Asking for a raise can be an intimidating prospect, but the truth is that it’s more dangerous not to ask. The longer you stay in one job without a significant pay increase, the more likely you are to make below market rate when compared to your peers.
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If you’ve been watching the teaser ads for the Big Game this week, you may have seen SoFi’s new spot making the rounds. It was a big bet for a five-year old startup, made even bigger by the fact that we chose a somewhat provocative message—the idea that SoFi provides “great loans for great people.”
While the ad was praised by many for its humor, production quality and creativity, it didn’t take long for a few people to take offense. “The message couldn’t be less inclusive if it were produced by Marie Antoinette’s ad agency,” complained one fintech newsletter. “Don’t bank with us, says fintech bank,” jabbed another headline.
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We recently hit the streets to ask people how they feel about their banks. The responses weren’t surprising:
“I don’t think my bank cares much about me.”
“I’ve never recommended my bank to anyone.”
“I don’t really trust banking institutions in general.”
Beating up on banks has become a national pastime. Yet what’s crazy is how long we’ve put up with it – the nickel-and-dime fees, the bad customer service, the being treated like a number. Most of us don’t even switch banks when we get fed up —it’s too much hassle, and aren’t they all the same anyway?
Read moreOFFICIAL RULES
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THIS SWEEPSTAKES.
A PURCHASE WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.
The SoFi Selfie Sweepstakes (the “Sweepstakes”) begins at 9:00:01 AM Eastern Standard Time (“EST”) on February 1, 2016 and ends at 11:59:59 PM EST on February 14, 2016 (the “Sweepstakes Entry Period”).
Eligibility: Sweepstakes is open solely to individuals who are legal residents of the 50 United States (and the District of Columbia) who at time of entry are: i) age 21 or older; and ii) are SoFi borrowers in good standing prior to February 1, 2016 (referred to hereafter as an “Entrant”). Employees of Social Finance, LLC (the “Sponsor”), Ventura Associates International LLC (the “Administrator”) and their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, advertising, public relations and promotion agencies (collectively, the “Sweepstakes Entities”), and their immediate family members and/or those living in the same household of each, whether related or not, are not eligible to enter or win. Sweepstakes governed by U.S. law. Sweepstakes is subject to all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations. Void where prohibited by law.
How to Enter: Take a selfie of yourself only that showcases the #SoFiGreat t-shirt (optional) or create your own t-shirt or art/image that depicts how #SoFiGreat you are (each, a “Photo”) and submit your entry during the Sweepstakes Entry Period via:
For the Instagram method of entry, you must have a mobile phone or other wireless or electronic device that supports the Instagram applications. Normal Internet access and usage charges imposed by your online and cell phone service provider will apply. “Entry” shall mean and refer to each Twitter Entry or Instagram Entry. “Account” shall mean and refer to each Twitter Account and Instagram Account. “Photo” shall mean and refer to each Twitter or Instagram Photo. Photos are included for illustrative and entertainment purposes only. Entries will not be judged. Limit: one (1) entry per person per day regardless of method of entry.
Submittal of Entries/Photos: Only Entries submitted via Twitter and Instagram during the Sweepstakes Entry Period will be accepted. Entrant must be the only person in Photo. Each entry must be taken by Entrant. Entry must be original and not copied from any other work and must not infringe upon the rights of any third party. Content that may NOT be contained in an Entry includes, but is not limited to, the following:
If an Entry includes any of the prohibited elements listed above, the Entry will be disqualified, along with the Entrant who submitted it. The above list is not intended to be exhaustive; the Sponsor may disqualify any Entry if it contains a photo or text that Sponsor deems, in its sole discretion, to be offensive or obscene in any way or to not be in compliance with these Official Rules. Entries will not be received or held “in confidence” and a submission does not create a confidential relationship or obligation of secrecy between you and the Sponsor or any of its affiliates. Entrants retain ownership of the Entries they submit, however by submitting an Entry, the Entrant, on behalf of him/herself and any Third Party Participants grants Sweepstakes Entities, and their respective parent companies and/or agents, a perpetual, fully-paid, irrevocable, non-exclusive license to publish, reproduce, prepare derivative works of, distribute, display, exhibit, transmit, broadcast, televise, digitize, otherwise use, and permit others to use and perform throughout the world the Entry, in whole or in part, in any manner, form, or format now or hereinafter created, including on the Internet, and for any purpose, including, but not limited to, on Sweepstakes Entities’ websites, Twitter, Instagram and/or any other advertising or promotion of Sweepstakes Entities all without further consent from or compensation to Entrant. By submitting an Entry, you agree that Sponsor has no obligation to post or publish your Entry, that all such postings or publication, if any, will be in Sponsor’s sole discretion and that the posting or publication of an Entry does not have any bearing on whether the Entry will be selected as the winner or a runner-up. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Entrant agrees that the Entry may be posted and shared by other others as is associated with Twitter.com and/or Instagram.com and that the Sweepstakes Entities are not responsible for any unauthorized use of Entries by third parties.
