SavvySugar

I'm Asking: Have You Ever Terminated Your Cell Contract?

SavvySugar — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 07:00:00 -0800

Whether you got a shiny new iPhone for Christmas and need to break your contract, or you think you want to upgrade your cell phone service in 2009 you should check in with your carrier about their early-termination fees, the status of your contact, and any deals they might be running for the new year. (Honestly, I hope you checked the tiny print before you signed that dotted line!)

Consumer Reports notes one in seven survey respondents said "they were seriously considering a switch to a better carrier but were discouraged from doing so by penalties that can run as high as $200 per phone line." As we all know, termination fees can be a real bugaboo.

Have you ever played the eat-the-cell-contract game?

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Consumer Reports: How to Make Pricey Appliances Last

SavvySugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 04:00:28 -0800

The cost of maintaining a home and appliances is often a major deterrent for those debating whether to rent or purchase a home. The unexpected expense of fixing leaky gutters and broken dishwashers can be budget breaking if it comes at the wrong time of month. Not to mention it's a huge pain. Consumer Reports has put together a great guide for how to extend the useful life of appliances and pricey goodies. Obviously, the key is maintenance and keeping a watchful eye on appliances so they don't break down unexpectedly and leave you in a pricey pinch. Consumer Reports suggests:

Cell phones
Don't stow in your car's glove compartment during the summer. Otherwise, batteries may overheat, possibly ruining the phone. If you've been known to drop your cell phone, treat it to a protective case.

Clothes dryers
Clean the lint filter after each use and the entire air duct yearly. If your dryer breaks, think about replacing it if repairs will cost more than half the price of a comparable new model. But don't expect much gain in performance or efficiency, since dryer technology hasn't changed much.

Clothes washers
Don't overload. If your washer breaks, think about replacing it if repairs will cost more than half the price of a comparable model. If you're replacing, consider a high-efficiency washer, which should save money over time. Also consider a front-loader, which is less punishing to clothes than a top-loader.

Dishwashers
Check the filter regularly and remove any debris.

To see additional suggestions and reminders, read more.

Hardwood floors
Dust mop or vacuum weekly. Wipe up wet spills pronto.

Kitchen knives
Keep them out of the dishwasher and store them in a wooden knife block or individual plastic shields.

Laptop computers
Set them on a hard, flat surface rather than a soft one such as a bed or carpet, which can block airflow and cause them to overheat.

LCD TVs
Clean the screen gently with a soft, slightly damp cloth, ideally a microfiber one. Avoid commercial cleaners and paper towels, which can scratch the screen.

Mattresses
Rotate periodically. Try not to sit on the edge. Buy a washable, protective cover. And pull back the sheets and blankets to let the bed air out for 20 minutes or so each morning.

Visit the Consumer Reports website for more tips on making your pricey goods last.

The Best Companies to Start a Career

SavvySugar — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 18:30:02 -0700

Moving to a city that's first-time job seeker friendly can improve your chances of landing an entry-level job, and you're really in luck if you can score a position with a company that treats its beginner workforce especially well.

BusinessWeek compiled its annual list of the best places to launch a career by polling college career counseling directors across the country and collecting statistics from employers to learn about details like pay, benefits, training programs, and retention rates. See which employers took the top 10 spots and the average pay for entry-level hires when you read more.

Deloitte (Accounting): average pay $55,000 to $60,000
Ernst & Young (Accounting): average pay $50,000 to $55,000
PricewaterhouseCoopers (Accounting): average pay $50,000 to $55,000
KPMG (Accounting): average pay $50,000 to $55,000
U.S. State Dept. (Nonprofit/Government): average pay $60,000 to $65,000
Goldman Sachs (Investment Banking): average pay $60,000 to $65,000
Teach for America (Nonprofit/Government): average pay $35,000 to $40,000
Target (Retail): average pay $45,000 to $50,000
J.P. Morgan (Investment Banking): average pay $60,000 to $65,000
IBM (Technology): average pay $60,000 to $65,000

10 Areas of Government With the Greatest Job Growth

SavvySugar — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 04:30:07 -0700

Working for the government used to elicit groans of expectant dullness, but times have changed. Instead of criticizing working for the ultimate Man, Uncle Sam, more people are drawn to the secure nature of working for the federal government. According to a new report from the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, the federal government will have hired 273,000 new workers by Fall of 2012 for jobs the group calls "mission critical" - that's a 41 percent hiring increase over the three previous fiscal years.

