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Mexico's state-owned oil giant just announced a major discovery that could transform the country's struggling industry

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  • Mexico's state-owned oil producer, Pemex, announced Tuesday that it had discovered roughly 180 million barrels of oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
  • The so-called proven, probable, and possible, or 3P, reserves could support Mexico's oil output, which has been in decline since 2004.
  • Mexico would need $7 billion to $10 billion in capital, including investments in oil rigs and pipelines, to develop the newly announced discovery and other nearby sources, Reuters said.

Mexico's state-owned oil producer, Pemex, on Tuesday said it had discovered about 180 million barrels of oil offshore.

The reserves could boost Mexico's oil output, which has been in decline since 2004.

They were found in the Manik well, roughly 52 miles offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, and the Mulach well, about 11 miles offshore.

Pemex CEO Carlos Treviño said in a statement that the reserves were proven, probable, and possible, or 3P, meaning there's a high degree of certainty that the oil can be extracted. The company will need $7 billion to $10 billion in capital, including investments in oil rigs and pipelines, to develop the newly announced discovery and others found nearby in recent years, according to Reuters.

The offshore fields combined could increase Mexico's production by up to 210 million barrels of oil and 350 million cubic feet of gas a day, Pemex said.

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Mexico earlier this year became the first Latin American country to join the International Energy Agency, an industry watchdog.

"The country's energy sector is in a period of profound change, catalyzed by comprehensive energy reforms the government has been enacting since 2013," the IEA said. These reforms include ending Pemex's monopoly and attracting new players into the oil industry.

Pemex's discovery was announced just as the IEA urged larger oil producers to open the taps on output. Fatih Birol, the agency's head, said at a conference in London on Tuesday that US sanctions on Iran and shrinking production from Venezuela could tighten the market even further.

The cost of Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, has surged 27% this year as members of the OPEC cartel and their allies cut production to boost prices following the 2014 crash. Brent surged to a four-year high of nearly $86 a barrel last week.

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The world's biggest stock bear predicts 'immediate and severe consequences' for the record-setting market — and explains why $20 trillion will be wiped from stocks

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Confused, worried trader

  • John Hussman — the outspoken investor and former professor who has been predicting a stock crash — says the Federal Reserve is largely to blame for a toxic situation in markets that's headed for "immediate and severe consequences."
  • Hussman predicts that an imminent crash will wipe out $20 trillion of equity market value.
  • The situation is particularly dangerous right now because historically stretched valuations are being coupled with weakening market internals, says Hussman.

It makes John Hussman sick when people praise the Federal Reserve.

Yes, the central bank's historically easy monetary policy helped drag the US out of its worst economic collapse in almost a century. But Hussman argues that this approach was ultimately "deranged," and has created a bubble that's threatening to put the 2008 financial meltdown to shame.

To Hussman — a former economics professor who's now the president of the Hussman Investment Trust— the Fed hasn't earned the plaudits it often receives. He argues the market has yet to feel the complete aftermath of the bank's unprecedented stimulus.

"The current back-slapping about the success of extraordinary monetary policy is a lot like declaring victory in a football game at halftime, just before a flock of fire-breathing dragons swoops onto the field and eats the leading team," he wrote in a recent blog post. "We have to allow for the possibility that the second half of the game will be violently unrecognizable."

Hussman estimates that the coming crash will wipe out more than $20 trillion in market value over the next few years. And he blames the Fed.

"The Fed created yet another yield-seeking bubble that has encouraged vastly expanded indebtedness in every sector of the economy," he explained.

A nuanced look at the role of valuations

However, there's an obvious elephant in the room when it comes to Hussman's commentary: He's been calling for the equity market to lose two-thirds of its value for months, and it hasn't happened yet. In fact, stocks have chugged higher, setting new records seemingly every other week.

Hussman is well aware of this fact, and has honed his bearish forecast over the past several months. To him, it's no longer enough to point out the historically-extended stock valuations underpinned by Fed accommodation, even though they remind him of the periods around the 2000 and 2007 market peaks.

It's more nuanced than that. Hussman is now focused on the so-called market internals accompanying those lofty valuations — otherwise known as the daily gyrations occurring beneath the surface of major indexes.

Hussman argues that those internals can provide a good reading of short-term investor psychology, and can signal whether traders are in a speculative or risk-averse mood.

When speculation starts to wane, that's when the market is most vulnerable to a sharp downturn. And when that's coupled with stretched valuations, it's a toxic situation all around.

In recent months, Hussman notes that the S&P 500's ascent to new highs has been driven by an increasingly narrow group of stocks. This is the type of weak internal development that worries him.

The chart below sees this dynamic in action. It shows every instance in the past 25 years that (1) the S&P 500 has been within 0.6% of a five-year high, (2) the number of NYSE stocks at 52-week lows exceeded 4% of issues traded, and (3) that last figure was at least 50% above new highs.

"The only time we've ever seen a confluence of risk factors anywhere close to those of today was the week of March 24, 2000, which marked the peak of the technology bubble," Hussman said.

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"The profound narrowing we observe in daily data, coupled with repeated leadership reversals within a fraction of a percent of the recent market highs, is what amplifies the likelihood that recent valuation extremes will have immediate and severe consequences," Hussman added.

He continued: "We observed a similar combination of internal divergences, leadership reversal, and ragged participation immediately surrounding the 2007, 2000, 1987 and 1973 market peaks."

Hussman's track record

For the uninitiated, Hussman has repeatedly made headlines by predicting a stock-market decline exceeding 60% and forecasting a full decade of negative equity returns. And as the stock market has continued its seemingly unstoppable grind higher, he's persisted with his calls, undeterred.

But before you dismiss Hussman as a wonky perma-bear, consider his track record, which he breaks down in his latest blog post. Here are the arguments he lays out:

  • Predicted in March 2000 that tech stocks would plunge 83%, then the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index lost an "improbably precise" 83% during a period from 2000 to 2002
  • Predicted in 2000 that the S&P 500 would likely see negative total returns over the following decade, which it did
  • Predicted in April 2007 that the S&P 500 could lose 40%, then it lost 55% in the subsequent collapse between 2007 and 2009

In the end, the more evidence Hussman unearths around the stock market's unsustainable conditions, the more worried investors should get. Sure, there may still be returns to be realized in this current market cycle, but at what point does the mounting risk of a crash become too unbearable?

That's a question investors will have to answer themselves. And one that Hussman will clearly keep exploring in the interim.

SEE ALSO: 'We didn't learn anything' — Billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller says the next financial crisis could be worse than the last, and lays out how it might happen

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We asked 17 people how much they spent on their Comic Con costumes — here's what they told us

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  • New YorkComic Con kicked off this week at Javits Convention Center in Manhattan.
  • Many people dressed up as their favorite characters from comics, movies, TV shows, and video games. 
  • We asked 17 people on the first day of the event how much money they spent on their costumes.
  • The cosplayers surveyed spent between $20 and $1,000.

 

Thousands of people converged on a New York City convention center on Thursday for the first day of New York Comic Con — and many of them donned elaborate costumes that they'd spent months and hundreds of dollars creating.

At Comic Con and similar events, these costumes are commonly called cosplays, a contraction of "costume play."

We asked 17 people about their cosplays — who they were portraying, how they put them together, and how much they cost.

Here's what they told us.

SEE ALSO: One chart shows how much New York Comic Con has exploded in 12 years

DON'T MISS: 7 cosplay costumes that look just like the real character

This group of friends traveled to New York Comic Con from Québec.



Mary Chretien, left, cosplayed as Starfire from DC. She said her costume took about eight hours to make and cost $50. Her shoulder and arm pieces are sporting gear, she said. "I just painted it black and put some bling bling on it," she said.



Tommy Bergeron dressed as a character from the Monster Hunter World video game. He made the leather pieces and bought the rest, spending about $1,000 total.



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These haunting photos of the retail apocalypse reveal a new normal in America as Sears reportedly prepares for bankruptcy (M, JCP)

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toys r us closing 8974

The retail apocalypse has descended on America. 

