• Over 15 years ago, my husband and I thought we'd built the 3,000-square-foot home of our dreams.
• We added extra bathrooms, another bedroom, and focused on having tons of space for loved ones.
• Things didn't go as planned. Now, our home feels too big, and we regret some of our choices.

As millennials, my husband and I have long been aware that our likelihood of home ownership was abysmal.

After all, the 2007 subprime mortgage crisis was still fresh in our memories as we began designing our future. So, in 2009, when we got the opportunity to have our own home built, we went all in.

At the time, we were sharing a bedroom in my parents’ home with our 15-month-old, and I'd just discovered I was pregnant again. Talks of getting a house happened quickly, but it felt more like wishful thinking than something that would pan out.

However, when my husband and I looked into it, we were surprised to learn that we qualified for an FHA loan to finance a home.

We also found that home builders were relatively desperate to sell homes in order to offload properties they were saddled with after the housing crisis. This meant that the builders and their lenders were very accommodating of us as first-time home buyers.

Since we were taking the plunge anyway, we decided to build the house of our dreams — and we wanted to go big.

We had ideas for using a big house, but they didn’t quite work out as we’d planned

We chose a roughly 3,000-square-foot layout for our home and prioritized having lots of rooms.

Our home builder offered us a $15,000 upgrade credit that we used to add a powder room and an additional large bedroom with an ensuite bathroom similar to the primary.

The additions put the home layout at five bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths. Additionally, the house plan included both formal and casual dining rooms and a private office.

It may have seemed like a lot for our small family, but we planned to use the space and fill it with loved ones.

We were open to having more kids and planned to have my parents move in with us to help with childcare and share expenses. We also intended to have my grandma move into one of our extra rooms so we could help support her in her golden years.

Unfortunately, our plans didn’t work out as we’d expected. My grandmother died before the house was even finished. My parents only lived with us for about five years before moving full time into my grandmother's old home.

We did have a third child, but for years now, my husband and I have felt like we have too much house.

Although the extra bedroom with an ensuite bathroom was nice while my parents lived with us, it mostly goes unused now. Our larger home comes with higher utility bills, and there's no one else helping us to pay them now that my parents don't live here.

There's also a lot of space to take care of. For now, our children pitch in on chores to keep things tidy, but upkeep of our home lies on our shoulders.

Our oldest is now a year away from moving out for university, and I know our house will only seem bigger and emptier as the kids head off to college.

Sadly, some regrets can't be fixed with a bit of elbow grease

Looking back, there's a lot we could've done if we hadn't prioritized size and used all of that credit to make our home bigger.

For example, I'd love to have installed vaulted ceilings, but it feels far too late (and expensive) to make that change now. If we'd gone for a smaller house, maybe we could've had a larger back and front yard space.

It's easy to say the solution to our regrets is to downsize and trade our home in for a smaller model, but that's not for us.

Besides actively recoiling at the thought of ever having to pack and move again, staying in the home my kids are growing up in is valuable to my husband and me.

Also, I like knowing that our kids will be able to return to their childhood rooms whenever they want to, something neither my husband nor I can say for ourselves.

As much as I cherish the space that makes up our home, I can't help but have regrets when I think of upgrades we could’ve had or see an electricity bill.

My advice for anyone looking to buy a home is to plan for the absolutes. If you focus on preparing for contingencies instead of certainties, you might end up with something that doesn't serve your needs if they fall through.

• Torrential rain and flash floods hit parts of central Texas on Friday.
• At least 24 people have died in the floods, and more than 20 children are missing from Camp Mystic.
• The National Weather Service said the Guadalupe River at Hunt hit its second-highest height on record.

At least 24 people have died after heavy rainfall caused flash flooding in parts of central Texas on Friday.

More than 20 children are also missing from Camp Mystic, a Christian girls' camp along the Guadalupe River, which Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said had risen 26 feet in 45 minutes as torrential rain battered the region.

The National Weather Service said the Guadalupe River at Hunt hit its second-highest height on record on Friday.

The service said Saturday morning that rises were also beginning to occur on Lake Travis, and warned of "dangerous and life-threatening flooding and heavy rain" over Burnet, western Williamson, and northwestern Travis counties.

Here are some images showing the impact of the flooding and ongoing search and rescue efforts.

• I spent one night at the Fairmont Pacific Rim, a five-star hotel in Vancouver, British Columbia.
• I slept in a Fairmont Gold room that costs about $725 per night.
• I left the luxury hotel wishing I'd booked a longer stay.

When I think of the Fairmont hotel brand, two words come to mind: historic luxury.

From Quebec City's Fairmont Le Château Frontenac to the iconic Plaza Hotel towering over Central Park in Manhattan, every Fairmont hotel I'd stayed in or gawked at from across the street had been reminiscent of a renaissance castle — until I spent one night at the Fairmont Pacific Rim in Vancouver, British Columbia, in May.

"We're a lot more contemporary with a different demographic," a representative of the Fairmont Pacific Rim told Business Insider.

While Fairmont's heritage hotels give guests a peek into the past, the Fairmont Pacific Rim embraces modern luxury. The five-star hotel has won numerous awards since it opened in 2010, including being named the No. 1 hotel in Western Canada in the Condé Nast Traveler 2024 Readers' Choice Awards.

One lavish night in a $725 room at the Fairmont Pacific Rim swept me off my feet. In fact, I left wishing I'd booked it for a longer stay.

The Fairmont Pacific Rim is in downtown Vancouver's Coal Harbour neighborhood.

The Fairmont Pacific Rim was one of many glass skyscrapers lining the Coal Harbour waterfront in downtown Vancouver. But it was the only one with strips of text lining several stories of the 22-floor facade.

In 2-foot-tall, spaceless, lowercase Helvetica Bold lettering, each line read, "lying on top of a building…the clouds looked no nearer than when I was lying on the street."

The installation by UK artist Liam Gillick was the first of many indicators that the Fairmont Pacific Rim celebrates art and design.

The second was the vibrant BMW coupe in front of the entrance, which looked like a page from a comic book. According to the hotel's Instagram page, pop artist Jeff Koons hand-painted the fancy car.

Inside, the lobby is known as "Vancouver's living room."

From fashion and music to sculptures and paintings, the Lobby Lounge showcased all types of art.

High-end fashion was displayed on mannequins in glass boxes and hanging bird cages. Nestled in a corner was a stage with a piano and drum kit, played by a range of musicians on the rise. Spinning figures of children stood over 6 feet tall on top of a marble fireplace.

The Lobby Lounge also has a raw bar serving sushi and cocktails.

"It's commonly known as Vancouver's living room because it's so popular for locals," the hotel representative told BI.

I wish I'd had more time to hang out in the lobby and listen to live music while munching on sushi.

Since I was in a Fairmont Gold room, I checked in on the 20th floor.

You can think of Fairmont Gold as a first-class experience. It's an elevated section of the hotel on the 20th, 21st, and 22nd floors with premium rooms and its own mini lobby lounge with complimentary snacks throughout the day.

"Essentially, the Fairmont Gold product is like a club floor," the hotel rep told BI. "It is a brand-new product for us, which we're super excited about."

Fairmont Pacific Rim's Gold experience launched in March 2025.

The rep said the design of the lounge and rooms was inspired by Vancouver's natural beauty. Floor-to-ceiling windows surrounded the lounge, offering views of the harbor, skyline, and mountains.

The Fairmont Gold Lounge had complimentary breakfast, afternoon snacks, and evening appetizers exclusively for Gold guests.

I was surprised to learn that breakfast was made to order rather than served buffet-style.

I ordered scrambled eggs and chicken sausage and paired them with toast, fruit, and fresh orange juice.

The eggs were soft and fluffy, just like I like them. All the ingredients tasted fresh and filled me up without spending a dime.

If I had stayed longer, I would have liked to try more of the complimentary breakfast dishes, like the brioche French toast or the avocado toast.

I stayed in a 400-square-foot Gold Harbour Mountain View room on the 20th floor.

The hotel has 367 guest rooms and 60 Fairmont Gold rooms.

I stayed in a Gold Harbour Mountain View room that sleeps up to four people. The hotel rep said that the best available rate for this room is 984 Canadian dollars, or about $725, though BI received a media rate for the one-night stay.

My room had a king-sized bed, a bathroom, a sitting area, and a balcony accessible via floor-to-ceiling windows.

I thought the room was stunning.

With custom furniture and unique decor, this was one of the most beautiful hotel rooms I'd ever stayed in.

I was immediately taken by the handblown glass Bocci chandelier, which had air plants peeking out from the bulbs. I sank into the custom velvet couch in front of the windows, and warm accent lighting made the space feel even more luxurious.

Out on the balcony, I marveled at the grand views of the harbor, spotting seaplanes, yachts, and skyscrapers sitting beneath mountains.

Upscale amenities enhanced the luxury feel.

My bedside table had an oil diffuser, a smart tablet with room controls, spa booking capabilities, and in-room dining services.

The framed TV across from the bed was a whopping 75 inches with a Bose sound bar. I appreciated the small details, too, like the leather box that held the TV remote and lifestyle magazines with elegant spreads highlighting architecture, photography, design, travel, and more.

In the evening, an attendant came by for turndown service, where I selected premium pillows and oil scents from a menu.

The spacious bathroom felt like a spa.

Each Fairmont Gold room has an oversize bathroom coated in black marble, with two sinks, a lit mirror, a glass shower with two showerheads, and a deep bathtub topped with a resin tray.

A separate toilet room with a sliding door was at the back of the bathroom. The toilet was luxurious, with a light beaming inside the bowl and an upscale bidet with options to heat the seat, change the water temperature, and a dryer mode.

The bathroom had luxury amenities from Le Labo toiletries to a Dyson hair dryer that I fell in love with. After five minutes of use, my damp hair, which drapes past my waistline, looked like it had just gotten a blowout.

But the real spa was down on the fifth floor.

The five-star Fairmont Spa set a calming mood upon entering. Warm lighting beamed through thin wood panels with a soothing water feature against a wall.

