Editorial

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,227 adults surveyed about what they are doing to save money.

Almost half of Americans (48%) say they are brown bagging lunch instead of purchasing it to save money, also slightly up from February when 45% said they were doing this. Two in five U.S. adults each say they have switched to refillable water bottles instead of purchasing bottles of water (39%) and are going to the hairdresser less often (38%). In February, one-third of Americans (34%) had switched to refillable water bottles to save money. Also, one-quarter (24%) have cut down on dry cleaning.

Looking at media habits, three in ten U.S. adults (31%) have canceled one or more magazine subscriptions and just under one in five (17%) have canceled a newspaper subscription. It's not just reading habits that are changing in these economic times, though. One in five Americans (22%) have canceled or cut back cable television service while an additional 22% say they have considered doing so.

In addition to brown-bagging it, other work habits have also changed. One in five Americans (22%) have stopped purchasing coffee in the morning, while 12% have begun carpooling or using mass transit (but this is not applicable to 48% of Americans who may not be working or may not have the ability to carpool or use mass transit).

Phone service has also changed as 15% have canceled their landline service and are only using cell phones, with an additional 22% saying they have considered this to save money. Cell phone usage is also changing as 15% say they have changed or canceled cell service to save money, with an additional 17% of Americans saying they have considered doing so.

Looking for a Job? 28% of all U.S. households have at least one member that is looking for a full-time job.

What are you doing to find work? ( please comment below)

Network. The best companies to work for tend to rely heavily (up to 40%) on employee referrals.[1]

Cold call. Locate a specific person who can help you (usually the human resources or hiring manager at a company or organization you're interested in). Call that person and ask if they are hiring.

Looking for work overseas?

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