More than 3,800 stores are expected to close across the country this year. Department stores like Macy's, Sears, and JCPenney, and retailers including Toys R Us, BCBG, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Bebe have decided to close dozens of stores.

Now, Sears could be set to file for bankruptcy as soon as this week, The Wall Street Journal reports. According to people with knowledge of the situation, the struggling retailer has hired M-III Partners to put together a bankruptcy filing. 

Sears isn't the only company that is struggling to adjust to the rise of e-commerce and the fall of foot traffic. With vacancy rates continuing to rise, walking through a mall in 2018 is like walking through a graveyard.

Here's photographic evidence that a retail apocalypse is hitting the United States hard:

SEE ALSO: 50 haunting photos of abandoned shopping malls across America

Perhaps most emblematic of the retail apocalypse are photos of dead malls.



As customers increasingly shop online, malls are suffering the consequences.



Visits to malls declined by 50% from 2010 to 2013, according to the real-estate research firm Cushman & Wakefield.



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The cofounder of Refinery29 explains how she built a global media brand that reaches 425 million people a year

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christene barberich

  • Christene Barberich is the cofounder and editor in chief of Refinery29.
  • Refinery29 is a lifestyle and news media company primarily for young women.
  • Across all of its global sites, social media accounts, and events, Refinery said it will reach 425 million people this year.
  • Barberich said her greatest lessons as a leader have been around learning when to pass on responsibilities and finding what keeps her the most engaged.

Christene Barberich is the cofounder and CEO of Refinery29, a media company focused on empowering women by starting conversations about body image, politics, and careers. Refinery29 said it would connect with 425 million people this year across its site, social media, videos, and live events.

Before founding Refinery in 2005 — with Philippe von Borries, Justin Stefano, and Piera Gelardi — Barberich spent her career in media and helped build the scrappy City magazine. The lessons she learned there gave her the confidence she needed to take on Refinery 29, which would turn out to be a more ambitious project than anyone expected.

Listen to the full episode here:

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Transcript edited for clarity.

Christene Barberich: I always knew I wanted to be involved in storytelling, whether that was going to be in magazines, books, film. It was important to me. I feel deeply passionate about helping people, today even, to craft a narrative around something that was really important to them, they feel will really be useful and resonate with other people. Nothing beats true stories. When the opportunity came up to possibly take the lead-editor role at City, I just felt it was exactly the right opportunity where I could figure this out and see if I could do it under the radar without completely humiliating myself and prove to myself that I could run a magazine. I could craft a point of view. I helped hire a creative director. We staffed the whole team, we won an ASME [American Society of Magazine Editors] award, we got nominated for general excellence. It was really life-affirming in a lot of ways.

Richard Feloni: What did you learn from that experience that you brought to Refinery?

Barberich: Honestly, if I had to distill it, it would be confidence, because I had worked at Condé Nast for nearly a decade before that, and I got incredible experience there being an editor, working with incredibly talented writers, collaborating with different teams, and crafting great stories. But I really always knew that I wanted to run something. I was in my early 30s. It was really about proving to myself that I had the instincts and I had what it took to run something and make it successful and create a brand that was valuable to people. I miss that magazine.

Creating a new way of looking at things

refinery29 cofounders

Feloni: And if you enjoyed this experience of creating something so much, why was there initially some reluctance to help build Refinery?

Barberich: Because I knew how hard it was. And also there was a lot of fear on my part because we didn't know what was happening in digital media at that point. There wasn't a lot of evidence at that point that this sort of medium was going to literally become the backbone of everything that every business is. I think we had a feeling that there was that potential, but at that point I was in my mid-30s and a lot of my friends were getting married at that point, having children. And here I'm basically forgoing a salary, moving in with my boyfriend to save money, and figuring out how to make this work so we can actually get this up and running. I think that it's hard because at a certain point in your life you do crave security, you do crave a little bit more permanence, and even though I did crave those things, what I've always craved more is opportunity. I think that I cannot say no to an exciting invitation to do something I feel needs to be done. I cannot say no to it ... I was, like, "Oh my God, I have to do this!" This is in 2004 when we all started talking and starting to hatch a plan for Refinery29. There was a lot of interest and discussion about whether or not people would buy things online if e-commerce was going to be a viable means of retail.

Feloni: It's funny how that was still a question back then.

Barberich: Oh — it was such a question. I do remember having a lot of meetings with very big established national department stores. And they were, like, "Yeah, well, we don't really think we're going to do this e-commerce thing. We don't really think that's the way people want to shop." Everyone had mobile phones at that point, but people weren't really using them in a way that was facilitating their everyday life in the way that it is now. So they were really interested in doing something I think was really revolutionary at the time, which was so exciting to me. They were thinking at that point they wanted it to be almost a search engine for independent boutiques in big cities because these were really businesses that didn't have the resources to be able to reach a bigger audience.

But when we launched, in 2005 — just give you a sense of the landscape at that point and digital — Twitter wasn't around. I feel like it was Facebook and Net-a-Porter, and I can't really think of anybody else at that point, at least in our space, that had this really massive presence that were succeeding and that really gave us encourage about what it was we wanted to accomplish.

So after we launched in 2005 in June, it took us about six months to get everything up and running and to build the site and to design the initial execution. It was very clear to us very early on that it was the storytelling that people were responding to. And they were buying things. But I think what we were seeing was really exciting and really rewarding, was the storytelling that we were attaching to the people, the trends, the products, and street style was a really interesting phenomenon at that point.

There was just a really deep and passionate interest in real people, not just models, not about this beauty ideal that we have seen for decades in traditional magazines. And that was something Piera and I really loved and identified with.

We didn't really feel like we identified with traditional women's media, didn't really speak our language. Both of us read music magazines and men's magazines and different kinds like The New Yorker and stuff like that, because women's magazines ... the sense of instilling these rules in people, things you can do and you can't do, wasn't really our perspective. And it still isn't and those initial principles really have driven Refinery29 forward and informed so many of the choices that we've made and it's really at the seat of our foundation and I think has been an enormous part of our success. I think that having a really strong, honest and active mission that you can not just talk about but you can actually live and practice in your work and in your everyday life has been the game-changer for us in a lot of ways.

Feloni: It was a way of connecting with an audience in a way that previous magazines hadn't.

Barberich: Yeah.

Feloni: More personal.

Barberich: I think that a lot of those magazines have something special to offer, for sure. But I think it was more that Piera and I were really interested in the chance to communicate with people online. At that point, a lot of content makers on digital weren't turning on their comments. I don't know if you remember that, when The New York Times didn't have comments and there was ... This was a long time ago. But I think in the beginning, it was helpful for us because we got to mine all this incredible information and help really steer us to a lot of the content and the stories that we pursued in the years to go. So it really was an important facet of how we actually developed our content strategy and building that connection to our audience and our community is still such an important part of our success and our longevity, and I think for anybody it is.

Feloni: And in setting the foundation at the very beginning, was there any difference to having two male cofounders for a woman's brand?

Barberich: Well, I think in the beginning we weren't even sure it was going to be a women's-media company.

Feloni: So it evolved.

Barberich: I think what was happening, and we were all paying attention to this, we really wanted to be of use to people. We still have a small male audience. They're there. Certainly not as sizable as our audience of women, but it was the women that were really responding. They were the ones that felt we're filling a void, and that was really satisfying. Philippe and Justin has always been incredibly receptive to my and Piera's opinions, and we don't always agree. It's hard to have four founders, especially after 14 years, next year. To be still together at this point is a testament to our commitment to our audience and our customers and certainly our team, but it's difficult. It's really difficult to compromise, especially for someone like me who has very strong opinions about things. I think when you're an editor, you see things. You see them in your head in a different kind of way and that's the way you want to apply them. It's been a tremendous life lesson over the last decade really learning how to compromise creatively and also compassionately, because I think that your success depends on it.

Feloni: Can you give an example of maybe a conversation that was a significant decision for the company, where you had to learn to do that compromise you're talking about?

