Author: Staff Writer

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Career Career & Education

8 Virtual Interview Tips to Help You Land the Job

Virtual Interview

The interview landscape has changed significantly in the past year, let’s take a look at the best tips for remote interviews.

1.   Location, Location, Location

Sure, you’re stuck at home, maybe even on another lockdown, that doesn’t mean your interview backdrop has to look like it. Make a conscious effort to place your computer where you will have a blank background, or perhaps a bookshelf or houseplant behind you. Keep it professional, or at the very least, neutral.

2.   Be Ready

Not on time, but technically ready. Have your appropriate plug-ins and updates installed and ready. Test your camera and mic, so that you aren’t showing up to your interview with no video, or a critical system update that won’t let you snooze it.

3.   Dress For The Job You Want

Wardrobe selection is just as important here as it is for a traditional interview. Make sure your selection fits the situation, and if unclear, your HR contact point should be able to provide clear guidance. Generally, you want to avoid chunky or distracting jewelry and excessively bright colors.

4.   Personal Space

Make sure you are positioned effectively for your interview. Check your setup and distance from the camera with a friend if needed. Make sure you aren’t hunched over in front of your computer, but make sure you aren’t 8 feet away. Place your camera a comfortable distance away, sit up straight, and don’t fidget with things on your desk during the interview.

5.   Practice Makes Perfect

Go over and practice your answers to potential questions, so that they are clear and concise. Give yourself an honest chance to purge all of your “um”, “uh”, and “well…” fillers from your repertoire. Make sure you iron out all of your grammar and double-check any typed responses for accuracy.

6.   Do A Dry Run

With the help of an honest friend or family member, run an entire mock interview. Not only will it give you a chance to go through the process front to back, but it will let you test your tech again to make sure the interview connection will be perfect.

7.   Be Your Own Best Cheerleader

With virtual interviews, it can be challenging from an employer’s perspective, to get a real feel of the person being interviewed in a virtual environment. That initial “vibe” can be crucial, so make sure you tell them why you feel you’re a good fit so that they can feel it. Highlight your qualifications, achievements, and so on, and be enthusiastic about them.

8.   Be Your Best You

You aren’t going to be interviewed extensively at first, your potential employer is looking to see in a more general sense if you seem like a good fit for the company. The best way to lower your stress is to just be yourself. Don’t worry about what you think they want to hear, just tell them who you are. This will always give you the best shot at finding the best fit for you too.

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Family Legal Senior Social Security Disability

What is OASDI?

what is OASDI?

OASDI stands for Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance. It is the long-form name of the Social Security benefits in the US. It is the fund that is paid into by the withholdings on your paycheck. Those who may be eligible to collect OASDI include the disabled, retirees, and so on. The overall goal of the program is to replace the income lost to old age, losing a spouse who was the earner.

The program was created as the Social Security Act by President Roosevelt in 1935. With the country in the grips of the Great Depression at the time, people were eager for a safety net, and it has grown incredibly over the years. In the decade following the passage of the act, there were approximately 222,000 recipients of benefits, while at the end of 2020 there were roughly 70 million. The average monthly benefit for these recipients is about $1,500.

Criteria For Collecting OASDI

Payments into the OASDI program are collected by payroll taxes FICA and SECA, which are the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, and the Self-Employed Contributions Act. In order to collect payments from the OASDI program, the recipient must meet certain requirements. For the tax year 2021, the tax rate for Social Security collected via FICA is 6.2%, while those who are self-employed will pay a rate of 12.4%, or double.

To begin old-age payments, those born before 1960 can collect as early as 62 years old. For those born after 1960, however, the retirement age s 67. In some cases, people who qualify can wait until age 70 to begin collecting payments and can collect larger payments as a result. The funds are kept in a pair of trust funds, the Disability Insurance trust, and the ASI trust.

How Are The Payment Are Calculated

Payment amounts for retired workers are determined by the wages of the worker who paid into the program during their working years. Payments to surviving spouses or children of passed or retired workers. Payments for disability are made only to those who can positively prove they cannot participate in gainful employment as well as meet additional requirements.

