• I traveled to Cortina d'Ampezzo, an Italian ski town that attracts wealthy vacationers.
• The town was dotted with high-end fashion and Michelin-rated restaurants.
• Beyond luxury, the town is home to some of Italy's best skiing.

Tucked away in Italy's Dolomites is a town with a massive reputation.

It's where George Clooney and Naomi Campbell have vacationed. It's where a James Bond movie was filmed. It's a town of brick-paved streets where fur coats, designer handbags, purebred dogs, and athletes can be spotted at every turn.

It's Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Over the past centuries, Cortina d'Ampezzo has become recognized as one of Europe's most expensive and exclusive ski towns. What started as a town enticing the British elite has become a destination for today's rich and famous.

While I'm far from famous, I spent a weekend vacationing and skiing in Cortina d'Ampezzo. There was plenty of luxury, but I also discovered a charming town filled with friendly locals and an undeniable emphasis on the outdoors.

Cortina d'Ampezzo's elite-filled history

Cortina d'Ampezzo has a lengthy history of appealing to the elite. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, wealthy travelers from England, Germany, and Russia traveled by train to vacation there. Following WWI, it became a popular spot for rich Italians.

In the 1920s, Ernest Hemingway arrived to write one of his first published works, and the town gained even more international notoriety after hosting the 1956 Winter Olympics, the first televised to an international audience. Following the Olympics, the region boomed.

Actors like Sophia Loren, Brigitte Bardot, and Audrey Hepburn vacationed in Cortina d'Ampezzo, and two presidential suites at the Cristallo Palace Hotel were named after its well-known visitors, Frank Sinatra and Peter Sellers. The town's fame has earned it the nickname "salotto dei famosi," or "the celebrities' living room."

Cortina d'Ampezzo also became a popular movie location. Scenes from the 1963 film "The Pink Panther" and the 1981 James Bond movie "For Your Eyes Only" were shot in the region, and most recently, Cortina d'Ampezzo was the backdrop for "House of Gucci," the film staring Lady Gaga and Adam Driver.

It takes a few moments in Cortina d'Ampezzo to recognize why the destination appeals to both vacationers and filmmakers. Practically every place in town has views of jagged mountains, charming chalets, and ornate churches.

Giulia Dal Pont remembers growing up in Cortina d'Ampezzo in the 1990s and not fully understanding the town's reputation.

"All the kids learned to ski, and every year, the skiing World Cup takes place," she told me. "That's normal."

"They come to film movies. Of course, they come," she said. "Growing up, I ran into celebrities downtown. This was my normality."

But to most, Cortina d'Ampezzo's wealthy reputation stands out. The town has around 6,000 residents and the population balloons to 50,000 at peak season.

Five-star hotels, Michelin restaurants, and designer ski clothes

As I planned my trip, I eyed luxury resorts. Five-star hotels like Rosapetra Spa Resort or the Grand Hotel Savoia Cortina d'Ampezzo usher in prices of $1,000-plus a night during peak season. Other luxury hotels are undergoing renovations ahead of the 2026 Olympics.

Even lower-rated hotels had elements of luxury in Cortina d'Ampezzo.

I spent two nights at Camina Spa Resort, where my $400-a-night room in the four-star hotel had amenities like ski shuttles and breakfast, as well as a spa with saunas, a steam room, and unfamiliar features like an "emotional shower," which I later discovered was an aromatherapy misting.

Walking through Cortina d'Ampezzo's expansive downtown area was exactly as I imagined.

Women in fur coats and hats walked along cobblestone streets. Tourists wearing $2,000 Goldbergh ski suits popped in and out of high-end stores like Dior and Louis Vuitton. There wasn't a souvenir shop in sight; instead, a cozy bookstore was one of the few places I spotted postcards.

In the heart of downtown, an Audi sits in a glass box. Why? I'm still not sure.

The dining is also on par with high-end fashion and expensive hotels. Cortina d'Ampezzo is home to two Michelin-starred restaurants, SanBrite and Tivoli. Six other Michelin-recognized restaurants are in town. Regardless of a restaurant's status, it seemed hard to find a bad meal.