If your Account is set to “protected or private mode”, your comments/responses/Entry will not be visible to Sponsor and, therefore, will not be received by Sponsor, resulting in your failure to enter the Sweepstakes. Please note that disabling “protected or private mode” will make all of your comments/responses/Entry public and anyone will be able to follow you. During the Entry Period, you will disclose your relationship with Sponsor in any online posts you make which reference SoFI or any of its products or services by including the statement “I entered a sweepstakes sponsored by Social Finance, LLC” in any such online posts. If you are selected as a winner, you will continue to disclose your relationship Social Finance, LLC in all online posts you make that reference Social Finance, LLC or any of its products or services by including the statement “I received a prize from Social Finance, LLC” in any such online posts.
Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any Entry for any reason, in its sole and absolute discretion. Sponsor is under no obligation to disclose why an Entry has been disqualified other than the Entry was ineligible under these Official Rules. Furthermore, the Sponsor reserves the right to not award all of the prizes if, in its sole and absolute discretion, it does not receive a sufficient number of eligible entries. Entries subject to all notices posted at SoFi.com, including these Official Rules. All Entries become Sponsor’s property and will not be returned or acknowledged.
Winner Selection and Notification: Each potential winner (subject to verification) will be determined via a random drawing from all eligible entries received during the Sweepstakes Entry Period. Random drawing will be conducted by Sponsor and/or its designated agent within two (2) days from the end of the Sweepstakes Entry Period. Each potential winner (herein, a “winner”) will be notified via Twitter or Instagram by Direct Message from Sponsor to the potential winner’s Twitter or Instagram Account within one (1) day of winner selection to obtain a mailing address as well as any additional information or documents as needed for verification. Sponsor is not responsible for changes to a potential winner’s Twitter or Instagram’s Direct Message function that may interfere with winner notification. At the sole discretion of the Sponsor, disqualification, forfeiture and the selection of an alternate winner may result from any of the following: [1] potential winner’s failure to respond to Direct Message within three (3) days after its transmission; [2] the failure of notification due to deactivation of the potential winner’s Account prior to receipt of notification; [3] potential winner’s failure to become a follower of @SoFi resulting in the potential winner’s failure to receive a Direct Message from Sponsor; [4] potential winner’s Twitter or Instagram Account “protected mode” is set so that the potential winner’s updates/responses may not be visible to Sponsor; [5] potential winner’s failure to provide Sweepstakes Administrator and/or Sponsor with the required documents needed to verify his/her eligibility within the time allocated; [6] potential winner’s failure to validly claim the prize by deadline date, [7] if a selected winner cannot accept or receive the prize for any reason; and/or [8] any other non-compliance with the Official Rules. Upon supplying email and physical mailing address in reply to Sponsor’s Direct Message, each potential winner will then be notified by Administrator via email and will be required to execute and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Release of Liability and a Publicity Release (“Affidavit”) and a W-9 IRS Tax Form so it is received by Administrator within five (5) days of date printed on notification or such winner will be disqualified and an alternate winner may be selected. Each prize will be awarded within sixty (60) days after receipt and verification of completed prize documents. Entry or acceptance of prize constitutes permission (except where prohibited by law) for Sponsor to use each winner’s name, prize won, Entry, hometown and likeness for promotional purposes without further compensation.