Barberich: Well, I think a big one is when we hired our chief content officer. I was always the lead content person in the operation, and when video really began to be an important facet of any robust international media company's vision, and at the time, I didn't have experience in video and originals.

Amy Emmerich, she was our head of video, and we were meeting with people who could be our chief content officer. At that point, you really have to set your ego aside and really think about what is going to be best for the company. I'm very secure in my talent and my experience and in my ability to make great work, but I was also really excited about the opportunity to learn from somebody and to really develop my own toolbox. And Amy was somebody that had a completely different background than me. She worked at Vice; she'd done documentary films. She was really just an interesting maker. It was hard to find somebody who didn't just have the potential to drive content across all these different mediums, but who was really awesome, who really loved what Refinery29 stood for.

I recommended her for the chief content officer role. And I was super excited about it. But when she was moving into this role — I still say this to her sometimes — I was reassured by the fact that if she was in a room making big decisions about the direction of our content and I wasn't there, I knew that she was speaking on my behalf. I knew that she had the best of intentions when it came to protecting and preserving and nourishing our brand and making sure that we did not lose sight of the mission that we all felt so committed to.

Feloni: So as core to this idea of compromise, was it learning how to set aside ego and how to trust more?

Barberich: Yeah. It's absolutely that. I think that when you're building a company, for better or for worse, you have blinders on in some ways. People have blind spots, and I think that because you've done something a certain way and it's worked. But I think that, especially in the climate that we're in right now, it's like the industry is changing so rapidly. How things are monetized, how things are distributed, how things are packaged and you have to be able to adapt really quickly. You can't really let your ego get in the way of that. Otherwise you lose. And I knew that not only had I fought for that title at the time, it wouldn't have been right, I wasn't prepared for it, I would have had to learn on the job which would have been very disruptive and I also wouldn't have had a mentor. Somebody who could really teach me about how to integrate these new methods into our infrastructure, and Amy really did that.

Going global

refinery29

Feloni: At what point in the very early days did it go from taking a look to fashion scenes into becoming more of, as say, this lifestyle brand, where it was much more broader in scope? When did that shift happen?

Barberich: It all happened in the first five years. And as I said earlier, it was really about looking at the performance of what stories were doing well and what people were sharing, what they were commenting on.

We did this piece that we ended up getting sponsored. It was one of our earliest sponsored programs, and it was the month of hair. We cast it ourselves with people that we knew, and we let these women do their own hair. So, every day we just featured a new woman with a different kind of hair, frizzy hair, curly hair, straight hair, shaved hair. It was every kind of hair, natural hair. It's such a simple idea, but it was so revolutionary and people loved it. I think that was really one of the keys to us understanding where content, storytelling, and resources were really heading.

We knew that we wanted to be problem solving for people. We wanted our content to be of use, not just inspirational, but also essential to their everyday lives. So when we started to experiment across food, across beauty. That was a big moment for us because, again, it was moving away from this traditional beauty ideal and beauty standards that we felt as though women had really outgrown, and really speaking to a new generation of women that really wanted to see themselves reflected back. And that's how we got into body positivity in diversity, and just really making sure that the face of our brand and the content and the headlines in every way where we were present in our audience's lives, that it reflected what really put us on the map in the first place.

And now, with everything that's happening with our current administration, politically and culturally, it's become such an important moment for us to have a really big impact in news and breaking news. I think that we have an incredible team that's led by our executive editor, Anne Cohen, and the kind of opportunity we have to even just to get women out to vote in the midterm elections is just enormously important. And just providing, again, resources, information that's useful to them that we really feel enhances their lives.

And a lot of times, what we'll talk about on the site is really controversial, and sometimes not everybody loves it and that's OK. But I think it's important to start to broach these sensitive topics and really opened up a dialogue about them, because I think it is the things that people don't know about that they fear the most. We really see that as a big responsibility and opportunity to be able to responsibly report out some of those topics.

And I'm sure you and your team know this. You hope that you mostly get it right. I love the idea of getting it right all the time. I think that when you're publishing this much content this fast, it's hard to get it all right, but I think that you have to be able to learn from the mistakes and the times when your tone is off, or, you know, the headline is a little insensitive.

Feloni: Or it doesn't register with the audience.

Barberich: Yeah. And I think sometimes you can't see those things until after it's out there in the world, like living a life and people are reacting to it, and you're, like, "Oh, I didn't really see that." And again, you can be in your own bubble in a way. That's why it's so important to have these open conversations with your colleagues, and certainly an ongoing dialogue with the audience.

When I was first interviewing editors for our UK office, I was hearing about how much Refinery29 meant to women in the UK because they felt like a lot of the women's media outlets were so conservative there. The same with Germany. Realizing, when you get out of your usual, everyday world and you realize, "Wow, this site has really meant something to people." And honestly that's what matters to me. I hate disappointing people. When I feel like I've disappointed an employee, when I feel like I've disappointed a segment of our audience, when they have felt ignored or overlooked or misunderstood, I take that personally. I probably shouldn't, but I do, because I really, really care. And there are a lot of people like me in our company that care and really take the job home with them because of that mission.

Feloni: And what is your ultimate vision for Refinery? Is it keep getting bigger and bigger, as big as it can get, or is there a point where you want to keep it within like a certain sphere?

Barberich: Well, I think that the vision is always to really spread the gospel everywhere we can, where we really feel like our audience needs us. It's just having a chance to merge our audience with other people's audiences, and reach even more people with important forms of storytelling that we really feel don't just change our industry but change other industries, and really help to move society and culture forward.

Lessons in confidence

christene barberich

Feloni: Looking at the entirety of your career, what would you say was the biggest challenge that you've had to overcome?

Barberich: In this situation, at this scale, it's confidence. It's having the confidence in myself that I am an important piece of this operation, and that the people that I choose to join us in that mission are also the right people to be doing those jobs. I think that, when things get to be at this scale, it's like being on the roof or the top floor of the Empire State building. It's like, "Whoa, what's going on here?" You start to really feel the gravity of success and failure. When you're making a magazine that's circulated to 35,000 people, you feel like you have your arms around all the consequences that could possibly like blow up in your face.

Feloni: And if you're in a moment where you're dealing with that anxiety or the gravity of some decisions you're making, how would you deal with that as a leader? Does that become a danger at some point, if you're feeling anxiety when you need to be reassuring to everyone on your team?

Barberich: Sure. I would love to think that I am the most composed person all the time, even in the most stressful moments, but I'm not. I'm sure that I have reacted in meetings or lead a meeting or had a conversation even, and people were, like, "What is up with her?" Or maybe even said worse things. Who knows? What is the gift is that I'm aware of it. I'm very self-aware. I think I'm really open to feedback. I don't have an office. We're moving to a new floor in our building, and it'll be the first time in all this time that I will have an office and I'm really tense about it because I really like being in contact with everybody on my team. So I actually had them create this sort of sliding door so I can open it up, so I can still kind of feel connected to what's happening.

But I think that I really pay attention to how people react to the kind of feedback that I give, to the kind of direction that I give, to the kind of criticism that I give, because I know how I feel when it's given to me. That's the thing that makes me feel good when I go home at night, is feeling like I wasn't an a--hole and I wasn't being indignant about trying to get my way, and I used to be that way.

Feloni: How did you learn that?

Barberich: I think you just listen to yourself. You have to sort of be outside yourself, not just inside yourself, and whether it's a one-on-one or you're in a huge executive meeting with 25 people. There have been meetings where I've said something and it's literally like lifted everybody up, and I've seen moments where I've said something and it's really brought the meeting down. I think that you always want to do the former. You always want to be enhancing, additive, to what's happening. I think that's a huge responsibility as an executive in a company, certainly as a founder, is to really be conscious of the contribution that you're making. Am I moving things forward? Or am I becoming a roadblock? You have to be able to ask yourself those questions.

Feloni: How do you define success?