Dal Pont said tourists arrive in Cortina d'Ampezzo searching for excellence. "What has been there and has not changed are people's expectations of Cortina," Dal Pont said. "Everything is expected to be nice and borderline perfect."

That's what I experienced. Meals — whether on the mountain or in town — were delicious. Stores were pristine, with hangers and clothes positioned perfectly on racks. Art galleries filled storefronts showcasing expensive work.

All of this means that vacationing in Cortina d'Ampezzo can be pricy. It's Italy's most expensive ski town, and my weekend cost just over $2,700.

Skiing is the town's main draw

Not everyone arrives in Cortina d'Ampezzo to see and be seen. The town's ski areas are part of the Dolomiti Superski, the largest ski network in the world, with 775 miles of slopes across 12 resorts.

Cortina d'Ampezzo's mountains are world famous. Ski events are hosted each year. For instance, the World Cup Alpine Skiing took place during my visit, and for a few days, the town was flocked with professional athletes competing in downhill speed racing.

For amateur skiers and snowboarders, the slopes were still appealing, mainly thanks to the striking views of the nearby mountains. I'm lucky to live in one of the world's best ski destinations, but the Dolomites had landscapes that couldn't compete with Colorado's Rockies.

If you are in Cortina d'Ampezzo for luxury, the nods continue on the mountain. Ski lifts are plastered with red Prada advertisements, and a Gucci-themed après spot drew crowds.

Regardless of your status, Cortina d'Ampezzo has its appeals

Vacationing in Cortina d'Ampezzo felt similar to vacationing in Colorado's wealthy Aspen ski town. Prices often shocked me, and I felt a bit out of place in my thrifted ski pants.

Even if I wasn't buying a new pair of Golden Goose sneakers or dining at Michelin-starred restaurants, Cortina d'Ampezzo had its charm. The views were breathtaking, and the locals I met were warm and inviting.

There were times during my trip that I completely forgot I was in a ritzy ski town. Instead, I was enjoying snowy slopes with fellow skiers and snowboarders and sipping spritzes with a crowd of strangers.

That's what Dal Pont said she hopes others take away from Cortina d'Ampezzo.

"I would like people to come away saying the mountains were amazing and the center of the town had a soul," she said. "A special something."

• Karina Nguyen left engineering for research after watching Claude get better at coding in a previous role at Anthropic.
• In a recent podcast interview, she said soft skills will remain important even as work changes.
• Nguyen, now at OpenAI, said creativity and emotional intelligence remain some of the hardest things to teach AI.

In a world where certain jobs could one day be rendered obsolete by AI, OpenAI researcher Karina Nguyen said she expects soft skills to endure as highly prized.

She also expects that to be the case in the realm of AI research.

"I just think people in AI field are like — I wish they were a little bit more creative and connecting the dots across different fields," Nguyen said on a recent episode of "Lenny's Podcast."

Nguyen, who previously worked at Anthropic, said that above all else, she expects AI to automate "redundant tasks for people." She added that the models she works with can struggle to grasp skills that often come so naturally to human beings.

"I think it's the dream of any AI research is to automate AI research," Nguyen said. "It's kind of scary, I'd say, which makes me think that people management will stay, you know? It's one of the hardest things to — emotional intelligence, with the models, creativity in itself is one of the hardest things."

At OpenAI, Nguyen said her role is heavy on "management and mentorship," despite originally being passionate about engineering. She said the shift came about during her tenure at Anthropic — after observing Claude's rapidly advancing capabilities, Nguyen came to a realization about her career.

"When I first came to Anthropic, I was like, 'Oh no, I really love front-end engineering,'" Nguyen said. "And then the reason why I switched to research is because I realized, at that time, it's like, 'Oh my god, Claude is getting better at front-end. Claude is getting better at coding.'"

Nguyen and OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Business Insider prior to publication.

"It was kind of this meta realization where it's like, 'Oh my god, the world is actually changing,'" she added.

Nguyen said that models are only improving, becoming increasingly cost-efficient as "small models" prove themselves "smarter than large models." As the costs associated with artificial intelligence drop, Nguyen expects the technology to proliferate even further, unlocking work that she considers to have been previously "bottlenecked by intelligence."