Prize Pool: This Sweepstakes has the potential of accumulating up to $90,000.00 total in prize funds. A guaranteed minimum prize pool of $72,000 will be awarded. During the Sweepstakes Entry Period, the Sponsor will add $10.00 to the guaranteed minimum prize pool [referred hereafter as “Bonus Fund”] for each eligible Entry received (i.e., with a selfie Photo, hashtags #SoFiGreat and #Entry, and tagged @SoFi) up to a maximum prize pool of $90,000.00. For example: if during the Sweepstakes Entry Period, a total of 1,500 eligible Entries are received, the total Bonus Fund will be $15,000.00 and the $15,000.00 will be shared among all five (5) winners in the following ratio: Grand Prize winner will get 55.55% of the total Bonus Fund and the remaining 44.45% of the Bonus Fund to be shared equally among the four (4) Runner-Up prize winners. To illustrate further the aforementioned Bonus Fund example, the Grand Prize winner will receive $8,333.00 in addition to the guaranteed minimum prize and each Runner-Up winner will receive one fourth of the 44.45% which will be $1,667.00 in addition to the guaranteed minimum prize. One (1) Grand Prize: Winner will win a guaranteed minimum of $40,000.00 with the potential of winning up to $50,000.00 based on the Bonus Fund available to be shared. Four (4) Runner-Up Prizes: Each winner will win a guaranteed minimum of $8,000.00 with the potential of winning up to $10,000.00 based on the Bonus Fund available to be shared. Each prize will be awarded in form of a corporate check. Arrangements for the fulfillment of each Prize will be made solely by the Sponsor. Upon fulfilling each prize, the Sponsor will be deemed to have awarded all prizes and each prize recipient assumes full responsibility for how the prize is used. Prizes are non-transferable and no substitution by any winner is allowed. All federal, state and local taxes or other expenses relating to the acceptance and possession of each respective prize are the sole responsibility of the each winner. An IRS form 1099 will be filed in the name of each winner for the value of each prize awarded. Limit: One (1) prize per person. Odds of winning depend on total number of eligible entries received during the Sweepstakes Entry Period.
Consent and Release: To the fullest extent possible in law, Entrants, and on behalf of their respective heirs, executors, administrators, legal representatives, successors and assigns (“Releasing Parties”), release, defend and hold harmless the Sweepstakes Entities, Twitter and Instagram from any and all actions, causes of action, suits, debts, dues, sums of money, accounts, reckonings, bonds, bills, specialties, covenants, contracts, controversies, agreements, promises, variances, trespasses, lost profits, indirect or direct damages, consequential damages, incidental damages, punitive or exemplary damages, judgments, extent, executions, claims and demands whatsoever, in law, admiralty or equity, whether known or unknown, foreseen or unforeseen, against Released Parties which any one or more of the Releasing Parties ever had, now have or hereafter can, shall or may have which in any way arise out of or result from Entrant’s participation, acceptance and use or misuse of prize (if determined to be a winner). The Sponsor is not responsible for any typographical or other error in the printing of the offer, administration of the Sweepstakes or in the announcement of any prize. In the event Sponsor is prevented from continuing with the Sweepstakes as contemplated herein by any event beyond its control, or otherwise, including but not limited to fire, flood, earthquake, explosion, labor dispute or strike, act of God or public enemy, satellite or equipment failure, riot or civil disturbance, terrorist threat or activity, war (declared or undeclared) or any federal, state, or local government law, order, or regulation, or order of any court, or other cause, Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend or terminate the Sweepstakes. Furthermore, the Sponsor reserves the right to terminate the Sweepstakes if it becomes technically corrupted (including if a computer virus or system malfunction inalterably impairs its ability to conduct the Sweepstakes), and to determine winners from among all eligible Entries received prior to termination. Entrants assume all liability for any injury, including death or damage caused or claimed to be caused, by participation in this Sweepstakes or use or redemption of the prize (if Entrant is determined to be a winner).