Barberich: I think that, to me, I'm the happiest and feel the most in balance and successful when I feel like I'm listening to my inner voice and that I am actually present in my life, I'm not just on this treadmill churning stuff like and not feeling any personal connection to it. I think the reality is, in many businesses, is that there's a lot of times that you're on that treadmill and you're just getting out the door, and you're just moving sh-- off your desk, and answering emails, and taking care of a lot of the housekeeping. But success to me is feeling like I am not playing small and that I am really fully present in my work and in my life. Making sure that I am constantly accounting for those decisions that I have to make.

I think it was the late [self-help author] Wayne Dyer that said it, but it was all about the surge of energy that you get when you make a decision. It's dwelling too long in the place of indecision that really brings you down. It's like when people can't move forward, when they can't just like make a decision and move on, whether or not that decision is the right decision, but it allows them to just forge ahead into the future and to start doing new things. That is where the energy comes from.

I think that, to me, is success, is feeling that you have momentum in your life and that you're not stuck. And that if you are stuck, that you have the courage and you're able to sort of access the good counsel that you need in order to get unstuck because I think that that's also a reality of running a business, is that there are places when you're stuck. It's like a department that's stuck, it's a leader who's stuck, or it's a team that's stuck. I think that it's our jobs to really help people get unstuck.

Ideally, we want to make all the right decisions, so we don't have to encounter those difficult conversations and moments, or have to take difficult measures to do something to make a change. But inevitably, you're not doing a good job unless you're f---ing up a little bit. It's like you kind of need to be out there. You've got to get your hands dirty a little bit. You have to just see what you're made of and what the team is made of and what is possible, because otherwise it just becomes this very generic, very safe, very predictable kind of timeline, and that doesn't interest me at all, and I don't think it interests a lot of people who are drawn to startups and drawn to building things.

Feloni: And what advice would give to someone just starting out who would want to have a career like yours?

Barberich: Well, I mean, I think that it really starts with putting your ego aside. I think that I had very, very big ambitions that I was going to be an editor right out of college. I had to be an assistant for a very long time. I didn't get my official editor job until I was 26. That felt late to me. I was really scared that I was falling behind, but the way that my trajectory really unfolded was that I ended up working for other publishing executives in a supportive role, learning about the business until the right opportunity opened up for me, which happened to be at Gourmet magazine.

To me, I think you have to be willing, and open-minded, and kind of do anything. And like I said, when it came to City Magazine, when it came to starting Refinery, I am very much a proponent, a supporter of, believer of trusting your gut. Interviewing, again, is just like dating. It's like really paying attention to, "Can I see myself here?""Is this something I am going to really feel regret if I don't get this job or if I don't go out for this job?"

I think the other thing is when someone comes into your midst who has experience that you really admire, like just go out of your way to ask, like, even if you can have a 20-minute conversation with them. That's just what you have to do. I cannot tell you how many people I have cold-emailed or cold-called over the last 25 years, people I've admired, many of them never responded, which is totally fine, but some of them did respond. I think that those are the sort of encouraging moments that remind you that you're on the right path and that you have to keep tapping those kinds of people in order to propel yourself forward because we don't do it alone. I mean, I guess if you're a novelist or something you do it alone, but for most of us, we need other people. We depend on each other. When you remember that, you really become tremendously respectful and appreciative of what other people bring into your life and what you, in turn, bring to theirs.

Feloni: Well, thank you so much, Christene.

Barberich: You're welcome. Thanks for having me.

SEE ALSO: Billionaire AOL cofounder Steve Case says we're at the start of the internet's third wave, and he's laying the groundwork to benefit from it

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NOW WATCH: Women with different body types try an $80 custom dress service

Here's how Google's new $800 Pixel 3 compares to the $750 iPhone XR (GOOG, GOOGL, AAPL)

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Pixel 3

If you're in the market for a new phone right now, you have a tough choice to make: Apple's iPhone XR, or the Google Pixel 3?

The two phones have a lot in common. They both come in fun colors, have standout cameras, pack a ton of impressive features in a somewhat affordable package (or, at least, more affordable than some other options), and start shipping this month. 

In fact, the devices are so similar, the biggest question for most people will be not about the hardware, but about the operating system software: Apple iOS vs. Google's Android. 

We can't help you make that decision, but we can help you parse out the major similarities and differences between the two phones. 

Here's how the Pixel 3 compares to the iPhone XR:

SEE ALSO: Here's how Google's new $800 Pixel 3 compares to the iPhone XS

The iPhone XR is slightly cheaper than the Pixel 3: it starts at $749, while the Pixel 3 starts at $799.

But the Pixel 3 currently has a leg up on the iPhone XR: you can pre-order it now, and it will start shipping October 18. 

The iPhone XR, on the other hand, isn't available to pre-order until October 19, and it won't start shipping until October 26. 



The iPhone XR comes in more colors than the Pixel 3.

The iPhone XR comes in six colors: black, white, yellow, coral, blue, and red. 

The Pixel 3 comes in three colors, which Google has given quirky names: Just Black, Clearly White, and Not Pink. 



The iPhone XR comes in more storage options than the Pixel 3.

You can get an iPhone XR in three storage sizes: 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB. 

The Pixel 3 comes in similar sizes, but there are only two to choose from — 64 GB and 128 GB. 



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

These photos show women fighters from around the world in frontline combat jobs

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A female of the armored Bundeswehr participates in an exercise in September 2018 near Munster, Germany.

  • Almost three years have passed since the US military announced it would open combat roles to women.
  • In September, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said the jury is still out when it comes to women's performance in these newly integrated units.
  • Despite women's roles in combat support units that often placed them in the line of fire, the US is one of the last western nations to open positions in infantry, artillery, and special operations to women.

In 2015, the US military joined the majority of the western world when Defense Department officials announced  women would finally be able to serve in combat-oriented roles. 

Although women were no strangers to combat — supportive roles in logistics and combat medicine, aviation and in warships, among others, often brought them under enemy fire — they are now able to serve in roles previously reserved for men, including infantry, artillery, and special operations.

Before US officials decided to make the shift, they looked to foreign militaries, many of which have allowed women in these positions for years or even decades. Here's a look at some of them.

German women have been serving in combat roles since 2001.



Conscription in the Israeli Defense Force extends to women, who must serve at least two years.

Israel has allowed women in combat roles since 1995

Despite surveys showing "superior skills," they still face prejudicial treatment.



Female Philippine Marines undergo the same training as their male counterparts.

The Philippino military opened combat roles to women in 2006.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

I visited a micro-hotel in NYC, where a one-night stay costs more than $300, rooms are half the size of the average hotel, and you have to walk through the bathroom to get to the bed — and it felt way more spacious than I ever expected

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  • In New York City, a boutique micro-hotel offers 150-square-foot guest rooms — some with bunk beds — and a "bodega" in lieu of room service.
  • Arlo Hotels operates two boutique hotels in Manhattan: one in SoHo and one in NoMad, with another set to open near Hudson Yards in the next year or two. 
  • We visited the SoHo location, where average rates range from $335 to $535 a night.
  • The rooms were definitely small, but for someone who doesn't plan to spend much time in their hotel room and isn't traveling with multiple large pieces of luggage, I think it would be a fun and memorable place to stay. 

 

Measuring just 150 square feet, the guest rooms at Arlo Hotels aren't meant for people who plan on spending most of their time holed up in their rooms.

At Arlo's boutique micro-hotels in New York City, the rooms are less than half the size of an average hotel room, there's a 24-hour "bodega" in lieu of room service, and you can sleep in bunk beds. What the individual guest rooms lack in size, they make up for in creative, space-saving design, according to managing director Javier Egipciaco.

The average size of a hotel room in the US was about 330 square feet in 2015, CNBC reported, and the average rate for a hotel room in Manhattan is about $216 per night in 2018, according to The Real Deal. 

On Yelp, a couple of people compared Arlo to a hostel, with one calling it "overpriced fancy hostel" that lacks storage and space to work.

But Arlo's philosophy is to offer an abundance of welcoming common space and activities to offset the smaller rooms. 

"The micro-room concept was one that we came to market with in the beginning, but then we realized pretty quickly that Arlo was a lifestyle and not necessarily a micro-concept lifestyle," Egipciaco told Business Insider.

