Ranks of internet connection, mobile device (smartphone, tablet, etc.), driving, pets and cable on the list of things respondents said they'd absolutely not give up, regardless of financial concerns, according to a survey by CareerBuilder.com: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Last year, length of time that the typical American worker stayed at their job, according to research by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute: 5.1 years

In 2016, the median tenure for public-sector workers, compared to 4.1 years for private-sector workers: 8.5 years

Source: EBRI.

Percentage of professionals who said it's appropriate to connect with colleagues on Facebook, according to a survey by OfficeTeam: 71

Percentage of senior managers who said it's OK to engage with colleagues on Facebook: 49

Ranks of Twitter (34 percent), Instagram (30 percent) and Snapchat (26 percent) on the list of social media that senior managers approve: 2, 3, 4

Source: OfficeTeam.

Average number of pangs of guilt American parents feel every single week over parenting decisions they feel weren't quite up to standard, according to research by Farm Rich: 23

Percentage of parents who feel pressured to be "perfect" from friends, family and social media: 75

Percentage of millennial parents who regularly compete with other parents on social media: 31

Source: Farm Rich.

Percentage of HR managers who encourage candidates to follow up within two weeks after submitting a resume, according to research from Accountemps: 65

Percentage of hiring managers who would prefer that the candidate follow up by email: 64

Percentage who would rather a phone call: 21

Source: Accountemps.

Percentage of Americans who are likely to snack while watching TV, according to a survey by Eagle Foods: 96

Time per week the average American spends watching TV: 11 hours, 23 minutes

Percentage of respondents who said that watching television is the most common time they snack and share with friends: 65

Ranks of popcorn, chips and ice cream on the list of the most shareable snacks: 1, 2, 3

Source: G.H. Cretors Popped Corn.

Percentage of all U.S. adults who are single, according to U.S. Census Bureau data: 45

In a survey of 1,000 unmarried and 1,000 married adults (ages 37 and older) by TD Ameritrade, average amount less that singles make in personal income than their married peers ($52,900 vs. $61,700): $8,800

Percentage of singles who own a home, compared to 90 percent of marrieds: 58

Percentage of singles who cite "having complete control over the household finances" as the biggest benefit to not being married: 29

Source: Ameritrade.

Amount of money that a U.S. employer with 1,000 workers stands to lose each year in absenteeism, diminished productivity and health care costs because of exhausted employees, many of whom have undiagnosed and untreated sleep disorders, according to research by the National Safety Council and the Brigham Health Sleep Matters Initiative: $1.4 million

Possible annual costs of fatigue in an average-sized Fortune 500 company: $80 million

Source: National Safety Council.

Percentage of parents who say that they read to their children from a paper book at night, according to a study conducted by Ipsos on behalf of the Paper and Packaging Board: 66

Percentage of parents who believe paper is an essential part of children being able to achieve their educational goals: 96

Percentage of parents who admit that they have seen their children have trouble staying focused when doing homework on a computer or tablet: 61

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of Americans who have attended a holiday party or gathering that ran out of entertaining essentials, such as food, cups, plates, utensils, napkins or alcohol, according to a survey by Wakefield Research for BJ's Wholesale Club: 65

Percentage of parties that have failed because they provided nothing for children to do, such as making crafts or watching a holiday movie: 33

Source: Wakefield Research.

Idle Thought

"It seems like the less a statesman amounts to, the more he adores the flag." -- Kin Hubbard (1868-1930), humorist

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

Percentage of Americans who said that debt is the No. 1 cause of financial stress, according to a survey by GOBankingRates.com: 23

Ranks of everyday costs, health care, taxes, housing and education on the list of causes of financial stress: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Rank of California on the list of states with the highest debt balance per person of any state, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York: 1

Source: GoBankingRates.com.

Percentage of HR managers who report having caught a lie on a resume, according to a CareerBuilder survey: 75

Among human resource managers, typically the gatekeepers for the actual hiring managers, percentage who said they spend less than a minute initially looking at a resume: 39

Percentage who said they spend less than 30 seconds: 19

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Average combined amount that parents spend to feed a teenager from age 13 to 19, according to a national survey, conducted by Farm Rich: $51,790

Percentage of parents who say their teen is a "bottomless pit": 33

Source: Farm Rich.

Percentage of U.S. college seniors who want to work abroad, despite perceived global volatility, according to a survey by Cite Research for Graebel Companies Inc.: 81

Ranks of "experiencing new cultures," "personal growth" and "the chance to travel" on the list of reasons for working abroad: 1, 2, 3

Source: Graebel Companies Inc.

