• Confessions of a trust fund baby — LearnVest
• Questions you should ask at every job interview — Wise Bread
• Are women apologizing for earning more than their husbands? — HuffPost Women
• Should you play the lottery? — The Billfold
• How to make your first day a great day — Corporette
• Today’s housing market – what you need to know — Credit Sesame
• How to let someone down easy — Real Simple
• Why it's always worth asking for a hotel upgrade — Lifehacker
• How to ask for a raise — The Jane Dough

Peppering your conversations with "like" can seem like the norm or even cool in high school, but when it comes to the working world, it can discredit your professionalism. You might as well throw in a "whatever" or "as if!" while you're at it. It disrupts the flow of your conversation, and also makes you sound unsure of what you are saying.

However, this doesn't mean that you can't use the word at all. The word "like" is properly used in some instances:

• You're comparing the similarity between two items: This shirt is like the one I have.
• You favor something: I like him
• You're giving an example: A sport like football.

Here are some things you can do to curb the use of the filler:

• Record yourself: Try to record yourself talking on the phone with a friend and watch how often you say the word. This will make you more aware of how much you say "like." You may start automatically noticing your usage when you're talking.
• Make a conscious effort: Make an effort to stop saying "like" in all your conversations. The more you practice, the more second nature it'll become to you.
• Join Toastmasters: Join your local Toastmasters to improve your public speaking skills, which most definitely will include the banning of the use of the word "like."
• Slow down: You may be interjecting the word "like" in your conversation as fillers because you need more time to process your thoughts before you speak. Start slowing down your speech and take pauses when you need them. People often worry about pauses making the conversation uncomfortable, but it actually shows that you're thinking before you speak, which is always a positive trait.

• Buy these household items from the flea market: Instead of bucking out for high-priced living essentials, head to your local flea market or garage sales in your community for all the things you need.
• Don't send a work email late at night: Many people often tune out of their work life once they are home. There are a lot of people who either resolve to not check their work emails after work, or not to respond to any work emails until they're back at the office. You're most likely not going to get a response if no one is waiting on you, so hold off on emailing until you're back at your cubicle.
• Organize your mail with style: There's nothing more unsightly than piles of mail in your home, so try to find a better way to organize them that serves a dual purpose — make your home look neater, but more stylish at the same time.
• Watch who you add on LinkedIn: Don't feel bad if you decline someone's request — it's something that happens often, and you're only hurting yourself if you weaken your network. Adding and accepting a LinkedIn request is a gesture of trust, and it should be made with careful consideration.
• Reuse Disposable Items: Don't throw away those so-called disposable items. Find other uses for them, and you'll save a lot of money over time.
• Keep your bachelorette short and sweet: Make it a one-night affair, or if you do choose to stay somewhere for several nights, plan to have just one "all-out" night and a couple more casual, low-key evenings. Try an at-home barbecue, a nostalgic sleepover, or your own DIY version of a wine tasting to keep the festivities budget-friendly.
• Fold a shirt in two seconds: To save time (and pain) when folding clothes, learn this technique that will help you fold one shirt in two seconds.
• Decorate your grad cap: One of the most entertaining parts about a graduation is seeing all the great grad cap ideas people come up with. While "Thanks, mom and dad" is pretty sweet, it's the creative ones that catch our attention time and time again.
• Clean the coffee grinder with stale bread: All you have to do is tear stale bread into chunks and throw them in the coffee grinder. Grind it for a few seconds, open it, and you'll see coffee bits sticking to the bread, which you can then dump out.

Source: Sarah Lipoff

The weekend is finally here, but don't get carried away and start spending like there's no tomorrow. No matter what you do this weekend, there are plenty of ways to save, so be sure to keep these budget-friendly tips in mind.

If you're grocery shopping . . .

Practice simple tips like buying store brands, not falling for supermarket tricks that get you to spend more, and avoid overbuying. If you bought too much, you can share them with a friend before it goes stale. Be sure to skip the nongrocery items because the prices are often marked up!

If you're looking for a good book to read . . .

Go to your local library and pick out a book to read. If you rather read from the comfort of your own laptop or Kindle, check out $1 ebooks by indie authors on Amazon.

If you're going to do some dry cleaning . . .

The weekend is the best time to get your chores out of the way, and if you're thinking of doing some dry cleaning, be sure to do research to scout out a dry cleaner's that will give you the best bang for your buck. You can even dry clean your clothes at home with certain products. Check out other tips to help you save on your dry cleaning!

Read on for more ways to save this weekend.

