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Contents

  1. Dictionary, Thesaurus, etc.
  2. Consumer Protection
    1. Consumer Federation of America
    2. Credit Protection
    3. Privacy Protection
    4. National Do Not Call Program - Complaints
  3. Financial and Tax Info
    1. Stock Options
    2. Taxes and Government
  4. Insurance
  5. Travel
  6. Weather
  7. Real Estate
  8. Movies and Music
  9. Greeting Cards
  10. Career
    1. Job Boards
    2. Resume Tips
    3. Thank-you Notes

Dictionary, Thesaurus, etc.

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Refdesk

yourDictionary

Library of Congress Thesauri

Consumer Federation of America

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consumerfed

Credit Protection

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Steps to take if you become a victim of identity theft

Source:
San Jose Mercury News


  1. Get a police report. You will need this, and a case number, in any contact you have with banks, credit card companies, and others as you sort out a case of ID theft.
  2. If your case involves theft from the mail, you will also need to contact inspectors from the U.S. Postal Service. Your local post office is the place to start.
  3. Watch your banking records. Closely monitoring monthly statements for unusual activity or charges is good, but a thief can do a lot of damage in a month. Most large banks offer online access to accounts. This way, you can watch your statement weekly or daily.
  4. Monitor your credit report regularly for credit cards or loans you never applied for. All consumers should review these reports at least once a year, more often if they suspect identity theft. The three major credit-reporting agencies in the United States charge a small fee for these reports.
    1. Equifax, Inc - (800) 685-1111.
      If you have an account with Equifax: (877) 784-2528;
      if you have used the 3-in-1 report you need to call this number first to get an id to use with TransUnion: (866) 226-3736
    2. Experion - (888) 397-3742.
      If you have an account: (800) 567-5470
    3. TransUnion LLC's - (800) 916-8800.
      If you have an account: (800) 916-8800
  5. Call the Federal Trade Commission's identity-theft victim hotline, (877) 438-4338. The FTC is compiling statistics on identity theft and the hotline offers additional tips.
  6. The San Diego-based Identity Theft Resource Center, a non-profit victim advocacy and consumer education program, also offers help, and some tips for setting up victims' support groups: www.idtheftcenter.com

Privacy Protection

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Reducing Direct Marketing

Source:
Free literature from Bank of America

If you would like to reduce the amount of advertising you receive, contact the following agencies.

  1. For advertising received by mail
    Mail Preference Service
    c/o Direct Marketing Association
    P.O. Box 9008
    Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008
    Website
  2. For advertising received by telephone
    Telephone Preference Service
    c/o Direct Marketing Association
    P.O. Box 9014
    Farmingdale, NY 11735-9014
    Website
    (800) 313-7395
  3. For advertising received by e-mail
    E-mail Preference Service
    c/o Direct Marketing Association
    Website
    Include complete information about each name, address, telephone number and e-mail address you would like excluded from these lists. If you have moved within the past year, remember to include your old address and phone number. The same is true for name changes and the addresses and phone numbers associated with each name.
  4. To get your name taken off all preapproved credit solicitations
    1. Call (888) 567-8688
      OR - write to the following credit reporting bureaus. Include your full name, current address, Social Security number and telephone number.
      1. Equifax, Inc
        Options
        P.O. Box 740241
        Atlanta, GA 30374
      2. Experion
        Consumer Services
        901 West Bond
        Lincoln, NE 68521
      3. TransUnion LLC's
        Name Removal Option
        P.O. Box 97328 Jackson, MS 39288-7328

National Do Not Call Program - Complaints

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Source:
KRON Web site

The Federal Trade Commission launched a nationwide Do Not Call registry in late summer 2003. If you have signed up and still get telemarketing calls, you can file a complaint at California State Attorney General Web site.

Stock Options

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Source:
MyOptionValue.com

Incentive Stock Options

A stock option that offers a potential capital-gains tax break if you hold the stock at least one year from the date of purchase and two years from the date of grant. Although these options, called ISOs, don't always trigger income tax when you buy the stock, you will tangle with the Alternative Minimum Tax if you hold the stock into the next calendar year.

Non-qualified Stock Options

The most common type of stock option. Exercising these options immediately triggers income tax on the initial spread between what you paid and what the stock was worth the day you bought it. If you hold the stock at least a year, an increase in value beyond the initial spread would be taxed as a long-term gain.

Grant date

The day the company gave you options.

Grant price

The discounted price you can pay to buy the stock for the life of the option. Sometimes referred to as "exercise price" and "strike price."

