If you don't have all the necessary equipment, you can try placing a glass or ceramic bowl into the water, but it may be a bit harder to work with. A double boiler slowly melts the chocolate, preventing it from bubbling up and burning to a crisp. Add your chocolate chunks, stirring often. If it gets too hot, turn the heat down. Once they are near completely melted, remove from the heat, stirring until smooth and warm. Not hot. The handy microwave is always an option. Heat on high for 2 minutes, stirring halfway through. Note: With a microwave, there's a greater risk of scorching your chocolate. Raise it and allow the extra chocolate to drip back into the bowl. Roll it around, turning the stick, allowing every bit of the apple to get a nice, thorough coating. If the bits next to the Popsicle stick are proving a bit hard to reach, grab a spoon and dash on a pinch to any hard to reach spots. Even it out; the layering should be equal on all sides. You may have to use your hands and get in there to ensure the entire apple is coated evenly. If the topping is dripping off under the weight, pat it down on each side. If you're using a drizzle, place the apples on the cookie sheet, Popsicle stick up. Then, simply take a spoonful of your drizzle and hold it about six inches (15 cm) above your apples, creating lines of varying thickness across the paper. The Popsicle sticks should be pointing up. Put it into the refrigerator to chill, until the chocolate is set.
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One-sentence summary -- Make a double boiler. Dunk each apple into the chocolate. Roll the apple in your topping. Place your apples on the cookie sheet. Finished.


The first step towards financial freedom is determining where you stand now. You'll have to take stock of your finances and assets to get a sense of where you need to go from here to have more financial security. Figure out your net worth, which is essentially an honest assessment of your current wealth.  Tally up everything you own and its value. This includes obvious things, like your house and your car, but think outside the box as well. Do you have any valuable collectables? Do you own any property? Once you've tallied up your assets, add your annual income, as well as any additional money you make each year through side work or investments. List all your debts. This can include credit card debt, your mortgage, and any loans. Subtract your debts from the first number. The number you have now represents your net worth. You'll want to figure out how much you're spending each month and how much income you have each month. This will give you a sense of where you could cut back on expenses. If you're vigilant about tracking expenses, you'll be surprised at how much money you spend extraneously.  Keep a small journal for a month and write down where you're spending your money or use an app like Mint to help track your expenses. Keep track of any bills you pay, monthly rent or mortgage, insurance payments, and so on. You'll also want to record your income. Record the amount, frequency, and timing of all sources of income. You should also add any extra expenses. Do you subscribe to any magazines or online services? Add that to your list. On a day-to-day basis, write down how much money you spend on things like shopping, eating out, recreational activities, and so on. You may be shocked when you tally your expenses by category at the end of the month. You may be spending a lot more money on things like eating out and going out for drinks than you anticipated. You'll want to set some financial goals for yourself. You need to have a clear-cut plan for the future if you want to become financially independent.  Try to think ahead. Where do you want to be in 10 years? 15 years? How can you go about investing and saving your money to make sure you can achieve these goals? Keep realistic goals. For example, you can strive to have a job that pays well and has benefits. You can also strive to maintain your current standard of living into retirement. Write down a series of goals, ranked in terms of important. Include both short term goals ("I want to cut down monthly spending by $300 this month) and long term goals ("I want to start a retirement fund so I can retire comfortably in the next 20 years."). When it comes to saving, you should start right now. A good goal is to set aside 10 to 15% of what you earn each month in savings. Getting into the habit of saving money can really help your longterm financial prospects.  You can do this either on a weekly or monthly basis. If you have online banking, you can put away a certain amount of each paycheck in savings. You can also talk to your bank about automatic transfers and have 10 to 15% of each paycheck automatically transferred to your savings account each month. Automatic withdrawals are a good idea. Many people struggle to set aside money and feel tempted to spend everything they have.
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One-sentence summary -- Figure out your finances at the moment. Understand your cash flow. Set a series of financial goals. Aim to save 10 to 15% of what you earn.


Paradoxically, you can stand out by avoiding social activities. Try not to lose friends or alienate coworkers by rejecting their invitations over and over again. Social outings can be intimidating, especially if they're with people you don't know well. You may not always be invited to participate in your idea of a perfect evening. However, the ability to take part in a wide range of social activities will make you seem more normal and approachable. The easiest way to do this is to be open to making friends wherever you go. Try not to worry too much about cliques, or whether someone is your type. If you get along with them, your friendship will be perfectly natural and normal. Having friends will make you appear more approachable. and have good manners. Society thinks highly of people who are pleasant to be around. It is natural to be crass with your close friends with whom you feel comfortable. When aiming to make a good impression, however, try to be more polite. Meeting someone new is exciting, but there is a natural period of "ice breaker" discussions before you are comfortable with each other. Don't bring up intimate, personal topics (like health issues, sexual preferences, traumatic events, etc.) in conversation until you know someone. While you are getting the feel for a new friend, filter your language to avoid alienating them. Strong emotions are normal, even desirable. However, big, outsize displays of emotion (especially anger and sadness) can make people feel uncomfortable. Strive to regulate your emotional responses to small problems and constructively express your feelings. Don't shout, throw things, curse, or become violent. Whenever possible, express your displeasure calmly, quietly, and politely. If you get angry easily or have reason to think you're depressed, don't be afraid to contact a therapist or counselor. You aren’t a "crazy" person for talking to a professional therapist. They can be simply a helpful voice as you go through a difficult time, or something much more important. It's normal to have intense opinions about certain things - political issues, for instance. It's even OK to engage in well-reasoned, sensible debates with other people about these things. However, if you frequently ridicule or attack people because their opinions are different than yours, you might quickly find yourself a bit of a social pariah. Instead, try to at least listen to others' opinions and be open-minded.
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One-sentence summary --
Participate in social activities. Cultivate an active social life. Be polite Don't share too much too soon. Control your emotions. Moderate your opinions.