Inclusivity is a large part of their brand, he said, which is why the common areas are all open to the public without requiring anyone to buy anything. The hotel includes expansive, open shared space that comprises a lobby bar, an airy lounge area, a courtyard, a rooftop bar, and a restaurant that serves healthy, seasonal fare and is run by chef Harold Moore.

We took a tour of Arlo's SoHo location to see just how small the rooms actually are and met the managing director to hear what Arlo Hotel is all about.

Here's what it was like.

SEE ALSO: I stayed at Robert De Niro's ridiculously swanky new hotel in Ibiza — and it makes you feel like a celebrity, if you can afford it

DON'T MISS: 45 hotels around the world with stunning views

We got to Arlo's SoHo location at 9 a.m. to meet with the hotel's managing director, Javier Egipciaco.

Source: Arlo Hotels



The hotel is in the trendy SoHo neighborhood, near the Holland Tunnel.

Source: Arlo Hotels



I immediately noticed the chic Arlo-branded bikes outside the entrance of the hotel, which Egipciaco later told us were available for guests to borrow free of charge.

Source: Arlo Hotels



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Why we are bad at dealing with change — and 5 ways you can improve

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woman thinking notebook

  • Change affects every aspect of our lives.
  • But many of us probably aren't as well equipped to deal with changes as we think.
  • Even positive changes can stimulate our stress response.
  • So you may be subconsciously stressing even if you feel relatively ok.
  • Here are 5 tips for helping you through the changes in your life.

Whatever happens in your life, you can be sure of this: things are going to change.

As life goes on, you are faced with almost infinite changes. Some of them are small, such as a trying a new shampoo, and some are large, like getting a new job or moving house. Some changes are pleasant, but some are painful, like breaking up with a partner, or losing a relative.

Christopher Harvey, the senior manager of global change management at PwC and founder of the professional coaching service Harvey Sinclair, told Business Insider people are pretty badly equipped to deal with change.

"We all know change happens so often now, and frequently, but we don't differentiate it from anything else that happens in our lives," he said. "So on the whole it becomes like diluting something that tastes bad with a load of water so it doesn't taste bad anymore."

Essentially, humans suck at dealing with change, he said. Even if the change seems like a positive one, your reaction subconsciously plays on your mind.

"Things like when you get a promotion, or someone wins the lottery, we think that's the best thing that could happen to you ever, right?" Harvey said.

"Instantly you feel elated and positive, but... Your spectrum of your thought process has now been stretched beyond your experience previously — and therefore you're more volatile, and more likely to experience massive mood swings."

People don't tend to think about the impacts of change, because they think they're better at dealing with it than they actually are, Harvey said. And they're also not held to account over it.

"This generation, whatever you want to call us, we accept that being a bit depressed is normal," he said. "It's just how it is, that we are all a bit sad, a bit unhappy and dissatisfied... We've lost sight of that benchmark of what being optimal actually looks like. And a lot of people do just settle in general."

Writing

If we accept big changes without really dealing with them, things can fall apart. This goes for relationships, careers, and anything else, Harvey said, but "by the point you realise 'oh God I'm actually really bad at dealing with change,' you've probably failed so badly it's a lot harder to recover from."

Change elicits an ingrained stress response from us. It's not something you can fight, but it is something you can work with. Harvey laid out 5 steps to help you through the changes in your life.

1. Identify what you can and cannot control

Change happens on both the micro and the macro scale. Some things you're just not going to be able to control, like, for example, an economic crash.

"You'll actually feel better just knowing whether it is something you can control or not because you've actually consciously thought about it," said Harvey. "Think 'what can I actually take responsibility for and do something about?' And then maybe you can do something about it."

2. Make time to take care of yourself

"Acknowledge that a lot of change is going to have a negative impact, so consciously make time for — I'd call it self love," said Harvey. "Take time to actually appreciate your self."

If you've relocated to a new country or town, you might find you have periods where you feel down. But instead of burying it and pushing it down, spend time doing things you enjoy.

"Think to yourself 'right, I know this is going to be an upsetting thing that's going to hit me in a couple of days, but I'm going to make sure I arrange to go see a movie tomorrow night and I'm going to go to this event to meet some new people,'" Harvey said. That way, you're not dwelling on the bad feelings, but you're giving yourself time to adjust by doing positive things.

3. Work out your thought pattern

Harvey said it's helpful to write down your thought pattern from start to finish, starting from when the change happened, and finishing with the end result and how it made you feel.

"There's always one part of that pattern that's not right," he said. "It's either because you're catastrophising or there's an assumption somewhere in there... Make sure every time that thought comes into your head, remind yourself of the one bit that was broken in the chain, and replace it with a positive version of that thought."

So if you're catastrophising, and thinking you're going to get sacked because you're late for work, replace it with "it's not my fault." 

"Over time, it just becomes embedded in your way of thinking," said Harvey. "Actually think why you're reacting the way you are to change, and how 9 times out of 10 the reaction probably isn't a rational one."

4. Be in the moment

You can't control what happened in the past, and most of the time you don't have control of what will happen in the future. But what you can control is how you feel right now, Harvey said, and how you react.

"You've got to consider how your actions today will have an impact on how you feel in the future," he said. "Be in the present, but also focus on long term happiness over short term indulgence, because otherwise you will be unhappy in the future when you realise you have to do things you've been putting off."

5. Identify what's important to you

Finally, you should identify what means the most to you. People don't spend long enough getting to know themselves and what's important to them, Harvey said, and you'll do better at dealing with change if you work it out.

"If you know that being in an environment with a lot of new people is hard for you, there are ways of addressing that," he said. "Normally, there is a component of change that is upsetting to you. And once you identify that, and break down the changes, I think then you'll be in a much better situation."

SEE ALSO: Wellbeing coaching is as good for a business as it is for employees' health — here's why

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NOW WATCH: I woke up at 4:30 a.m. for a week like a Navy SEAL

All the best hats from Princess Eugenie's royal wedding

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Ellie Goulding Princess Eugenie Wedding

When Princess Eugenie married Jacks Brooksbank in an elegant royal wedding ceremony, all eyes were on the bride's wedding dress and emerald tiara.

But before the couple exchanged their vows, female wedding attendees turned heads with bold statement hats and lavish fascinators

Here's a roundup of the best ones seen throughout the wedding.

Kate Middleton wore an eye-catching fuchsia design by Philip Treacy.

Her hat perfectly matched her Alexander McQueen dress, which was a big departure from her usual style.



Meghan Markle opted for a navy blue fascinator.

It completed her all-navy ensemble by Givenchy, which was much more low-key than expected.



The queen arrived wearing a baby blue hat with feathered detailing at the front.

It was yet another brightly colored ensemble that the queen has made her signature style.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

13 places to visit in December for every type of traveler

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13 places travel december

  • To find the best places to visit in December 2018, Business Insider looked at climate data, cultural calendars, and peak travel times.
  • December offers all kinds of travel experiences, from unforgettable Christmas and New Year's celebrations to relaxing getaways on tropical islands.
  • The best places to visit in December include the "Hamptons of South America," a European capital filled to the brim with Christmas markets, and the rugged wilderness of Australia's southernmost state.

As December nears and the year draws to close, travelers are looking for the site of their last big vacation.

Thanks to the popularity of Christmas and New Year's Eve vacations, December is often one of the most expensive months of the year to travel to the world's tourism hotspots. 

Whether you want to indulge in the holiday festivities or escape to a sunny island paradise, there are endless options for travelers in December. 

We looked at airfare trends, climate data, and worldwide cultural calendars to select 13 vacation spots that should be on your radar for a December vacation. They include a glitzy resort town in Uruguay that's called the "Hamptons of South America," an icy European wonderland filled with Christmas markets and holiday cheer, and the rugged wilderness of Australia's southernmost state.

Take a look at the places we recommend for a December trip, and plan away.

