• 22-year-old Tabitha Snavely evacuated her apartment ahead of the Palisades wildfire.
• Snavely, who works multiple jobs, said many in her building were blue-collar workers or older people.
• She evacuated to her parents' house and told BI she needs to find a new place to live that is closer to work.

This as-told-to essay is based on interviews with Tabitha Snavely, a 22-year-old living in the Palisades. Her identity and employment has been verified by Business Insider. This story has been edited for length and clarity.

I'm 22 years old, and I live alone in a rented medium-sized apartment building in the Palisades. I've lived in California my whole life so this isn't my first time dealing with a fire.

On Tuesday night, I woke up to the alert of an evacuation. I had about 45 minutes to pack and feed my dog really quickly because I didn't know when we'd be in a safe area. As I was packing up, I started smelling smoke in my unit. As soon as I started smelling the smoke, I was like, "OK, I need to leave now."

I threw some clothes in a suitcase, grabbed my dog, loaded up my car, and started driving. I grabbed everything that I had the instinct to get out in an emergency, like my phone, laptop, some clothes.

When I pulled out of the parking garage, I could see so much smoke and then hundreds of cars trying to get out. Luckily, I am closer to the Pacific Coast Highway, so I was able to get out pretty quick.

I evacuated to San Diego. My family thought it was a better idea for me to evacuate here with them than to go to a friend's in Santa Monica or Hollywood because as the fire keeps growing, more people seem to keep getting evacuated.

The aftermath

I saw on the Watch Duty app on Wednesday that my apartment building was in a bright red zone — indicating it was in the path of the fire. My unit specifically is tucked away on the inside of the building, so I was hoping that not everything in my unit was demolished.

I planned to check on it over the weekend. Now, I've seen news footage showing my street and buildings that burned, including my apartment building.

Everything I left behind may now be gone: photos, books, my college diploma. I had my great-grandmother's quilt that she made for me before she passed away. I also had a set of plates and mugs that my grandma gave to me when she died. A lot of my things are thrifted or are hand-me-downs so they're not easily replaceable.

At the same time, my parents are selling their house, so the place I could stay for evacuation, although it isn't close to my job, is very temporary. I feel like a floater with nowhere to go because I don't want to impose on my friends too long without a secure plan for where to go.

A lot of my friends live in Santa Monica, Brentwood, or Malibu, and they have been starting to get evacuated now, but some of them have been able to return to their homes.

I'm close with a lot of the older people who have lived in the Palisades for decades. I would hang out with them at the coffee shops for hours. I don't know how any of them are doing because many of them only have home phones and not cellphones.

I have a hard time feeling at home, but this apartment finally felt like home. I loved everything about it.

It's not only wealthy people living in the Palisades

I know also that a lot of people think that the Palisades is very wealthy, but I don't feel rich. I have multiple jobs. A lot of the people in my building are blue-collar workers, and there are a lot of older people in the Palisades.

I work at a coconut water company, which allowed me to work remotely for the next week before returning in person. I also am a personal assistant for someone who owns a film production company, which also gave me the week off.

Luckily, I have renter's insurance, but I don't know where I will be living. Airbnb has offered a free week to people who have lost their homes, but I filled out the form and haven't heard anything back yet.

I have friends who have offered their couches for me to sleep on while I figure out what to do next, but I still do not have a definitive plan because I've been so scatterbrained since the fire evacuation alert woke me up.

I think we need to keep more compassion alive at this time because online, I've been seeing a lot of people say that the Palisades is very rich and they can all just afford to rebuild.

No one deserves to lose their home.

• China has been busy lately showcasing its military might and hybrid warfare tactics.
• The moves come ahead of Trump's return to the White House this month.
• Its activities highlight China's ambitions and intentions and the challenge it poses.

Since the 2024 US presidential election, China has been surprisingly busy with overt and covert displays of might that represent a challenge for the US, both the current and incoming administrations.

China, long identified as the Pentagon's "pacing challenge," has flexed new military capabilities, increased pressure on US allies and partners, and engaged in hybrid warfare in cyberspace.

Over the past couple of months, suspected next-generation Chinese combat aircraft have appeared, China's navy has launched new warships, the Chinese military simulated a naval blockade of Japan for the first time and carried out massive drills near Taiwan, the US has blamed Chinese hackers for major hacks of the Treasury Department and telecommunications firms, and concerns have been raised about China's involvement in damage to critical undersea infrastructure.