"I'm thinking about healthcare, right?" Nguyen said. "Instead of going to a doctor, I can ask ChatGPT or give ChatGPT a list of symptoms and ask me, 'Would I have a cold, flu, something else?'"

Nguyen said she's been spending "a lot" of time thinking about what her future might look like in a working landscape altered by AI. She said that if the models she's helped build eventually automate her current job, she may spend her time writing "short stories, sci-fi stories, novels," or working as a museum conservator.

"I feel like I have a lot of job options," Nguyen said. "I would love to be a writer, I think. I think that would be super cool."

• Alec and Hilaria Baldwin have been married since 2012 and share seven kids.
• The couple's eldest child was born in 2013, and their youngest was born in 2022.
• The family of nine will star in the new TLC reality TV series "The Baldwins."

Alec and Hilaria Baldwin are pulling the curtain back on their bustling family life.

The "30 Rock" star, the yoga instructor, and their seven kids are taking the spotlight in the new TLC reality TV series "The Baldwins."

"We're inviting you into our home to experience the ups and downs, the good, the bad, the wild, and the crazy," Alec said in an Instagram video announcing the show in June.

The reality series promises to give an intimate look at the life of a couple who's been the subject of public interest and some controversies over the years.

The trailer for "The Baldwins" revealed that the show will address the difficulties of parenting in the aftermath of the 2021 accidental shooting that occurred on the set of Alec's movie "Rust," which killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. The movie's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, and Baldwin was acquitted of the same charge after pleading not guilty.

"Honestly, from the bottom of my soul, I don't know where I'd be if I didn't have you and these kids," Alec tells Hilaria at one point in the trailer.

Here's everything you need to know about the couple's kids before the series premiere of "The Baldwins."

Alec and Hilaria Baldwin's first child together, Carmen, was born on August 23, 2013

Alec and Hilaria met at a restaurant in New York City in 2011 and married in 2012. The following year, Hilaria gave birth to their first child together, Carmen Gabriela.

It wasn't the first child for Alec, who was previously married to the actor Kim Basinger. The pair share a daughter named Ireland Baldwin, who was born in 1995.

They welcomed four sons between 2015 and 2020: Rafael, Leonardo, Romeo, and Eduardo

Alec and Hilaria's first son, Rafael Thomas, was born on June 17, 2015. Hilaria shared the news with fans on Instagram at the time.

"We are happy to announce the birth of Rafael Thomas Baldwin 💙," Hilaria captioned a photo of her holding hands with the baby.

Leonardo Ángel Charles followed on September 12, 2016.

"We are so pleased to introduce you to our new baby, Leonardo Ángel Charles Baldwin. It was such a special day bringing him into this world 💙," Hilaria shared on Instagram that year.

Hilaria gave birth to the couple's fourth child, Romeo Alejandro David, on May 17, 2018. The wellness enthusiast shared a photo of her and Alec with the newborn on Instagram, writing: "He's here! He's perfect! 8lbs 2oz 💛 #wegotthis2018."

Alec and Hilaria's fifth child, a son named Eduardo "Edu" Pao Lucas, was born on September 8, 2020. "We had a baby last night. He is perfect and we couldn't be happier 🌟," Hilaria wrote in part on Instagram.

Alec also shared the same photo of him and Hilaria with their newborn baby on his Instagram account. "I love you, @hilariabaldwin," he wrote in part. "My karma is your karma. Your karma is mine."

Their sixth child, daughter María Lucía, was born via a surrogate on February 25, 2021

Alec and Hilaria welcomed María Lucía Victoria, nicknamed Marilu, several months after the birth of Edu.

A few days after her birth, Hilaria shared a photo of the newborn on Instagram with the caption: "We are so in love with our daughter, Lucia. Just like your brothers and sisters, you are a dream come true."

Hilaria, who previously opened up about miscarrying at four months pregnant in 2019, refers to Edu and Marilu as her "two rainbow babies."

"We are living each day, bonding, and grateful for all of the very special angels who helped bring Lucía into the world," Hilaria wrote in part in another Instagram post after Marilu's birth. "María Lucía Victoria and Eduardo Pau Lucas: our babies who bring light into our lives—almost like twins, we love you so much."