Exercise date

The day you plunk down cash and actually buy the stock.

Spread

The difference between your grant price and the market price of the stock on the day you exercise your options. The spread is taxed differently depending on whether you exercised ISOs or non-qualified options or buy ESPP stock.

Disqualifying disposition

A sale before you have held the stock one year from the date of exercise and two years from the date of grant. These holding periods apply to ISOs and ESPPs but not to non-qualified options.

Taxes and Government

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Federal Taxes


State Taxes


Taxpayer Advocates

Contact a taxpayer advocate to resolve a tax problem you can not solve through normal channels, whether it is a bureaucratic snafu or a personality conflict with an auditor or collections agent.


Voter Registration:


Social Security:


Einstein Files - FBI


Taxes and Government

Insurance

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Travel

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Logistics


Airline Tickets


Airline Websites


Airport Codes


Car Rentals


Online Travel Sites


RCI and PAHIO


Peninsula

San Francisco


Hawaii


Cruises


Spas


Wine


Vietnam

Vietfun

Travel

Weather

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Storms


Real Estate

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Real Estate Listings


Real Estate Listings - Hawaii


Real Estate - Information, News, etc.


Real Estate

Movies and Music

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Online

Tickets: call the theater and order on the phone -

AMC Mercado:


Hawaii


Greeting Cards

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Job Boards

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Listings


Top Sites

Source:
Some news program I forgot


The rest are Agent sites - agent sites send you email - your resume is not on internet


Salary Information

Salary.com


Job Boards

Resume Tips

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Reprinted from:
San Jose Mercury News, Sunday April 13, 2003 Section 1PC

Original title of article:

Powerful resume as easy as A-B-C

Breathe new life into this all-important document with 26 simple steps

  1. Accomplishments: Although it's important to sum up your experiences, you should do more than list your achievements. Explain how you accomplished your goals.
  2. Benefit: Research the company you're applying to and tailor your resume to indicate the skills you can use to benefit its bottom line. In other words, tell them what you can do for them.
  3. Coordination: Decide on a format and stick with it. Group your experiences in chronological order or based on certain job skills. Just be sure everything makes sense in relation to the rest of the document.
  4. Decorations: Refrain from using clip art, borders, photos and other images on your resume.
  5. Everything: If it's relevant to the skills needed for the job you're applying for, put it on there. Rebecca Zucker, a San Francisco-based executive coach who works with clients throughout the Bay Area, says to leave only items that are applicable to the job. "The thing to remember is that a resume is not a laundry list of everything you've ever done," she says. "It is a way of selectively high-lighting your experience in a way that is compelling to the hiring manager.
  6. Facts: Tell the truth. Make something up - even the smallest detail - and it could come back to haunt you.
  7. Growth: Show how accomplishments from one job led to a promotion or a new job with a different company.
  8. Hubris: The good old greek word for pride. Boast about relevant accomplishments only. You may be proud of your title of co-captain on your high school basketball team, but you're 38 years old. Move on.
  9. Individualized: Don't be afraid to change your resume for each job you're applying for. If you have access to a computer and a printer, there's no excuse for using a boilerplate resume.
  10. Justify: There's no need to explain gaps in employment on a resume. If questions come up during an interview, there will be ample time to address any concerns about your situation.
  11. Knack: If you have a special skill or talent, mention it on your resume. Companies are always looking for employees who can help out in more ways than one.
  12. Letter: Keep your resume limited to one to three fonts, and keep the various sizes to a minimum.
  13. Money: Avoid mentioning your salary history or expectations on your resume. If a help wanted ad requests salary history, include it in your cover letter.
  14. Name: Always be formal. No nicknames, no Johnny or Chuck. There's plenty of time to make informal connections with new co-workers.
  15. One page vs. two: If you've just graduated from college or have limited work experience, don't try to stretch out your accomplishments to two pages. But for experienced workers, it's more important to have a resume that goes beyond one page than to exclude important information.
  16. Paper: "People go to a lot of trouble to select different shades of paper, but a resume on heavy white paper is as formal as you can get," says Jonathon Adler, a career consultant in Jackson, Miss.
  17. Quick: Make sure your resume is a fast read. You're not writing an epic novel about your life. Bullet points tell the story of your career in a reasonably short amount of time.
  18. Readability: Use margins and spacing to keep the resume clean and distinctive. A resume should be pleasant to look at and easy to read.
  19. Stains: Accidents happen so if you don't want to hand over a coffee-stained resume to the vice president of human resources, keep your resumes in a protective sleeve or folder.
  20. Tacky: Stay away from jargon and shoptalk, unless it's universal in the industry. Buzzwords like "synergy" and hackneyed phrases like "think outside the box" are overused and lack real meaning.
  21. Unsolicited: Don't send your resume to every company in the phone book. Tailor your resume to relevant companies. According to Zucker, direct resume mailing is useless. "Your time is better spent talking to people - networking your way into your targeted companies," she says. "A resume passed along to a hiring manager through a contact is more likely to get read than a resume that is sent in blindly.
  22. Voice: List your accomplishments with confidence, using language that you would use during an interview.
  23. When: Timing is everything when sending out your resume. Don't wait too long to create the perfect document. You still may be agonizing over Times Roman or Helvetica fonts while the company you want to work for is scheduling second interviews.
  24. Xerox: Make a few copies to bring to your interview. There's a good chance your interviewer will need a copy to look at while he or she is discussing the job with you.
  25. You: Keep your resume focused on how you helped achieve your company's goals. Employers are less interested in the fact that you worked for a Fortune 500 company than they are in what you did to help make it one.
  26. Zenith: Highlight the pinnacle of your professional career. If you had a great deal of success at one job in particular, lead with it.