Qualifying for retirement benefits requires that the worker be fully insured by accumulating quarters, or credits, for coverage. Quarters are gained based on the wages of the earner for a predefined period and are accumulated for roughly each $1500 earned. Yearly quarter earnings are capped at 4, with 40 credits, or about 10 years of work.

When a worker is ready to retire, they will receive payments from the OASDI program that are based on the average of her 35 highest-paid years of work. If there are more than 35 years on record, the lowest years are eliminated from consideration. If the worker decides to retire early, then their work history is evaluated and any years without data are calculated as zeros in the 35-year formula. That 35-year average is what her monthly payments will be a portion of.

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Financial Tax Services

What is the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)?

internal revenue service

Founded in 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln, the Internal Revenue Service is in charge of enforcing tax laws as well as the collection of taxes. Under the authority of the United States Department of the Treasury, the IRS’s main purpose is the taxation of all American companies and businesses. Taxpayers can file either electronically or they can mail in their taxes. No matter how you prefer to file your taxes, the department handling your paperwork is the IRS.

What Does the IRS Do?

The overall purpose of the IRS is to enforce and uphold tax laws enacted by congress. Additional duties include:

  • Overseeing certain types of retirement plans
  • Collecting the tax returns filed by businesses and individuals
  • Issuing refunds to those that overpaid taxes
  • Conducting criminal investigations
  • Ensuring you pay whatever taxes are due

The busiest department of the IRS is likely the enforcement side of the organization. According to the Tax Policy Center, the IRS spent almost 40% of its budget on enforcement. Of that funding, 83% of it was for investigations and tax audits.

In addition to collecting taxes, they also ensure that those Americans that qualify for other tax credits, such as the Earned Income Credit, receive them. There are even educational tax credits that can help with your children’s future college education.

Owner and Leadership

The IRS has no owner but is considered the tax administrator that works for the Secretary of the Treasury. The IRS technically has no owner, they are under the direction of the Treasury. They are under the leadership of the IRS Commissioner who is appointed by the President of the United States every five years.

If you have seen the logo for the IRS, either on the website or maybe a piece of mail, you have probably recognized a few familiar elements. The logo for the IRS contains several elements that are found in other pieces of American government signage and seals.

The first and most obvious part of the logo is the eagle. This is the bald eagle, the national bird, and it is also found on many other government buildings, seals, and logos. In the logo for the IRS, it simply represents the USA.

The next component seen is the olive branch. This is another component that is present in a lot of US imagery. The olive branch represents mediation and the offering of peace. The olive branch is accompanied by the scales, another truly American image. The scales represent fair measure and justice.

History of the Internal Revenue Service

The roots of the Internal Revenue Service reach all the way back to the Civil War. It was created by President Lincoln and Congress. They were initially created to collect the original income tax to pay for the plethora of war expenses. That income tax was quickly repealed a decade later, not to be seen again until 1913, when it was included in a Constitutional amendment.

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Financial Savings

20 Ways to Take Control of Your Finances

take control of your finances

Many people struggle with their personal finances and money. Luckily there are many tips and tricks to help you get more in control of your finances. 

Evaluate How Much Money You Have

Before making changes to your finances, you need to evaluate exactly how much money and debt you have. This will give you a baseline of what to expect with your finances, where you need to improve, and where you can go with your finances.  

Track Purchases

When starting to evaluate your finances, you want to see where your money is going. When you do this you’ll be able to make changes about what you spend your money on. This is also something to continue doing once you have set a budget.  

Set a Budget

Once you have evaluated your current finances and seen where your money is going, you can set a budget. There’s a lot of software and apps you can use to set and track your budget. Having a weekly or monthly plan laid out will help you stick with your plan.

Review the Budget

Every budget will need to be reviewed, you can set this either weekly or monthly. Your financial needs may change and having a review can help you set those changes.

Make Financial Goals

Having a financial goal can give you something to work towards with your budget. It will be easier to stick to a budget when you’re saving for a house or business. 