When it's time for a holiday weekend, everyone's looking forward to the extra day off — as well as the sales and discounts. Memorial Day is no different. We know it's a little early, but don't you know the early bird catches the worm? Or, in this case, bags the biggest discounts. Here are a couple of great sales going on:

• Bath & Body Works: Four for $15 or six for $20 on antibacterial hand soap. Ends June 2.
• Dell: Use code 0H9Q3PQ6L3744C to get an extra $50 off a Dell Inspiron 15z Ultrabook.
• Disney: $10 nightshirts available online this weekend.
• Eddie Bauer: Use code HARBOR for free shipping on purchases over $99.
• Best Buy: 10 to 30 percent off major appliances.
• Macy's: 20 to 50 percent off and free shipping on purchases over $99.
• West Elm: 20 percent off rugs, 20 percent off select bedroom furniture, and over 250 new markdowns.
• REI: Save up to 30 percent on clothing and outdoor and sports gear.
• JC Penney: Lots of online sales across many categories.

Keep watching this space, because we'll be updating this as more Memorial Day discounts are announced.

Is your coffee grinder in need of a cleaning? If you have some stale bread on hand, it's the perfect ingredient for a grinder quick-clean. All you have to do is tear up stale bread into chunks and throw them in the coffee grinder. Grind it for a few seconds, open it, and you'll see coffee bits sticking to the bread, which you can then dump out.

• He made $570k last year, but he doesn't feel rich — The Billfold
• Guess how many women now take their husbands' names? — HuffPost Women
• So you say you want to be a landlord — LearnVest
• Places teens (and adults) can learn about money — Wise Bread
• How to spot fake online product reviews — Real Simple
• Destink wet laundry left in the washer with white vinegar — Lifehacker
• Your loneliness is hurting your job performance — The Jane Dough
• Best markets for home values — Bankrate
• Safely stash your plastic at home — Credit Sesame

Who doesn't need more money? We've given you many ideas to earn extra income, but sometimes there are intangible factors you may or may not have control over that affect your salary. Thankfully, we have scientists hard at work in their labs trying to figure out the answers for us. Here are various results of research studies of the things that impact income:

• Height: An Australian study found that 6-foot men earned $1,000 more than guys who were two inches shorter. "Taller people are perceived to be more intelligent and powerful," says the study.
• Regular exercise: People who work out regularly, according to a study in the Journal of Labor Research, earn nine percent more than their couch potato peers. Perhaps your monthly gym membership is literally paying off.
• Popularity in high school: Being well-liked in high school isn't something we can change right now, but if you were one of the cool kids, you're in luck. A National Bureau of Economic Research study says people who were among the top fifth most popular students in high school, earn a 10 percent premium on salary four decades later compared with the bottom fifth.
• When you marry: College-educated women who marry past their 30s make more income, while men who marry earlier see more financial benefits, according to a study by the National Marriage Project. One reason could be: women who marry earlier tend to have kids earlier as well, which forces them to take a break from their career during a period when they'll see a lot of growth. As for men, perhaps those who marry earlier tend to be more secure and confident than their single friends, leading to higher productivity.

Read on for more.

• Ways to save on amusement and theme park tickets — All You
• Lower your voice to sound more authoritative — Corporette
• Stop going into credit card debt for the sake of “points” — The Billfold
• How I cut my spending in half to take a job I loved — LearnVest
• The basics of budgeting — DailyWorth
• Real world princesses who don't need Disney glitter — HuffPost Women
• How to enjoy a budget-friendly Summer in Paris — Broke Girl's Guide
• 2 investing concepts everyone should know — Wise Bread
• How to pay off student loans — Real Simple
• How to get rid of ants — Lifehacker

• Beware of these co-workers who could sabotage your career — LearnVest
• DIY ideas for creating inexpensive art — Wise Bread
• How to update your yard on a budget — All You
• Things every young professional should know by 25 — HuffPost Women
• How to get what you want — Real Simple
• New Facebook exec’s schedule is the key to retaining top women — The Jane Dough
• Navigating credit as an American in Israel — The Billfold
• Bill may remove paid medical collections from credit reports — Credit Sesame
• Secrets credit card companies don’t want you to know — My Bank Tracker

Folding clothes isn't exactly anyone's idea of a fun time, but perhaps it might be more enjoyable if you were able to do it in two seconds. Think about it. In the time it takes to gulp down some water, scratch your head, or unwrap a piece of candy, you could have folded one shirt! It's almost like a superpower. Get ready for this life-changing tutorial on folding shirts like a ninja:

Being picky on LinkedIn doesn't make you a snob, it's just smart. After all, if you add everyone and their moms to your account, you're diluting the strength and integrity of your connections and network. How can you be a trusted connection if you had no idea your connection Jane Smith is a scam artist? It can be hard navigating the ins and outs of the professional social media network, so you should have a few ground rules for accepting LinkedIn requests.