Resume Tips

Thank-you Notes

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Reprinted from:
San Jose Mercury News, Sunday May 25, 2003 Section 1PC

Original title of article:

The perfect thank-you note

Showing appreciation for an interview in a timely, formal manner can make a strong impression

You just finished a job interview and you're filled with confidence. You demonstrated extensive knowledge of the company and the industry, and you're certain you are perfect for the position. You're confident that the recruiter knows it, too. Take one more step to increase your chances of landing the job - send your interviewer a well-written and effective thank-you letter.

"A thank-you note should be sent within 24 hours after any interview," says Liz Benuscak, a New York City-based job and career transition coach. "It shows the potential employer that you are a serious candidate with excellent follow-up skills."

An effective thank-you letter is a brief, well-written reminder that you are the best candidate for the position. Here's how to create one:

Solid reinforcement

Dr. Richard Bayer, chief operating officer of The Five O'Clock Club, a national outplacement and career coaching organization based in New York City, says post-interview thank-you notes should be thought of as "influence letters," which, unlike a basic thank-you note, do a lot more to influence the recruiter.

"An influence letter is quite a bit different from the typical thank-you note," Bayer says. "It reminds the interviewer about your strengths, and also answers any potential objections."

A potential objection is anything the recruiter might think of that would keep you from being viewed as the best candidate for the job. For example, a recruiter can potentially object to your lack of experience in an industry. You can use your thank-you note to point out other professional and educational experiences that can compensate for the lack of industry experience and refute the objection.

"If anything surfaces that can seem like a weakness, you need to address that in your letter," Bayer says.

Your letter also should include specific details that will remind the recruiter of your interview, and of what you can do for the company.

"At all costs, you want to avoid using a canned thank-you note and write a letter that speaks directly to the person who interviewed you," Benuscak says. "A good thank-you letter will mention points discussed during the interview and how you feel you will contribute to the success of the organization."

Direct contacts

Each person you meet during your interview should get a separate and personalized thank-you letter. Any one of those people could have a say in your status as a job candidate - don't miss an opportunity to impress them by not sending a thank-you letter.

"If you were on a panel interview, then every person on the panel gets a thank-you note," Benuscak says. "Make sure you get the business card of each person who interviews you so that you will have the correct spelling and title of each person. It is also a good idea to jot down notes immediately after the interview so that if you need to write three different thank-you letters, you will have something unique to put in each one."

Attention to details

When it comes to clear and accurate writing, a thank-you letter is just like your cover letter and resume - even the smallest error can hurt your chances of making a good impression.

"Your thank-you note is just as important as every other career-marketing document that you develop," Benuscak says. "If you have handwriting that is not legible, or if you are a poor speller, type out the thank-you note and spell-check it. Make sure you have someone else proof it."

Although e-mail thank-you letters and hard copy letters are both acceptable, do some research first to discover which method would best suit the recipient.

"In the hustle and bustle of today's busy world, an e-mail thank-you note is completely acceptable," Benuscak says. "Corporate America communicates primarily through e-mail today, but, just in case the interviewer is not a techno savvy person, I would also follow up with a typed letter sent through regular mail."

Your letter should be brief - it should not exceed one page - and should be delivered immediately after your interview, while you are still fresh in the recruiter's mind.

"You want to stay on the hiring manager's mind," Bayer says. "You want to be the person they think of when they go to hire."


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