Some of Beijing's recent actions might be "part of a long-term strategy to shape a new (or returning) administration's approach to China and deter external support for Taiwan," Matthew Funaiole, a senior fellow with the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Business Insider.

China has been flexing its military muscles in a big way

China deployed around 90 of its navy and coast guard vessels around Taiwan, as well as southern Japanese islands, for a large-scale exercise, Taiwan said in December. Beijing didn't announce anything ahead of time and hasn't acknowledged it as a military drill.

Taiwan recorded over 60 incursions into its air defense identification zone and said Chinese forces were simulating attacks on foreign ships and disrupting the navigation of others.

The exercise was China's largest since the 1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis. It followed Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's visit to several Pacific partners, which Beijing condemned, and came ahead of Trump's return to the White House. China routinely ramps up demonstrations of military power at symbolically important times for both international and domestic audiences.

Giselle Donnelly, a senior fellow in defense and national security policy at the American Enterprise Institute, said that the timing of these exercises "is more than coincidence," not unlike Russian President Vladimir Putin's efforts over the last few months to put pressure on Ukraine before Trump takes office and US aid to Kyiv faces an uncertain future.

Chinese leadership may see exercises like this as a way to "get an early read" on the incoming Trump administration's approach to US-Chinese politics, she added.

In December, China also held military exercises resembling a naval blockade in the Miyako Strait between Japan's main island and Miyako Island, Japanese officials told The Yomiuri Shimbun, which reported the news earlier this month.

And just before ringing in 2025, China announced its air and naval forces were conducting combat readiness patrols around the Scarborough Shoal, a disputed area in the South China Sea near the Philippines that was the site of heightened and repeated confrontations between Beijing and Manila last year. Chinese vessels were accused of harassing Philippine ships, in some cases ramming them and blasting crews with water.

China has unveiled new capabilities

In November, China unveiled advanced aircraft at its Zhuhai Airshow, including the J-35A land-based stealth fighter. The Chinese developer hailed the fifth-gen jet's stealth, informationization, and networking capabilities, calling it a "point guard" for Chinese airpower — similar to how the F-35 stealth fighter has been referred to as a "quarterback" by Lockheed Martin and the US military.

The next month, however, China surprised Chinese aviation watchers with what observers suspect are prototypes of next-generation aircraft. The Pentagon said in its latest Chinese military power report that Beijing is developing new medium- and long-range stealth bombers to strike regional and global targets." It's unclear if the aircraft, which were flown in broad daylight, are part of those efforts.

China also launched the warship CNS Sichuan, China's first Type 076, and the world's largest amphibious assault vessel — an upgrade from China's Type 075 warship. The large ship features an electromagnetic catapult system for launching and retrieving fixed-wing and unmanned aircraft.

For several years now, the US Department of Defense has noted China's growing navy, already the world's largest, and shipbuilding prowess, as the industrial juggernaut churns out new vessels.

China has been called out for dangerous cyber activity

Washington has accused Chinese actors of engaging in major hacks lately.

Just before the new year, the Treasury revealed that suspected Chinese state-sponsored hackers had breached its systems and were able to "access certain unclassified documents" from department workstations. The department said it was working "fully characterize the incident and determine its overall impact."

The hack followed the discovery of a yearslong breach by China of US telecommunications companies. Top targets of the hack included Trump, his pick for vice president, J.D. Vance, and current VP Kamala Harris. Washington linked this hack to an incident involving Microsoft last summer. Lawmakers have expressed concern that encrypted calls and texts may no longer be secure.

White House Deputy national security advisor Anne Neuberger said that data belonging to millions of Americans was likely compromised by the hack and noted the US doesn't believe these hackers have been "fully removed" from targeted systems. 

Chinese actors are also believed to have accessed the Justice Department's list of wiretapped phone numbers related to potential espionage crimes. There have long been concerns about China's hybrid warfare and its potential for systems destruction warfare in a crisis situation.

China has also been accused of sabotaging undersea cables near Taiwan and been linked to an incident in the Baltic Sea. Experts and officials have assessed the efforts are in line with the larger hybrid warfare tactics employed by Beijing.