Their youngest child, daughter Ilaria, was born six months later

Ilaria Catalina Irena was born on September 22, 2022.

Hilaria referred to the newborn as their "tiny dream come true," in an Instagram post.

"How grateful we feel to welcome our newest little daughter into this world," the couple told People magazine that year in a statement. "Just as magical and filled with love as every other little person we have been blessed with."

"The Baldwins" will feature all seven children and give a more personal look at Alec and Hilaria's parenting styles.

Alec said he and his wife decided to participate in a reality show "in place of doing a movie or a play."

"Now I think to myself, 'Am I going to be away from my kids five nights out of the week until 11 o'clock at night?'" Alec told People magazine earlier this month of the decision to star in a reality TV show with his clan. "For me, work-related things really aren't that critical anymore. I thought, 'I get to spend time with my family.'"

"The Baldwins" premieres on TLC on Sunday at 10 p.m. ET.

• Nike will partner with Kim Kardashian's Skims to launch NikeSkims womenswear brand.
• The collaboration aims to enhance Nike's appeal to female athletes and consumers.
• Like the Jordan brand, NikeSkims is intended to be a long-term partnership.

Nike is extending its brand lineup through a rare partnership with Kim Kardashian's Skims. It's a bet that her star power can have a similar impact as Michael Jordan has on the sportswear giant — for women.

The two companies announced NikeSkims on Tuesday, a line of training apparel, footwear and accessories for women. While Nike regularly partners with athletes and celebrities for limited-edition sportswear, this seems a step up from that typical collaboration.

It's the first time Nike has partnered with an existing external company to create a brand. It's a "win-win" for both companies, Rachel Wolff, retail analyst at Business Insider's sister company EMARKETER, said.

As Nike pushes ahead with its play for appealing to all genders by upping its bets in female athletes, a deal with a womenswear superpower like Skims will fuel its "gender offense," as CEO Elliott Hill called it during a recent earnings call. The long-term deal, which neither company revealed the financial details of, marks the beginning of a womenswear-specific brand intended to exist alongside Jordan, Nike, and Converse.

It does, however, call to mind Nike's biggest partnership yet — with Michael Jordan. In 1984, the popular basketball player inked a deal with Nike for $500,000 a year, plus royalties, Forbes reported. They introduced the world to Air Jordans the following year with the release of the Air Jordan 1 sneaker.

As the sneakers grew in popularity, it extended beyond basketball shoes to include streetwear. Today, Jordan himself has a $3.5 billion net worth, and Nike paid him some $260 million before tax over its past fiscal year, per Forbes.

Forty years later, the Jordan brand is still a revenue driver for the company. It brought in approximately $6.9 billion in wholesale equivalent revenue for fiscal 2024 — about 17% of Nike's total wholesale equivalent sales.

Like it used Jordan's massive popularity decades ago, Kardashian's global influence and more than 350 million Instagram followers will be a valuable boost in visibility for Nike. She cofounded Skims in 2019 as a shapewear brand before expanding into loungewear, and it has boomed in size, reaching a $4 billion valuation in 2023.

"Nike has the opportunity to capitalize on Skims' intense popularity among women consumers, who are an important target audience for the athletic brand, while Skims gets access to a much larger group of consumers as well as Nike's manufacturing capabilities," Wolff said.

Nike representatives directed BI to a press release in response to a request for comment. Skims did not immediately respond.

The two brands have been working on NikeSkims since 2023, the New York Times reported. Skims CEO Jens Grede drew parallels between Skims and Nike in October 2024, but experts seemed hesitant to agree at the time.

While Nike has become a brand that can sell "a lot of things to a lot of people," as BMO analyst Simeon Siegel put it, others have said Skims' proximity to Kardashian could be a problem.

"Skims is not likely to be a 'for everyone' brand because there are going to be people who don't want the association with Kim Kardashian," Matthew Quint, director of the Center on Global Brand Leadership at Columbia Business School, said in October.

However, it's hard not to think of Kardashian "as the Michael Jordan of influencers," Grede told NYT. Her net worth, as estimated by Forbes before the deal, is $1.7 billion.