SEE ALSO: 13 places to visit in November for every type of traveler

DON'T MISS: The 13 best places to visit in October for every type of traveler

Miami, Florida

No city knows how to party quite like Miami, and on New Year's Eve, the city takes it to another level. You'll have your pick of parties, from sparkling rooftop soirees to thumping ragers on South Beach.

There are plenty of other non-party activities to keep you busy, too. It's always beach weather in Miami, with December highs typically reaching the mid-70s Fahrenheit. Meanwhile, tourist favorites like the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens and Zoo Miami host special holiday-themed events in December. 

Note that December is a huge month for traveling in Miami, so book airfare and hotels early for the best rates.



Atlanta, Georgia

Another Southeastern city that should be on your radar for December is Atlanta, Georgia.

Only Chicago and New York City see more visitors than Atlanta each year, and for good reason. Must-sees for first-time visitors include the World of Coca-Cola and a studio tour at the CNN Center— both companies are headquartered there — the Georgia Aquarium, the Center for Civil and Human Rights, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park, which includes the civil rights leader's childhood home and church.

If you can tolerate temperatures in the 40s and 50s Fahrenheit, Piedmont Park and Centennial Olympic Park are always good for a daytime stroll, and nearby Stone Mountain offers an epic lights-filled Christmas celebration each night. 



San Antonio, Texas

The end of the year is the perfect time to visit San Antonio, as hotel rates plummet but the temperature stays mostly warm.

The Alamo is San Antonio's biggest claim to fame, and there are plenty of other activities that make the city worth an extended stay. Locals love the quickly growing Pearl District for its eclectic mix of food, shopping, and art, as well as the 15-mile River Walk and its unique canals, pathways, and architecture. First-time visitors should hop on a cruise for a guided tour.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Morgan Stanley has 4 strategies for how clients can withstand the impact of higher interest rates

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  • Rising interest rates will be more challenging for investors than is usually the case, according to a team of cross-asset strategists at Morgan Stanley.
  • That's partly because the real 10-year yield has broken out of a stable range it held since 2013, they said.
  • They offered four strategies meant to help investors withstand the impact of higher interest rates.

Any American with a credit card has probably noticed by now that interest rates are rising.

Bond-market investors have been served notice, too; last week, the yield on 10-year Treasury notes spiked to seven-year highs after strong data on the labor market supported the Federal Reserve's case to continue raising interest rates. Another trigger came after the Fed's chairman, Jerome Powell, said the central bank was a "long way" from the neutral rate that neither slows down nor speeds up the economy.

It's a development that usually spooks stock-market investors in the short term. Longer term, and contrary to popular belief, stocks tend to rise with interest rates because both are driven by strong economic conditions.

"But this time the environment is more challenging," a team of cross-asset strategists at Morgan Stanley led by Phanikiran Naraparaju said in a note on Sunday.

In part, they note that the recent move higher in bond yields has been driven by 10-year real yields (adjusted for inflation) breaking out of a stable five-year range. Such breakouts routinely happen near the end of market cycles, but there's still uncertainty about how risk assets will withstand this one.

Also, higher interest rates usually strengthen the dollar, which in turn crimps the earnings of US multinationals. Strategists at both Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank have told clients that the dollar, which has gained nearly 4% this year against other G10 currencies, is switching from being a tailwind to a headwind for company earnings.

Naraparaju and his colleagues added that low interest rates had helped to support US equity multiples in the nine-year bull market, which many investors already consider stretched. Further increases in rates would push US equity premiums over bonds "from average to rich," they said.

Taking all of this into account, Morgan Stanley offered four ways investors could withstand higher interest rates:

  • Higher rates should spark "a long-awaited value rally." Their relative valuation compared with growth stocks is too low and they're positioned to achieve stronger earnings. "The rise in real yields could just be an added catalyst to kick-start the rally for some investors, even though that hasn't been the case in the past," the strategists said.
  • Gold should be resilient to rising rates. The precious metal is usually vulnerable to higher real yields, but its 9% slump this year and massive short positions suggest traders have already factored this relationship in. "Tentative signs of better physical demand, the approaching peak jewellery season in India and mine suspensions should also be a support for gold," the strategists said.
  • Longer-dated volatility is attractive, as the breakout in yields will lead traders to assign a higher probability to a wider range of outcomes."In particular, we like being long US 10y20y ATM straddles," the strategists said.
  • Foreign assets are attractive to own on an FX-hedged basis for US investors. That's because US monetary policy continues to tighten faster than that of the rest of the world, making dollar-denominated assets expensive for foreign investors. But the opposite is the case for US investors looking outward. "For example, a USD investor can getup to 6.8% yield by investing in Eurostoxx (with a yield of 3.6%) and hedging the currency exposure (FX carry of 3.2%)."

SEE ALSO: Morgan Stanley’s 2019 forecast for tech stocks has an ominous resemblance to the dotcom-bubble era

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Here's what McDonald's restaurants look like around the world (MCD)

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McDonalds Lindvallen Resort Sweden McSki

  • McDonald's operates more than 36,000 restaurants around the world.
  • The menu varies to reflect the local cuisine of the country where it's located. 
  • The stores themselves vary in appearance, too. Though many international McDonald's locations look similar to its US stores, some locations are completely unique.
  • See what McDonald's restaurants look like around the world.  

McDonald's operates more than 36,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries around the world. 

Many of the McDonald's restaurants around the world look similar to the ones we see in the US, but the menus vary to reflect the local cuisine of the country the restaurant is in. 

But some McDonald's locations stand out from the rest. Around the world, there are high-end McDonald's with marble walls and chandeliers, McDonald's in historic buildings, and even a McDonald's on a ski slope. 

In countries like Spain and Italy, McDonald's serves pastries like macarons. And in Rome, McDonald's has a gelato bar. 

See what other McDonald's restaurants are like around the world:

SEE ALSO: We compared the best vegan options from 7 fast-food chains — and the winner was clear

DON'T MISS: Bizarre food items that disappeared from McDonald's menu

This McDonald's restaurant in Bergen, Norway, is located in one of the oldest traditional Norwegian wooden buildings in the area.

Source: MSN



The exterior is white wood paneling, and the golden arches are a bit more subtle than at McDonald's restaurants in the US ...



... but the inside is pretty similar to what McDonald's looks like in the US.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The 10 best airlines to fly in North America (AAL, DAL, LUV, JBLU, ALK)

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  • Consumer aviation website Skytrax recently released their ranking of the best airlines in the world.
  • Asian and European airlines dominate the top of the rankings.
  • Airlines for North America once again struggled in the Skytrax rankings.
  • No airline from North America cracked the top 25 while no US airline managed to crack the top 35.
  • For the second year in a row, Air Canada was named the best airline in North America by Skytrax. 
  • Delta finished as the highest ranked US airline.

Consumer aviation website Skytrax has released updated rankings of the best airlines in the world. For 2018, airlines from Asia and Europe such as Singapore, Emirates, Cathay Pacific, and Lufthansa once again dominate the upper echelons of the list.

Airlines from those two continents have taken the top spot every year since 2001.

Unfortunately, North American airlines once against struggled to keep up with the pack. In fact, no airline from the US, Canada, and Mexico managed to crack the top 25. 

The highest ranked North American airline doesn't appear on the list until Air Canada in 30th place. 

"We are very pleased that Air Canada has again been recognized as the Best Airline in North America by the highly respected Skytrax World Airline Awards," Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu said in a statement. "This is the seventh time in nine years Air Canada has been honored with this award, demonstrating our successful transformation into a leading global carrier."

No US airline cracked the top 35. Delta got the closest with a 37th place finish.

In fact, major players like United Airlines and Aeromexico both missed out on a top 10 finish in the Skytrax rankings for the best airlines in North America. 

The Skytrax rankings are based on the impressions of 20.36 million travelers from more than 100 different countries. The unpaid survey, which covered more than 335 airlines, measured 49 parameters ranging from boarding procedures to seat comfort to the quality of service.