Over the past two months, China has showcased capabilities and engaged in actions that represent potential challenges for the US and its allies and partners. These are issues the incoming Trump administration will continue to face.

And it isn't China alone. US and other Western officials have increasingly expressed alarm at cooperation between China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, all of which have been stepping up their efforts to confront the US-led world order.

• I get manicures every month, and I prefer structured nails when I don't do extensions.
• I spent $110 on a structured Gel-X set, which included soft builder gel, nail art, and cuticle oil.
• I liked the low maintenance of this manicure, and it lasted four weeks.

For most of 2024, I tested several different types of manicures, from Japanese and Russian to intricately painted press-ons and at-home gel. By the end of the year, I was thrilled to be going back to basics with my go-to Chicago nail tech.

For this appointment, I opted for a $110 structured Gel-X manicure with some added artistic flair.

A structured manicure is similar to a regular gel set, except there's an extra layer of soft or hard gel to build up your natural nail before applying the polish. This layer creates an apex, making for a stronger foundation that lessens the likelihood of breakage.

With nail health and manicure longevity at the top of my priorities list, here's how it went.

It was nice to return to my usual nail artists.

After months of experimental manicures, I went back to my usual licensed nail tech, Teresa "Tere" Rodriguez, a Chicago-based artist who specializes in gel extensions and structured manicures.

I get manicures once a month, which can really put a gamble on my nail health. I adore long, heavily decorated nails, but those tend to be more damaging — especially when I break one.

Whenever I'm looking for a break from extensions, I opt for structured manicures to (hopefully) better protect my nail health.

Plus, I like that they typically last three to four weeks as opposed to the standard two to three.

The manicure prep followed a pretty simple process.

Based on Rodriguez's website options, I booked a "Tier 3 Extra Intermediate" appointment for 6:30 p.m. That level included charms, textures, and nail art.

Rodriguez started the appointment by prepping my nails and conducting cuticle care like any standard manicure.

Next came the builder gel.

Once the nails were prepped, Rodriguez followed up by applying a slip layer, which is a thin layer of builder gel. They then added a thicker layer of soft builder gel, which created a solid apex.

After the builder came a base layer of black gel polish.

I opted for a flashy gold design.

I sent Rodriguez inspiration images for my manicure a week before my appointment. The main theme was gold glamor with lots of gemstones.

Since I'm only working with the size of my actual nail beds (as opposed to longer extensions), I had to be picky about the size, shape, and color I wanted the gemstones to be.

Rodriguez got to work adding 3D effects and rubbing gold chrome on top of the black gel on each nail. They then hand-placed a gemstone on nearly every open spot and secured them by curing the gel under the lamp.

Before curing each nail, the tech made sure I was happy with the design, which I really appreciated.

The set took about two hours in total.

With prep work, builder gel, curing, and designing, I knew I was in for the long haul.

Rodriguez and I usually chat to pass the time during the appointment, but they also offer silent appointment options, where clients can listen to a podcast or watch a show instead of talking.

I like to be involved in the design process of each nail, which can be time-consuming, so I wasn't surprised when my phone read 8:30 p.m. as Rodriguez applied cuticle oil to my finished nails.

After four weeks, I thought my nails still looked pretty decent.

Overall, I enjoyed how low-maintenance this set was. Although I feel more confident with long nails, I took comfort in the fact that I didn't have to worry much about breakage.

After four weeks, my manicure was still holding up — with the exception of a few wayward gemstones, which can be chalked up to my hands-on lifestyle. Because of the gold base, the missing gems didn't put much of a dent in the overall aesthetic.

Luckily, I didn't think the grow-out was too bad, which ultimately saved me money because I could skip a mid-month appointment. However, I was really interested in the health of my nails under the gel.

When I got the set removed, my nails looked a little thin but not as flimsy as I anticipated.

I wouldn't use a structured gel manicure as a way to grow out my natural nails, but I think it's great for low-maintenance upkeep.

• My daughter graduated from college and moved by herself.
• Still, as her mom, I can only think of the worst-case scenarios.
• As an empty nester, I feel a bit pushed to the side by her, and at the same time, I get it.

This past year, my now 22-year-old daughter graduated from college, moved out, and (in not so many words) told me she was fine on her own; thank you very much.