Automatic Money Transfers

Having your money transfer automatically every paycheck will help you know how much money you have. It will also be harder to miss that money if it was never in your account to start.

Talk to Others

Talking with people that you admire money-wise will help you find ways to save and spend money you may not have known about previously.

Test Saving Methods

Some budgeting ideas will work better than others. Trying new ways will help ensure that you’re using a financial plan that works best for your situation.

Save Money

Saving money every month is the best way to know that you have enough money. This saved money can be towards a specific goal or a general savings fund. 

Minimize Debt

Debt can break many people’s budgets. Don’t let that happen to you by minimizing how much debt you get into. 

Make a Plan to Get Out of Debt

When you’re in debt, make a plan to get out of debt quickly. The more debt you have, the more interest you will have to pay.

Have an Emergency Fund

Don’t let a financial setback take you too far back. With an emergency fund, you can be prepared for many financial mishaps. 

Invest

Investing money can be a great way to build more financial equity. It can be used for retirement or other long-term goals.

Earn More Money

While saying “just make more money” is often easier said than done, you can get a side job or start a small business that can help you make more money.

Live Within Means

Many people can fall into the trap of trying to keep up with the neighbors. Staying within your financial means will help you stay out of debt and on track with your financial goals.

Shop Smarter

Shop with coupons or with deals to get the most of your purchases.

Direct Deposit

Direct deposit will ensure that your money gets in the back as quickly as possible so you don’t have to worry about it.

AutoPay

AutoPay ensures that you don’t fall behind on bills and incur late payment fees.

Read About Finances

Reading about finances will help you develop new financial and money-saving strategies.

Hire a Financial Planner

A professional financial planner can help you develop financial goals and ways to meet those goals.

Categories
Family Legal Senior Social Security Disability

How to Prove Your Disability To The SSA

social security disability

When seeking to qualify for either SSDI or SSI, you will be required to prove your disability. Even when the claim seems like it would be obvious and straightforward. You must remember that only about 30% of all claims initially presented to the SSA are denied. This is one reason why Social Security claims can be so frustrating if you are pursuing it by yourself. Which is why many people opt to work with an experienced Social Security disability lawyer.

Disability As Defined By The Social Security Administration

The Social Security Administration has a very clear definition of a disability. If you are only partially or temporarily disabled, you will not be able to claim SSDI or SSI benefits. So, you must show that:

  1. You cannot do the work you did previously, due to the disability
  2. You are unable to do change occupations or do other work due to the disability
  3. The disability will last longer than a year or is anticipated to result in death

If you are able to meet these criteria, you will not be able to engage in any substantial gainful activity. This qualification can be revoked if you earn too much income in a month.

Collect And Organize Your Medical Records

Common claim denials result from the failure of the applicant to provide sufficient medical documentation as evidence of the disability. Spending some time developing your medical documentation can help you prove your disability during the first review period.

The Social Security Administration will need to see records of your disability going back to when it was first discovered. This is known as your disability onset date. This can be difficult to determine for some conditions, so leverage family and friends if needed.

Your doctors can be a priceless resource. Your medical care team should be able to provide you with the records or documentation you need. If necessary, they may also be able to furnish a mental health assessment to be presented to the SSA. Make sure you adhere to your doctor’s directives for treatment as well. If you don’t, the SSA may deny your claim for lack of consistent treatment.

Make Sure You Meet The Requirements

Any disability can be challenging to prove. This can be especially true for those seeking benefits for mental illnesses or conditions. Some will be significant or severe enough that the Social Security Administration will simply grant the benefits. The conditions that qualify someone for SSDI or SSI benefits are detailed in the Blue Book. The Blue Book contains all of the criteria for qualification based on medical diagnosis.

Some conditions may be severe enough that the SSA will only need limited medical documentation. For example, arthritis, asthma, and heart disease. Some conditions will require more rigorous proof, such as mental disorders. Mental disorder claimants will need to meet various criteria that are designed for their particular mental disorder category, such as anxiety or psychosis.