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 -- between getting kids dressed and fed before starting their own day -- percentage of parents who agree that breakfast is a meal made at home: 54

Percentage more that households with children ages 6 to 12 spend on kids cereal annually than other U.S. households: 45

Source: Nielsen Insights.

Among working Americans, percentage who didn't use all the vacation time available to them, according to the results of a survey by Wakefield Research for Princess Cruises: 31

Source: Princess Cruises.

Percentage of Americans who think they should check their credit reports more than once per year, according to a WalletHub survey: 84

Percentage who actually do so: 41

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of millennial drivers who say they would rather go without social media for a week than face the prospect of losing access to a vehicle for an extended time, according to research released from Enterprise: 50

Percentage who would rather skip one meal a day: 39

Percentage who would rather lose an extra hour of sleep each day: 41

Source: Enterprise.

Percentage of professionals who feel at least somewhat confident in the ability of senior management to grow the business, provide sound financial stewardship and drive innovation, according to a Robert Half Management Resources survey: 81

Percentage who believe their organization's executives support staff members' growth: 78

Percentage who believe they can manage change effectively: 79

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

Percentage of Gen Z respondents (ages 13 to 19) who believe they can have an impact on social and environmental issues by using social media, according to the Cone Gen Z CSR study "How to Speak Z": 81

Percentage who use social media to talk about issues they care about: 82

Percentage who are likely to share their positive opinion of companies addressing social and environmental issues: 87

Source: Cone Communications.

Idle Thought

"Too many parents make life hard for their children by trying, too zealously, to make it easy for them." -- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, philosopher

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

Percentage of executives who strongly agreed that recent college graduates have the needed skills to succeed as they enter their first professional job, according to a survey by Korn/Ferry: 5

Compared to college graduates 10 years ago, percentage of respondents who felt today's graduates are more motivated to succeed on the job: 34

Percentage who said today's college graduates are less motivated to succeed: 42

Percentage of professionals who said they look for drive/passion when hiring a new college graduate: 61

Percentage who said grades: 1

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Percentage of women who are likely to let the other person pay for a date, versus 2 percent of men, according to a survey by Bankrate: 46

Percentage of women who are more likely to split the bill, versus 9 percent of men: 37

Source: Bankrate Inc.

Percentage of Americans who believe the condition of a workplace restroom is one indicator of how a company values its workforce, according to a survey by the Bradley Corp.: 89

Percentage of workers who rank their restrooms as "excellent" or "very good": 67

Source: Bradley Corp.

Percentage of Americans ages 18 to 39 who indicated they believe it's "normal to be depressed when you are old," according to a survey by AARP: 47

Percentage of respondents ages 60 and up who believe old age is a "depressing stage of life": 10

Percentage of respondents ages 60 and up who reported they are "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with their life, versus 61 percent of people ages 18 to 39 and 60 percent of those ages 40 to 59: 67

Source: AARP.

Average amount of time Americans spend per week cleaning their house without help, according to a survey on behalf of Alfred Karcher GmbH & Co.: 3.3 hours

Percentage of Americans who would spend more time cleaning their house for visiting friends than for their parents: 34

Percentage who would clean their house before a date arrives: 9

Source: Alfred Karcher GmbH & Co.

If money were not a concern, ranks of Hawaii, Florida, California, Alaska and Colorado on the list of the most popular domestic holiday destinations, according to a survey from TheCashlorette.com: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Internationally, ranks of Italy, Australia, France, the United Kingdom and Ireland on the list: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: TheCashlorette.com.

Number of minutes per day employees ages 18 to 34 rack up on mobile devices, according to an OfficeTeam survey: 70

Amount of time they spend on personal tasks each work day, the most of all age groups: 48 minutes

Source: OfficeTeam.

Amount now loaded to prepaid credit cards each year, according to WalletHub: $300 billion

Annual amount it can cost the consumer if they chose the wrong option on a prepaid card: $311

Percentage less-expensive that prepaid cards from large banks can be than their small-bank counterparts: 82

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of small-business owners who are optimistic about their future, according to a survey by Reliant Funding: 63

Percentage who said their business is good and steadily growing: 76

Source: Reliant Funding.

Percentage of Americans who said that the main reason they buy organic "is to avoid pesticides," according to research for Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Inc.: 90

Percentage of people in the United States who have detectable levels of pesticide breakdown products in their urine: 94

Percentage who said they buy organic to avoid genetically modified organisms (GMOs): 70

Percentage who choose organic produce because they believe it is a more nutritious option to feed their families: 40

Source: Natural Grocers.

Idle Thought

"No one worth possessing, can be quite possessed." -- Sara Teasdale, poet

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