Writer, editor, dog lover
It’s the eve of your departure — the day 
before you leave for that long-overdue vacation you’ve been dreaming of for months. But before you embark on your trip, there are some important steps for you to take.
Here are 11 items to cross off your to-do list before you head out.
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If you’ve been feeling extra cramped 
on flights these days, you’re not alone.
Air carriers have been been slowly shrinking the amount of legroom customers get for years. The average “seat pitch”—the distance between a point on one seat and the same point on the seat directly in front of it—has decreased from 35 inches in the late 1960s to 31 inches today, and on some airlines has been reduced to 28 inches. That may explain why a quarter of passengers on economy flights said they found seat comfort to be “poor” or “very poor,” a recent survey by Consumer Reports found.
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If there’s anything the Airbnb economy 
has taught us, it’s that there’s money to be had in renting out houses and apartments.
With interest rates low and the rental market strong, some enterprising Americans are buying up properties and taking on tenants. It’s big business: Landlords and real estate investors lease roughly 44 million single-family homes and house 60 million people, a recent study by Real Property Management found.
The best way to be a successful landlord is to be prepared — for tenants who don’t pay rent, noise violations, and property damage. Evicting a terrible tenant can be tough, as many states and municipalities have landlord-tenant laws that favor renters. Here’s how to find the perfect tenant — and get it right the first time.
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Have you ever thought, 
“It might be nice to go on vacation by myself”?
If so, you’re not alone. Roughly one in four Americans say they will travel solo this year, according to an annual survey by marketing firm MMGY Global. One of the benefits of vacationing by yourself, of course, is the freedom. “You can do what you want, when you want,” says Janice Waugh, author of The Solo Traveler’s Handbook and founder of the online resource Solo Traveler. Want to eat lunch at 4 p.m.? Go for it! Have no desire to see, for instance, that world-famous boardwalk? Just drive right by and on to your next destination.
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On frigid winter days, sometimes you 
just want to hunker down at home and stay warm. Sounds cozy, right? Well, good luck doing that in a house full of drafts.
Drafts, or air leaks, can be a homeowner’s worst nightmare. In addition to making your space uncomfortable, drafts can drive up your energy bills — as your heating system goes into overdrive to keep your home warm — and even create health risks.
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About 8 in 10 Americans say it’s important 
to keep a clean home, a recent survey by global cleaning technology company Kärcher found. But some parts of the house get more TLC than others.
Your kitchen countertops might be spotless, for instance, but can you remember the last time you cleaned your oven racks — or the inside of your dishwasher? Did you even know you could clean the inside of a dishwasher?
Well, don’t fret — we spoke to housekeeping experts and got the dirt on how to clean 10 often-neglected home items.
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Entrepreneurial spirit—it’s a phrase you 
might see in some job ads. Granted, your track record might not look like Mark Zuckerberg’s, Lori Greiner’s, or Richard Branson’s, but that doesn’t mean you can’t emulate successful entrepreneurs at work.
Put simply, awesome employees and successful entrepreneurs have more than a few traits in common—and employers are eager to hire such people. Being a self-starter can make you very desirable.
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Think you’re ready to tackle 
a home-improvement project yourself? Deciding whether you’re up to the challenge or whether you should hire a professional can be tricky.
On one hand, choosing to DIY a home renovation can help you save money, as home improvement spending increases nationwide. From February 2016 to February 2017, U.S. homeowners shelled out an average of $5,157 on home projects — an increase of $1,869 over the previous 12 months, HomeAdvisor’s 2017 True Cost Survey found.
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The war for talent isn’t won when 
employees walk in your company’s door. The challenge simply changes from hiring them to keeping them—and that battle begins on day one with effective onboarding.
Indeed, smoothly integrating workers into their positions—and the company’s culture—is critical, given that up to 20 percent of employee turnover occurs within the first 45 days of employment, according to research by O.C. Tanner, an employee recognition company based in Salt Lake City.
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No matter how dreamy a home looks 
at first glance, lurking behind those neatly painted walls could be some truly terrifying things. We’re not talking about ghosts or bats, but things like small cracks in the ceiling, tiny holes in the drywall, or a musty odor in the basement—seemingly minor issues that should make you very, very afraid.
Rest assured, we’re not trying to scare you from buying a home altogether! We simply want to provide you with a list of red flags to watch out for, because they could cause health problems or cost major money to fix. All in all, they are headaches that you’ll want to avoid—or, at least, point out to the sellers so you can negotiate down that list price. So if you find any of these problems, make sure to proceed with caution.
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Daniel Bortz 