Life Happens 365 - Are You Managing the Risk?

By Diane Tait As I sit here writing this blog, there are only two more days left before Christmas.   This is the time when panic sets in as shoppers looking for last-minute gifts clash with those looking for last-minute deals.   As a result, the stores are jammed, the parking lots and streets fronting shopping centers are chaotic and tempers fray.   In short, if you have yet to complete your holiday shopping list, you had better grit your teeth and get ready for a stressful situation that may rui your holiday cheer.   What’s even worse is that as Christmas Eve fast approaches, the number of auto accidents, road rage incidents, and ER visits spike as well.   To help you deal with the worst of last-minute madness, I thought I’d dedicate this week’s blog to gifting you with the five things you need to know to survive the final two days of the Christmas shopping season.

  By Diane Tait The Christmas holiday season is the busiest travel time of the year.   That means no matter how you get there, you can expect travel delays.   It also adds up to a lot of cranky people.   Everyone from the relatives and the kids to travel agents and hotel clerks will be more than usually stressed out.   To keep you from being one of those whose enjoyment of the holiday decreases with every digression, detour, and delay, I’ve come up with a handy checklist that should help reduce your blood pressure considerably.

  By Diane Tait Face it, running a small business is fraught with peril.   If supplies dry up or a hurricane or health hazard rears its ugly head, your business can take a hit. If a customer slips and falls in your place of business, you can get sued.   If your business computers are breached, hackers can steal or erase your data.   While I’ve written blogs in the past that have dealt with these issues, one of the legal landmines I have yet to address is professional negligence.  

  By Diane Tait I was just helping my daughter decorate for the holidays when I noticed that a string of Christmas lights she intended to place on the tree was hot.   “Time to get rid of these,” I told her before pulling the plug.   The incident got me thinking about other hazards that could all too easily ruin the holidays for any family.   Being in the insurance industry, I’m well aware of how the holidays represent an uptick in things like theft, fire and ER visits.   So, I thought I’d take the time to give my readers a dozen ways to make the season of giving a little bit safer.