Of course, we all want our kids to fly the nest. We pray that they are strong, independent, and self-sufficient. Mine is all of the above and more; I marvel at her strength, determination, and resiliency — not to mention her ability to navigate the New York City subway system.

Still, my worry when she was a child and prone to skinned knees is nothing compared to how much I worry today.

I jump to worst-case scenarios

My mind imagines only the worst-case scenarios whenever she fails to answer a call or text. I send her cautionary news on Instagram and cringe when she and her boyfriend fly at odd hours into odd airports, seemingly to save money but also to give me a bleeding ulcer.

As she outlines their trip to Iceland, I bite my tongue and zone out somewhere between "climbing glaciers" and "exploring ice caves." For her 21st birthday, she went skydiving. I called my therapist, begging for her to prescribe me Valium. Instead, we agreed it was OK if I simply did some day drinking until I heard that she was back on solid ground. Did I mention she also recently scaled the side of a skyscraper and went axe-throwing?

I know my born-and-bred New York offspring has street smarts and can balance her own checkbook. Another bit of reassurance I have is that her boyfriend is skilled in martial arts and would hurl himself in front of a Marvel villain to protect her.

I just need to trust that she will Google what she doesn't know if she won't ask me. But resisting the urge to interfere takes nerves of steel. I freak out or offer advice a bit too emphatically: "No! You can't eat week-old salmon! No! You can't microwave tin foil! Yes! You need to wash your sheets once a week!" I weigh in when not asked for my viewpoint — it's a force of habit.

I have to let her grow

I know her better than she knows herself. I know what items she would order on a menu, what shoes would go with that dress, and what Netflix shows she would love. I want to spare her the pain of making mistakes and missing out, but I realize that will not allow her to grow.

So, instead, I resort to sending my suggestions in texts or DMs — that way, she can ignore them if she chooses. But I secretly rejoice every time she responds or "hearts" one. I feel appreciated and acknowledged as a member of her inner circle, though I am clearly on the outside looking in. To be left "unopened" is brutal, a crushing blow to my mom heart. But I know I need to get over it — or at least pretend not to be hurt.

My husband is much more hands-off, saying things like, "If she misses her flight because she leaves only an hour to get to the airport, she'll learn." But will she? Will she actually self-correct without me there to whisper in her ear? When, of course, she does, part of me wants to jump for joy, while the other part is a little sad. Does that mean I'm no longer needed?

As empty nesters, this next part of parenthood is tricky and treacherous. I feel a little bit like nearly-expired milk pushed to the back of the supermarket shelf. But I know this is how it's supposed to go. You raise them to let them go.

All of this is new and scary and fraught with emotion (and often, tears), not unlike her baby and toddler years. Sometimes, my heart aches like someone has torn a piece out of it. But I have adjusted these past 12 months, trying to give my daughter space and grace and myself the same. Like my now all-grown-up child, I will find my strength and balance — one small baby step at a time.

• Wealthy travelers are increasingly seeking luxury train trips.
• The Glacier Express' luxurious Excellence Class seats are often the first on the train to sell out.
• A ticket for the eight-hour journey through the Swiss Alps costs about $540, ten times the basic fare.

Glacier Express' Excellence Class seats could turn any miserable 8 a.m. train commuter into Francis Bourgeois.

That is if you can afford it.

A ticket for the plush eight-hour journey through the picturesque Swiss Alps costs about $540, tenfold the price of the train's basic fare. However, the sweet seats may be worth the cost.

The Glacier Express operates one of the most beautiful train trips in the world. Plus, they come with trendy bragging rights — these seats have become a hot commodity.

Frank Marini, president and CEO of Railbookers Group, told BI that his train-focused tour company saw a 68% spike in luxury bookings from 2023 to 2024.

"It keeps snowballing," Marini said. "We see passengers that have come back traveling with us on a lot of luxury rail, and they're like, 'well, where else is there luxury rail?'"

The answer? Around the world and especially in Switzerland, which has become "immensely popular" for luxe train experiences, Andrew Channell, Railbookers' senior vice president of product and operations, told BI, adding that it's one of his favorite destinations.

In the Swiss Alps, you'll find a particularly popular pick — the Glacier Express.

The iconic train brings guests on an eight-hour journey between the resort town of St. Moritz and the base of the iconic Matterhorn in Zermatt.