NikeSkims is expected to launch this spring with a global expansion planned for 2026. Skims' power to attract consumers was demonstrated in its collaboration with outerwear brand The North Face, which sold out within hours of launching on December 10, Women's Wear Daily reported.

• Grant Sabatier believes there's never been a better time to be an entrepreneur.
• Building a business is less risky now with lower barriers and democratized knowledge.
• He recommends starting with building skills around AI.

If you haven't started a side business or built a secondary income stream, Grant Sabatier wants you to reconsider.

"We all know that no jobs are secure," the investor, author, and creator of Millennial Money told Business Insider. Why not put your future in your own hands?

Plus, it's an excellent time to get into the business of business.

"There's never been a better time to be an entrepreneur," Sabatier declares in his latest book "Inner Entrepreneur," which he describes as a blueprint he's designed, having launched seven businesses, acquired three, and sold one.

BI spoke to the entrepreneur, whose latest venture is an independent bookstore he opened in the Clintonville neighborhood of Columbus, about why the time is ripe for entrepreneurship and what businesses he would build if he had to start from scratch.

The barriers to entry have never been lower

It's a lot easier and cheaper to start a business in 2025 than ever.

"Before, you had to really stop and figure out everything and maybe apprentice or put down a lot of money and take a big risk," said Sabatier. "But now there are just so many blueprints available and so many ways to learn. Really successful entrepreneurs are sharing a lot more than they ever have, so as knowledge has been more democratized the barrier is just a lot lower. You can evaluate a business idea with a lot more information than you ever could have before."

In fact, one of the biggest misconceptions about entrepreneurship is that it's "super risky," he said. "I argue that having a full-time job, in many cases, is often riskier than having a business that you built yourself. Because, at least with your own business, you can control more of the variables than if you're working for someone else."

It's also cheaper to start and scale a business than it ever has been. If you're starting with consulting, which is how Sabatier began his entrepreneurial journey, "you really don't need much money at all," he said. "You might need a website, which you can now put up using AI for like $15, and you can set up social media profiles for free."

What he would do if he had to start from scratch in 2025: Lean into AI

Until Sabatier opened Clintonville Books, which he considers "more as an investment in my neighborhood and in my happiness than as a capital investment," he had exclusively built and scaled online businesses.

If he lost everything and had to start over in 2025, "I would definitely learn how to build different AI agents and use them to code software products and different AI tools," he said — and he predicts it would be easier to get started than it was in 2010 when he got laid off from his 9-to-5 and tried entrepreneurship out of necessity.

"I had to learn how to build websites from scratch. You can now use AI to learn how to build websites, and within a few hours, you can build a simple platform and then build a tool that ideally has a subscription component to it."

If launching an AI company feels daunting, a more manageable first step is to learn about artificial intelligence, how it works, and how you can leverage it.

"Skills are future currency. Skills are ultimately what allow you to adapt and build resilience, and, as we know, the world's just changing faster than ever," he said, emphasizing that if he were to add one skill to his repertoire today, it would be AI. "Do your best to stay up to date on it. It's impossible to keep track of everything, so try to pick a lane and spend a couple of hours a week experimenting with the tools just so you can have a conversation and you can stay relevant."

It'll also be helpful in a corporate setting if you're job hunting.

"More recruiters and companies are going to be adding those questions about AI fluency and experience to their interviews and screenings," he said. "The more you know about it and the more well-versed you are, the more attractive of a full-time job candidate you are, so it's just as useful in your full-time job hunting as it is pursuing entrepreneurship."

Dmitry Bivol won a majority decision to take the undisputed light-heavyweight belts from Artur Beterbiev, four months after the latter secured the same result

• Tori Dunlap is a multimillionaire while her partner made $60,000 in 2024.
• The couple, who talked about money on their first date, prioritize transparency and communication.
• They discussed prenups and splitting expenses equitably, avoiding traditional gender roles.

This as-told-to essay is based on conversations with Tori Dunlap, a 30-year-old Seattle-based financial educator, and her partner. They both asked that his identity be kept concealed for privacy reasons.

Dunlap is the founder of Her First 100K, a financial education company geared toward Gen Z and millennial women. She is also a multimillionaire, New York Times best-selling author, and podcast host.

