You've just been notified of your last day of employment. Your supervisor hands you a severance agreement and release and your mind is flooded with questions. How can this happen? Can they do that? Unfortunately, if you are an employee at will your employer can terminate you at any time, without notice and with or without severance. After the shock, here are a few things you should consider when reviewing a severance agreement and managing the transition from one company to your next opportunity. 1. Last Paycheck vs. Severance Package For most, the first questions that come to mind are "what's... view article details

 Personal Budget Planning Builds Household Wealth  To some people, 'budget' is a dirty word. In reality a budget is just a schedule of income and expenses, a way of documenting how much money comes in and how it should sensibly be spent. There's everything to gain from sticking to a budget, but adhering to a budget is difficult for many people because it usually means denying cravings and luxuries beyond reach.Well, after all, that's the point of a budget.What percentage of your income goes to housing every month? What goes to entertainment? Knowing those spending ratios is a valuable tool to ... view article details

Everybody with a credit card knows it's smart to pay what you owe at the end of every month - right? According to CardWeb.com, an international credit card tracker, credit card debt is approximately $9000 per household for those carrying at least one credit card. Internet shopping increases the temptation to overspend, since cash or checks are rarely an option if you're online to shop.Holiday spending is a notoreous time when consumers rack up their credit card bills. According the Cardweb.com, Americans racked up just over $115 billion in retail spending on their credit and debit cards during... view article details

People say college is the best time of your life. For some, it's the thrill of being in a basketball arena or football stadium surrounded by tens of thousands of rabid comrades ready to scream their way through a rivalry game. And for a few others still, it's that meal plan that lets them gobble down 5 slices of pizza, 7 cookies, and 2 fruit cups, all with a swipe of their student ID. But everyone has one common memory: classes, where they could join their peers in learning from great professors. Perhaps you are considering returning to college as your own career progresses. People may think c... view article details

Be Sure to Consider Your Entire Compensation Package When Negotiating Employer Won't Budge on Base Pay? Try Elsewhere You’ve gone through several rounds of interviews and have finally landed the job of your dreams. The problem is; your dream job doesn’t come with a dream salary. But before you pass on the position, there are many non-salary benefits that you can negotiate. Combined, they might make your potential position seem quite palatable. The good news is these benefits come at a low -- or no -- cost to your company. Here are the top ten benefits that you can and should ask for during ... view article details

From the Wording to the Format, Think Hard About What Goes on Your Resume The Importance of a Plan Developing a resume, especially when it’s your own, can be a nail-biting experience. Most people do not have to use a resume except every few years so getting the resume ready is not like writing an email – something that is done every day. There are so many different aspects to a great resume -- content, wording, style, format, design -- but most importantly, strategy. The strategy part is where most people miss the boat and fall in the water. Most job seekers do not consider the audience and... view article details

Tie a napkin 'round your neck and be our guest to check out this platter of food & beverage roles! If you’re curious about how much employees in these kind of roles earn on average, you’ve come to the right place. Here are 10 food & beverage jobs worth looking at. We've included the average entry-level salaries and ranges based on Salary.com data. 1) Food Scientist Average: $70,062 Salary Range: $56,113-$85,303 What you’ll do: Apply scientific and engineering principles in research, development, production technology, quality control, packaging, processing, and utilization of food. This rol... view article details

Making Movies If you can name a movie director off the top of your head, chances are it's a member of the Hollywood elite who earns massive sums of money. Yet for every Steven Spielberg or James Cameron there are hordes of lesser-known artists, happily hammering away at their craft. There are all kinds of movie makers, just as there are all kinds of movies - major motion pictures, independent films, cable movies, documentaries, sitcoms, TV dramas, and more. Some directors make excellent livings while others just scrape by, hoping for a lucky break. In reality, making it as a director has much ... view article details

Less Salary Isn’t Always a Dealbreaker- As Long As There Are Other Advantages Should you ever take a job that pays less salary than you expected? After several rounds of job interviews, you’ve finally been offered the position for which you've been pining. Upon accepting the offer, your future boss rattles off all the benefits you’ll receive including medical, dental, vacation days, and your 401k. But then he gets around to your starting salary, and it's less than you expected. It's understandable to be downright disappointed, especially if this seemed like the perfect job and company. But if ... view article details

Higher education may be getting more expensive, but a college degree is necessary to compete for jobs in many industries. College should be healthy mix of passion and pragmatism, and it’s important to pursue the things you love while recognizing the fields that give you the best chance of finding a job upon graduation. According to research by CareerCast.com, here are the majors with the best career prospects. We also provided the median salaries of various jobs in each industry based on Salary.com data. 1) Accounting They say numbers don’t lie, but did you know they can also get you a job? T... view article details