Categories
Credit Financial

Credit Cards for People With Bad Credit

credit cards for bad credit

Life can throw everyone an unexpected challenge from time to time. Sometimes those challenges lead to bad credit scores. So, does that mean that everyone with a score under 650 should resign themselves to forever paying cash for everything? Of course not.

Getting a credit card, using it responsibly, and establishing a solid payment history is one of the fastest ways to rebuild your credit. Rebuilding your creditworthiness is crucial because your credit score is used for far more than credit card approvals. Not working on your credit score can make it more difficult to rent an apartment, buy a house, and can even affect the types of jobs you are eligible for.

What Kinds of Cards Are Available for Bad Credit

While the specific score you have can impact what options you have, there are cards available for nearly every credit score.

Secured Cards

These cards are a temporary tool that helps you rebuild your credit. They don’t offer you any “perks,” but they are intentionally easy to get. Approval is not entirely guaranteed, and you do need to have verifiable income. Just be honest about your credit history, and the odds will be highly in your favor.

Why are they so easy to get? Because you have to put down a deposit before you can use it. This deposit protects the credit card company if something causes you to stop making your payments. Some companies ask for larger deposits than others, which can be intimidating. Many will let you split up your deposit over a month or two, making it is easier to afford.

Unsecured Cards

More traditional credit cards are “unsecured,” which just means that no deposit is necessary for the credit line. These unsecured cards are slightly harder to get approval for because there is more risk involved for the credit card company.

These unsecured credit cards often have much higher than typical interest rates (as much as 25% or higher). High interest doesn’t have to be a problem, though, so long as you pay the entire balance each month.

They also have one other major disadvantage. Most of these do charge some sort of annual fee. Depending on the card, that fee could be considerable, and over time you end up paying as much (or more) than the deposit on a secured card.

When to Consider a Card for Bad Credit

How do you know you need one of these cards? Take a look at your credit report before applying for any new credit. Many companies view any score below 670 as “bad credit.” If your score falls in the “fair” range (above 580), you will have few more options. No matter what your score is, you should be able to find something.

Use your credit report to see precisely what is on it, and take the time to make sure all of the information is accurate. Taking care of anything that shouldn’t be there will help you get the best card possible.

Credit cards for bad credit serve a beneficial role in the economy. Used wisely, they can help anyone fix their credit.

Categories
Dating Health & Home

Simple Ways to Improve Relationships Each Day

improve your relationship

The real pleasures in life are not the grand, expensive gestures: it is in the simple ways you try to keep your spark alive. Often, we spend so much on giving costly gifts that we forget relationships thrive when there is an actual connection, bonding, and companionship between two people.

Even the best relationships can weaken if you do not nurture them daily in some way. Here are some simple things you can do at the end of each day to show the other person what they mean to you.

1.    Celebrate Small Moments

When you’ve spent considerable time with each other, you may stop valuing each small moment. It becomes too easy to overlook niceties such as a good morning or hugging the other before leaving for work or going to bed. These are the most important things of the day so savor each moment.

Do make it a point to greet your partner with a kiss each morning, do remember to hug them each time you spit for the day, and end the day with a warm goodnight hug.

2.    Bring Your Partner a Cup of Coffee

All it takes to melt the other’s heart is a cup of coffee they never asked you for. If you see your partner getting out of bed in the morning, be quick to prepare their favorite cup of java. Has she been working past midnight on an important project? Make her a mug of coffee.

Is he running late for a meeting in the morning? Hand him a cup on the go. Small acts like these serve as great reminders of love.

3.    Ask Your Partner Questions

Never end the day without asking your partner how it was for them. Do not nag but at the same time make them realize you want to be involved in their life. Ask a simple question: how his/her day was, is he/she too tired, did they remember to have lunch? Etc.

4.    Eat Dinner Together

Sharing meals together is the most intimate thing of all, but of course, that is not always possible when both are working professionals. However, try never to have dinner without each other. Even sharing simple meals together daily infuses tons of romance, love, friendship, communication, and bonding in the relationship.

5.    End the Day with an Undivided Attention to Them

No matter how busy you are or how demanding your career is, never let them sleep without giving some time to them first. Put aside your phone for at least the last thirty minutes of your day and devote all your time and attention to your partner.