Along the way, travelers pass through 91 tunnels and 291 bridges, providing a picturesque peek at the snow-capped peaks, majestic gorges, and popular tourist towns.

With views like these — and a fortuitously ongoing rise in "coolcations" — it's no surprise that the train is often sold out, a company spokesperson told BI in an email.

Demand for the Glacier Express' top-tier Excellence Class seats has been particularly strong.

A red carpet rollout and Champagne welcome the train's highest-paying guests to their eight-hour journey (at a window seat, of course).

Relish the Swiss sights as you dine on a five-course meal with a wine pairing.

Expect dishes such as smoked trout with roasted beets and horseradish cream cheese.

If the included booze isn't satisfactory, you could buy a drink at the crystal chandelier-topped Glacier Bars exclusive to Excellence Class guests.

These upscale seats ring in at 490 Swiss Francs, about $537, each.

It's a steep price compared to the cheapest seats, which cost CHF 49, or about $54.

Yet, the sumptuous accommodations — which see a 94% to 96% occupancy rate throughout the year — are often the first section to be reserved, according to the spokesperson.

The company saw more than 281,300 passengers in 2023, the strongest year in its more than 90-year history.

To keep up with demand, the Glacier Express increased its winter capacity in 2024, accommodating almost 290,000 guests. (It operates 1,820 trips annually, about 70% in the summer.)

After all, Disney's Matterhorn bobsleds likely don't compare to views of the real thing.

• My first wife and I decided to move to Maui after vacationing there.
• After our difficult divorce, I left the island in a hopeless state.
• Years later, I took my new family to Maui to show them the place that saved my life.

I met my first wife working at a fast food restaurant and developed a friendship that turned into a relationship. We were married three months after we met — the day after my 18th birthday. Like me, she was from Milwaukee, and we raised three kids in Wisconsin.

With our 10th anniversary coming up, we wanted to celebrate somewhere special. After doing a bit of research, we chose Maui, Hawaii.

I expected to enjoy the island but didn't realize how special Maui would be. We instantly fell in love with Hawaiian culture, the ocean breezes, delicious food, and a slower pace of life. Every day on Maui felt like a life I had always dreamed of living.

The island became an important hub in my life — through two marriages and a lot of healing.

We decided to move to Maui, and it was paradise — until it wasn't

We debated whether we could afford to live in Maui and whether it was smart to be away from family. But we knew it was the right decision.

The kids were excited to leave Wisconsin and live on a warm, tropical island, and so were we. We sold most of our possessions, rented a home, moved to Maui, and lived a few blocks from the beach.

Life on Maui was everything we hoped it would be and more. While life was good, my relationship with my first wife wasn't.

We were far from the place and life we were comfortable with. Tiny ripples of arguments turned into daily eruptions that eventually led to the end of our marriage two years after moving to Maui.

Divorce is expensive, and paying to support my ex-wife and three children meant I wouldn't have much money left.

The divorce and decisions I made from being in a desperate and hopeless place left me with $28 in my bank account and no hope for life when I left Maui. I used my last few dollars to book a flight to the mainland.

I was homeless and stayed on a friend's couch

I left Hawaii for South Florida around Christmastime because my friend said I could stay at his home. He saw my state and let me sleep on a couch.

I still had my business and focused on earning more revenue. I sell online courses, so I offered some promotions and created a ton of content for social media; thankfully, a few sales started to trickle in.

Even though my money was low, I knew I needed help, so I used the spare few pennies I could muster on some therapy sessions.

As I healed, an inner voice told me I needed to return to Maui, a place that meant everything to my mind and spirit. I couldn't explain it, but I knew my healing and growth wouldn't be complete without returning to Hawaii.

I went back to Maui to fully heal

After paying my bills and child support each month, I was still low on cash, but I did have some travel rewards. After booking my flight to Maui with points, I booked a stay in a $20-a-night hostel for the month of January. I would be roughing it with the young folks.

Once I was on Maui again after leaving in such a broken way, my suspicions were right: I had completed my healing.

I spent mornings in the ocean, letting the sounds and breezes calm me. I worked on my business every day from cafés that overlooked the water. Being so close to the beach, I slept well every night. I reconnected with friends, exercised, ate fresh food, and spent time with my kids.

