Every Shopaholic's Eye-Candy - DISCOUNT COUPONS!

We all have one person at least in our lives who is a shopaholic. Shopaholics are creating a community of their own which is soon going to originate as a religion. This is proven by the fact that there is an entire reality show called "Extreme Couponing" that is gaining a lot of attention. Here are some really useful tips that you could use to grab more coupons and save more money to buy more stuff! Wow, that would sound so magical to any shopaholic. Go on, read along!

1. Never let your laziness over-power you when you need to sign-up for Email Subscriptions of popular websites. There are secret coupons hidden in every subscription that you enter into. Look out for them smartly!

2. During sign-up, when you fill out your details in the form, ALWAYS mention your birthdays and anniversary dates correctly. Why do I say this? Well, did you know that Baskin Robbins gives a free scoop of ice cream on your birthday? What's more? Krispy Kreme hands out a free donut on your birthday along with another one for your sign-up. Check out more offers here.

3. Planning for a dinner date or just a weekend getaway? Make sure you always check Groupon for good deals related to your interest and then zero in on a plan. You'd be surprised by some of the offers and the amount you could save through this.

4. Take surveys wherever possible to receive freebies and coupons. Have you ever had a free double chocolate cookie at SUBWAY? Oh, it really is that simple to grab one for free. Just take a 1-minute survey while your sub is getting ready and win a free cookie.

5. I'm sure you use at least one product that belongs to a premium brand. Ever thought of writing an honest review of the product and publishing it on their Facebook page or mentioning them on Twitter? If not, then do it right away! You will stand a chance to receive some free goodies or discount vouchers from the brand itself!

6. Opt for a secure payment gateway like PayPal or FreeCharge to avail offers and coupons for your bill payments.

7. Last but not the least. Spread the word about all the coupons that you get your hands on to know from others what they are using. Word of mouth is the ultimate form of marketing and publicity!

Go on and shop smartly! Happy shopping!

The Ultimate Guide to Avoid Credit Card Frauds

Credit card scams and thefts have suddenly risen in the West and is trickling down to other countries as well. It is not possible to always avoid something like this from happening, but it is in your hands to provide some resistance to this activity and buy yourself some time to stay protected. We thought of jotting down a few tips and tricks that would prove useful to anyone and everyone.

1. Put your credit cards in a safe place
Ensure that all your electronic cards are safely kept in a wallet or pouch and keep this close to your body making it difficult for thieves to access them. Do not keep them in the back pockets of your loose and low-waist denims or shirt pockets. All the ladies out there, make sure your purse is properly zipped and is in a secure place. Also, carry only a couple of cards at a time. Do not carry unnecessary ones all the time. Keep them in a safe vault at home. Another important thing to note is that you must not leave your card exposed to the public eyes for a long time. After your transaction is done at the mall, immediately put the card inside your wallet.

2. Shred all your credit card statements from time to time
Crooks often dig garbage cans for scrunched up credit card statements and make use of your billing information to somehow make a transaction. So, check that all papers carrying any account/credit card information is shredded to pieces before it reaches the dump.

3. Never sign credit card statements without checking
Always make it a point to see the amount of your transaction before signing the receipt. Zero may not have a value before any digit but when the same zero is added after a digit, it makes a huge difference.

4. DO NOT share your credit card details
You may receive a call from a fraudster posing to be from your bank, or get an email from a scamster who claims he's your personal financial counselor. In any situation, never ever share your account details. Even during online shopping, opt for "Cash on Delivery" whenever possible, else make sure the payment gateway is authentic and popular. And yes, always ensure that you do not share your credit card information with friends or relatives whom you trust via SMS or WhatsApp. Everything on cloud is having the provision of backup. Stay alert and smartly share your details using a pre-determined code of some sort.

5. Immediately report loss or theft of credit card
The minute you realize that your credit card is missing, without losing a second, call up your bank and report its loss. This way you will block your card earlier and not give the fraudster enough time to make a transaction.

6. Check your monthly billing statements thoroughly
Verify each and every transaction reflecting in your billing statement. In case you identify any unauthorized charges, immediately inform your bank about it and get it sorted.

7. Set super strong passwords for your cards
You may be an impulsive online shopper, saving your card details with different websites like Amazon, Shoppers, etc. Be assured that you have set really tough passwords that would even make James Bond crazy!

8. Be aware of skimmers at gas stations and ATM booths
A lot of rogues place skimmers onto the credit card readers that will store details of your card for these guys to come later and retrieve that information. Check properly that these readers are devoid of such malicious instruments.

As they say, prevention is always better than cure; it is indeed better to stay alert by keeping in mind simple things that can help you stay secure and protected from such scams. Hope this information is useful and helps you stay safe in the digital world!

In case you have some more brilliant tips that you could share with our readers, please feel free to mention them in the comments below.

How Indians transform when they go abroad!

Have you ever wondered why some Indians completely change once they migrate to foreign countries? Small things like accent, habits, and behavior undergo massive changes. So here's my take on this scenario where I have depicted a situation with respect to the same guy who would behave in separate manners when in India and in America.