Her partner has a graduate degree in athletics and works multiple jobs within the athletics and education space. He supplements his income with side gigs such as dog-sitting and private training and made around $60,000 in 2024.

The couple has been together for over two and a half years. They spoke with Business Insider to share how they manage and discuss money in their relationship. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

Dunlap: We started talking about money on our first date. By then, he knew feminism was a huge part of my work and values.

When the bill came, I could tell there was some sort of internal conflict. He said, "I would really like to pay, but I don't want to offend you. Can I pay?"

Partner: I wasn't sure what the expectation was in terms of who pays or splitting the bill, so that was my way of saying that I'd like to pay for the bill. The meal was something like $100, which wasn't as much to Tori, but was quite a bit for me at the time.

Dunlap: It was really sweet. For me, that was an immediate green flag that ended up being a good sign for our financial conversations and the rest of our relationship. It's sometimes hard to have these conversations, but they prevent you from feeling resentment and souring your relationship, so I think they're 100% necessary.

We know almost all of each other's finances. I know how much he has in his Roth IRA, he knows how much I have in my brokerage account. We've known each other's salaries since very early on.

And because we know how much each other makes, I'm not going to put him in a position where he feels like he has to spend way more money than I know he's willing to spend just to please me.

My success doesn't intimidate him

Partner: When we met, she and I were in such different positions in terms of finances and careers. It felt like I had two options: I could be intimidated and feel threatened by her, or I could see it as her life and what she's built.

When looking at somebody like Tori, who's incredibly successful, it could be easy to worry about how she might view me. I remember thinking about how we don't roll in the same circles and live in very different worlds.

Dunlap: I remember around three months into our relationship, I'd bought us lunch at a teriyaki restaurant. He was very vulnerable and sweet and said to me, "I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I feel sometimes that I'm not doing enough or providing enough as a man. I want this to be an equal relationship, and I'm worried sometimes it doesn't feel that way for you."

Partner: But she was incredibly understanding and supportive, and so even from an early stage, I realized that I could come to her, and she would be willing to listen.

Dunlap: I thought it was so brave of him to be so vulnerable in this conversation. I've realized how much patriarchy and gender roles seep in — the mindset that men are supposed to be providers, make more money, take their girlfriends out on dates all the time, and pay for everything.

I don't feel that way, especially since I make more.

We split expenses based on equity, not equality

Dunlap: I told him that, regarding money, I'm not looking for equality; I'm looking for equity. I don't need him to split things 50-50 with me because that's not fair or equitable.

Partner: In my previous relationships, it was mostly 50-50; if somebody covered drinks, the other person got the meals. For Tori and me, that doesn't make any sense. We typically try to split about 30-70, which feels pretty fair.

Dunlap: I also have a more expensive lifestyle than he does. If I'm interested in going out to dinner someplace that I know is out of his budget, I'll pay for it because I was the one who wanted to go, and it feels unfair for me to make that decision but still ask him to pay for his meal.

As for housing, I rent a three-bedroom, two-bath townhouse for $3,250 a month. I've lived alone since 2018 and, frankly, love it.

Partner: I live with three of my friends and pay $975 a month. Since Tori and I don't live together, we don't have to split those costs, but we've had conversations about what it would look like.

Dunlap: If we did move in together and the rent was $3,000, I wouldn't ask him to pay $1,500 because that is not commensurate with how much we each make.

We also set expectations ahead of time. We went to Europe the past two summers, and before we left, we had a conversation about who was covering which costs. I covered the flight there and most of the accommodations, much of it using points, and he covered the shorter flights between locations while on the trip.

It's not about how much you make — it's what you do with it

Dunlap: One of my favorite things in the world is that I outearn almost any man I talk to. I don't need a man to spend his money on me to remind me that I'm worth it, but I do need him to be there when my parents get sick someday, and I'm not doing well, and I'm going to be there for him.

My partner shows me he loves me in a million different ways, some of which involve money and most of which don't.

One of the things that I love about him is that even though he doesn't make a ton of money, he maxes out his Roth IRA every year. I was honestly kind of shocked that he was managing to do that.

It's not how much money you make, it's about what you do with it.

