Career tools

Regardless of the economy's state -- whether it's booming or withering -- people care about money. It pays the bills, after all. While salary is important, it doesn't exist in a vacuum. How much you earn often depends on where you live, and where you live affects how far your dollar goes. All of these factors depend on the overall economy, which we all know depends on several other factors.

Right now, everyone is looking for a sign that the future is going to be better than the last couple of years. Executives, analysts, teachers and college seniors and everyone in between want to know they will have a job tomorrow and be able to earn a livable income. No one can predict the future, unfortunately, but we c....

With some companies beginning to emerge from the recession and pursue growth plans again, moving up the corporate ladder could be on your mind. Taking on a higher-level position -- and, ideally, the corresponding bump in pay -- could be especially appealing if you've assumed added responsibilities or put in longer hours during the downturn. What can you do to ensure you're on the short list of candidates for a promotion? Here are some tips:

1. Talk to your manager.
Your supervisor has a large say in your chances of earning a promotion. Don't assume he or she is aware of your desire to grow your career. Speak to your boss about your long-term plans. Your manager may know of opportunities with....

Everyone wants to earn a hefty salary in their careers, and it's no secret that some of the highest-paid people are doctors, dentists and lawyers. It's even less of a secret that those careers aren't easy to come by. They require years of schooling -- something that not everyone can (or wants to) handle.

But don't despair. If you want to earn a lot of money, but don't necessarily want to earn  and advanced degree, check out these 20 careers. Although you won't start out earning six figures, with your bachelor's degree in tow, you can easily work your way up.

Here are 20 high-paying jobs that req....

President Barack Obama gets a nice little salary. Certainly some CEOs, entrepreneurs and movie stars are earning millions (and in some cases billions) of dollars, so he's by no means the richest person on the planet with his $400,000 annual salary. And he gets some pretty sweet perks -- a fancy plane, an amazing chef and one of the most famous addresses in the world.

But if you stop to think about all his job entails, he's never really off the clock. Although he takes vacations, he can't completely clock out as long as he is in office. Regardless of where  he is, the Secret Service is monitoring his every move and he must respond t....

If you turn on the TV, you're probably going to see a character who has one of the following jobs: lawyer, doctor, criminal investigator or generic business professional who must wear a suit.

Not that we don't love those jobs (and those shows), but the media in general seem to forget about the millions of workers who are in other  fields. To give some coverage to other occupations, we decided to highlight 40 jobs that are in one of these industries: construction, maintenance, operations, production and material handling. These careers are typically considered blue-collar jobs and are some of the top-earning in each field.

Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and CBSalary.com, here are 40....