The Most Popular Articles of 2011

The end of the year is often a time for reflection. We like to do that at FedSmith, so this is the time of year when we take a look at which of our articles were the most popular among our site visitors.

The end of the year is often a time for reflection. We like to do that at FedSmith, so this is the time of year when we take a look at which of our articles were the most popular among our site visitors.

Our small staff at FedSmith would like to thank all of our readers for visiting our site throughout the year. Our site has been growing growing rapidly each year, and 2011 was no exception. As we have added new subscribers and new readers, we have also expanded the number of articles on the site each year.

We are fortunate (and thankful) to have a growing number of authors who write columns for the site offering readers the benefit of their expertise and experience in working for and with the federal community.

Articles on federal employee pay and benefits are always among the most popular ones among our readers. 2011 has been no exception as proposed changes have been coming along regularly and we have routinely covered these proposals to keep our readers informed as the political process heads into another national election in 2012.

We have also been expanding our selection of articles to make the site useful to as many readers as possible. Articles such as Why This Common Writing Mistake Often Backfires and Sometimes It Hertz to Rent a Car and Other Travel Tips delve into other topics that are less traditional to what you often see with respect to the federal workforce, but can help readers in their working careers.

We hope you continue to enjoy the FedSmith.com site and all of the articles and features it offers.

The following is a list of the 20 most popular articles (in terms of number of readers) that we published in 2011 listed in order of popularity.

  1. Feeling Under-Taxed? Send Uncle Sam Some Extra Cash
    October 16, 2011
    Ian Smith
  2. Government Employee Discounts
    August 18, 2011
    Jason Kay
  3. A Perfect Storm for Federal Employee Pay and Benefits
    February 22, 2011
    Ralph Smith
  4. FERS and Your Future Retirement: How Much Will You Receive After Retirement?
    February 27, 2011
    Robert F. Benson
  5. President’s Deficit Proposal to Target Federal Employee Pensions
    September 19, 2011
    Ian Smith
  6. Federal Employee Pay Freeze and Extra Time Off for Christmas
    November 28, 2011
    Ralph Smith
  7. The Best Day to Retire From Now Until 2020
    October 30, 2011
    John Grobe
  8. Deficit Subcommittee Proposes Significant Cuts to Federal Employees’ Retirement
    September 20, 2011
    Ian Smith
  9. What Happens to Your TSP Funds If the Debt Limit is Not Raised?
    April 28, 2011
    Ralph Smith
  10. How Congressional Budget Cuts May Cut Into Your Retirement Income
    June 17, 2011
    Carol Schmidlin
  11. 3.6 Percent COLA for 2012
    October 19, 2011
    Ralph Smith
  12. How Much Will CSRS Federal Employees Receive When They Retire?
    March 08, 2011
    Robert F. Benson
  13. Buyouts and Early Outs: Are You Ready If One is Offered?
    May 23, 2011
    John Grobe
  14. Your Financial Future: Your Federal Employee Benefits and the Deficit Commission Recommendations
    January 07, 2011
    John Grobe
  15. The Best (and Worst) Agencies to Launch a Career as a Federal Employee
    September 08, 2011
    Ian Smith
  16. Considering Monthly TSP Payments in Retirement?
    May 05, 2011
    Micah Shilanski, CFP
  17. Freezing Federal Employee Pay (Done!) and Restricting Within-Grade Increases and Promotions (Proposed!)
    February 17, 2011
    Ralph Smith
  18. House Bill Would Extend Pay Freeze, Increase Retirement Contributions
    December 9, 2011
    Ian Smith

About the Author

Ian Smith is one of the co-founders of FedSmith.com. He has over 20 years of combined experience in media and government services, having worked at two government contracting firms and an online news and web development company prior to his current role at FedSmith.