Partner: My parents didn't make a whole lot growing up, and they talked to my sister and me about money from a pretty early age.

When I was in middle school, if we did all of our chores for the week, we got $6 to spend, $3 to save, and $1 to share. I've always been a saver. Even from an early age, I usually took my "spend" money and put it into my savings.

When I was in high school and college, my parents helped me put some money away to get the ball rolling, and they always told me to max out my Roth IRA. I also watched a lot of YouTube videos from financial channels to understand more.

Dunlap: It's all about habits and behavior. I truly think, especially in a relationship, money is not everything, but how somebody uses money is a good sign of how responsible they are.

Learning to move past a scarcity mindset is important

Partner: I had a scarcity mindset for quite a few years. Back in 2022, I had four different jobs, coached in multiple organizations, and wasn't paid very well. I budgeted a lot, down to the cent. I was very cognizant of how much I made and where the money was sitting.

Dunlap: It was really difficult for him to believe he was worth spending his own money on, or that eating at a slightly nicer place wasn't a waste of money, or that he could invest in enjoying his hobbies even if he wasn't making money from them.

Partner: I think the biggest thing I've learned from Tori is that it's OK to spend money on yourself and splurge from time to time.

Dunlap: I celebrated my past two birthdays while we were in Europe, and both times, we went to Michelin-star restaurants that he paid for as a birthday gift.

Prenups and thinking about the future

Dunlap: I think by the third month of dating, I brought up the word "prenup."

Partner: I was surprised and taken aback at first. None of my friends and their partners are in a situation like ours, so that's never been a thing. My parents didn't have a prenup, and none of my family members have prenups.

Dunlap: I think hearing the word prenup has a lot of emotional weight for most people. But every single person who gets married has a "prenup" — it's just usually already decided by the state. At least we can decide if the government-assigned "prenup" is actually what we want.

And I always say that going through the prenup process largely prevents you from ever having to use it because you're being so transparent about money and what you each care about.

Partner: The more we talked and the more I thought about it, it didn't really phase me. I completely understand that she's worked really hard to get to where she is, and she wants to make sure that she protects herself.

Dunlap: I strongly believe each person in a relationship should have some of their own money and then a joint bank account, so we wouldn't ever completely combine our finances.

Ultimately, who you choose as a partner is a financial decision that will impact you for the rest of your life.

I wouldn't go into business with somebody without understanding how they managed money or what their goals were. It's the same thing with partners, but love is involved, so people think it's not a business decision. But it actually is.

If you and your partner have a unique way of managing money and would like to share your story, email Jane Zhang at [email protected].

• I spent a year teaching English in Japan. The experience was thrilling and a total culture shock.
• Living in Japan as an American is a 24-hour immersive learning experience.
• I returned to the US for my career, but feel like life in Japan is probably better.

Having grown up and lived in the US my entire life, my first night in Tokyo as a fresh college graduate was a full-on culture shock.

I couldn't read the restaurant menu, so I had to point at pictures and hope for the best.

I walked past crowded shops and nightclubs where employees tried to entice people to come in. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but I smiled, nodded, and drifted along in a daze.

I felt like the only American for thousands of miles. One gangly blond guy from Iowa plunked down in the middle of the world's most populous city. It wasn't lonely or scary — it was thrilling.

I moved to Japan after college in 2001

My first job out of college was teaching English in Japan as part of the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program.

I'd made friends from Japan while volunteering as an English conversation partner for English language learners at my college. I became fascinated with Japanese history and culture.

So, when I learned that the JET Program offered a steady paycheck and helped to find an apartment, it was a no-brainer.

I felt like part of a community in Japan

My everyday work life was in a quiet suburb of Tokyo called Hidaka. I made a comfortable, mostly tax-free, salary of about $2,500 a month (300,000 yen), teaching English at local middle and elementary schools and working with Japanese teachers and students.

Though I couldn't speak the language very well, I quickly made friends with my Japanese colleagues — the teachers would host monthly enkai ("drinking parties") with dinner, beers, and karaoke.

People at the grocery stores and restaurants were exceptionally kind and patient with me, and a random middle-aged mom in the neighborhood even pulled over in her car and gave me a ride to school a few times. I felt like I was connected to a larger community.