In addition to massage, facial, and meditation treatments, the spa has several amenities, including a mineral bath, fitness center, Jacuzzi, and infrared sauna, among others.

There's also an outdoor relaxation lounge with gravity chairs and views of the surrounding city.

During my stay, I didn't have time to book a spa treatment, but I'll be sure to do so next time.

The pool is outdoors on the sixth floor.

From November through April, a portion of the pool deck transforms into the Nordic Spa, which moves guests through a range of temperatures with a cedar plank sauna and cold plunge pools.

"It's very popular for sports teams and muscle recovery," the hotel rep told BI.

On the second floor, I found the hotel's restaurant, Botanist.

Botanist looked like a restaurant inside a greenhouse. Dining tables were surrounded by living plants, lit by floor-to-ceiling windows.

"The menu is inspired by the Pacific Northwest, so everything is hyper-local," the hotel rep told BI.

The restaurant serves brunch, lunch, and dinner.

The menu features sustainably sourced proteins like wagyu beef, grilled octopus, and black pepper-crusted salmon. It also includes hand-cut pasta, locally sourced produce, and lobster Benedict.

Also on the second floor, there was a rotating art gallery.

"This hotel is a platform for creativity," the hotel rep told BI. "We blend influences of art, music, and fashion."

The art in the Pacific Gallery rotates every three months.

During my visit, the exhibit was Angela Teng's Colourwork, a series where crocheted acrylic paint acts as yarn. The vibrant art popped in an otherwise white room.

I think art enthusiasts would be inspired by a stay at the Fairmont Pacific Rim. But don't book just one night like I did.

I've stayed in so many luxury hotels that they sometimes blend together in my mind. However, the Fairmont Pacific Rim's art-forward aesthetic made this a booking I'll be thinking about for years to come.

Next time I'm in Vancouver, I'll spend my whole trip at the Fairmont Pacific Rim.

• I took my kids on a guided group tour across Italy.
• Visiting Europe with my teens was magical, and I didn't want to come home.
• I'd recommend Italy to families looking to try traveling abroad.

My husband and I visited Italy for the first time a few years ago on a Disney cruise, kid-free. Italy was so special, I returned home dreaming of returning with my teenagers. It took a few years, but this summer, we booked an Adventures by Disney trip — a highly organized form of group travel — and spent more than a week experiencing Rome, Tuscany, Florence, and Venice with our 17-year-old son and 15-year-old daughter.

I love traveling with my family, and we've been on some pretty incredible trips. But with responsibilities back home, I'm always ready to get back to the real world. As we walked through Venice on our last day in Italy, gelato cones in hand, I said to my family, "I wish we could stay a little longer, suspended in time just like this."

Preparing for our trip to Italy in advance made it go smoothly

I'm not sure if it was the specific trip we booked or Italy as a whole that captivated my family, but everything about the country fit our vacation style.

Before traveling, we spent a few months learning basic Italian and, since we'd received our itinerary in advance, we watched videos and read articles about things we'd do in Italy, from touring the Vatican Museum to seeing Michelangelo's David. Taking kids who felt familiar with Italian culture on a tour across the country made everything run smoothly.

We did touristy things, but I let my kids do teenager things, too

It was delightful to watch my teenagers experience the country for the first time. Little things felt incredibly rewarding, like watching them savor delicious pizza or learn to make fresh pasta by hand. Yes, my teens liked checking out important bits of Italian history and culture, but they also loved ordering different menu items from Italian McDonald's or finding Starbucks shops and trying new-to-them sips.

When my husband made a comment about them only wanting to do things we had back home, I reminded him that it's their vacation, too, and the way to get kids to enjoy travel is to let them pick some activities based on what they like.

There was something to do for everyone

Although our group tour consisted of about 40 travelers we were exploring the country with, we loved that there were periods of free time built into every day. On our own, we took my film-loving son to a movie at a Roman theater and saw my daughter squeal with excitement over shopping for clothes at Italian stores.

Italy felt like the perfect place to see sights and learn, but was also a wonderful spot to do things my kids were interested in, right down to the cat sanctuary we visited in Rome, located within the ruins of the spot where Julius Caesar was killed.

A group travel-style trip is perfect for a family's first time in Europe

My kids had been out of the US on vacations before, but mostly to places like all-inclusive resorts in spots like Turks and Caicos. I was nervous about taking them to Europe for the first time, and was glad I turned over the planning to a company like Adventures by Disney so I could enjoy the trip without worrying about logistics.

Everything on our trip was handled by our guides, who traveled with us and helped get everyone in our group safely to the next activity. Tickets for a tour of Rome's Colosseum or a walking tour of Doge's Palace in Venice were all part of the trip cost, as were fun activities like a pizza-tasting party and dinner at a medieval villa, complete with Italian folk music performers.

I wasn't alone in my appreciation for the itinerary-planning help: Every mom I chatted with on the trip said they'd booked it because all they had to do was show up and enjoy, rather than spending their entire vacation buying tickets, scheduling activities, and dealing with things that would inevitably go awry. Visiting a foreign country with kids can feel daunting, and doing so as part of a group travel experience with dedicated guides made all the difference.

Our trip was so successful, my teens already want to go back to Europe

My kids loved Italy so much that they're already asking when we can travel abroad next. Bitten by the European travel bug, they've asked about visiting countries like France and England.

Italy was the perfect jumping-off point for my teenagers, and the friendly people there (who graciously spoke English whenever they realized we were Americans, and were very patient with us practicing our Duolingo-learned Italian) were so kind to my kids. In fact, while I'm thrilled they want to visit other countries, I'd take them back to Italy again to try to recapture the magical time we spent there.

• Amazon Prime Day has competition from a list of other retailers, from Walmart to Dollar General.
• Some rivals are offering longer sales or starting their discounts ahead of Prime Day.
• It's a chance for other retailers to challenge Amazon's dominance, one analyst said.

What used to be one of the sleepiest times of year for retailers has turned into a major shopping event thanks to Amazon.

Amazon's Prime Day this year will last four days between July 8 and 11 — longer than it has run before, and the earliest that the sale has started.

A range of other retailers, from Dollar General to REI, are also offering sales that coincide with or start earlier than Prime Day.

Fourth-of-July sales for products, such as mattresses or seasonal items like lawnmowers and inflatable pools, have been around longer than Prime Day. Overall, though, early summer was historically a slow time for retail.

"July used to be the dog days of summer when people didn't spend that much," said Zak Stambor, senior analyst of retail and e-commerce at EMARKETER, which shares an owner with Business Insider.

Prime Day, which Amazon first hosted in 2015, changed that.

Now, "July is a time that consumers are conditioned to be on the hunt for deals," Stambor said. "Every retailer needs to respond and lean into that."

Best Buy, Dollar General, and other retailers are getting in on the action

Besides Prime Day, this year's sales lineup includes a seven-day Fourth of July sale from Best Buy. Like Amazon, Best Buy is offering deals on electronics to members of its paid loyalty programs. Best Buy's sale lasts three days longer than Prime Day, though. It also started on Monday, over a week ahead of Prime Day.

Dollar General is planning its own "7 Days of Savings" event, which starts on July 6. The dollar store's discounts for the sale are more limited than Amazon's, with one deal per day, such as a discount on a fan or a buy-one, get-one deal on bratwurst.

Walmart and Target, which have offered their own sales around Prime Day in years past, are also getting in on the action again. Walmart's sale, for example, will start on July 8 and run for six days. Members of Walmart+, the big box store's paid membership, will get early access to deals.

Department store Kohl's, outdoor gear retailer REI, and home improvement chain Lowe's are also among the stores offering Fourth-of-July and other sales around the same time as Prime Day this year.

Amazon may have drawn inspiration from its rivals for its longer Prime Day, Stambor said. Last year, when Prime Day was two days long, Walmart's sale was twice as long.

"Amazon can see that those events have resonated, and so why not hop in the pool and join them?" Stambor said.

All those deals could be welcome this year as consumers watch their spending closely and worry about prices going up due to tariffs. President Donald Trump's 90-day pause on many of the tariffs that he enacted in April expires on July 9, the second day of Prime Day.

Amazon still has an edge over many other retailers when it comes to conveniences like fast delivery and value, Stambor said. And marquee sales events like Prime Day allow Amazon to increase its market share in the long run.

Rival retailers' sales are also a chance for them to win over customers.

"What is their unique value proposition that will drive consumers to buy from them rather than just go to Amazon or Walmart?" Stambor said.

• This post originally appeared in the BI Today newsletter.
• You can sign up for Business Insider's daily newsletter here.

Happy Fourth! Your cookout's soundtrack may sound a little bland this season since there's no song of the summer. Waaaah! Here's why there's no new bops.

While you're here, subscribe to Defense Flash, BI's new guide to the latest innovations in military strategy, defense tech, and more delivered right to your inbox every week.

If this was forwarded to you, sign up here. Download Business Insider's app here.

This week's dispatch

Poolside page turners

After the cookout, and the party, and the drinking, and the water play, you'll be yearning for some quiet time. And if you're like me, that means curling up with a good book.

There are plenty of old and new summer reads to make you forget about going back to work next week. I asked six of our editors at Business Insider what their favorite reads are. Here's what they said:

Jamie Heller, Editor in Chief: I just finished "The Bee Sting" by Paul Murray, and I mostly couldn't put it down! In this family saga set in Ireland, Murray develops consuming characters and keeps you in suspense, all with a writing style that's distinct but also easy to follow and enjoy. I highly recommend it!

Bartie Scott, Deputy Editor, Economy: "Tom Lake" by Ann Patchett makes a great summer read with its whirlwind romance and heartwarming mother-daughter dynamics. While the material is sweet and whimsical, Patchett's writing is high quality, and if audiobooks are more your style — or if you're picky about narrators — it's worth knowing that Meryl Streep reads this one.

Bryan Erickson, Executive Creative Director: I am rereading "Capote's Women" by Laurence Leamer because much like the series, "Feud: Capote vs. The Swans," once was not enough. I identify with Truman's scarf-wearing escapism, and am slightly obsessed with the NYC that came before me.

