Help Wanted: Wal-Mart Door Greeter

One of my fine friends had recently commented about the speed of thought. I was reminded of a recent story, apropos to his remark, and one told to me by a physician colleague.

It seems one of the local Wal-Marts had an opening for a Door Greeter job. The store manager published the help wanted notice & after receiving numerous applications, culled the job seekers to four.

Having thoroughly examined the applications, reviewed their resumes, and wanting to be as efficient as possible, he decided to conduct a group interview of the four sharpest candidates.

Because he wanted to see how they could think of their feet, he decided to ask them each a question and judge their response.

Turning to the first candidate, he said, “Young lady, what’s the fastest thing you can think of?”

She quickly replied saying, “A blink.”

“That’s good,” said the manager in response. “A blink is much less than a second, and the Scripture says Christ will come in the twinkling of an eye. That’s good.”

Turning to the second candidate, he asked

Wal-Mart seeks inroad to finance & banking

Banks are making money hand over fist, and yet they claim they need protection?

It’s their customers who need protection!

And that is but one reason why I don’t bank. I use Credit Unions.

At a bank, you’re a customer.

At a Credit Union, you’re an owner.

Big difference.

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Business

New Bluebird prepaid card is alternative to checking accounts

Bluebird by American Express and Walmart
Walmart and American Express have teamed up to offer the new Bluebird card. They say it should help people avoid the high fees on checking accounts and debit cards.

by Jeff Tyler
Marketplace Morning Report for Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Fewer fees mean more customers. That’s the hypothesis behind a new prepaid card called Bluebird. It’s the product of an odd-couple partnership between elite financial services company, American Express, and populist low-cost retailer, Walmart.

What makes the Bluebird card different? In a word: Fees. The prepaid card promises no minimum balance requirements, no monthly fees, no annual fees, and no overdraft fees.

Dan Schulman with American Express says, “Last year, banks charged $31.6 billion in overdraft fees. And according to a recent Bank Rate study, the minimum balance average to avoid a maintenance fee is now $723.02. That’s up 23 percent from last year.”

He says

Think you saved a bundle on your travel? Think again.

“Everything old is new again.”

Kinda’ makes you wonder how long it’ll take retailers to figure out that most folks do NOT enjoy having to play cashier and bagger after shopping.

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Are Travel Agents Back?

April 20, 2012

By MICHELLE HIGGINS

THE complimentary wine and fruit platter was sent up to Jessica Griffin and her family moments after they strolled into their roomy suite. They were accompanied by a bellhop who placed their bags near a tidy crib made up with luxurious, high thread-count sheets for Ms. Griffin’s 1-year-old daughter.

The V.I.P. treatment at the Cheeca Lodge and Spa in the Florida Keys last month hadn’t come with an extra cost. In fact, Ms. Griffin said, she paid about $100 a night less than the standard rate for her room. And the deal wasn’t the result of hours of tedious online research either. She had finagled her savings the old-fashioned way: through a travel agent.

“I needed recommendations and someone to steer me in the right direction,” said Ms. Griffin, who opted to work with an agent after years of making her own reservations because she needed a getaway suitable for a toddler and had little interest in scrolling through endless and conflicting user hotel reviews online. “There are so many,” she said. And with every site displaying beautiful pictures and tantalizing offers, “it can be overwhelming.”

“I wanted somebody from a reputable agency who could say yes, you’ll enjoy this stay,” she said.

According to those in the travel agent industry, clients like Ms. Griffin are not alone, and are in fact helping to stanch the bloodletting the industry has experienced since the onset of D.I.Y. booking more than a decade ago. Nearly one in three leisure agencies is hiring, according to PhoCusWright, a travel research firm. And in 2011 travel agencies experienced