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Jul 10 2018

Essential travel apps you won’t be able to live without

Of all niches, the smartphone has likely affected travel the most. From trip planning to finding accommodation, the experience of moving about our world has changed considerably in less than a decade.

In this article, we’ll share several apps you need to have on your phone before heading out on your next trip.

1) TripIt

The average trip has a lot of moving parts – this makes it easy for something to get overlooked. When this happens, your stress level can shoot through the roof, which is the last thing you need whether you are travelling for business or pleasure.

TripIt defuses this to a great degree, as it serves as a hub for almost every scrap of information relevant to your journey. By forwarding all confirmation e-mails to the app, it provides a neat road map of when you need to be in specific places.

It displays gate information, confirmation numbers, directions to way points, check-in times, and so much more, making it easy to stay on track.

2) Trover

Need some inspiration to plan that trip you’ve been meaning to take for some time? Heading somewhere, but have no idea what to see or do? Trover is here to help you out – billed as the Pinterest for travellers, this app is packed to the brim with suggestions by fellow travellers and locals.

See a photo of a place that looks compelling? Click on it, and a description will pop up, along with a map link that will let you know where to go to find the sight they have identified.

3) GasBuddy

Consider yourself to be an avid road tripper? Now that gas prices are on the rise again, it is important to know where the good deals are so you can avoid getting hosed at the pump.

GasBuddy makes this task an easy one, as it allows locals to constantly update the price of gas as they go – this helps to keep travellers from out of town from filling up at a station which prices their fuel in a way that takes advantage of unsuspecting travellers.

To incentivize users to keep updating fuel prices, the app owner holds regular raffles for free fuel cards – keep at it, and you may find your travel costs greatly reduced!

4) Hotel Tonight

So, you’ve just arrived in town, only to realize you forgot to book your accommodation beforehand. Or, bad weather has you stranded in an unfamiliar town. Or, you’re a traveller who likes to show up and look for a place just for the thrill of it.

No matter which scenario applies to you, Hotel Tonight is an app you’ll want to have on your phone. You see, the value of a vacant hotel room declines as the evening wears on, as it is better to have a warm body in a bed at a sharply reduced price than none at all.

This app collects these last minute deals and assembles them in their app, allowing you to find a room at a moment’s notice when you need it the most.

Jul 10 2018

Want to make serious bank post-grad? Major in these business disciplines…

Commerce makes the world go round, so if you are studying business with the intent of making a lot of money after school, you’re on the right track. However, there are many fields which fall under the broad umbrella of this academic discipline – below, we’ll go over some its more lucrative sectors.

1) Marketing

This sector of business is one of the sexiest majors out there, as it deals with the art of persuasion. Marketing is a lucrative skill to have in today’s economy, as attention spans are shorter than they ever have been.

With customers increasingly flocking to the web and Netflix, where commercials can be skipped with ease, the ability to seize a viewer’s interest has become a valuable commodity.

Depending on the role you target after graduation, the outlook is a positive one, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects between 10 to 20% growth in the number of openings for these positions over the next decade.

With average salaries (bonuses notwithstanding) ranging between $63,000 and $127,000 for those in the midst of the marketing careers, those who have a knack for capturing people’s attention stand to do well in this field.

2) Accounting

Looking to get on a career track that’s rock solid in terms of its dependability and necessity to business? While it may not be the most exciting field, firms the world over will always have a need for accountants who know their way around a spreadsheet.

If math is your strong suit, this is the major for you – by using equations, you can help boost the profits of a start up, or find extra tax savings for a Fortune 500 company.

Unlike more outgoing professions, many responsibilities in this profession can be handled from your desk – this means accounting is especially well-suited to those who are more introverted in nature.

With a predicted 11% growth rate in open positions over the next decade and an average annual wage of $68,000, this is a solid career option for detail-oriented individuals who seek a stable income.

3) Sales

Like to live life on the edge? Gregarious and extroverted? If so, making sales your business major will not only suit your personality perfectly, you also stand to earn sacks of money over the course of your career.

Here’s why: marketers can only get customers and potential clients to pay attention – it’s up to salespeople to close the deal. Once your company has piqued their interest, it’s on you to break down exactly how your product or service will completely transform their life or the performance of their business.

Do this successfully frequently enough, and not only will you be rewarded with an attractive base salary, but many places will pay out commissions and performance bonuses. At the end of the year, this can add up to a hefty stack of cash.

Employment growth in this area is projected to be a bit more modest, with a 5% increase in openings over the next decade. Salaries range widely – some are quite low ($48,000 or lower), but this doesn’t take incentives into account.

If you are selling complex scientific instruments or machinery to other businesses, you stand to earn much more – many positions pay close to, if not more than six figures as a base salary.

Jul 10 2018

5 Great Health and Fitness Apps

Photo credit – Unsplash

Need to improve the state of your health? As with most sectors of life, apps have been created to help optimize your standing. In this post, we’ll run down five apps that will improve all facets of your well-being.

1) MyFitnessPal

Know you need to lose weight, but don’t know where to start? Downloading MyFitnessPal is a good place to start, as this app allows you to keep track of a metric important to those seeking to shed weight: calories.

While many apps work well for approximating the caloric content of whole foods like grain, meats, fruit, and vegetables, they often fall short when it comes to evaluating the plethora of processed food brands out there, as well as different cuts of meat or types of bread.

Thanks to this app’s gigantic database, it has very few gaps when it comes to foods commonly found on store shelves across the country. As a result, you’ll be able to keep track of your nutrients, helping you to remain in an energy deficit if you are losing weight, or in a reasonable surplus if you are bulking.

2) Couch to 5K

The other part of losing weight is to boost your daily energy expenditure. Heading out your door for a morning jog is an easy and inexpensive way of accomplishing this goal, but without a plan, you might never make it off the couch.

This is where Couch to 5K comes in – it provides a user-friendly interface which encourages people to get off their duff and onto the sidewalk. It not only gives you a framework to which you can refer (warm up – run – cool down), it provides virtual encouragement via four different ‘trainers’.

Together with statistics which grants ongoing quantitative feedback, you’ll have all the motivation you need to eventually get yourself into good-enough shape to run a 5K race.

3) Strava

Consider yourself a seasoned runner? Strava provides the tools you’ll need to take your game to the next level. A statistician’s dream come true, Strava tracks a whole host of metrics, from distance travelled to average speed.

This will allow you to keep track of your progress as time goes by, giving you the data you need to seek improvements that may give you the competitive edge you’ll need at an upcoming race.

4) Sleep Cycle

Tired of not getting the sleep you need and deserve? There’s an app for that too, it seems. Sleep Cycle tracks the quality and duration of your beauty rest, noting the noises you make during the night.

When it senses you are in a light sleep phase close to your chosen awakening time, it will nudge you out of it, as those roused from this state are far more refreshed than those forced out of a deeper sleep cycle.

5) Calm

Has the hectic pace of your life begun to catch up with you? Help quiet your mind by downloading Calm on your phone. This handy program guides you through meditations and breathing exercises as it plays soothing music, putting your mind at ease as you wind down towards a peaceful sleep.