Online Features
Business & Careers
Getting organized: Learn your style and find solutions that work for you
(BPT) - Resolving to reduce clutter and get better organized seems to be a lingering item on many people’s “to-do” lists, yet for many of us, it can be difficult to get started. While organization is an essential tool for navigating our complex modern lives, many people struggle to find their personal style of organizat...
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Trends provide guidance as technology shapes careers landscapes
(BPT) - The saying goes: success is when preparation meets opportunity. As technology continues to affect our lives, workers in today’s ever-changing labor market need to be prepared with skills to adapt and succeed in the workplace. Job opportunities in technology are growing up to three times faster than other career...
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Give your small business a social facelift
(BPT) - Small businesses that adopt online marketing strategies see significant business benefits, ranging from improved campaign performance to higher return on investment (ROI), according to a recent study conducted by Forrester. However, small businesses are likely still favoring newspaper advertising and direct ma...
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Financial considerations beyond the 'fiscal cliff'
(BPT) - With the agreement reached at the eleventh hour of 2012 to avert components of the so-called “fiscal cliff,” nearly all taxpayers will be affected in some way.  With that in mind, there are still many things you can do this year to prepare for potential additional tax changes and to take control of your financia...
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Get organized to help grow your business
(BPT) - Small businesses are always trying to find ways to get organized so employees can work more efficiently and save money in the process. With tax time just around the corner and projects opening and closing on a daily basis, taking your business organization standards to a new and improved level might seem like a ...
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Employment scams: The job offer you don't want to accept
Job hunting can be both exciting and nerve-wracking, as you showcase your talents for potential employers in hopes of landing that position. While you’re certainly eager to impress, and want to show that you’ll go the extra mile for your future employer, those instincts can also lead you into trouble. With so much compe...
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How to stay productive and not infect the office when you're sick
Each year, American workers miss 100 million workdays due to the flu alone . There’s a trace of irony in that number: Many of those days wouldn’t have to be lost if those who were sick stayed home, preventing the transfer of germs and viruses within the office. For many Americans, staying home from work when sick isn’t always an easy decision. A recent survey by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that one in three U.S. employees doesn’t have paid sick leave. By simply planning ahead...
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Educate yourself before starting the path to a new career
(BPT) - If you’re looking to start a career – whether it’s because you’re just beginning your journey as a working adult or because you’re ready for a change in life – you should know that the process is much larger than just getting a degree and looking for a job. A career involves knowing your interests in a particul...
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Online security tips and reputation management for job-hunters
(BPT) - When you’re job-hunting you go to great lengths to stand out among the hundreds – even thousands – of applicants for a single open position. But while you’re working to catch an employer’s eye, have you considered the importance of protecting your information from unwanted attention? Or the need to manage the on...
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Productivity-boosting improvements for your home office
(BPT) - Let’s face it – not everyone has a home office that inspires productivity. But if you work from home at all – and the Bureau of Labor Statistics says 24 percent of people employed outside the home do at least some of their work at home – having a comfortable, organized and appealing home office can make your j...
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Want to get paid to go to the gym? Become a personal trainer
(BPT) - One upside to the burgeoning obesity epidemic is that it’s fueling the growth of jobs in the fitness industry.  Whether you’re one of those people in need of a personal trainer or you’re looking for work in a dismal job market, the bureau of labor statistics reports “employment of fitness trainers and instructo...
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Keep your office healthy to prevent a flu outbreak
(BPT) - A flu outbreak in your workforce can cause problems in several different areas of your business. The best flu prevention is encouraging and educating workers on how to be proactive at fending off the flu virus. By making sure your employees do the best they can to stay in good health and flu free, you can keep y...
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national news

U.S. first lady Michelle Obama and her daughter Sasha place flowers as they visit the Berlin Wall memorial in Bernauer Strasse in BerlinBy Sarah Marsh and Alexandra Hudson BERLIN (Reuters) - Michelle Obama and her daughters threaded roses through the narrow slots of a Berlin Wall memorial on Wednesday, honoring those who died trying to cross the Cold War barrier at a site which holds special poignancy in the once divided city. Accompanied by Angela Merkel's husband Joachim Sauer, who like the German leader hails from the former East Germany, President Barack Obama's family toured the Bernauer Strasse memorial where desperate residents of East Berlin once tried to jump from their windows into the western half of the city. ...


2013-06-19 10:24:45 -0500

Undated handout photo of Bulger holding Martorano's youngest son, John Jr., during his Christening ceremonyBy Daniel Lovering BOSTON (Reuters) - An altar-boy-turned-gang-enforcer told jurors at the trial of accused mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger on Wednesday that he did not set the terms of a deal with prosecutors allowing him to serve just 12 years in prison for 20 murders in exchange for details against his former boss. The witness, John "The Executioner" Martorano, was the first member of the ruthless Winter Hill Gang to testify against Bulger, who is on trial for charges including racketeering and 19 murders that occurred in the 1970s and '80s. ...


2013-06-19 10:25:54 -0500

Robert Mueller speaks before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee at an oversight hearing about the FBI on Capitol Hill in WashingtonWASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than a dozen FBI agents are assigned to the criminal investigation into the Internal Revenue Service's added scrutiny of conservative political groups seeking tax-exempt status, FBI Director Robert Mueller said on Wednesday. "It's a high-priority investigation and it needs to be handled with care, but it also needs to be pushed aggressively because it's a very important case," Mueller told the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing. ...


2013-06-19 10:57:49 -0500
The producers of an upcoming documentary on TWA Flight 800—which exploded and crashed into the waters off Long Island, N.Y., on July 17, 1996, killing all 230 people on board—claim to have proof that a missile caused the Paris-bound flight to crash. And six former investigators who took part in the film say there was [...]
2013-06-19 09:16:24 -0500