I healed through Maui's amazing energy and left the island a month later in a better mental state and with a plan.

I had an incredible year that year, and my life, mindset, relationships, and business have grown exponentially since then. That bonus month on Maui allowed me to write a new chapter in my story — a triumphant chapter.

I brought my new family to Maui, too

Three years after my healing experience, a friendship with my now-wife Cindy blossomed into a relationship that grew into a marriage proposal.

I remarried, was out of debt, and running a thriving business.

I wanted to take my second wife and stepchildren to Maui to experience a place that had profoundly changed my life. I had told them so much about the island and what it had done for me, and they wanted to experience it for themselves.

It was such an incredible family vacation to introduce my family to the awesomeness of Maui. They loved it so much and understood its impact on my life. We made a once-a-year family trip every year up until the year of the great fire in Lahaina.

Your environment can profoundly affect you as a human being, and Maui continues to be the place that impacts my life. It's the place I come back to for healing, inspiration, and growth.

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

Welcome back to our Sunday edition, where we round up some of our top stories and take you inside our newsroom. The devastation from fires this week in Los Angeles worsened the state's insurance crisis. Business Insider's Dan Latu spoke to experts about how premiums will continue to rise and why securing a loan may even get harder.

On the agenda today:

• Donald Trump won. Now Mark Zuckerberg is reshaping Meta.
• A leaked AWS org chart shows the 11 executives reporting to CEO Matt Garman.
• From building wealth to suburban homes, millennials are starting to look a lot like their boomer parents.
• The tough-love advice Morgan Stanley CIO Mike Wilson gives his new hires to prepare for a career in banking.

But first: Back to the office.

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

Five years

It's been nearly five years since corporate America sent its white-collar workforce home amid the onset of the pandemic.

Five years later, RTO v. WFH, a.k.a. working in an office vs. at a kitchen table, remains hotly debated. Business Insider keeps delivering the scoops.

Dominick Reuter and Tim Paradis recently broke the story that AT&T would follow Amazon with a 5-day mandate.

Meanwhile, JPMorgan officially told employees on Friday it expects most workers back in the office five days a week starting in March. Read the full memo here.

It's one thing to set a mandate, and it's another to make it work for workers.

Ashley Stewart broke the news in December that Amazon would delay its policy in select locations due to workplace shortages. This past week, Ashley exclusively reported a list of some 40 locations where the Amazon rollout was delayed, from Santa Clara, Calif. and Austin to hubs in China and India.

Meanwhile, Dominick came back with an exclusive about bumps in AT&T's rollout for workers, such as waits for elevators and jockeying for parking spots. (I put his article on my Linkedin and got some spicy comments.)

Tim wrote about why companies can't seem to stick the landing once they make the decision to return five days.

And Aki Ito jumped in to write that despite the headlines, corporate America is far from a full return to the office.

We'll stay on this story in the weeks and months to come.

Please let me know your thoughts on our coverage, on this or any other subject!

Meta's Trump era

Content moderation has gotten Meta into plenty of hot water before. But the abrupt ending of its third-party fact-checking program was done specifically for Donald Trump, BI's Peter Kafka writes.

The new policy includes adopting "Community Notes," which would have users police one another à la Elon Musk's X. It's the latest in a series of moves Mark Zuckerberg has made to curry favor with the president-elect and his conservative allies.

Zuckerberg in Trumpland.

Also read:

• Meta employees react after the rollback of DEI programs — both for and against

Leaked AWS org chart

Amazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman has made a few changes to the cloud business since stepping into the role last June.

One of his biggest changes has been hiring Julia White as chief marketing officer. A leaked organization chart shows the 11 executives under Garman who are helping him lead the unit through an intense competition period of cloud computing and AI.

Meet the 11 executives.

Behold, the millennial boomers

Millennials have long had a "forever young" air to them. They're a generation marked by a sense of arrested development.

But in reality, millennials are starting to mirror their boomer parents in terms of wealth and earnings. They're buying homes and settling down in the suburbs. And in some areas, they're actually doing better than their parents.

Becoming mom and dad.

Also read:

• Millennials were celebrated for their minimalism. Turns out it was all a lie.

Mike Wilson's tough-love advice

Sometimes you have to flop before you fly. That much is true, even on Wall Street.

Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson says the key to success is learning to accept failures. He wants newly minted Wall Streeters to know the road ahead is only going to get harder — and how to prepare themselves for it.

Words to the wise.

This week's quote:

"We have a captured industry where the middlemen get to kind of do whatever they want."

— Josh Tucker, an appraisal manager and cofounder of the Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council, on homebuying's giant hidden cost.

More of this week's top reads:

• The Getty Villa survived LA's firestorms while everything around it burned, revealing a key lesson for homeowners.
• Internal Microsoft document shows one way managers decide which employees they can't afford to lose — and it's all about AI.
• Fed up with HR, people are reporting their horrible bosses on social media.
• Exclusive: Microsoft is planning job cuts and focusing more on underperforming employees.
• Polymarket is taking bets on the Palisades fire in California.
• The wildfires have a Hollywood producer wondering: Should I even stay in LA?
• Vox Media shakes up leadership and lays off staff for the 2nd time in about a month.
• The gambling industry's sly new way to suck money from desperate Americans.
• I've interviewed dozens of self-made millionaires, early retirees, and 'super savers' and plan to use one of their top wealth-building strategies in 2025.

• Silicon Valley is licking their chops at the promise of AI 'agents.' These are the startups to watch.

  ---

  The BI Today team: Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York. Grace Lett, editor, in Chicago. Amanda Yen, associate editor, in New York. Lisa Ryan, executive editor, in New York.

• Doug McMillon, the CEO of Walmart, shared some insight into his reading habits.
• His book list covers a wide range of interests — from managerial strategies to developments in tech.
• Here are 10 books that McMillon read in the last year, and the one he said impacted him the most.

While their calendars are often chock-full of meetings, some CEOs still find the time to read for pleasure — or to dive deep into a particular topic. Business leaders have long shared their picks for books that helped inform their strategies, both personally and professionally.

Doug McMillon, Walmart's CEO, posted his usual end-of-year roundup, listing 10 of the books that shaped his 2024.

"It was most impactful reading Sam's book again," he said. "Every time I read it, I pick up new ideas and am reminded of why our culture is so successful."

This time, a few more titles on AI made the cut, with three recent books on the subject included in the list.

Here are the authors McMillon has been reading, with a brief summary of what each book has to offer.

"How to Know a Person" by David Brooks

David Brooks' 2023 "How to Know a Person" draws from the world of psychology to help readers better understand how to connect with those around them.

"Just the Good Stuff" by Jim VandeHei

This book, published last year, looks to offer a practical guide to achieving success in life and career by pulling from Axios and Politico cofounder Jim VandeHei's own experiences with journalism and entrepreneurship.

"Financial Literacy For All" by John Hope Bryant

Bryant, who served on the President's Advisory Council on Financial Literacy, aims to provide anyone looking to build strong financial foundations with an accessible guide to reaching their goals.

"Genesis" by Henry Kissinger, Craig Mundie, and Eric Schmidt

"Genesis," co-written by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, explores the potential benefits and repercussions that could result from the evolution of AI and debates how the technology could interact with humanity in the long-run.

"Co-Intelligence" by Ethan Mollick

"Co-Intelligence," authored by Wharton associate professor and co-director of AI labs, Ethan Mollick, encourages readers to engage with AI in a productive way — not by replacing human skill, but augmenting it. The book examines how people might be able to benefit from AI and learn to use it to their advantage.

"Competing in the Age of AI" by Marco Iansiti and Karim R. Lakhani

In their artificial intelligence-focused book, Iansiti and Lakhani provide a framework for competing in the evolving age of AI by examining the structures of what they call "AI-centric organizations."

"How Stella Saved the Farm" by Vijay Govindarajan and Chris Trimble

This book, published in 2010, is about a troubled farm threatened by bankruptcy and competition and serves as a parable to deliver a lesson on innovation.

"Collaborative Disruption" by Tom Muccio

"Collaborative Disruption: The Walmart and P&G Partnership That Changed Retail Forever" explores, from an insider's perspective, how the relationship between Walmart and Procter & Gamble profoundly affected the retail industry.

"The Wisdom of the Bullfrog" by Adm. William McRaven

"The Wisdom of the Bullfrog" draws from Adm. McRaven's extensive military career to impart the reader with fundamental lessons in leadership.