Independence day scenes!

Jains be like!

Garbage just got a status update!

Driving is a whole new experience!

Pedestrian crossing has to be American to respect it!

Have you noticed anything else like this in your friends or relatives? Share your instances with us in the comments below.

The Ultimate Cheat Sheet on Scams in Online Training

In this world of extreme competition, everyone is just craving to be better than the others they know. This emotion has not just captivated the students, but is trickling down their parents as well. It is sad but true. And do you know who’s making money out of this? “Training Institutes” is your answer. There are millions of private coaching centers in every corner of the world. It is nothing but fear that they ride on – fear of students losing out to someone, fear of parents not being able to give their children everything that their neighbor gives. Many of these institutes are present in the online world because of the fact that they are afraid to keep their identity transparent. Here’s a quick guide to stay alert and avoid getting trapped with online fraudsters who pose as tutors.

Browse their website thoroughly and look for authentic location details, contact numbers etc.

Word of mouth quotient must be high. Have you heard of them before? What have you heard about them and from whom? Collect answers to all the above questions before taking your decision

If you haven’t heard of them from a friend, then look for reviews and ratings. Check for testimonials from their previous customers and listen to what they have to say. And yes, ensure that they have decent number of reviews. They may have a 5 star rating but it matters whether it is from 1 user or 100 users!

Opt for introductory or trial offers initially. Take a few lessons and see if they seem genuine and you can make the most of the time and money that you are about to spend

Try getting in touch with the trainer through phone or email and get all your queries sorted

Look for secure payment gateways like PayPal, Citrus etc. Ensure that you have received an OTP for your transaction and once your transaction is successful, take a printout of the receipt

In spite of all these efforts, if you are cheated, don’t delay in filing a complaint against the institute in discussion. Make sure that you support your complaint with necessary documents

5 Mobile Apps for an NRI in USA

Hi again! I was just talking to my friend yesterday who is in the US (I mentioned about her in the previous post). She was talking about how some apps have made her life a lot easier there. Back in India we have our parents taking care of half of our responsibilities. Only when we are alone, do we realize that it is way tougher to organize and execute so many things on a daily basis. To assist you a little, I have put together, a list of mobile apps that could make your life much easier!

Hope you find this list useful. In case you have any more additions to this list, please feel free to add them in the comments section below.

6 ways to keep the madness alive with your NRI BFF!

I am writing this out of my personal experience. Recently, my BFF and I celebrated our 10^th anniversary of friendship. Although she is in the US studying, and I am in India, we decided to do something special to cherish for life. We always knew “We were MAD for each other” and to keep our madness alive, did a few interesting tasks. We definitely ought to thank the supreme powers of technology that made all this possible! Go ahead and try them to relive those crazy times that you had with your bestie!

1. Bake cookies together, over Skype. And if you are a guy and feel that baking is not your cup of tea (though I disagree), you could mix up a few interesting cocktails or even cook a rare and tasty dish!

2. Play fun games like the very old yet classic Dumb Charades, Taboo, or even Pictionary (for all those who have watched F.R.I.E.N.D.S, I’m sure you can’t resist your giggle right now :P)

3. When you get tired of seeing each other on Skype, switch to WhatsApp and play Antakshari through Audio messages

4. Why waste money on going to a club when you can set up your own Karaoke night in your bedroom. Switch on Skype, sing together your favorite songs with a glass of chilled beer and some munching!

5. Now for some real fun, pick an off-beat movie and do a pretentious review of the same. You may go ahead and also record this video and post it on YouTube. Who knows, you may start trending in no time J

6. Make a collection of all your photos together, funny ones, embarrassing one, hopeless ones, cute ones and many others. Create an album of these pictures using any online photo album software and print one copy each. This sure will help at times when you very badly miss each other!

Hope you enjoyed reading this as much as we enjoyed doing this together. Share your experiences with me and do feel free to make additions to this list :P

How Indian students going abroad for higher education react to different situations?

It is easy to get into an overseas university for most Indians; we are smart, academically. But when it comes to people skills and refined interaction etiquette, most of us are found lacking. Most of it is unintentional but can be avoided, provided we think before we talk!

Here is a collection of a few situations when Indian students react hilariously to foreigners.

There is a thin line between appreciating someone and offending someone

Tone down on overtly reacting. Indians are tuned to it while western people find it to be on the borderline of being sarcastic

Not every smell is tailor-made to please your nostrils!

Yes, there are no spices to make food smell interesting and yes hand sanitizers are a thing in the developed world!

Eating a veg sub like a caveman!

You will not be jailed for taking smaller bites. You will not be penalized for being less noisy with your silverware at a fancy restaurant and you definitely don’t have to eat a sub like it is Naan made of Maida!

Over-react when someone doesn’t know something they think you should know

Nope, Americans don’t follow cricket and they don’t know who Sachin is!

Making a sarcastic face when you have to agree you are wrong

Do the noble thing; get to terms that you aren’t the brainiest in the gang.

What else do you think we do wrong? Do share your comments and we will add it to this post and make it more interesting!