Paige DiFiore-Wohr, Deputy Editor, Freelance: If you're looking for a suspenseful, twist-filled story about friendship, betrayal, and redemption, "The Drowning Woman" by Robyn Harding is the book for you. The story follows a once-successful restaurant owner who's now living out of her car as she encounters a rich socialite who's about to change her life. Nothing is as it seems, and no one can be trusted. I finished this thriller in less than a day.

Tracy Connor, Standards Editor: I devoured "Pineapple Street" by Jenny Jackson by the side of a pool last summer, relishing every twist in the tale of a rich New York City family grappling with relationship, parenting, and personal problems. It's a modern and sharper version of the delicious epics I used to sneak from my parents' bedstand in the 1970s.

Joe Ciolli, Executive Editor, Markets and Investing: "Our Band Could Be Your Life" by Michael Azerrad is a compelling look at how independent musicians forged their careers in the pre-internet era. Thirteen chapters dive into 13 bands who developed crucial networks for the music and touring industries we know today. I don't even like most of the bands, but it's still the best music book I've ever read.

BI may earn a commission if you purchase through our links.

The BI Today team: Lisa Ryan, executive editor, in New York. Akin Oyedele, deputy editor, in New York. Grace Lett, editor, in New York. Amanda Yen, associate editor, in New York.

• Gen Z employees are learning what they shouldn't say at work amid a generational language barrier.
• Words like "rizz" and "crashout" have found their way into office lingo for younger workers.
• An HR professional told BI that Gen Z should be mindful when bringing new sayings to the workplace. 

It can be challenging to keep up with all of the slang your Gen Z coworkers use.

Employees who are part of Generation Z — those born between 1997 and 2012 — are introducing coworkers to a variety of new phrases in the workplace.

The new generation of workers is bringing their personalities into the office, and thus, their jargon.

"We now take our work home readily and easily, basically in our pockets with our phones," Carrie Bulger, an industrial-organizational psychologist at Quinnipiac University, told Business Insider's Emily Stewart in June. "The lines are blurred no matter what. Why wouldn't they blur in the other direction as well?"

Ultimately, Gen Z wants to be understood in the office. Four out of 10 Gen Zers say their primary job is central to their identities, coming in second to their friends and family, according to a 2025 Deloitte survey of more than 14,000 adult-aged Gen Z professionals. The same survey found that clear communication is important to them.

As more young people come into the working world, one Gen Z worker suggested that they use some caution.

Kevon Martin, a 25-year-old human resources coordinator, told BI there's a time and a place for slang.

"Older colleagues can benefit from being more adaptable and relatable to their younger coworkers, so they know how to appeal to a younger consumer base," Martin said. "However, Gen Z must also recognize you can't come to work and use whatever slang words you'd use with each other because it's not the same environment."

Below is a list of phrases a Gen Z colleague might use and what they (usually) mean. While some of these phrases originated from Black and LGBTQ+ creators, they are wide-ranging in their origins and references.

Chokehold

When you can't get enough of an item, person, or idea, one might say that it has you "in a chokehold." For example, the restaurant you frequent for lunch could have you in a chokehold if you visit every day.

Crash out or crashout

"Crash out," as a verb, essentially means to respond dramatically to something. When a person is at their wits' end or a stressful event occurs, they may crash out by yelling, crying, or some other over-the-top response.

For example, getting in trouble at work may prompt your coworker to crash out by being really upset about it.

If they respond to such events with that sort of behavior often, they can be labeled a "crashout."

IJBOL

Think of "IJBOL" as a more intense acronym than "LOL" that's more work-appropriate than "LMAO."

It stands for, "I just burst out laughing," and it's the way a Gen Zer might let you know they found something funny or cringe. It's unclear who coined the acronym, but it can be used sincerely to express that you're laughing or ironically to demonstrate how chronically online you are.

Rizz

It's short for charisma. Someone with "rizz" is a smooth talker who knows how to navigate conversations like a pro. Those with "zero rizz" are awkward or have poor conversation skills.

Aura

In the Merriam-Webster dictionary, aura is defined as "an energy field that is held to emanate from a living being," and Gen Zers on TikTok have not transformed that meaning much.

Everyone has aura, but the kind your young coworker might be referring to represents someone's swagger, cool points, or some undefinable X-factor that makes them intriguing.

Someone who demonstrates an impressive skill or unmatched "rizz" might gain aura points. Meanwhile, someone who does something embarrassing might lose them. If you're constantly in awkward situations, you might be labeled as someone with negative aura points.

Roman Empire

The "Roman Empire" trend began online when someone asked, "How often do men think about the Roman Empire?" Cue viral videos of women asking their dads, husbands, and brothers how often the ancient society crosses their minds. The answer: more than you'd think.

As sayings do, the phrase "Roman Empire" has transformed to mean a topic or scenario that someone can't stop thinking about. In one TikTok, a Garage Clothing employee said that Taylor Swift and football player Travis Kelce's relationship is their Roman Empire.

Ick

The term "ick" has long been used to describe something gross or unpleasant, but it has taken on a new meaning thanks to a current trend on TikTok. At first, "give me the ick" was used by Gen Zers to refer to traits or habits that turned them off from a person they're dating, but now many are sharing "icks" in all aspects of life.

In December, a group of Atlanta-based nurses was publicly ridiculed for sharing their "icks" about patients in a TikTok video. The caption read "Icks, Labor & Delivery (Edition)," and the video featured multiple nurses sharing things they didn't like about patients.

The employees appear to have since lost their jobs, based on an apology posted to Facebook by Emory Healthcare, which referred to them as "former employees."

Stories, like those of the hospital workers, may give young people pause when considering more casual behavior around the office. But Martin told BI it can work if executed appropriately — and not disparagingly — in an environment of open communication between colleagues of multiple generations. 

Naur

Simply put, "naur" means no or know. It is a more dramatic way of saying "no" or "know" and sounds like "no" with an Australian accent. 

Slay

To "slay" anything means someone is doing an exceptional job at their work or a task at hand. 

Understood the assignment

If a coworker says this, they mean a task has been completed exactly as it was meant to be done.

Say less

A shortened version of "say no more." It's used when you completely agree or understand what someone has just said.

Unserious

This is a more fun way of saying that something or someone is ridiculous or cannot be taken seriously.

L or W

Although referring to wins and losses as "Ws" or "Ls" probably didn't start with Gen Z, the youngsters do like to use it to describe a positive or negative experience. 

Your colleague might tell you your opinion is an "L take" if they disagree with you.

• Google engineer Aashna Doshi says that strategic networking helped land internships that led to a full-time job.
• To distinguish herself from the pack, she showcased her skills with independent projects, Doshi told BI.
• When you finally have a foot in the door, do your best to become a reliable "go-to" person, she added.

It's just not enough to cold apply for tech jobs anymore, said Aashna Doshi, a two-time intern turned software engineer at Google. To land a spot at a tech giant, you need to be networking "intentionally."

"Knowing who you want to meet, finding that common bridge between both of you, and then really learning from their experience, was a big game changer for me," Doshi told Business Insider.

Doshi suggests reaching out not only to people whose career paths you'd like to emulate, but also those with whom you share common ground, including similar personal experiences.

"I was talking to a bunch of people, and saw this software engineer who was working out of Europe, and was super inspired by her story," she said. "She was also a woman. I love to see other women in tech and also, she's European. I grew up in Belgium, so that's kind of my connecting point to her."

A foot in the door

While Doshi ended up getting a referral from the engineer in Europe, she said she wasn't initially thinking of asking for one.

Reaching out because you're genuinely interested in someone's trajectory, she added, has twofold benefits — you're likely to learn more from a less stilted conversation, and the connection you make could last throughout your career.

"I reached out to her to learn more about her story, not like, 'Hey, can I get a referral at Google?'" she said. "I actually didn't even have any intention of asking her for this internship referral, but we became friends and she let me into her life, which is what her day-to-day looks like, how she grows in the role that she's in."

Remembering that professional connections, like any relationship, are two-way streets, also goes a long way towards helping them endure, Doshi added.

"As we move and progress in our life, the way in which I think about it is, we are collecting people, and we are supporting people," she said. "And the people that will come all the way through will be the ones that you have formed a genuine bond with. If you ask someone for a referral and they give it to you, I mean, that's well and good, but five years down the line, 10 years down the line, they might not even remember who you are."

If you can't get an internship, complete a project

Since you're likely to be taking similar classes as your competition, it's what you do with that knowledge that can make you stand out, Doshi said.

Projects are the "one thing that I will say again and again and again for any student," she said.

The Google engineer partly credits her success in securing an internship to the projects she developed in her downtime.

"This is the way you can set yourself apart from 1000 other people, because if you take data structures and algorithms, and your peers take data structures and algorithms, you all have the same foundational knowledge that you are building," she told BI. "But what you do with that knowledge, what you do with the data structures and algorithms, really, really makes a difference."

There's no pressure to specialize in a niche skillset right out of the gate to impress potential employers, either, Doshi said. What you're really aiming for is a broad knowledge base and a flexible personality.

"They don't expect you to come in with tons and tons of experience," she said. "They actually care about more — can you think in a specific way, and given a situation changes, are you able to adapt to that? More than doing like 700 LeetCode questions and getting those exactly right, I tried to do more problem solving in adaptive sense."

Becoming a 'go-to' person

If and when you finally do land an internship, the challenge then becomes securing a full-time return offer.

In Doshi's case, she did her best to become integral to the teams she was placed on — being a point person for a particular issue can help you be more memorable, as well as slowly build a positive reputation with senior employees.

"If they have a bug, and they trust you enough to be like, 'Oh, Aashna, you've done something like this before. Why don't you take this up?'" she said. "That is not just giving you work. It's, 'Oh, we trust you to take something like this up.' So being that person they can trust, being that go-to person, is an absolute game changer."

Doshi also cautions interns against self-isolating. You're not expected to know everything, and shouldn't try to act like you do.

