Six Little Secrets

There are always little secrets that you can learn to help you in life. These are the "insider tips" that might improve your health, save you money, or give you more influence over others. Here are six of them you can put to use today.

Highway Toll Secret

The passes (such as E-ZPass) that allow you to quickly bypass the normal toll booths do more than just speed up your trip. They also can result in a speeding ticket or be used to track your movements. Some states are issuing tickets if you traveled too quickly between tolls, and the information recorded has even been subpoenaed in civil lawsuits, including divorce cases. If you want more privacy, you may want to have more than one pass, and alternate their use, or occasionally just use the regular toll booths.

A Little Stock Broker Secret

When opening a stock trading account, especially with a discount broker, check for conflicts of interest. Ask if they are paid for "order flow" (they may use other terminology). Some brokers are paid to direct your orders to a particular "specialist" on the trading floor. This means they aren't necessarily getting you the best price. Verify that they always execute your trade at the best price available.

Better Beer

Here is a little insider's secret from the beer industry. In numerous blind taste tests, researchers found that draft beer tastes better to most people than the bottled version of the same brand of beers. Why do they order a bottle then? Apparently, that bottle in front of them is a matter of identity for consumers ("I'm a Bud man"). Also, for some, it is so they don't appear cheap. The bottom line is that unless announcing to the world your brand of beer is important to your identity, why not drink the better beer for less money?

Low Fat Isn't Always Low Fat

To comply with FDA rules, a product that is advertised as "low fat" must have 3 grams or less of fat per serving. The FDA rules, however, do not specify what a "serving" is. If the serving size chosen by the manufacturer happens to be a fourth of the amount you typically eat, then you are may actually be getting 12 grams of fat per serving. Look at the size per serving listed on the package, and consider what amount you'll actually eat at once.

Secrets Of Influencing Others

Salesmen trained in subliminal techniques watch for any words, phrases or expressions that a person repeatedly uses, and then uses those same words and phrases to influence the customer and make the sale. For example, if a person often says, "I see," or "I can understand that," he'll start a sentence with, "You can see how..." or "You can understand how..." Try it. If you hear an acquaintance say "that makes sense," several times, try saying, "You can see how this makes sense," when you want to gain agreement on a point. Or try it to get your children to cooperate. Using a persons own words creates rapport. The person feels that you are more like him or her, and that  you can be trusted. This is a simple but effective persuasion technique.

Getting Insurance Claims Paid

Many insurance companies have a policy of denying claims if there is any possible way to do so. They count on the fact that most people will not challenge the denial. If you do challenge it, they will often then pay the claim. Get your records in order, make a clear case for why they should pay the claim, and hint at legal action if they don't. I once had a $2,700 medical claim paid a year after the deadline for filing the claim had passed. Persistence, and having a lawyer write a letter is what did it. Some little secrets can be worth a lot of money.