by The Skimm
120 rule: An investing rule of thumb. The idea is that 120 minus your age is the percentage of your portfolio you should have in stocks. (this page)
1-3-5 list: Your to-do list whisperer. Every day, check off one big thing, three medium sized things, and five small things. (this page)
OPEC: Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Fourteen countries that produce half of the world’s crude oil. (this page)
open enrollment: The period of time every year when you can sign up for health insurance. (this page)
out-of-network: Doctors and hospital systems your insurance company doesn’t have deals with (where you generally pay more). (this page)
out-of-pocket max: The most you have to pay for covered health services per year. (this page)
oxidized: When vino has been exposed to too much oxygen. (this page)
political action committee: PAC. An organization that can give a limited amount of money directly to a candidate or campaign. (this page)
paper towel trick: Making your wine colder by wrapping a wet paper towel around it and sticking it in the freezer for a few mins. (this page)
pocket veto: If Congress goes out of session during the 10 days a president has to sign a bill, it gets automatically rejected. (this page)
Pomodoro technique: A productivity hack. Work without distractions for a timed 25-minute block. Take a five-minute break. Repeat. After four 25-minute working sessions, take a half-hour break to stay creative and move around. (this page)
populism: A political movement all about returning power to the people and away from the “out-of-touch elites.” (this page)
PPO: A health insurance plan with both in- and out-of-network options, but generally higher premiums. (this page)
premium: The monthly amount you pay an insurance company for coverage. (this page)
primary: The election semifinals when America decides which candidates from each party will go head-to-head in the general election. (this page)
principal: The amount you borrowed in a loan (and agreed to pay back). (this page)
recession: A serious drop in economic activity that happens for more than a few months. (this page)
replacement cost: A type of insurance that covers the amount it would take to replace an item. (this page)
retinol: A form of vitamin A used to reduce fine lines and increase collagen production. (this page)
Roth IRA: A type of IRA where you pay taxes up front, but don’t get taxed when you withdraw. (this page)
sanctions: Putting a country in the penalty box (for example, freezing assets, suspending trade) for misbehaving. (this page)
S&P 500: A well-known stock index that tracks 500 large US companies traded on the NYSE or NASDAQ. (this page)
serum: A water-based skin product made up of small molecules that can get deep into your skin to deliver nutrients. (this page)
session: A congressional calendar year. (this page)
Shiite and Sunni: The different sects of Islam. (this page)
snowball method: A way to get momentum when paying off loans. Start by listing out all your debts, smallest to largest. Pay the minimum balance on each one, except the smallest. For that one, dedicate as much cash to it as possible each month until it’s repaid. Then put that payment amount toward the second smallest debt until it’s paid off, and so on. (this page)
socialism: Like communism, but workers can earn wages and spend them however they choose. (this page)
soft inquiry: A type of credit check that doesn’t affect your credit score, as when a potential employer does a background check. (this page)
Soviet Union: USSR, or the massive communist superpower that fell at the end of the Cold War in ’91. (this page)
Speaker of the House: The head of the House of Representatives and arguably the most important position in Congress. (this page)
starfish position: Sleeping on your back with your arms and legs out. (this page)
stocks: Investments that represent shares of a company. (this page)
super PAC: The Westworld of PACs. An organization that can give an unlimited amount of money indirectly to a candidate or campaign. (this page)
Super Tuesday: The day in a presidential election season when multiple states hold primaries. (this page)
tannin: Compounds found in grape seeds, skins, and stems that leave your mouth feeling dry and kinda like you had dark chocolate or black tea. (this page)
1040: The IRS form used by taxpayers to file annual income tax returns. (this page)
1099: The IRS side-hustle tax form you get from someone you’re contracting for. (this page)
term: Two congressional sessions. (this page)
“the Ukraine”: The way the Soviet Union used to refer to Ukraine when it was its boss. Put this on your “List of Things You No Longer Say.” (this page)
30-day list: A list of all the things you want to buy during a 30-day, self-imposed ban on shopping. At the end of 30 days, if you still want to buy something on the list, go for it. (this page)
thread count: The number of horizontal and vertical threads per square inch on sheets. Higher isn’t always better—anything above 800 is probably BS and a marketing tactic. (this page)
toner: A liquid skin product that helps get skin’s pH balance in check. (this page)
TSA PreCheck: The most popular way to cut the line at the airport. You don’t even have to remove your shoes, laptops, belts, etc. It’s also the cheapest option at $85 for a five-year membership. (this page)
12-12-12 challenge: When cleaning, find 12 things to throw away, 12 to donate, and 12 to put back in their place. (this page)
UN: United Nations. The alliance of 193 countries (pretty much everyone) that’s meant to promote human rights and talk out international issues. (this page)
UN Security Council: The most powerful countries in the UN and the world. The US, China, Russia, UK, and France are on it. (this page)
variety and varietal: Variety is a noun that refers to the grape used to make the wine, while varietal is an adjective that describes the wine made using grape varieties. (this page)
VAT: Value-added tax. The EU tax that makes goods pricier. You can sometimes get a refund on this tax. (this page)
W-4: The IRS form you fill out when you start a new job, so your employer knows how much to withhold from your paycheck for taxes. (this page)
whip: The congressional leaders’ assistants and party cops. They take attendance and try to maintain voting along party lines. (this page)
WHO: World Health Organization. The one that works to make sure global populations are healthy (think: making sure people have clean air and water, fighting diseases, and providing access to medication). (this page)
WTO: World Trade Organization. An org with the goal of promoting open trade and playing referee for trade disputes. (this page)
W-2: The sequel to the W-4. It’s the IRS form that shows how much of your paycheck was withheld that year. (this page)
Resources
Capitol Switchboard
1-202-224-3121
Crisis Text Line
text 741741
Health Resources and Services Administration
hrsa.gov
Health insurance
HealthCare.gov
National Alliance on Mental Illness
nami.org
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
1-800-273-8255
Register to vote
theSkimm.com/noexcuses or USA.gov
Recycling electronics waste
eiae.org
Reporting IRS scams
1-800-829-1040 or email [email protected]
Acknowledgments
/> How to Skimm Your Life represents the hard work, passion, and dedication of theSkimm’s team and community over the past seven years. A huge thanks to Skimm HQ—this book is a representation of our values as a company and every one of you was involved in bringing it to life. A special thank-you to the dedicated power group who made this happen: Avery Carpenter, Michael Gray, Kaitlyn Jankowski, and Jessica Pepper. This is a physical reminder that we get sh*t done because of how our team hustles and shows up every day. Thank you for starting the year with a Book-a-thon and for embracing the constant stream of ideas that have brought this book to life.