You should only let a connection add you if she meets one or more of these requirements:

• You've worked or communicated with the person more than a handful of times, and you like her professional attitude and track record.
• You don't mind the connection tapping into your network.
• The person is someone you would feel comfortable reaching out to for networking purposes.
• She is someone you know in real life.
• You want to help her out.
• She is someone you respect and admire.
• Someone you trust has referred her to you.

Don't feel bad if you decline someone's request; it's something that happens often, and you're only hurting yourself if you weaken your network. Adding and accepting a LinkedIn request is a gesture of trust, and it should be made with careful consideration.

• How to start couponing — Wise Bread
• Money-saving trends to love — LearnVest
• What a fantasy series can teach you about your career — The Jane Dough
• Why this guy hired an esteemed cat photographer for his cat — The Billfold
• How to let someone down easy — Real Simple
• Is a budget-friendly iPhone on the way? — All You
• Tips for making new friends at any age — HuffPost Women
• Are you playing it too safe at work? — DailyWorth
• Things you should always haggle for — Lifehacker
• Caught in an elevator with a CEO? Three conversation starters — The Daily Muse

With a cable network to manage, a school in Africa to run, and shows to host, Oprah Winfrey might just be one of the busiest women in the world. And as Winfrey's health and fitness adviser, Bob Greene is definitely used to guiding busy professionals. Greene says one of the biggest excuses people often give is the "lack of time." Here are some steps to living a healthier lifestyle even if your plate is full:

• Prioritize and identify. "Prioritize what is most important in your life, and identify where you spend your time and energy. They should sync up! Before doing so, you might want to list all the things that are more important than your health and well being. When put this way, most people have a tough time justifying not having enough time to work out."
• Reduce time spent on other activities. "Systematically look at the time that is spent in activities that don't lead to your specific goals or benefit your life in a meaningful way. Most people do spend some time in these activities and benefit from whittling them down to the bare minimum."
• Build activity into your current schedule. "If you live close enough to work, walk or bike. Even shopping for groceries can be aerobic if done quickly enough, and getting it done faster saves more time! Take the stairs, park farther from your destination, wear a pedometer, these are all effective techniques to get more activity efficiently."
• Practice eating healthy."While it probably does take more time to plan and prepare healthy meals, once you get your recipes and ingredients down pat, it does get easier and more efficient. There are a slew of new healthy cookbooks that have 10- and even five-minute meals. Acquire a repertoire of these recipes and cookbooks. Also, collect menus (from both take out and dine-in restaurants) so you know where to go and what to order ahead of time."
• Get friends involved. "Partner with other health-conscious friends to share making dinner (or lunch) for each other. Each person can take a night where they are fully responsible for the entire meal. This not only saves time in preparation, you combine healthy dining with spending time with people in a social setting. Bonus because it's with people with similar goals of maximizing their own well-being."

Want more health advice from the wellness expert? Here's your chance to win a trip to Maui and meet Oprah and Bob Greene for a hike and to lunch at her farm.

Photo courtesy of of O, the Oprah Magazine

We've all been there before — it's midnight when you suddenly remember a work email you promised to send at the end of the day. You're tempted to send an email right then and there because you either have a deadline, or you don't want to forget to send it again the next day. Before you make any rash decisions, stop and consider the situation. Unless the email is an emergency and you actually have people waiting to hear back from you, then I advise you hold off on it till the next day. It's also OK to send it if your colleague lives in a different time zone where it's daytime to your night. Here are reasons against sending late-night work emails:

• They most likely won't read it until the next day. If it's related to work, many people often tune out of their work life once they are home. There are a lot of people who either resolve to not check their work emails after work, or not to respond to any work emails until they're back at the office. You're most likely not going to get a response if no one is waiting on you, so hold off on emailing until you're back to your cubicle.
• You'll be reminding them of work during their downtime. Even if your colleague checks her email after work, you don't want to add an additional stressor and remind her of the daily grind that they're trying to escape from.
• The a.m. time stamp is a little iffy. Even if you're more of a night owl, keep those habits to yourself and try not to send off an email at 1 a.m. It might make people wonder what you're doing up in the middle of the night.

• What you gain when you lose your job — HuffPost Women
• How we brainwash ourselves into brand loyalty — Wise Bread
• Fly first class for free and other travel hacks — Broke Girls' Guide
• Most moms would rather become housewives if they could afford it — All You
• How much can I really afford? — Real Simple
• Should you pay for private school? — LearnVest
• Experiencing professional jealousy — The Billfold
• Having a baby? You’ll need great credit — Credit Sesame
• Great moments in working mom fashion — The Jane Dough
• Decrease your budget’s bite by saving money on meat — Get Rich Slowly