Arbitration: This Sweepstakes shall be governed by and interpreted under the laws of the State of California, U.S.A. without regard to its conflicts of laws provisions. Entrants hereby agrees that any and all disputes, claims, causes of action, or controversies (“Claims”) arising out of or in connection with this Sweepstakes shall be resolved, upon the election by Entrant or Sponsor, by arbitration pursuant to this provision and the code of procedures of either the National Arbitration Forum (“NAF”) or the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), as selected by the Entrant. IF ARBITRATION IS CHOSEN BY ANY PARTY WITH RESPECT TO A CLAIM, NEITHER PARTY WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO LITIGATE THAT CLAIM IN COURT OR HAVE A JURY TRIAL ON THAT CLAIM. FURTHER, NEITHER SPONSOR NOR ENTRANT WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A REPRESENTATIVE CAPACITY ON BEHALF OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC OR OTHER PERSONS SIMILARLY SITUATED, OR AS A MEMBER OF ANY CLASS OF CLAIMANTS PERTAINING TO ANY CLAIM SUBJECT TO ARBITRATION. EXCEPT AS SET FORTH BELOW, THE ARBITRATOR’S DECISION WILL BE FINAL AND BINDING. NOTE THAT OTHER RIGHTS THAT ENTRANT WOULD HAVE IF ENTRANT WENT TO COURT ALSO MAY NOT BE AVAILABLE IN ARBITRATION. ANY CLAIMS, JUDGMENTS AND/OR AWARDS SHALL BE LIMITED TO ACTUAL OUT-OF-POCKET COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH ENTERING THIS SWEEPSTAKES. ENTRANT HEREBY WAIVES ANY RIGHTS OR CLAIMS TO ATTORNEY’S FEES, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ENTRANT, WHETHER FORESEEABLE OR NOT AND WHETHER BASED ON NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE. The arbitrator’s authority to resolve Claims is limited to Claims between Sponsor and Entrant alone, and the arbitrator’s authority to make awards is limited to awards to Sponsor and Entrant alone. Furthermore, claims brought by either party against the other may not be joined or consolidated in arbitration with Claims brought by or against any third party, unless agreed to in writing by all parties. No arbitration award or decision will have any preclusive effect as to issues or claims in any dispute with anyone who is not a named party to the arbitration. Notwithstanding any other provision in this Agreement and without waiving either party’s right to appeal such decision, should any portion of this provision be deemed invalid or unenforceable, then the entire provision (other than this sentence) shall not apply.
General: In the event of a dispute as to the ownership of any Entry, the authorized account holder of the Twitter or Instagram Account used to enter will be deemed to be the Entrant. The “authorized account holder” is the natural person assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address when creating the Twitter or Instagram Account and he/she must meet the eligibility requirements mentioned above. Each potential winner may be required to show proof of being the authorized account holder.
Entry materials/data that have been tampered with or altered, or mass Entries or Entries generated by a script, macro or use of automated devices are void. The Sponsor is not responsible for: (i) lost, late, misdirected, incomplete, illegible, damaged, or illegible Entries; (ii) error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operations or transmission, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to or alterations of Entry materials, or for technical, network, telephone equipment, electronic, computer, hardware or software malfunctions of any kind, or inaccurate transmission of or failure to receive Entry information by Sponsor on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any Website or any combination thereof; (iii) any injury or damage to Entrant’s or any other person’s computer related to or resulting from participating in the Sweepstakes, or (iv) the failure of any third party to comply with the instructions and proper administration of this Sweepstakes. By participating in the Sweepstakes, Entrants (i) agree to be bound by these Official Rules, including all eligibility requirements, and (ii) agree to be bound by the decisions of Sponsor and the Administrator, which are final and binding in all matters relating to the Sweepstakes. Sponsor reserves the right at its sole discretion to disqualify any individual that tampers or attempts to tamper with the entry process or the operation of the Sweepstakes or web site or violates these Official Rules. LEGAL WARNING: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN INDIVIDUAL, WHETHER OR NOT AN ENTRANT, TO DELIBERATELY INTERFERE WITH THE OPERATION OF THE SWEEPSTAKES, IS A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL & CIVIL LAWS AND SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES AND DILIGENTLY PURSUE ALL REMEDIES AGAINST ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
Winners List: For a list of winners (available after March 31, 2016) send a stamped, self-addressed envelope (postage not required for Vermont residents) by March 31, 2016 to: The SoFi Selfie Sweepstakes Winners, c/o Ventura Associates LLC, 60 East 42nd Street, Suite 650 (DE/SoFi5707), New York, New York, 10165.
Privacy: By entering the Sweepstakes, the information Entrants provide may be sent to promotional partners. Entrants may be contacted by the Sponsor and/or any promotional partners with future promotional offers. Information provided by Entrants to participate in this Sweepstakes is subject to Sponsor’s privacy policy located at www.sofi.com/privacy-policy.
Sponsor: Social Finance, LLC, One Letterman Drive, Building A, Suite 4700, San Francisco, CA 94129.
Administrator: Ventura Associates International LLC, 60 East 42nd Street, Suite 650, New York, New York, 10165.
This Sweepstakes is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Twitter® or Instagram. Any questions, comments or complaints regarding the Sweepstakes must be directed to the Sponsor or Administrator, and not to Twitter® or Instagram.
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These days, it seems the only thing more expensive than San Francisco rent is a San Francisco mortgage payment. Or is it the other way around? It’s getting hard to keep track.
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