"As an intern, you are coming in with, as everyone knows, less experience than the rest of the team. The intention is to show progress," she said, adding, "The key lies in asking the right questions. A lot of people say there are no wrong questions, etc, etc. Maybe there are no wrong questions, but there are questions that are better than others, in my opinion."

Knowing how to ask for help can be just as important as knowing when — Doshi suggests presenting your questions in a way that shows you've attempted to solve the problem on your own first.

"Do your due diligence before that, which means if you're stuck, ask the right person for help," she said. "I'm going to explain that I already tried to do X, Y, Z, and it didn't work. How do I move forward?"

The goal of an internship is, after all, to absorb as much knowledge as possible. Try to avoid letting your fear of looking lost halt your progress, she added.

"So this kind of framework really accelerated my learnings, because I wasn't wasting hours and hours on something that absolutely I didn't understand or didn't work," she said. "And while I wasn't spending those hours, I still did my due diligence, which is, do my research, look through the code base."

• Some of the best-selling EVs are about to become a lot more expensive.
• Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" eliminates the $7,500 tax credit for new electric cars.
• Here are the 20 electric and hybrid vehicles that qualify for the $7,500 discount.

President Donald Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" is about to make EVs even more expensive.

On Thursday, the US House of Representatives passed Trump's tax and spending bill, and in doing so, killed the $7,500 tax credit for new, US-made electric vehicles.

Trump signed the bill into law on Friday, meaning that the tax incentive will end on September 30th.

Auto industry experts have previously warned that removing the $7,500 credit will make EVs even more unaffordable, and there are already signs that some automakers are starting to adjust their prices.

Jeff Bezos-backed EV startup Slate Auto quietly removed the "under $20,000" expected price tag for its upcoming electric pickup truck from its website this week. The company had previously said it expected the customizable pickup to qualify for federal tax incentives.

20 electric and hybrid vehicles currently benefit from the $7,500 tax credit, according to the US Department of Energy's website — but for buyers looking to snap them up before the discount goes away, there are a couple of important caveats.

For starters, not every version of those vehicles meets the criteria for the tax incentive.

Some are limited to specific model years and trims. For example, only the 2026 version of the Hyundai IONIQ 9 qualifies for the tax credit.

There is also a max retail price limit of $80,000 for vans, SUVs, and pickups, and $55,000 for all other vehicles.

In addition, the credit is only available to buyers with an adjusted gross income of $150,000 or less, although the limit extends to $300,000 for married couples filing jointly and $225,000 for heads of households.

There is also a separate federal tax credit of up to $4,000 for used EVs and hybrids, which applies to a much wider range of vehicles, but that will also come to an end in September once Trump signs the bill into law.

Every EV that qualifies for the $7,500 tax credit

• Acura ZDX
• Cadillac LYRIQ
• Cadillac OPTIQ
• Cadillac VISTIQ
• Chevrolet Blazer
• Chevrolet Equinox
• Chevrolet Silverado
• Chrysler Pacifica (hybrid)
• Ford F150 Lightning
• Genesis Electrified GV70
• GMC Sierra
• Honda Prologue
• Hyundai IONIQ 5
• Hyundai IONIQ 9
• Jeep Wagoneer S
• Kia EV6
• Kia EV9
• Tesla Cybertruck
• Tesla Model 3
• Tesla Model X
• Tesla Model Y

• Business Insider recently spent a night aboard a US Navy destroyer sailing from England to France.
• Our reporter got an inside look at daily life for sailors on USS Thomas Hudner.
• Sailors explained what they like about being on the ship, as well as some of the challenges.

ENGLISH CHANNEL — About a year and a half before Business Insider stepped aboard the US Navy destroyer USS Thomas Hudner, the ship was battling hostile drones in the Red Sea. Kill marks can be seen painted on the warship, which recently found itself again wrapped up in the violence in the Middle East.

BI's stay aboard the powerful warship at the tail end of May and into June was significantly quieter by comparison.

The roughly 24 hours spent aboard the Thomas Hudner as the ship crossed the English Channel from England to France to mark the 81st anniversary of the D-Day invasion offered a glimpse into what life is like for the warship's sailors as they handle missions while grappling with the grind of daily Navy life.

Setting sail, two tugboats pulled the 500-foot-long Arleigh Burke-class destroyer away from the pier and into a crowded harbor. Sailors in their dress blues stood manning the rails as people on the shore looked on with great interest.

Getting the warship underway at Portsmouth was a whole-of-ship effort, with sailors from the bridge to the combat information center and from the flight deck at the stern to the bow all playing a role.

Cmdr. Cameron Ingram, Thomas Hudner's commanding officer, told me that each of the 300-plus sailors aboard has a "vitally important" job keeping the ship operating smoothly.

"We're one big complex machine, and I am just a single component within it," he said. "A ship needs a captain, yes. But a ship needs lookouts, and a ship needs folks to do laundry, a ship needs people to do maintenance on weapons systems and damage control systems, and to stand watches."

"As much as the crew needs me to do my job, I need them to do their jobs every single day, because I cannot do my job if they aren't doing theirs," Ingram added.

Dinner that evening came early and consisted of pizza, pasta, and Brussels sprouts. I ate with officers in the wardroom, where the World War II film "Saving Private Ryan" was playing on a TV in the background.

Considering the purpose of the destroyer's voyage across the English Channel, the famous Steven Spielberg movie was a fitting choice. It's recognized as one of the most realistic portrayals of the Allied invasion of Normandy ever recreated in film, capturing the horrors of the daring operation to secure the foothold needed to break Nazi Germany. The warship I was on was churning the same waters that the massive D-Day fleet had sailed 81 years earlier, thousands never to return home.

Following dinner, the ship's skipper delivered a lengthy announcement over the ship's announcing system praising the crew and offering a preview of the coming D-Day events. He ended the broadcast by playing a song over the loudspeaker from the musical "Les Misérables," a nod to the visit to France.

I spent the evening wandering around the ship, observing sailors as they did their jobs and listening to them talk about life on the destroyer and in the Navy in general.

Life aboard a destroyer is demanding. Sailors operate in tight quarters, sharing berthing spaces and working long hours to keep up ship operations. Daily routines center on watch rotations in areas like the bridge, CIC, and engineering spaces to ensure the vessel stays mission-ready.

Despite the challenges, such as limited personal space and time away from family, sailors value bonds with crewmates, the service and sense of purpose, the resilience fostered aboard the ship, and the opportunity to travel.

"I've been all over the world," Petty Officer 1st Class Anna Watson, who manages the computer infrastructure for the ship's combat systems, shared. She came to Thomas Hudner, a ship homeported in Mayport, Fla., from the Navy's 7th Fleet, the command that oversees the Indo-Pacific region.

"I've been to Japan, Thailand, South Korea — places like that — and now I get to see Europe," she said.

"Definitely one of the benefits of being in the Navy, and being on a ship in the Navy, is you get to see most of the world. So that's pretty cool."

Some sailors BI spoke with that night pointed to the opportunities for professional growth that come with a deployment and working on a ship.

Chief Petty Officer Olaf Sampson, the head electrician, said being in the Navy and serving on a deployed warship is "a great stepping stone for young people to get into," where they can establish independence and learn a skill or trade.

Petty Officer 3rd Class Aiden Grimes, who works with the warship's embarked helicopters, finds the problem-solving aspect of his job very appealing. "You don't have a lot of people to go to, so you have to figure it out yourself, and I like doing that," he said.

Lt. John Wacker, who flies an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter, has previously deployed with a littoral combat ship and a cruiser, but this was his first time doing so on a destroyer, which he described as the "main force" of the Navy's fleet; the service has 74 DDGs, the most of any ship class. He said it was "cool" to watch how the crew operates on the ship.

The experience isn't easy, though. Deployments mean months away from family and friends, with port visits few and far between. And the requirements and scheduling can also change on a dime and give way to a high tempo of operations that can be stressful.

In the fall of 2023, for instance, the Thomas Hudner became one of the first American warships to engage in combat against Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who had just started their attacks on Israel and international shipping lanes in the Red Sea.

Those battles marked the start of a prolonged campaign for the Navy, which sent multiple aircraft carriers and warships, like Thomas Hudner, to the Middle East to fend off Houthi attacks. The Pentagon even extended some deployments, putting additional stress on crews with a difficult mission.

More recently, not long after the ship participated in D-Day events in France, the Thomas Hudner was dispatched to the Eastern Mediterranean along with four other destroyers to help shield Israel from Iranian ballistic missile attacks. The Navy warships collectively scored multiple interceptions.

The Houthi and Iranian engagements underscore the need for sailors to always be ready for the possibility of a new mission. That high state of readiness, however, can take its toll. Military roles come with different pressures compared to life in the civilian world.

When it came time to rest that night on the destroyer, I retreated to the stateroom I had been assigned, which resembled a small command center with a pull-out bed and an en suite bathroom. It was my second time spending the night on a Navy ship. Last year, I embarked overnight on the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower during a Red Sea combat deployment.

The room was on the colder side, and I didn't sleep more than about an hour, though that had more to do with my insomnia than anything else. Without WiFi or cell service, I played games on my phone just to pass the time until breakfast, which was pancakes, eggs, corned beef hash, and a few much-needed cups of coffee

After breakfast, I made my way up to the ship's bridge to watch as we approached the scenic French coastline and my final stop, Cherbourg-en-Cotentin. The destroyer sailed slowly into the port, accompanied by tugboats, and methodically pulled up alongside the pier.

The following process of dropping the anchor and using the massive lines to secure the destroyer in place — the reverse of what the crew did in Portsmouth — was as intricate and lengthy as it was in England. It involves tough, manual labor, but for some, that's part of the appeal of serving on a ship.

"There's also something kind of majestic, if you will, about pushing a gigantic piece of iron war machinery through the water," shared Chief Petty Officer Chris Miller, who is responsible for the destroyer's self-defense systems. "It takes a lot to make this thing move, and there are a lot of moving pieces to it."