Here are the 10 best airlines in North America, according to the results of the Skytrax survey:

SEE ALSO: 10 airports in America that passengers love flying into the most

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10. Hawaiian Airlines

Overall rank: 77

Why it's awesome: Hawaiian Airlines is a bit of a niche player as far as its position in the market goes. Even though it's among the most prominent airline brands in the US, it's dedicated to connecting the Hawaiian islands with the rest of the world. 

Hawaiian Airlines currently operates a fleet of new Airbus A321neo and Airbus A330 airliners. It's also phasing out its fleet of Boeing 767 airlines with new 787 Dreamliners on the way. 

See additional airline information at Skytrax.



9. American Airlines

Overall rank: 71

Why it's awesome: American Airlines is the world's largest airline. The Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier was formed following the 2015 merger of US Airways and American Airlines. 

American Airlines operates a fleet of around 950 mainline jets. 

See additional airline information at Skytrax.



8. Air Transat

Overall rank: 68

Why it's awesome:  Air Transat is a Montreal-based leisure airline. Founded in 1987, Air Transat's business is built around package vacation deals to 60 destinations across, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas. 

For 2018, Air Transat was named World's Best Leisure Airline. 

See additional airline information at Skytrax.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

SENATE BATTLEGROUND MAP: The race for control of the Senate is as tight as it can be

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  • The 2018 US Senate elections are full of tight races, polling shows.
  • Entering the midterms, Republicans hold a 51-to-49 seat majority in the upper chamber of Congress.
  • A few seats changing hands could flip the body to Democratic control.
  • But Democrats are faced with a challenging map.

The battle for control of the Senate is as tight as can be, RealClearPolitics polling averages show. 

This week, Republicans continued to build separation from a Democratic incumbent in North Dakota while Democrats built on what was a shrinking lead in New Jersey.

As of Tuesday, candidates are separated by 3 points or less in six races.

  • Polling shows Republican candidate, Rep. Kevin Cramer building his lead over a Democratic incumbent, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, in North Dakota. In Missouri, Republican Josh Hawley holds a slim lead over another Democratic incumbent, Sen. Claire McCaskill.
  • Meanwhile, Democratic candidates Kyrsten Sinema and Jacky Rosen hold slim leads for seats currently under GOP control in Arizona and Nevada.
  • In five states won by President Donald Trump in 2016, Democratic incumbents hold substantial leads over their opponents: Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.

Entering the midterms, Republicans hold a 51-to-49 seat majority in the upper chamber of Congress.

Election Day is November 6. We'll continue to update this map in the weeks leading up to it.

SEE ALSO: Insiders are buzzing that northern Virginia could soon be awarded Amazon's HQ2 as Jeff Bezos makes a high-profile visit to Washington, DC

Join the conversation about this story »

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20 things we could do right now to prevent the wave of natural disasters, poverty, and pollution to come

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A woman wades through a submerged street at the UNESCO heritage ancient town of Hoi An after typhoon Damrey hits Vietnam November 6, 2017. REUTERS/Kham

  • An initiative called Project Drawdown is bringing researchers together to figure out the best ways to cool down the planet and prevent more damaging floods, hurricanes, wildfires, droughts, and starvation.
  • Chad Frischmann, vice president of the project, spoke about the group's plan at TED's New York offices.
  • The solutions he proposed all exist already, and many have to do with better management of our food systems — wasting less and reducing spoilage.

There's a lot of fear and uncertainty going around about the future of our planet.

Sea levels are rising, we could soon face a "Hothouse Earth" scenario, and severe flooding from torrential rains is expected to get worse. If the atmosphere keeps heating up, some towns could even be threatened by wayward icebergs.

But Chad Frischmann doesn't think things are so bleak.

He's vice president of an initiative called Project Drawdown: a group of scientists, researchers, and writers who've calculated how to cool the planet over the next 30 years by reducing the amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. The two-pronged plan is designed to both cut planet-warming emissions from fossil fuels and also suck more carbon dioxide into the ground, largely via photosynthesis. 

"Drawdown is a new way of thinking about and acting on global warming," Frischmann told an audience gathered at TED's New York conference stage last week. As he spoke, world leaders were gathered on the other side of Manhattan at the United Nations, debating the best ways to solve extreme poverty, disease, and malnutrition.

Frischmann said that solving those issues and tackling climate change are part of the same puzzle. He's convinced his drawdown plan can improve lives around world by feeding the hungry and educating young minds, all while reducing the Earth's temperature a bit for future generations.

He listed the top 20 ways that everyone — consumers, policy makers, food growers, and energy providers — could reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Some of the solutions he proposed are already in use; these include universal education, family planning, sustainable refrigerants, better farming methods, and more wind power. 

"We have real, workable technology and practices that can achieve drawdown," Frischmann said. The problem is that the necessary changes to the ways we put food on the table and generate energy aren't happening fast enough.

"What we need is to accelerate the implementation," he said. 

A wish list for the planet

Chad Frischmann drawdown climate change

Below is Frischmann's ranking of the best ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on how many gigatons (billions of tons) of carbon dioxide emissions each approach could be expected to cut over a 30-year period. 

The solutions are grouped into a few key topic areas, like energy sources, food, and education of women and girls.

For example, according to Project Drawdown's calculations, by adopting a more plant-rich diet and eating less beef, we could cut more than 66 gigatons (that's billions of tons) of carbon dioxide emissions over the next 30 years. Other solutions include changing the way we cool our offices and homes, using less fertilizer on crops, improving soil health, regrowing forests, and restoring carbon-sucking peat bogs.

The cost of implementing all the solutions in Project Drawdown is estimated to be $1 trillion a year over the next 30 years, according to Frischmann.

"I know that sounds like a lot," he said, but he reminded the crowd that global GDP is now above $80 trillion a year, so it would cost less than 1.25% of our annual purse to enact these potentially planet-saving strategies.

Here are the top 20 things on the Project Drawdown list:

top 20 things we can do to cool down planet chart

The number one way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, according to the list, is to change the way we keep food and buildings cool.

Currently, air conditioners and refrigerators run on hydrflurocarbons, also known as HFCs, which heat up the planet. HFCs will start being phased out in high-income countries in 2019 as part of the Kigali accord, but they'll still be used in other corners of the globe, where incomes are rising and more people are buying fridges and A/C units. Plus, we'll still have to make sure to properly dispose of all HFC-powered fridges and air conditioners; otherwise the refrigerant left inside could become a huge source of emissions.

[Read moreThe one thing a renowned climate scientist does to reduce her own impact on the environment]

But the number one solution to global warming may have nothing to do with energy

Eight of the other 20 items on the list have to do with the way our food system is set up, from how we till and fertilize land to what we consume. That 's something anyone can take action on right now, Frischmann said. 

"The decisions we make every day about the food we produce, purchase, and consume are perhaps the most important contributions every individual can make to reversing global warming," he said, adding, "we don't need to cut down forests for food production. The solutions to reversing global warming are the same solutions to food insecurity." 

But beyond food and farming, there's another powerful weapon that the Project Drawdown list doesn't fully highlight.

"Taken together, educating girls and family planning is the number one solution to reversing global warming," Frischmann said. 

Letting more girls continue their education, receive wanted contraception, and space out their youngsters as they’d like could cut around 120 billion tons of greenhouse gases that we'd otherwise emit over the next 30 years, according to Project Drawdown's calculations.

That's because better control of the population size would reduce demand for energy, food, travel, buildings, and all other resources on the planet.

SEE ALSO: An economist has a wild proposal to give all kids in the US up to $60,000 at birth

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Kate Middleton is a whiskey fan and Cleopatra used to bathe in wine — here are the surprising favorite drinks of 10 popular royals

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Prince William and Kate Middleton whiskey



Some of history's most powerful kings, queens, and members of royal families have been known for their unique drinking habits. 

While some, like Princess Diana, only sipped on Peach Bellinis from time to time, others, like Catherine II (later known to the world as Catherine the Great), became renowned for their surprising drinking abilities. 

Below, see the favorite drinks of 10 popular royals, from Kate Middleton to Cleopatra. 