You could just talk, cuddle or even watch t.v or listen to music together. Encourage each other to unburden if there is anything bottled inside or just devote quality time to one another in the day.

6.    Sleep at the Same Time

If you live together, try to make schedules compatible. Bedtime is the most crucial time for nurturing a relationship, and sleeping together is the best form of connection. Couples who sleep apart will lose out on a lot of essential factors in the long run. The moments of quietness, intimacy, and reconnection after a busy day all make for strong foundations for a relationship.

Categories
Financial Tax Services

What is an Effective Tax Rate?

effective tax rate

The effective tax rate is a roundabout way of saying “average tax rate”. It is the average tax rate you pay across all of the tax brackets that your income spans. Since it is an average, your effective tax rate will be significantly lower than the tax amount of your highest tax bracket. The tax rate of your highest tax bracket is also known as your marginal tax rate.

Your effective tax rate is composed of the average of your various tax rates in each increment of your income, after all the deductions that you are entitled to and claim during filing. There is a fairly simple equation that can be used to help determine your effective tax rate.

Finding Your Effective Tax Rate

Since your effective tax rate is an average comprised of the percentages for all tax brackets that the IRS uses to delineate income levels. This starts with the official tax brackets:

  • 10% – Income up to $9,875 for single, and $19,750 for married filing jointly
  • 12% – Income $9,876-$40,125 for single, and $19,751-$80,250 for married filing jointly
  • 22% – Income $40,126-$85,525 for single, and $80,251-$171,050 for married filing jointly
  • 24% – Income $85,526-$163,300 for single, and $171,051-$326,600 for married filing jointly
  • 32% – Income $163,301-$207,350 for single, and $326,601-$414,700 for married filing jointly
  • 35% – Income $207,351-$518,400 for single, and $414,701-$622,050 for married filing jointly
  • 37% – Income above $518,400 for single, and above $622,050 for married filing jointly

You might think this is starting to get a little complicated, and you’re right. It’s going to get a little worse, but you’ll be ok.

A single earner making $60k won’t pay 22% across the full amount of their earnings. They will pay 10% on the first $9,875, the 12% on the portion up to $40,125, and finally 22% on the last $19,875. That means they pay less overall taxes, and that their effective tax rate will be much less than the 22% that only affects roughly the last third of their income.

The earner in our example would end up paying $8,991 on their $60k yearly salary. This works out to about $988 on the first portion taxed at 10%, $3,630 on the second portion taxed at 12%, and $4,373 on the past portion at 22%. Since $8,991 is 14.985% of 60,000, their effective tax rate would be 14.99%.

As you can see, the numbers and bracketing can get a little complicated, and it can be a bit tedious to go through each income bracket to figure out the tax amounts for each percentage. However, knowing how to calculate your effective tax rate is important information. It can even help you determine if you are leveraging itemized deductions effectively from year to year.

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Beauty Health & Home Wellness

Skincare Questions That Dermatologists Answer

Skincare Dermatologists

People ask skincare questions by the dozen and not surprisingly, considering how confusing the routines can be. Most people cannot be sure what skincare type is good for their skin type, what products help with what issues and so many other queries.

In this article, we will look at the questions people ask most commonly about skincare and which ones dermatologists have answered.

1. Is there a correct order for skincare routine?

The best way to use skincare products is in the order of thickness. For example, if you are a beginner in skincare, then you must start with a simple routine. Begin with a cleanser, moisturizer and sunscreen as you start your day. Then in the night, complete your skincare regime with a cleanser and moisturizer.

If you have a dry skin, then you may include a hydrating serum or face oil. For acne, you can opt for topical acne medication or even retinoid.

2. In skincare, what does AHA mean?

By AHA, we mean the alpha hydroxyl acids. These acids chemically exfoliate and we can derive them from plant sources, like grapes, milk and sugarcane. Many products read these lactic, mandelic or glycolic and each is a reference to the AHA family.

These acids are quite beneficial for your skin because they remove the dead cells and break through the glue-like substance holding the dead skin cells to make way for new ones.