"It's very intricate in design and very sophisticated, but it's also very powerful," he added, summing up his thoughts with: "It's awesome."

• A new $500 membership service allows patients to skip the doctor's office and get their own labs.
• Function Health then gives people nutrition and supplement advice, and encourages retesting.
• I found the extra data interesting, but ultimately needed a doctor to properly interpret it.

The Rock loves it, Zac Efron invests in it, and Equinox gym members are signing up for it in droves. Function Health is the latest hot commodity for longevity seekers looking to optimize their health.

The promise is simple: skip the waiting room at the doctor's office and head straight to the lab, for comprehensive medical testing that evaluates the health of key organs, like your heart and kidneys.

Function also measures some things that "regular" doctors typically don't, like electrolyte levels as well as the so-called "heavy metals" — lead, mercury — potentially poisonous substances that can sometimes lurk in our air, water, and food. It might even find cancer.

I wanted to see what all the big buzz was about with this $500 annual blood-and-pee testing service, so I tried it out. Disclaimer: I didn't have to pay for it, because Function Health gave out free trials to journalists as the company is still in beta testing mode.

In the end, my Function results led me to seek out more advice from doctors than I usually would, to help me separate the signal from the noise in all the data.

I freaked out about all the little cholesterol particles hiding out in my blood

The good news is that Function is not a huge time suck. It takes about 15 minutes to get the initial testing done and you can roll up to just about any Quest Diagnostics lab location nationwide (except in Hawaii and Rhode Island).

Their tests measure over 90 different biomarkers in your blood and urine, including almost all the typical stuff you'd find in a doctor's office (except STD testing). Function performed roughly three times the number of tests I had done the last time I went to the doctor's office for routine bloodwork. There were more measurements related to hormones, key nutrients, my metabolism, and heart health. Function Health also measured my "biological age," a scientifically squishy indicator of health and fitness.

With so many tests being run, there's a good chance that something you measure when you do Function will come back abnormal. That doesn't always mean there's something wrong with you; sometimes your own "normal" doesn't fit neatly into a given reference range.

Function is OK with having a few errant flags in the data, and encourages re-testing any out of range labs. Their ethos is the more information, the better. It's about creating a more detailed picture of your overall health, not making sure each test is perfect every time.

People are "wanting to know more about their biology, and to be advocates for their own health," Dr. Mark Hyman, one of the founders of Function Health, told Business Insider.

Hyman, a longtime friend of US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., chalks it up "to disillusionment with healthcare in general" in the US. Hyman says many people who use Function's tests may be able to resolve their own health concerns without ever seeing a doctor afterwards.

"While you'll need to see a doctor for certain things, the beauty of Function is you come in, follow up, order follow up tests on yourself, and then you can follow the guidance," Hyman said.

His venture dovetails with the rise of new tech promising to put you in the driver's seat of your own health. Think wearables (rings, watches, glucose monitors) and concierge medicine (full body MRIs, anti-aging IV drips). As the personalized medicine industry booms, Function is taking off. The company says its membership has more than doubled since December, to more than 200,000 customers.

I ended up overanalyzing my results, and coming to some pretty silly conclusions

The very first "out of range" marker that was mentioned in my Function report was a cholesterol measurement. While my regular LDL, or "bad" cholesterol number — the one you'd get measured in a doctor's office — looked fine, Function also measured the size of my LDL cholesterol particles.

Apparently, I had slightly elevated numbers of small and medium sized LDL cholesterol particles, which are more dangerous than larger LDL particles. This "could indicate an increased risk for cardiovascular disease despite normal LDL cholesterol levels," my results said, adding "it is vital to address the out-of-range results."

This was a surprise. I had always been told I have "good" cholesterol.

I started imagining all those tiny, sticky cholesterol particles racing towards my aging heart. Knowing how important heart health is for healthy aging, and that heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US, I started to worry. Should I quit my beloved mayonnaise? Maybe I should at least cut back.

After my initial shock, I reached out to independent cardiologists and longevity doctors for this story. I also spoke directly to Hyman about my results. All of those physicians refocused my attention, helping me interpret the results, and zoom in on the more meaningful ways to adjust my lifestyle.

Frankly, they reminded me why this kind of testing isn't widely recommended, and why we go to the doctor in the first place.

Without help from doctors, I was stressing about the wrong things in my labs and on my plate

Even for me, a seasoned health journalist who isn't generally freaked out by medical test results, this felt like a lot to take in. In addition to the supposedly off-balance cholesterol numbers, there was also low vitamin D, and a few other items that could impact everything from my immunity to metabolism and fertility.

Without a doctor's advice, I found it was easy to get lost in the noise of all the results.

"I think if you showed any cardiologist or lipidologist your panel, they wouldn't be worrying about you," Dr. Ken Feingold, an emeritus professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, who is an expert on lipids and lipoprotein metabolism, told BI.

The cholesterol numbers that really matter were fine, including the basics (total cholesterol, LDL, HDL) but also some of the more niche measurements that doctors are now factoring into clinical decision-making, like lipoprotein A and apolipoprotein B (APOB), Feingold said.

"I think it would be very unfair to expect a consumer, the person that had the lab work done to try and figure it out on their own," Dr. David Sabgir, a cardiologist in Ohio who is also not involved with Function Health, told BI.

In theory, Function is designed to help consumers make simple nutrition tweaks they hadn't thought to make — perhaps adding fatty fish for omega-3, vitamin D, or fiber supplements.

"80% of people's health issues will never need a doctor," Hyman said. "They're really lifestyle-driven and they can be modified through modifying your diet and your lifestyle."

However, as a consumer, I found the barrage of information confusing, making it harder to feel in control of good decision-making.

Plus, while Function gave me diet and supplement recommendations (vitamin D, fiber, berberine, omega-3, and coQ10, along with more fish and eggs), it buried the most important piece of nutrition advice that every doctor I spoke to was quickly able to point out.

Doctors told me to cut back on white bread and enjoy avocados

In a follow-up interview with Hyman — which is not standard procedure for Function patients — he told me I could improve my particle numbers by cutting down on, or ideally eliminating, refined starches and sugars.

This was advice that was not highlighted in my Function dashboard, but other doctors wholeheartedly agreed. It was the first thing they said.

Miora longevity clinic director Dr. Gregory Pippert uses advanced blood testing that's similar to Function's, often catering to patients who are trying to optimize their health and gains in the gym.

"I look at so much green on that," he said of my cholesterol panel. "Then I see particle numbers that are not massively high."

For Pippert, the headline was simple: just skip the refined grains more often.

"Do I really, really need the big extra thick slice of white bread? Maybe not," Pippert said. "It's making the good choices more than the bad choices, but not obsessing."

Seeing more granular data may help some patients take general pieces of health advice — to hit the gym five days a week, incorporate more strength training, or adhere to heart healthy diets, like the Mediterranean diet, more seriously.

"The anxiety associated with the results may trigger more compliance with lifestyle modification," Sabgir said.

But how can we be sure we'll pick out the right tweaks on our own? If I'm skipping mayo but not switching to whole grains or cutting back on sugar, I'm probably not going to have a huge impact on my test results.

"I don't know why people are offering this," Feingold said. "It's a way to make a lot of money because sure, they're charging a significant amount of money for this, but you don't really need it to make decisions about who you're going to treat, most of the time."

• Ukraine is using ground robots to evacuate wounded, lay mines, and attack Russian forces.
• An operator said they don't use different robots, instead they adapt and tweak the same ones.
• They work like "Lego sets" — a positive for Ukraine's soldiers, as they need to constantly adapt.

Ukraine is using ground robots "like Lego," putting them together differently to use for different missions, from evacuations to attacks, a Ukrainian robot operator told Business Insider.

Oleksandr Yabchanka, head of the robotic systems for Ukraine's Da Vinci Wolves Battalion, told BI that his unit doesn't have different robot types. Instead, they equip and put them together based on specific needs.

They might use a rigid capsule so it can carry a wounded soldier, but later, if they need to destroy a Russian position, they attach a bomb to it and "turn that system into a kamikaze one," he said.

Yabchanka described ground drones as being adaptable systems that soldiers can put together themselves on the field.

"We all remember Lego. We were growing up together with those kits," he said.

He also described it as a positive development for Ukraine: In a war where tactics and technology are constantly changing, helping soldiers be nimble could be key.

Adaptable robots

Vadym Yunyk, the CEO of FRDM Group, which makes the D-21 robotic ground logistics complex, told BI that "the adaptability of the D-21 is one of its key advantages."

The robot can be used for transporting provisions like ammunition, as well as for the emergency evacuation of wounded, or even as a platform for mounting weapons.

Yunyk said this adaptability means that units can "quickly integrate the platform into their own tactics."

The company has also adapted the system further: In response to requests, it attached a combat module to the D-21, making the D-21-12R, a robot that can fire while moving between different positions, Yunyk said.

And they're working on adding a grenade launcher, too.

"This opens the way to even more flexible applications for the D-21 and D-21-12R," he said. "In other words, we are not just offering a product — we are providing a tool that adapts to the real needs of the front lines."

Milrem Robotics, an Estonian company, describes its THeMIS robot, which is being used in Ukraine, as "an advanced multi-role defence platform designed for various operational tasks."

The company says its "modular and versatile design allows customization according to the customer's needs" and that its robots can gather intelligence, dispose of ordnance, and evacuate troops. They can also be fitted with a variety of weapons depending on what soldiers have available and want to achieve.

Kuldar Väärsi, the founder and CEO of Milrem Robots, told BI that innovation on the battlefield goes even further.

He said that soldiers have been using the tech in ways the company wasn't even expecting.

"Ukrainian troops are really creative, and they really find very simple ways how to get even more out of the equipment," he said.

A new type of warfare

Ground robots are not new to warfare, but the scale of their use in Ukraine, the different types of usage, and the number of companies quickly bringing them to the battlefield stand out.

They also have the potential to be a key tool for Ukraine, as it has far fewer troops than Russia, which is a much larger country. Russia is also working on its own versions.

