending time with their spouse or partner, family, friends and job) takes precedence over a good night's sleep: 80

Source: Philips Sleep and Respiratory Care.

Percentage of BarkHappy app users who feed their dogs dry food vs. other types such as canned or wet food, according to a survey by BarkHappy: 60

Percentage of dog owners who feed their pets table scraps or bites of their own food, according to a survey by BarkHappy: 60

Source: BarkHappy.

Idle Thought

"Hofstadter's Law: It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take into account Hofstadter's Law." -- Douglas Hofstadter, Professor of cognitive science

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

During 2016, amount of credit debt racked up by U.S. consumers, pushing outstanding balances to $978.9 billion, according to research by WalletHub, based on Federal Reserve data: $89.2 billion

Amount that the average indebted household now owes: $8,377

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of workers who feel they do not get enough sleep each night, according to a new survey from CareerBuilder: 26

Percentage of all workers who say that a lack of sleep has negatively impacted their work: 60

Percentage who say thinking about work keeps them up at night: 47

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Year that the first practical automatic dishwasher was born (designed by Josephine Cochrane, a socialite, out of annoyance at how her domestic staff damaged her china), according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1839

Year that a patent was awarded: 1886

Today, of the nation's nearly 133 million housing units, number that have automatic dishwashers: 87 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

When dining with family, percentage of families who say they have a no cellphone policy at the table, according to a survey by Toluna: 50

When dining with friends, percentage who have a no cellphone policy at the table: 39

Percentage of Americans who have blocked family or a friend on social media without their knowledge: 44

Source: Toluna QuickSurveys.

Percentage of women who believe that communication is the most important thing in a relationship, according to a survey commissioned by epi24: 72

Percentage who said having fun together: 11

Percentage who said sexual attraction: 2

Source: epi24.

Percentage of Americans who plan to look for a better-paying job and increase overall savings over the next four years, according to an Experian survey: 43

Percentage who said they will decrease their spending: 39

Source: Experian Consumer Direct.

Percentage of IT executives who understand that the pace of IT change and transformation is increasing, according to the results of a survey by BMC: 86

Percentage of respondents who state that the share of IT budget spent on ongoing management and maintenance is growing: 55

Source: BMC.

Percentage of U.S. employers who are feeling the direct impact of prescription drug misuse in their workplaces, according to a survey by the National Safety Council: 71

Percentage of employers who agree that prescription drug misuse is a disease that requires treatment: 71

Percentage who feel it is a justifiable reason to fire an employee: 65

Source: National Safety Council.

Percentage of Americans who believe the average person should be taking concrete steps to reduce his or her environmental impact, according to a survey conducted by Knoxville-based Shelton Group: 90

Percentage who think that personal energy conservation habits can make a real difference in preventing climate change: 67

Percentage of Americans who correctly identified the No. 1 manmade cause of climate change -- the energy we use in our homes: 6

Source: Shelton Group.

Idle Thought

"Success is not final; failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts." -- Winston Churchill

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