3. What are the best products?

There really is no way to call a product the best, considering how every skin type is different. What may work wonderfully for a particular skin type may not work the same for another. Your oily skin may not respond to a hydrating serum as well as dry skin would.

The only way to find the products that work best for your skin is through trial and error. Start with basic and gentle products and slowly discover what your skin needs.

4. How to cure acne?

This is perhaps the most Googled of all skincare questions because acne is a widespread skin condition. Truthfully, there are dozens of different treatments and products for acne. The best approach is to visit a dermatologist first and come up with a solid plan for your acne treatment.

Also ensure you routine includes washing your face every morning and night and using chemical exfoliants like salicylic acid or glycolic acid  for exfoliation. You must exfoliate regularly with those to whisk all the excess oil away and prevent breakouts.

5. What is the best night time skincare routine?

The best skincare routine includes a good cleanser, a serum and moisturizer and a face treatment once or twice a week. This routine every night will suffice in keeping your skin in optimal condition.

In the end, it is important you talk to professionals about your skincare. Don’t count on the people around you and non-professionals for skincare advice. Whether you want to try a new product or are wondering how to get rid of a pimple on your face, let a dermatologist help you.

Categories
Children Family

Stocking Stuffers: The Best Ones for Teens

stocking stuffers

You may have a number of pocket-friendly stocking stuffers on your list for your toddlers, but do you draw a point-blank when it comes to your teens? No problem!

We have a list of the best stocking stuffers for your teens this year, and each one will delight them for sure.

1.    Lokai Bracelets

By giving your teen a lokai bracelet in their stocking stuffing, you’ll not only be giving a great gift to your kid but also serving one of the many charities, the founder contributes to.

2.    Bluetooth Shower Speaker

Teens and music seem to be inseparable; at times, it feels they are even incapable of getting through a night of sleep without music. So why not make their shower time more fun with water-resistant mini Bluetooth speakers?

They can croon to their favorite beats while scrubbing up, and the flat bottomed speakers sit conveniently on ledges and shelves.

3.    Driving Gloves

We’re sure your teens are enjoying their newfound freedom as drivers. Gift them a pair of leather driving gloves in their stocking stuffers, and the teens will love how the cold weather gear will protect their hands in freezing temperatures.

4.    Three Bit Pack

Teens these days can’t do without memes. It seems their life revolves around them, and undoubtedly yours are no different. Why not gift them GIF collectibles and memes as their stocking stuffers this year>? Each delivers emotion, and the teens will find them fascinating for sure.

5.    Frother

Our teens rely on Starbucks just as much as we do but can console the extra expense with the excuse that we work for it. But what about the younger ones? Give them the next best alternative to Starbuck, such as a frother.

The tool will help them make customized drinks like hot cocoa and coffee yet saving them precious dollars. Besides, the device is thin and highly functional, and it would make a great stocking stuffer and convenient tool for their duffels.

6.    Cable Bite

We know how teens value their data and charging cables more than their life but are just as careless in keeping them safe. The cable bite is a fascinating little thing that wraps around the cords and keeps them from breaking.

You can find this stocking stuffer in various versions, including pig, catshark, and dogs.

7.    Essential Oils-Bath bombs

If you’ve got teen girls especially, they’ll surely love this gift. They will also find these bath bombs a special treat for their showers at home, especially after sharing the less appealing communal showers at college or school.

The bath bombs come in various essential oils, including sweet orange, jasmine, cinnamon, frankincense, lemon, rosemary, chamomile, peppermint, tea tree, grapefruit, rose, and lavender.  

8.    Face Masks

Find the Airism face masks to gift your teens this year. These masks will not only make a great stocking stuffer, but the triple-layered structure also provides optimal performance. It blocks 90% of ultraviolet rays quite effectively with its UPF 40 rating and comes in three sizes for adults, teens, and children.

These AIRism masks also feature heat-releasing, self-deodorizing, anti-microbial, and sweat-absorbing qualities. Your teens will never complain of feeling sweaty with these masks on.