The speed of innovation is notable, too, with countries rapidly deploying AI and new tech to make them more autonomous and more powerful.

Yabchanka said soldiers are playing a key role in that development.

He said his troops often tweak, refine, and upgrade the ground robots themselves while on video calls with manufacturers.

It's a similar dynamic to the one that drone operators have described to BI. One operator said he often texts and FaceTime manufacturers to give them feedback and get updates.

FRDM Group's Yunyk said his robots also have to constantly be updated based on feedback and how soldiers are using them.

"The product lifecycle in this war is extremely short," he said. "What worked a month ago may already be outdated today. Therefore, developers do not have the luxury of working according to old templates."

He said that if companies spend two years developing a product, "there is a high risk that it will become irrelevant even before development is complete."

"This is a new reality in which those who adapt faster, not those who plan longer, win," he added.

• Moving to Argentina in 2022 helped Greyson Ferguson pay down his student loans.
• But his costs started to increase after the 2023 election, so he had to look for greener pastures.
• He's moved to Albania, where he hopes his financial situation and mental well-being will improve.

I'm from America, but I couldn't achieve the American dream if I stayed in the States.

I graduated from college on the heels of 2008's Great Recession. It seemed like nobody was hiring. I built a career writing for travel magazines and news outlets to keep up with student loan payments that started at around $900 a month.

When COVID hit, I lost clients, and my financial situation became dire. Loans and rent gobbled up nearly $2,000 a month before car payments. I moved in with my sister and then tried living in a dirt-cheap trailer, but I couldn't make up for the income I lost.

In 2021, I decided to leave my life in the US and move to Argentina with my two dogs. I hoped the lower cost of living abroad would help me slash expenses and reduce my debt.

For a time, everything clicked. I saved money and began paying down debts, but with the financial success came a darker side to living abroad. I struggled to connect with locals, and my isolation led to full-blown depression.

As Argentina's economic situation and my mental health floundered, I decided to move to Albania. I'm hopeful it's the solution I've been searching for.

Living in Argentina helped me pay down my loans

When I searched for a new home outside America, I knew I needed a country that allowed longer-term stays, was affordable, and would let me bring a pitbull.

In March 2022, I moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina, which met all my criteria. As a freelance writer with US clients, I didn't need any work approval, and I could keep extending my stay as a tourist by crossing the border every three months. I did fumble a bit with the local Spanish dialect — it took me far too long to discover "ll" sounds like "sha," so tortilla was pronounced tor-ti-sha. But I got by.

At the time, one US dollar traded for around 110 Argentine pesos. However, the unofficial exchange rate, which was used widely by locals although it's considered illegal, increased the dollar value to 200 pesos.

When I moved to Argentina in 2022, inflation rates were astronomically high, but as someone who didn't earn in pesos, the move still slashed my costs significantly. Aside from no longer having a car payment, my pre-paid mobile number cost around $4 a month, while my gym membership ran close to $15.

Locating a place to stay using local real estate agents took time, but I eventually landed a fully furnished apartment, decorated in what I'd call a dumpster-dive chic aesthetic. It cost me $400 a month, including utilities. In Arizona, my rent, car payment, and utility bills cost $1,635.

With the reduced cost of living and clients slowly returning post-COVID, I made good progress on paying down my debt.

The financial benefits didn't last long

After Argentina's 2023 presidential election, things started to change. The newly elected Javier Milei immediately slashed utilities and transportation subsidies and devalued the peso. Poverty rates reached their highest level in two decades.

The impact was felt across the country, and my own rent and utility costs living in Buenos Aires increased significantly.

I'd also been struggling with a growing sense of loneliness since moving to Argentina. Despite my best efforts, I hadn't made close friends, and I began experiencing bouts of depression.

I stuck with it because of the progress I'd made with paying down my debt, but the economic changes were making loan repayments more difficult.

Then, one of my two dogs died. I knew I needed to make a change before my emotional state declined even further.

With the same parameters as before, I set out looking for an affordable country to move to

As someone who enjoys staying on top of travel trends, Albania piqued my interest. The coastal photographs looked so nice that I thought they were AI-generated. I noticed US passport holders could enter for a full 12 months as tourists without applying for a residency permit.

In April 2025, I moved into a furnished two-bedroom apartment in Tirana, Albania's capital city, for roughly $600. With utilities, the first month cost $650.

Albania still remains somewhat of a new expat destination. It doesn't have the brand appeal of Spain or Italy, but locals I've asked have noticed a big increase in outsiders in recent years.

Albania's economy seems stable, which should provide me with predictable monthly expenses. I'd say most things are cheaper here than in Argentina. A cup of coffee costs me just $0.59 per cup.

It will take some time to figure out how much spare cash I'll have to pay off debt at the end of the month, since there are resettling costs involved in a move, like buying new dishes and a vacuum cleaner for the ever-shedding dog. I'll be happy if my expenses start to look remotely close to what my early Argentina days were like.

I've learned you can't be prepared for everything when you move abroad

When I moved to Argentina, I thought I was prepared. I'd researched the country and its occasionally volatile economy, which was financially beneficial to non-peso earners.

But moving abroad involves handing over power. Hopping on a plane and settling somewhere new is invigorating, but also terrifying. You can't account for the unknowns.

I chose Argentina for financial gain, but had no idea I'd struggle making friends, or that the extended isolation would lead to depression. I still wouldn't change anything about this difficult patch — it's part of my journey.

The digital nomad experience is fluid, and your experiences aren't always positive. This fluidity has washed me into Albania. The country's friendly nature makes me hopeful my life will improve not only financially but mentally as well.

Do you have a story to share about relocating for financial reasons? Contact the editor, Charissa Cheong, at [email protected]

• A lot has changed on LinkedIn in the 20+ years it's been around.
• One thing about it is constant: It's a popular place to network and find your next job.
• LinkedIn experts shared with BI their do's and don'ts for using the professional site.

What do you say in a cold outreach message? Should your work history be lifted verbatim from your résumé? Do you use first- or third-person in describing yourself?

Anyone who's ever tinkered with their LinkedIn profile has probably found themselves asking questions like these.

BI asked LinkedIn experts for their tips on optimizing your LinkedIn profile and building your professional brand on the site. The next time you need to brush up on your profile (hint: you're probably not doing it enough), here are their do's and don'ts for using the networking site.

Optimizing your profile

LinkedIn gives you the option to default to your current job title in your headline. But "having skills in the headline is one of the areas that can really help you show up more prominently in search," said executive, résumé, and LinkedIn writer Virginia Franco.

Consider putting two or three of the top keywords or skills associated with your job target in your headline.

"Think of it as your 220-character elevator pitch," said Beth Granger, a consultant who focuses on networking and building your professional brand on LinkedIn.

But along with hard skills, you also want to "balance those keywords with a feel for your personality, to generate chemistry for you as a candidate," says Meg Guiseppi, executive job search strategist.

Similarly, a lot of people neglect their banners, but they're "your own professional billboard," said Granger.

Franco has seen clients take the three top keywords affiliated with their job target, add their name, and use that as their background image.

In your About section, strike a more conversational tone than you would in a résumé. (That means ditching the third-person voice.)

"It is a real chance to tell the reader about the problems that you fix, maybe some details about your leadership style, or what makes you tick," said Franco.

And lead with what you most want someone to know, since they may not click to read to the end.

In the Experience section, Franco focuses on the last 15 years of her work history. List your job responsibilities, not just your employer and job title, and don't just copy-paste from your résumé. You can describe a specific project and its results, or go more in-depth than you could in a bulleted list.

Highlight for each role "what you were brought on to do, what things looked like at the end, and high-level how you went about doing that," Franco said.

Choose from one of the pre-populated job title choices since those will better surface you in search, and if that's a little different from your actual title, use the space to explain why.

For workers just starting out in their careers, don't just list your school and degree in the Education section. Consider including the names of courses you took, as those are often keywords that can help surface you in searches.

In the Skills section, getting endorsements can help boost your credibility and your profile's search ranking, says Guiseppi.

A good time to ask for recommendations (not to be confused with skill endorsements) is when a colleague thanks you for something. You can also give a recommendation first and then ask for one in return.

Growing your network

Optimizing your profile isn't the only thing you should be doing on LinkedIn. Equally important is maintaining an active presence on the site. An easy way to get started is by commenting on others' posts.

"If you were in a room full of people, if people were talking and you walked up and joined their conversation, that's much easier than standing in the corner and saying something and hoping people will come listen to you," said Granger.

As far as making your own posts, think sharing articles of interest, reposting others' insightful comments, or commenting on industry happenings. One hot topic in seemingly every industry right now is the potential impact of AI on people's work. You can also take your cue from what others in your network are saying.

When it comes to building your network, send a personalized note with every connection request to cut through the noise, explain why you're reaching out, and refresh someone's memory of where you met.

At the end of the day, you want the parts of your profile to work together to make people "feel like they can reach out to you," said Granger.

"You want your profile to be able to start a conversation."

• Career coach Albano Gega shares the LinkedIn networking template that he gives his clients.
• He suggests cold outreach starts with a short question as a hook to get a response.
• Gega then recommends building rapport before a friendly ask for a networking call.

If you're on the job hunt, you're likely tired of being told that you have to network.

Sending out dozens of applications can be an ego check on its own. And flooding strangers' inboxes or LinkedIn DMs to ask for a job referral can feel downright degrading.

The bad news is that networking is still one of the most reliable ways to find a new role, especially as so many people are job hunting and as AI continues to automate parts of the process. The good news is that it doesn't have to feel so agonizing.

Albana Gega, founder of tech career-coaching platform Alza, told Business Insider that he refers to networking as "prospecting at scale," and thinks of networking chats like a sales call.

As a coach who has successfully placed clients at companies like Amazon, Klarna, and Airbnb, he said the goal is to boost the job seeker's visibility as a valuable asset, rather than depending solely on a résumé.