Partnership gathered hiring projections from 35 of the largest federal agencies and used the information to determine the 10 categories that will have the highest job growth. You can search job listings on the government's official job website, and see the 10 areas expected to undergo the most growth in the next three years when you read more.

Medical and public health: 54,000 new jobs by 2012.
Security and protection: 52,000 jobs
Compliance and enforcement: 31,280 jobs
Legal: 23,600 jobs
Administration and program management: 17,300 jobs
Accounting and budget: 16,640 jobs
Information technology: 11,500 jobs
Business and Industry: 10,770 jobs
Engineering: 10,640 jobs
Transportation: 10,560 jobs

Businesses Caught Playing Dirty on Twitter

SavvySugar — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:30:41 -0700

Celebrities aren't the only ones with Twitter imposters. More and more businesses are using Twitter to communicate with their customers, and the results have been mostly positive. The site allows companies to quickly respond to customer complaints, which saves many hours of waiting on hold, and it gives the companies' customer service a more competent edge. Customer satisfaction is up, so everybody wins.

Everything isn't as peachy as it seems for businesses proud to be hip to modern technology. Big companies like Exxon and American Airlines have discovered Twitter accounts with variations of their names, and Elevation Burger was the victim of Twitter fraud when it discovered an unauthorized profile tweeting about the accolades of its rival burger joint. It took a letter from Elevation Burger's lawyer to get Twitter to suspend the fake profile.

Companies are concerned about protecting their brands - images that now include Twitter profiles. Do you follow any businesses on Twitter, or used it to submit a complaint?

Would You Consider Teaching If It Paid $125,000?

SavvySugar — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 06:30:17 -0700

A new charter school called Equity Project is sending shock waves through the teaching system. According to the New York Times, the school is "premised on the theory that excellent teachers - and not revolutionary technology, talented principals or small class size - are the critical ingredient for success."

One of the questions experts are hoping to answer is if offering six-figure salaries is the way to attract a collection of superb teachers. The search for the eight teachers that will staff Equity Project yielded 600 applications, and 100 of those were interviewed in person.

Source

The Hardest Jobs to Fill in the US

SavvySugar — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 04:30:02 -0700

Niche skills are always an asset, and that's truer than ever in 2009. It might be an employer's market these days, but some hiring managers are having a lot of trouble filling specific positions. Manpower, a staffing firm, composed its annual survey of the hardest jobs to fill in the US, and surprise, surprise, those requiring a background in math and science are among the tough ones. Find out if you have one of the hardest jobs to fill when you read more.

Engineer
Nurse
Skilled Trades (electrician, bricklayer, carpenter, cabinetmaker, mason, plumber, welder)
Teacher
Sales Representative
Technician (workers in engineering, technical, operations, maintenance roles)
Truck Driver
Information Technology Staff
Laborer
Machinist or Machine Operator

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How Your Job Is Changing

SavvySugar — Fri, 22 May 2009 06:30:58 -0700

Have you noticed any changes in your workplace lately? According to a special report in Time magazine, you will soon. "The Future of Work" reminds us that the recession will (eventually) end and jobs will return - but when they do, they're going to look different. Here are some of the changes Time tells us to expect.

The workplace will get nicer: It turns out, the way women work is actually good for business. The engaged, results-oriented management style that women typically employ has proven to be pretty successful in increasing both productivity and profit. In the same vein, more business school students are learning how to actually manage (and do so ethically), rather than just how to run a business.
Managers will get younger, workers will get older: As Gen Xers (the generation born between 1965 and 1978) take the reins, businesses will become more tech-savvy and more global. At the same time, Baby Boomers will save less and retire later, which means the workforce will continue to age - the percentage of workers who are 55 and older is expected to increase from 17 percent to 23 percent by 2016.

