Today's Number: 23 - Percentage of CEOs and senior executives who say they'll be taking more vacation in 2002 than last year, according to a recent American Management Association Survey.

        Today's Career Talk: Are you afraid of public speaking? The best way to overcome that fear is to face it, and then overprepare, say Dorothy Lynn and Jessica Selasky, authors of Your Public Speaking Workout. “Experts in this field agree that it takes one hour of preparation for every minute of a speech,” the authors say. “Simple arithmetic tells us that it will take 20 hours to get ready for a 20-minute speech. That's an enormous commitment of time and energy.”

        Today's Money Tip: Commodities trading is not for the faint of heart. But if you'd like to learn how the futures market works, check out FuturesGuide, a Web site at www.futuresguide.com. It provides articles on different facets of commodity trading.

        Today's Company: Tri-Star Title Agency

        INKING DEALS: This title company, which represents most institutional lenders in the Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio, areas, was founded in 1991. A wholly owned subsidiary of real estate law firm Statman, Harris, Siegel & Eyrich LLC, Tri-Star handles both residential and commercial closings.

        GROWING THROUGH ACQUISITION: Last year, as the firm completed its first decade in business, Tri-Star acquired Blue Chip Title Agency.

        NOW STARRING IN DAYTON: In mid-May, Tri-Star opened a Dayton office to better serve lenders there. The company now employs 31 in its downtown office and 12 in Dayton.

        STAYING BUSY: The company averages more than 500 closings per month in Cincinnati and expects the Dayton business volume to match that.

        Send tips and questions to Bill Ferguson at bferguson@enquirer.com

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