I learned how to conduct myself appropriately. Whether it's taking off your shoes upon entering the house, knowing how to use chopsticks, or communicating in a softer, more indirect, and polite style in the workplace, living in Japan as an American is a 24-hour immersive learning experience.

My college connections hooked me up in Tokyo

Some of my fondest memories were outside of Hidaka, in Tokyo.

One of my friends from Japan, who I met in college, introduced me to his circle of college peers in the city.

Through those connections, I was able to experience a whole other side of Japanese culture.

I went to a weekend retreat at a hot springs spa resort. And I ate sushi at a tiny hole-in-the-wall restaurant near Tokyo's largest fish market, where the tuna get dragged in fresh off the boat every morning.

Why I moved back to the US

After a year in Japan, I moved back to the US for a job opportunity to become a speechwriter for the Governor of Iowa.

While teaching English in Japan was fun and liberating, it didn't feel like the best long-term career choice for me.

I could have easily stayed in Japan and kept teaching English for another year, or two, or three.

In the end, though, I felt I'd have better career opportunities in my own native country and native language.

After working in politics, I've gone on to have a varied career, working in marketing, banking, technology, and for most of the past 15 years I've supported my family as a full-time freelance writer. I'm grateful for all of it and have probably made a lot more money in America than I would have as an American expat in Japan, with more career flexibility and autonomy.

However, all these years later, I still have fond feelings for Japan and keep in touch with my college friends there. My family and I visit them, and they come and visit us. My children were the ring bearers for one of my friends' wedding ceremonies.

Compared to Japan, America's individualist culture sometimes feels too stressful, selfish, and competitive. I'm grateful for my life here in the US, but often feel that life in Japan is probably better — a little more peaceful, generous, and gentle.

• The late investor Charlie Munger gave Costco some advice while a member of its board for over 25 years.
• Costco chairman Hamilton James recently said Munger advised to "stick to our knitting."
• Munger said the warehouse store chain should keep doing "what we've always been doing."

How does a warehouse club giant like Costco sustain business success? The late investor Charlie Munger had some simple advice: stick to your "knitting."

Costco chairman Hamilton "Tony" James, who has sat on the company's board since 1988, talked about Munger's advice for the company in an interview with Chief Executive magazine published Thursday.

Munger was a prominent investor, business partner of Warren Buffett, and vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway from 1978 until his death in 2023. He was on Costco's board for more than a quarter of a century.

"For a giant company like Costco with huge pressures, understanding what's going on can be complex and confusing, but not for Charlie, who had an unerring compass to see through it all to stay on the right path," James said. "That made him an extremely valuable board member."

Munger's advice to Costco as a board member was to "stick to our knitting, our values and our principles," James said.

"Charlie understood we didn't have to do anything different than that," James added. "His voice was very strong and clear on the matter. He'd remind us, 'The right thing for the long term is what we've always been doing, so let's not get confused.'"

As for Munger's interactions with Costco's board and leadership, and vice versa, James said they never put him on a pedestal.

They would debate and always felt free to disagree or even ignore Munger's advice — something James said that "you did that at your peril."

A self-proclaimed "total addict" of the store, Munger once said he loves "everything about Costco."

"I'm never going to sell a share," he added at the time.

Munger was one of Costco's largest individual shareholders. In November 2022, he owned more than 187,000 shares in Costco.

The company has in many ways followed Munger's advice in doing what it's always done.

Perhaps the most famous example: The company has charged $1.50 for its food court hot dog and soda combo since 1985.

When Costco's former CEO, Craig Jelinek, once approached Sinegal, who was then still CEO, about raising the price, Sinegal told him, "If you raise the [price of the] effing hot dog, I will kill you. Figure it out."

Also in the interview, James talked about Costco's approach to generating business from wealthier members.

"Affluent people love a good deal," he said.

"Since the beginning, we've always known we could move anything in volume if the quality was good and the price was great — Rolex watches, Dom Perignon, 10-karat diamonds," he told Chief Executive magazine. "A Porsche dealer in Seattle put their cars on the floor of a Costco, and they sold out in a week."

The Italian chef is also alleged to have made a crass remark about Mary Berry