While many job seekers reach out to recruiters or hiring managers, Gega said that they should aim to target people in adjacent positions to the role they want. It's what Gega refers to as "lateral networking," and he said it gives job seekers a better chance at getting referrals, insider information, and early interview invitations.

This is the template he shares with his clients:

Gega's three-part LinkedIn template

Message 1: The Hook:

Hey [Name], you're at [Company]?

Why it works: It's under 40 characters. It's a question that triggers a natural "yeah, what's up?" response. It doesn't ask for anything — just opens a door.

Message 2: Build Rapport:

Nice. I've been following [Company/Product]. Looks like you've been there a bit… How's it going so far?

Mention something specific here if you can, like a product launch or a recent post. If you have common ground like school, industry, or mutuals, work that in casually.

Message 3: Light Intent And A Friendly Ask:

Honestly, one reason I reached out, I'm lightly exploring new roles and [Company] is on my shortlist. Been chatting with a few folks just to get a feel before diving into apps or interviews. Would it be cool if I asked a couple quick questions? Totally fine to keep it here or hop on a 20-min Zoom, whatever's easier.

Why it works: It's non-pushy and honest. You position them as the expert and it gives them two easy options.

Common Hooks to Try:

Use these to vary your openers:

• You're at [Company]?
• Mutuals with [Name]—small world?
• Saw your post on [Topic], super helpful.
• How's it going on the [team or role or project]?

Next steps for job seekers

If the person agrees to take a networking call, Gega advises his clients to start with light conversation, thank them for the call, and give a genuine compliment.

Then, job seekers should ask two to three questions, such as inquiring about their favorite part of working at the company. They should end the call with a "soft ask" about anyone else they think they should chat with while they're exploring things, Gega said.

In general, Gega said that the strategy has nuance and that "less is a lot more." Job seekers should never inundate anyone with requests, says Gega.

"The same rules that maybe apply offline should apply online," Gega said. "You never go to somebody and spam them."

• All Elite Wrestling CEO Tony Khan has fully embraced streaming.
• Simulcasting matches on HBO Max has coincided with a lift in cable ratings.
• Khan shared his YouTube strategy, and why he's not worried about Warner Bros. Discovery's split.

The pay-TV bundle is dying a long, slow death, and streaming is the prime suspect.

Media analysts sometimes blame content providers for cannibalizing the cable bundle and accelerating its collapse by building streaming services that give consumers direct access to once-exclusive content.

But for All Elite Wrestling, this hasn't been the case.

AEW started simulcasting on HBO Max in January, just as rival WWE's "Raw" event on Monday nights moved exclusively to Netflix.

The move has corresponded with a rebound in AEW's cable ratings in that span from their lows late last year.

Through the second quarter, AEW's audience on traditional TV has grown 25% for "Collision" on TNT on Saturdays and 6.5% for "Dynamite" on TBS on Wednesdays, compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, according to Nielsen data. And those figures don't include viewership on HBO Max, which isn't public.

Notably, AEW's cable viewership rose even more this year in the 25- to 54-year-old cohort that advertisers love, even as a streaming alternative emerged. All of this growth came as pay TV continued to wither, which affected sports leagues like the NHL and NBA.

That has AEW founder and CEO Tony Khan especially fired up.

"We've been picking up traction in these key demos," Khan told Business Insider. Still, he said that among 18- to 24-year-olds, "a lot of the growth is on streaming."

While ratings are trending higher, AEW is still clawing its way back out of a slump. Viewership for "Collision" and "Dynamite" was down 9% and 12%, respectively, year over year.

AEW has been locked in a battle with the category's behemoth, WWE, which previously poached two of its biggest stars: Cody Rhodes and CM Punk.

Khan, a lifelong wrestling fan, spoke with BI about how streaming has jump-started AEW's growth and why he's not sweating the uncertainty surrounding the spinoff at Warner Bros. Discovery — his most valuable business partner.

AEW everywhere, all at once

In this cutthroat, crowded media landscape, Khan's game plan is for AEW to be everywhere — from in-person events, to traditional TV, to streaming, to social media, to YouTube.

But from a monetization standpoint, not all platforms are equally valuable. AEW's most lucrative businesses are in-person events and pay-per-view events, where it's paid directly, though Khan said its backbone is its $185 million media deal with WBD across TBS, TNT, and HBO Max.

"The lifeblood of AEW, really, is the partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery," Khan said.

Social media and YouTube serve a different role: generating buzz and bringing in new viewers. AEW has to be where its fans are, though there's a risk that showing highlights for free will train audiences to follow the action in short form, instead of watching full matches on TV or in person.

However, Khan thinks highlights on TikTok and YouTube drive higher demand for TV and events instead of eroding it — similar to how streaming matches coincided with a cable ratings bump.

"People want to watch the full event in its entirety, but also consume highlights on digital," Khan said. "I think we found a great balance in that, and also offering access to a lot of the great classic matches in the AEW library to the fans has helped us drive a lot of viewership, as well."

AEW must thread the needle between maximizing reach and ensuring that live matches and pay-per-view events "feel special," as Khan put it. That means giving enough to lure casual fans and newcomers to TBS, TNT, and HBO Max, without giving so much that they don't watch live.

AEW streams pre- and post-shows live on YouTube for big matches. But some of AEW's rivals are going a step further by experimenting with livestreaming marquee events on YouTube, for free. WWE streamed its "Worlds Collide" event live on the platform in early June, and the NFL is hosting a regular-season game live on YouTube in September.

As of now, Khan isn't following suit. The AEW CEO said he's firmly committed to TBS, TNT, and HBO Max, no matter what's happening at their parent company.

Not splitting hairs

WBD announced a long-awaited spinoff last month that will pull HBO Max away from TBS and TNT. Khan said the split shouldn't affect AEW, which reached a media deal with WBD last fall.

"We have a great partnership with both sides," Khan said, adding that AEW is "very well entrenched" across the forthcoming Streaming & Studios and Global Networks companies.

WBD's media rights deal with AEW is unaffected by the split, so HBO Max will continue to stream matches that air live on TBS and TNT.

Regardless, a top media analyst thinks sports leagues like AEW should brainstorm alternatives for their next deals in light of the spinoff.

"Without a broadcast network or a streaming platform (we are not counting Discovery+), it is hard to imagine sports leagues being excited to work with GLN [Global Linear Networks] going forward, unless they have no choice," Lightshed's Rich Greenfield wrote in a mid-June note.

AEW has seen firsthand how HBO Max can effectively complement TBS and TNT. Once they belong to separate companies, that symbiosis could disappear. And while AEW could theoretically re-up with TNT Sports and find a separate streaming deal, Greenfield questioned that logic.

"GLN could license its sports streaming rights to third-parties (assuming contracts allow it)" Greenfield wrote. "But then why would a sports rights holder not just choose a vertically-integrated platform to begin with?"

Other analysts are less bearish, including Robert Fishman of MoffettNathanson. He wrote last month that "sports remains a key pillar to support affiliate fee stability in the years ahead" for the Global Networks business that will house TBS and TNT.

Instead of wondering what the future holds for WBD's assets, Khan is focused on the present. The 100th episode of "Collision" airs Saturday night, and viewers can tune in on TNT — or Max.

• Sean 'Diddy' Combs faces up to 20 years in prison, despite being acquitted on the most serious counts.
• It likely won't be that high. Prosecutors said the guidelines call for around 5 years and 3.
• The judge said he's already considering Combs' violent conduct and decided to keep him in jail.

Shortly after a jury acquitted Sean "Diddy" Combs of the most severe charges against him, a prosecutor still warned that he was a danger to society.

The two Mann Act counts for which he was convicted, related to transporting victims for prostitution, still carried a combined sentence of up to 20 years in prison, said Assistant US Attorney Maurene Comey Wednesday, urging the judge to keep Combs in jail until his sentencing hearing.

"The maximum sentence the defendant faces is 20 years in prison under the two statutes of which he's been convicted now," Comey said.

While Combs could get a severe sentence, he's not likely to get anything close to 20 years.

"Even though the Mann Act carries a potential 10-year maximum sentence, Diddy is going to get time served or close to it," said Neama Rahmani, the president of West Coast Trial Lawyers and a former federal prosecutor. "His sentencing guideline range may be as low as 15-21 months."

The sentence will ultimately be decided by US District Judge Arun Subramanian, who presided over the trial in a lower Manhattan courtroom.

In a letter to the judge later on Wednesday, prosecutors said that sentencing guidelines called for more like five years in prison.

Even though Combs was acquitted of racketeering and sex-trafficking charges, which could have resulted in a lifelong prison sentence, prosecutors said Subramanian should still take into account the violence and drug use that witnesses testified about. They estimated a sentence of between 4 years and 3 months to 5 years and 3 months, but cautioned that they were still evaluating a sentencing recommendation and may come up with a new estimate before the hearing.

Combs' attorneys say the sentencing guidelines point to a range of 21 to 27 months, and that he would be entitled to even less time behind bars.

Nadia Shihata, a former Assistant US Attorney who prosecuted R. Kelly on racketeering related to sex abuse, said a 20-year sentence was unlikely even if Subramanian takes a broad view of the evidence.

In order to get 20 years, prosecutors will have to ask the judge to consider acquitted conduct, Shihata said.

Even though those predicates and sex trafficking weren't proved at trial, the judge can decide if there was a perponderance of evidence proving those acquitted crimes.

Shihata believes it's unlikely the judge "will give him anywhere near 20 years."

Combs has already spent 10 months incarcerated in the Metropolitan Detention Center, which would count toward any sentence decided by Subramanian.

The judge on Wednesday indicated he is already considering Combs' violent conduct, which his lawyers had admitted to jurors at trial. Subramanian did not grant Combs bail to allow him to be released from custody ahead of the sentencing hearing, noting that the trial evidence demonstrated he couldn't prove he wouldn't be a danger to those around him.

"This type of violence, which happens behind closed doors in personal relationships, sparked by unpredictable bouts of anger, is impossible to police with conditions," Subramanian said. "Having conceded the defendant's propensity for violence in this way, it is impossible for the defendant to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that he poses no danger to any other person or the community."

