Work + Money

I have a confession to make: I used to dread Christmas. I felt like the whole thing was too much -- people spending too much money, kids getting too many gifts, and the masses focusing too much on commercialism and not on what the holiday truly symbolizes. That's why a few years ago my husband and I decided to change the way we celebrate. We decided to limit each of our children to three gifts apiece and take a vacation with the extra spending money on hand. We expected severe backlash from them, but to our surprise they enjoyed Christmas more than they ever had before! Instead of spending time and money shopping, we focused on things we could do as a family -- donating to charities, making crafts, decorating the house and all that jazz. That year I learned a lot about what making a memorable Christmas takes. (Hint: A ton of money isn't a requirement!) Click through for 7 tips for planning a memorable, yet inexpensive, Christmas vacation! - By Ronnie Tyler

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Rita Rocker

Business language is different from social conversation.

• Avoid using "empty" modifiers such as thanking a sales representative "so very much," or referring to a job applicant as a "lovely person." A better choice of words would include bright, intelligent, quick wit, etc.

Instead of saying, "That was great!" try "I felt you gave an excellent and thorough presentation. It will be very helpful to us."
Exclude "tentative" words such as "I was kind of wondering if" or "I think we could try." Eliminate "well," "sort of," "kind of" and "maybe" from your business vocabulary. These phrases all show uncertainty.
Leave out cold and dictatorial commands. Use "please," "when you can," and "what

The first mistake most people make when seeking out a mentor is asking a role model to take on that responsibility. Mentoring is an enormous chore. Don't underrate the undertaking of it. You are asking someone to take a personal interest in your development.

It reminds me of a first kiss. At least, that's when a first kiss was a first kiss (and the US dollar was backed by the gold standard).

Ideally, you didn't ask for your first kiss. It just came naturally, arising from the circumstances you found yourself in. In other words, better at a beach party bonfire filled with excitement when your team won the big game, than during a middle school spin-the-bottle moment in the basement (AKA you have to kiss me because the bottle is pointed at you and I spun it).

When you ask for mentoring, you are asking to be important, worthy and interesting.

You are asking to siphon off some of your mentor candidate's natural resources. You are inquiring if this other person would like

Retirement plan

To be specific, the baby boomers will earn $2,100 less than their current expenditure, while their successors (the generation X of the 60s), will also need to struggle to earn an additional $1,700 to meet their estimated needs.

Read:Reasons Why You Keep Losing Money Investing

Still, things are not that bad. Generating enough income to cover these estimated shortfalls is not an impossible feat. However, in order to accomplish this, you need to act fast.

The following are some practical tips that you can use to improve your retirement prospects.

No, we are not suggesting you to get a home equity loan, or a lifetime mortgage for your retirement. We are telling you to the exact opposite. Think about it, will you need the same