To see two more ways your job could change, read more.

Workplaces will be more flexible and less cubicle-centric: Say goodbye to the traditional 9 to 5, Monday through Friday workweek spent in your cubicle. Employers are saving money and retaining employees by offering flexible hours, telecommuting options, and lateral moves, rather than conventional, climb-the-ladder promotions.
Jobs will be high-tech, high-touch, and greener: We’ll see an increase in jobs that involve technology and problem-solving, as well as jobs in more hands-on fields like health care, education, and senior care. "Green" jobs - everything from manufacturing solar panels to weatherizing homes - could account for 10 percent of all job growth over the next 30 years.

What do you think about Time’s observations and predictions? Have you noticed any of these changes in your own workplace or career, or do you think you will?

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11 Real-Life Lessons Learned From the Celebrity Apprentice

SavvySugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:30:06 -0700

NBC has already given the nod to a ninth season of Donald Trump's Apprentice, so the show must be speaking to viewers. Sure, it's reality entertainment, but there are real-life lessons to be found in each episode of this season's Celebrity Apprentice. We had to get something valuable out of those two-hour segments, right?

If you were too distracted by the celebrity drama to deduce your own career-minded conclusions, Trump University's Lessons Learned Blog kept track for you. Randal Pinkett (winner of The Apprentice Season 4) runs the blog and he came up with several lessons from each episode, so I've selected the best ones from each week.

Episode 1: "Disagree behind closed doors all you want at work. That's part of teamwork. But never badmouth your team to outsiders. You need to present a strong image to the people who judge your performance."
Episode 2: "Cultivate the ability to adjust quickly. In today's fast-paced world of business, flexible people win out over the rigid."
Episode 3: "Remember, leaders don't shoulder their way into the spotlight. They know that the more they can let their team members excel, the brighter their own success will be."

To see eight more lessons, just read more.

Episode 4: "If you want to succeed in business, you have to stand on your own. If you cannot fight your own battles, you're not ready to succeed."
Episode 5: "Remember that simple systems free your mind to focus on the big picture. In times of confusion, even a little organization saves the day!"
Episode 6: "Stand by your word. Even if you don't realize it yet, a good reputation is your most powerful career asset."
Episode 7: "Never rely 100 percent on technology, because things go wrong. Hard drives crash. Power outages occur. The graphic you send at the last moment could be in a format that the recipient can't use."
Episode 8.1: "There will be times when you will feel shut out of some inner circle at work. If that happens, focus on the excellence of your work. You are not in junior high school anymore. Your feelings are no longer your top concern. It is time to get the job done."
Episode 8.2: "Remember that simply meeting demands is not always enough. Research and creativity will carry you into the winner's circle."
Episode 9: "In your career, take any hand you are dealt and play it to win. If you apply that strategy consistently, you will build small victory on small victory and move ahead."
Episode 10: "If you don't set specific goals and know how to reach them, you can never expect to succeed. You can't wander into success, you have to plan it."

Photo courtesy of NBC

Top 10 Dream Colleges: Students Want Stanford

SavvySugar — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 04:30:50 -0700

While those of us in the professional world are experiencing a resurgence of college spirit through March Madness, high school seniors are rushing to the mailbox and frantically checking email to find out where they've been accepted. According to a Princeton Review survey of college applicants and parents, almost seven of 10 respondents say the economic downturn has affected their college application decisions. Nine out of 10 respondents say financial aid will be essential. So what schools do students consider "dream colleges"?

Stanford
Harvard
Columbia
Princeton
New York University
Yale
University of California, Los Angeles
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
University of Southern California
University of California, Berkeley

To see the schools most named by parents as their "dream colleges," read more.

Harvard
Stanford
Princeton
University of Notre Dame
Yale
New York University
University of California, Los Angeles
Duke
University of Southern California
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

What do you think is the number one dream school in the US?

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