Cheers to our Skimm Squad and Skimm’bassadors—the community who helped spread the word. The mission of this company and this book doesn’t exist without you.
To our families—thank you for your constant love, support, and patience. We know we are constantly late, tired, and hungry, and we thank you for your putting up with us. We love you.
Thank you to Sara Weiss for championing our vision for this book, and Gina Centrello, Kara Welsh, Kim Hovey, Jennifer Hershey, Susan Corcoran, Jennifer Garza, Emily Isayeff, Leigh Marchant, Quinne Rogers, Mark Maguire, Simon Sullivan, Nancy Delia, Joe Perez, and the team at Ballantine for their help in bringing this book to theSkimm community.
Thank you to Sarah Rothman and Meredith O’Sullivan Wasson for being our wise counselors, and the team at The Lede Company, especially Anna Bailer, for their support.
Thank you to Esther Newberg, Heather Karpas, and Kristyn Benton at ICM for taking a chance on theSkimm’s first book.
Thank you to Kate Childs and Cait Hoyt at CAA for taking our crazy ideas and making them come to life on the road. We cannot thank you enough for the creativity you bring and the way you jumped in with theSkimm team.
theSkimm is made possible by our amazing group of investors who have signed up to be on this crazy journey with us. We could not do this without you. Literally.
Irving Azoff
Tyra Banks
Willow Bay
Aimee Beatty
John F. Blackburn
Sara Blakely
Yannick Bolloré
Kate Brennan
Troy Carter
Nicole Cook
Gordy Crawford
Doug DeMartin
Jesse Draper
Rich Greenfield
Chelsea Handler
Mariska Hargitay
Michael Karsch
Michael Kassan
Nancy and Jeffrey B. Lane
Meredith Levien
Joe Marchese
Liz Milonopoulos
James Murdoch
Matt Newberger
Satya Patel
Alan Patricof
Bob Pittman
Kim Posnett
John Reese
Shonda Rhimes
Linnea Roberts
Jim Robinson
M. G. Siegler
Scott Stanford
Hope Taitz
Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch
John Waldron
Hunter Walk
theSkimm is constantly supported and challenged by our group of advisors, 911 calls, and people who have been our champions since the couch days.
Linda Boff
Fiona Carter
Greg Clayman
Jenny Fleiss
Lisa Gersh
Desiree Gruber
Jenn Hyman
Hildy Kuryk
Kristin Lemkau
Catherine Levene
Christie Marchese
Jenny Meyer
Betsy Morgan
Misha Nonoo
Michelle Peluso
Laurie Racine
Dan Rosensweig
Jane Rosenthal
Kelly Sawyer
Dan Schulman
Judy Smith
Krista Smith
Jon Steinberg
Alex Taub
Alexa von Tobel
Allison Williams
We also want to acknowledge some of the authors who have been part of Skimm Reads, including Megan Abbott, Yrsa Daley-Ward, Stephanie Danler, Emily Giffin, Jessica Knoll, Kevin Kwan, Amy O’Dell, Allison Pataki, Busy Philipps, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Karin Slaughter, Gabrielle Union, Jennifer Weiner, Lauren Weisberger, and Tara Westover.
And finally, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to our community of Skimm’rs. The company started out as two people on couch. It’s grown to what it is today because of your support, trust, and commitment to our mission.
To the people who have gotten up early to attend a Power Breakfast, to those who organized Sip ’n Skimms during an election in their hometowns, to the ones who have asked questions in our AMA’s, participated in our No Excuses and Skimm Squads, competed to wear Skimm swag, and wrote us emails with the ideas for their own next step…this book is for you.
Thank you.
About theSkimm
theSkimm is a membership company dedicated to helping female millennials live smarter lives. By seamlessly integrating into their existing routines, theSkimm has become a trusted source for more than seven million subscribers.
Founded in 2012 by Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg, theSkimm is committed to helping its members through decision-making moments by giving them the information they need to make informed and empowered choices.
theSkimm's flagship product, the Daily Skimm, is the fastest growing newsletter on the market, and the company’s product suite has grown to engage with members at home, work, and on-the-go.
theSkimm is time well spent.
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