Subramanian set a tentative sentencing hearing date for October 3, but said it may be sooner depending on whether the federal sentencing commission could prepare a report on a recommended sentence before then.

• Sam Struan has been a recruiter for over 10 years and has focused on building résumés for two years.
• He suggests his clients add value statements to each job listed on their résumés.
• Struan said there are a couple of statements that should be left off a résumé.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Sam Struan, a 36-year-old recruiter and résumé writer based in Scotland. It's been edited for length and clarity.

I had been doing part-time résumé writing throughout much of my 10-year career in agency and internal recruitment before taking it full-time about two years ago. Since then, I've helped write over 700 résumés.

There are lots of résumé writing gimmicks out there claiming that certain design elements, keywords, or page counts will land you a job, but I say keep it simple and focus on the content.

There are a few non-negotiables that should be on a résumé

Every résumé should have contact information like your email and phone number.

I also recommend including a one-to-two sentence value statement near the top of the résumé, which includes years of experience, the types of roles you've had, and the types of organizations you've worked for, quantified by head count and revenue.

Stay away from vague descriptions like "I'm a results-driven leader with a proven track record of operational excellence." Your goal is to present the facts, leave nothing up for interpretation, and make the recruiter's job easy by serving them the important information directly.

I constantly tell people to add certain information to their résumés

The most common thing I suggest people add to their résumés is company summaries for every previous place of employment.

This is a one-to-two-line blurb describing its product, service, geographic scope, head count, and revenue. This information gives the recruiter more context so they don't have to look up the company, and it's also an opportunity to show off what exactly you have experience with.

For example, mentioning that you worked for a similarly sized company or sold a similar product as the company you're applying for may broaden your appeal to the recruiter.

Some things are better left off résumés

The most common thing I recommend clients remove from their résumés is overly stylistic design choices like images or logos. They won't get you rejected by applicant tracking systems, but in some cases, they make it more difficult for the software to parse your information correctly.

I also advise people to remove certain soft skills, such as "good communication" or "results-driven." Anyone can say they have good communication, but it's meaningless without context or proof.

Content is more important than résumé length

A one-page résumé is typically appropriate for new graduates or folks with a few years of work experience, but people with more experience may need up to a three-page résumé. I have about 10 to 15 years of professional experience, and my résumé is two and a half pages.

I typically see a need for even longer résumés for government, medical, or academic roles that require certifications, publications, or other important credentials.

There's a widely held belief that résumés need to fit on a page, but a recruiter should not be turned off by a longer résumé. I probably would've been fired on the spot from my previous recruiting jobs if I denied candidates strictly based on their résumé length.

Some people have sent me 20-plus-page résumés with only five years of experience, which totally missed the mark. But if a candidate's experience is good, it's not a reason for immediate disqualification.

Above all, keep it simple

Regardless of résumé length, you want your professional experience to start on the first page. Sometimes I see résumés that don't even list someone's most recent job until the second page. You don't want that. People shouldn't have to search through your résumé to find your professional experience.

Use a clear font, black ink, and rely on metrics-driven reasoning to tell the story of why you're the right fit for the job. Keep it simple.

If you're a recruiter with job-searching advise you'd like to share, please email the editor, Manseen Logan, at [email protected].

• I keep accidentally making audio recordings in iMessage. I've almost sent them to some people!
• This seems incredibly common — and could easily become embarrassing for someone.
• Apple says turning off the "Raise to Listen" feature in Messages will stop this from happening.

My iPhone threatens to ruin my reputation, career, marriage, friendships, or entire life. Several times a week. Sometimes, I look down to discover it's been — unbeknownst to me — recording an audio message.

With one wrong move, I could accidentally send that accidental audio message to, well, anyone.

What might have been in those few minutes of surreptitiously recorded audio? Most likely, just ambient white noise coming from inside my purse or pocket. But it could be terrible! Maybe I was singing along (badly) to the radio. Maybe I was loudly discussing some scandalous social gossip or confidential work information. Maybe I was complaining about my editor. (Brad, I know you're reading this — I would never.) Maybe I was having a particularly cacophonic bathroom experience.

Accidental iMessage recordings happen on other people's iPhones, too

I'm not alone — this is happening to lots of people. When I grumbled about this on Threads, I got dozens of replies from people who were also constantly accidentally recording. There are several Reddit posts about the problem, too.

One of those posts contains a pure nightmare: "My phone sent a recording of me peeing to my boss." They said they quickly sent a follow-up text telling their boss the recording was accidental and not to listen. "I have no idea if he heard it. I can only assume he did and, out of respect, never brought it up," the redditor told me over direct message.

Another person said they accidentally sent a recording of sexy talk with their spouse to their sister. Yikes!

Of course, sending voice memos and audio recordings can be great! Sometimes, they come in handy when you want to tell a longer story — and especially in group chats. The other day, I sent a four-minute audio recording to my friend detailing some gossip about our social circle. But I want to use audio recordings to gossip — not accidentally be the cause of it. ("Did you hear Katie sent a recording of herself in the bathroom to the group?!")

What was driving me nuts was that I couldn't really seem to understand why this kept happening. In fact, when I actually want to send an audio recording, I fumble around with actually knowing how to do it. Hint: It's not the microphone in the text box — that's for speech-to-text. The audio message is buried in the list of options when you hit the "+" sign, sandwiched between Stickers, Apple Cash, Send Later, and Memoji. (Tim Cook, I am looking you dead in the eyes and telling you I will never use Memojis. Stop trying to make Memojis happen.)

I love my iPhone because it usually just works. I understand it, it's intuitive, and after years of using one, I understand how the features work. But here I was, unable to figure out why this kept happening. Was it a bug or user error?

If this is happening on your iPhone, there's a fix

It turns out, the "Raise to Listen" feature is ON by default in iMessage.

This feature is for you to be able to listen to audio recordings when you put the phone up to your ear, but it also works the other way. When you have iMessage open and put the phone up to your ear (or close to it — the phone gets confused sometimes!), it can trigger the audio recording.

Here's how you find it: Go to Settings > Apps > Messages. Scroll all the way down until you see the "Raise to Listen" feature. Toggle this OFF if you don't want to use it.

It might make it slightly more difficult to listen to audio messages, but it will stop the accidental ones. (When I reached out to Apple for comment on my potential life-ruining, they suggested turning off Raise to Listen if it was an issue for me.)

The Raise to Listen feature has been causing weird accidental audio messages since at least 2015, but it seems (in my experience) that it's happened much more often in the last year or so.

Now that I've turned the feature off, I can breathe (and poop) easily, knowing I wont accidentally send someone a recording. You should do it, too.

• Boris Burkhardt leverages his field hockey experience to excel as an entrepreneur.
• Burkhardt's sports background taught him team-building, resilience, and adaptability.
• He applied these skills to lead ventures in e-commerce, boat rental, and cybersecurity.

Business and field hockey are the two loves in Boris Burkhardt's life.

As a teenager, Burkhardt played for various national youth teams representing the Netherlands, before making his professional debut for Amsterdam. Today, at 28, he captains the Amsterdam first team and has represented the Netherlands at the international level.

From a young age, Burkhardt was also interested in setting up his own companies. One of his earliest ventures involved diving into the water on golf courses at night to retrieve, clean, and resell golf balls.

"That's where I developed a quite entrepreneurial mindset," Burkhardt told Business Insider.

Since then, he has launched a boating company and founded Game Hero, an e-commerce brand focused on gaming gear. He also spent time as a venture capitalist at seed-stage fund CapitalT.

Burkhardt said he hadn't sold any of his companies yet, but he is in the middle of launching a new B2B cybersecurity and fraud prevention business, Guzco.

The company is backed by industry experts with "deep experience in logistics and shipping software" who have helped build the infrastructure behind major e-commerce platforms, he said.

Burkardt is living proof of the crossover between professional sports and leadership. In a recent phone call with BI, Burkardt described the four leadership traits that have guided him in his side-by-side careers in sports and entrepreneurship.

1. Knowing how to build a winning team

Professional athletes learn discipline and teamwork from a very young age, Burkhardt said.

"You have to know the weaknesses and the strengths of a team and from your teammates," Burkhardt said.

"How to build a winning team, that's something you learn from a very young age when you play sports," he added.

When the pressure is on, in sports and businesses, some people excel. Others hide away.

"You have to know how people are acting and who you can count on," Burkhardt said.

2. Being comfortable with losing

"You lose a lot of matches," Burkhardt said. "I learned a lot more from losing a match than winning a match."

But it's all about how you come back from it.

"How do you manage to get back stronger? How do you fight back?" Burkhardt said. "That's something where resilience and resistance are really being built for yourself."

The same lessons apply when building a company, he said. When things go right the first time, you might just have been lucky, Burkhardt said, so you don't learn anything.

"When you lose a deal or you didn't manage to close the deal, then you dive into it — where did it go wrong?" Burkhardt said. "Failure is something you should embrace when you play sports or when you're building a business to get better."

3. Embracing the moments when things don't go to plan

Burkhardt says having a growth mindset is vital in both sports and business.

He says it helps when things don't go to plan, and he has to pivot or make changes.

"When you're like, 'Oh, I want to get into the team, oh, I really want to close this deal,' then you're maybe too fixed on that instead of putting the relevant work and trusting the process that you will get to the long-term goal," Burkhardt said.

"You just need to let it go, work hard, have a lot of fun with people around you and your team," he said. "And then the long-term goals will come to you."

4. Keeping his team obsessed with what he's building

Many companies fail because the team gives up, Burkhardt said.

"It's really important that you make sure that the team has the same ambition and is pushing to get to the goal," he said. "The goal is the hard work and also making the space for fun."

The team should also be as invested in the outcome as you are as a leader, Burkhardt said, because talented people could jump ship at any time.

"If someone doesn't believe in you, your mission, or the vision you have, they won't join your company," Burkhardt said. "Keep pushing as a team and make sure your team is willing to stay obsessed with what you're building."