SEE ALSO: Kate Middleton's delivery of her third baby probably cost less than a typical birth in the US

DON'T MISS: Kate Middleton has given birth to her third child — here's what the royal line of succession looks like now

Kate Middleton: Jack Daniels

One of Kate's favorite drinks to sip is reportedly Jack Daniels, although it's a close call between the "Crack Baby," a mix of passion-fruit juice, vodka, and champagne that the couple was said to regularly drink at the nightclub Boujis.

Source: Telegraph



Princess Diana of Wales: Peach Bellini

Princess Diana was said to have been partial to a peach Bellini, enjoying them the night she famously snuck out while dressed as a man with Freddie Mercury.

Source: Daily Mail



Prince Charles: Laphroaig malt

The prince loves Laphroaig malt and even has a special Highgrove edition of the whiskey from Islay that he sells in his Gloucestershire estate shop.

Source: The Daily Meal



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

I've been traveling the world for 6 months, and I've found real life doesn't always live up to the hype. These are the most disappointing places I've been.

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porto bookstore Livrarialello portugal

  • In March I left New York to travel around the world as Business Insider's international correspondent. Over the course of more than six months, I have so far visited 12 countries.
  • While I've had some epic adventures, not everything lived up to the hype. Some bucket-list attractions were overpriced, uninspiring, overcrowded, or just plain boring.
  • Among the offending attractions: the "most dangerous hike in the world" in China, the Marina Bay Sands mega-hotel featured in "Crazy Rich Asians," and the Greek isle of Mykonos.
  • I thought it might be helpful to share which of my recent adventures weren't worth the trouble.
  • If you're looking for the things you should do, I have a list of those too.

Let's be honest, some things simply don't live up to the hype.

There's a temptation when going on a big trip abroad to come back singing the praises of everything you did and saw, whether it's a mediocre, all-inclusive island resort or an adrenaline-pumping off-road trip through the desert.

But that muddies the waters. Sometimes, you get to a place, attraction, or activity only to find it overpriced, uninspiring, overcrowded, or just plain boring. If you don't call that out, how do you know some experience you've had really was life-altering?

When I left to travel as Business Insider's international correspondent in March, I knew there would be amazing adventures along the way. I also knew there would be more than a few duds. Among them: the "most dangerous hike in the world" in China, the Marina Bay Sands mega-hotel featured in "Crazy Rich Asians," and the Greek isle of Mykonos.

With 12 countries and six months checked off on the trip so far, I decided it was time to pinpoint my least favorite adventures. Perhaps it'll help you reevaluate an upcoming trip, adjust your expectations for a bucket-list location, or feel less pressure to go see or do that thing that everyone is telling you that you must do.

Here's they are:

SEE ALSO: From off-roading in China to 22 hours of sunlight in Moscow: the one thing you have to do in 12 countries around the world

In China, I headed to Mount Hua, or Huashan, considered to be one of China's five sacred mountains and one of the most popular tourist attractions and pilgrimage sites for Chinese people. The mountain actually has five main peaks — a North, South, East, West, and Center.



While breathtaking, it's considered to be one of the world's most dangerous places to hike, due in large part to the infamous plank walk located on the mountain's highest peak, South, which has a height of 7,070 feet.



Unfortunately, I never got to the plank walk. The easiest way to get to the mountain's peaks is by cable car. The line was insanely long. You can't even see the cable car in this picture.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Former Navy SEAL commanders who have worked with more than 400 businesses teach leaders to be aggressive — but not in the way most people think

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Jocko Willink and Leif Babin 0840

  • Jocko Willink and Leif Babin are former Navy SEAL commanders with a new book, "The Dichotomy of Leadership."
  • Their leadership consulting firm, Echelon Front, has worked with more than 400 businesses since its founding in 2010.
  • They teach being "Default: Aggressive," which means being proactive rather than passive or reliant on others.
  • It does not mean being reckless or aggressive toward other people.

As the commander of US Navy SEAL Team 3 Task Unit Bruiser, Jocko Willink instilled in his team a philosophy of "Default: Aggressive."

Leif Babin was one of two platoon leaders who reported to him, and after serving overseas they founded Echelon Front, a leadership consulting firm. Since its launch in 2010, it has worked with more than 400 businesses. In a recent interview about their new book, "The Dichotomy of Leadership," Willink and Babin told Business Insider that they often found people misunderstood one of their lessons. They call it "Default: Aggressive."

In the book, Willink describes Default: Aggressive as aggressively working to "overcome obstacles, capitalize on immediate opportunities, accomplish the mission, and win" without needing every decision explicitly approved and without turning down an opportunity because it falls outside their job description.

"'Aggressive' means proactive," in this case, Willink wrote. "It doesn't mean that leaders can get angry, lose their temper, or be aggressive toward their people." It also doesn't mean being reckless.

"You've got to analyze the intelligence and collect information and mitigate risks that you can control," Babin told Business Insider. "So trying to find that balance is incredibly difficult."

Willink wrote about a time when he worked with the CEO of a growing small business whose confident, headstrong attitude was contagious. It was so contagious even Willink got caught up in her enthusiasm for ambitious growth plans built on stretch goals that would put a serious strain on the budget.

He explained that while he admired her embrace of the Default: Aggressive mindset, its purpose is tied to the good of the team. If confident, proactive behavior is actually placing the team in unnecessary danger, it's not worth the risk.

Willink wrote that he told the CEO that "being aggressive doesn't mean throwing caution to the wind."

"It doesn't mean taking catastrophic risk that can and should be mitigated," he said. "And it doesn't mean relying on unrealistic stretch goals."

As Willink and Babin learned as SEALs, there is a major difference between a confident, independent, and proactive default approach to real-time challenges and "running to your death."

SEE ALSO: A former Navy SEAL commander says you can't be a great leader without knowing when to be a follower

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NOW WATCH: I woke up at 3 a.m. to spend 12 hours learning what it takes to be a leader from former Navy SEALs

When the CEO of $5.9 billion Canada Goose interviews job candidates, he gives them a warning — and their response speaks volumes about whether they get the job (GOOS)

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dani reiss canada goose

  • Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss looks for job candidates who are adaptable and thrive in an environment of constant change.
  • In a job interview, he'll warn candidates that Canada Goose is a "crazy place to work."
  • He wants candidates who will be able to forge their own career path and are excited by change.
  • Other executives and hiring managers agree that adaptability is important.

When Dani Reiss interviews people, he warns them: "This place is a crazy place to work."

Their reaction has a big influence on whether they'll get hired.

Reiss, the CEO of the luxury outerwear maker Canada Goose, told Business Insider that he was always on the lookout for adaptability.

Reiss said he tells job candidates explicitly: "Your job is going to be different in 12 months. I can't tell you today what that job will be, but I can tell you that it's not going to be the same as it is today."

He added, "We really need people that have that entrepreneurial spirit and a relentless energy to them, and passion."

Canada Goose started as a small, family-owned business (Reiss' grandfather founded the organization) and went public last year. Today, it's a $5.9 billion company. So it's especially important for job candidates to be prepared for rapid growth and change.

Reiss isn't the only executive who prizes flexibility in employees. Jennifer Shappley, a senior director of talent acquisition at LinkedIn, wrote last year that in the company's "Global Recruiting Trends" report, 69% of hiring managers agreed that adaptability is the most important soft skill in job candidates.

And Jennifer Dulski, head of groups and community at Facebook, wrote in a 2013 LinkedIn blog post that "people who are comfortable with change in general tend to be more successful."

Dulski advised managers to ask questions such as "Can you tell me about a time when your company or team went through a major change and how you handled that?" to evaluate a candidate's ability to manage change.

Reiss said it wasn't necessarily a bad thing that some people thrive amid constant change while others don't. But at Canada Goose, "we try and look for people who are over-committed and who are excited by a wild ride and journey," he said. "At a place like Canada Goose, you have to make your own career path."

SEE ALSO: Actress Elizabeth Banks spoke to a Dunkin' Donuts exec about why the company is changing its name, and took away a career lesson anyone can use

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NOW WATCH: I woke up at 4:30 a.m. for a week like a Navy SEAL

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