When I was in school, math was my least-favorite subject. I had the bad habit of spending a great deal of time on subjects I liked, such as psychology and English, and very little time on math. I paid for my bad habit when I wound up repeating several math classes.

Fortunately, however, I changed. With the help of some tutors and some personal discipline, I got through my math classes. I also developed an appreciation for the subject that I had hated for so long. I learned that many things about math are very cool.

For instance, when reducing fractions, it is helpful to know how to cancel. Canceling is a quick way to get fractions down to their lowest form, without having to take the time to reduce and reduce and then wondering if you have reduced enough. Canceling allows you to quickly finish a problem and then move on to the next one. This process is more commonly used when taking tests, however. It is not normally a part of everyday life. Other aspects of math, however, are used every day.

When I count my change, for instance, it is helpful to put the coins in stacks. Stacks of coins help me to quickly and easily see how much money I have. I know that five times ten is fifty. Therefore, I can make five stacks of pennies with ten pennies in each stack, and I will know that I have enough money there to make a penny roll. Making stacks of coins takes much less space than laying out fifty pennies, and it also helps me to avoid a miscount.

As a writer, money is important to me, and it is exciting to earn money for my work. In addition to money, however, another aspect of math is important and helpful to me as a writer: estimating.

When writing an article, I use the Word Count feature on my computer to tell me exactly how many words I have written. I then estimate how many more words I need to write to meet the word count guidelines for the site that I am writing for.

By following their guidelines, my article will be less likely to be rejected and more likely to be published. Once it is published, others will be able to read it, and I will be able to earn money.

Clearly, there are some things about math that are pretty cool. These are the math concepts that you will want to use every day in order to make your life easier. For those other math concepts that are foreign to you, there are programs and tutors out there to help you.