"Made in America" by Sam Walton with John Huey

Written by Walmart's founder, Sam Walton, "Made in America" was McMillon's most "impactful" read of the year, the CEO said.

Walton's autobiography, published in 1992, tells the story of Walmart's rise to become a retail giant.

McMillon said he gleans "new ideas" from every read.

• A US passport is not as powerful as it once was, according to the annual Henley & Partners Passport Index.
• The index ranks passports by visa-free access to 227 destinations, and the US is only ninth.
• Singapore holds the top spot, with access to 195 destinations visa-free.

A US passport is not as desirable as it used to be, according to the 2025 Henley Passport Index, which was first published 19 years ago.

The index, which ranks 199 passports based on how many out of 227 destinations they offer visa-free access to, has placed the US passport in ninth place, slipping from the top spot in 2014. This year, it allows American travelers to enter 186 countries and territories without a visa, not including Nigeria, India, and Russia.

Stemming from data provided by the International Air Transport Authority and updated using internal research and open-source online data, UK-based consulting firm Henley & Partners listed Singapore as the world's most powerful passport for the second year in a row. It has access to a total of 195 destinations.

Ranked in second place is the Japanese passport, with a visa-free score of 193. The third space is shared by six countries: Finland, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, and Spain. The United Arab Emirates is the only Middle Eastern country to make it into the top ten. It has risen 55 places overall in the index since 2010.

A strong passport provides more freedom to travel without needing to apply for a visa.

Nepal, Somalia, Pakistan, Yemen, Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan are ranked in the bottom five spaces. Compared to Singapore, which allows visa-free access to 195 countries and territories, holding an Afghan passport only allows visa-free access to 26 countries.

When Taylor Kitsch finally shows up onscreen in his new Netflix show "American Primeval" about 10 minutes into its premiere, one of the first things the audience sees is his bare butt.

Those who know Kitsch from his breakout role as Tim Riggins in the mid-2000s NBC series "Friday Night Lights" would be forgiven for assuming this shot is playing into Kitsch's former teen heartthrob status. But in "American Primeval," Kitsch is far more interested in nakedly depicting the roughness of life in the 19th century American West than in providing eye candy to nostalgic millennials.

The streamer's gritty miniseries is blood, dirt, and warfare on an epic (and expensive) scale, chronicling the brutal 1857 clashes between the US Army, Native Americans, Mormons, and settlers in Utah Territory, with a cinematic yet deliberately unsentimental eye ("Yellowstone," this is not.)

As the troubled Isaac Reed, a white man raised by the Shoshone tribe who begrudgingly agrees to guide Sara Rowell (Betty Gilpin) and her son across treacherous territory, Kitsch is all lumbering physicality and intense stares. So much so that when he's first introduced to Sara while climbing out of a river, he hardly notices or cares about the impropriety of his nude body being exposed to a stranger.

With a wardrobe comprised mostly of tattered rags and a scraggly beard obscuring the clean-cut good looks that once landed him in a 2000s-era Abercombie ad, this is not a role one might expect from Taylor Kitsch. That's exactly the way he likes it.

"I take a lot of pride in taking very, very different roles," Kitsch, 43, told Business Insider, adding that being uncomfortable helps him do his best work.

"I try and chase fear and things where when you first read it, you're like, 'Oh, fuck. How am I even going to do this?'"

'American Primeval' re-teams Kitsch with the man who helped make his career

Kitsch was a struggling model-turned-actor who'd endured periods of homelessness when he first met "American Primeval" director and executive producer Peter Berg while screen-testing for "Friday Night Lights" in 2006.

Berg, who developed the football series based on his hit film of the same name, said he knew Kitsch had to be Riggins from the moment he saw him step out of his manager's car on the NBC lot. Though the studio had already shortlisted several hot young stars to play the Panthers' troubled running back, Berg managed to sell the unknown Canadian actor to the show's producers, and the rest is history.

The series would mark the start of Kitsch and Berg's fruitful creative partnership, which has endured for almost two decades, as the two have gone on to work together on movies like "Lone Survivor" and "Battleship" and other television shows like "American Primeval" and the 2023 Netflix series "Painkiller."

Kitsch said his symbiotic relationship with Berg has allowed him to grow exponentially as an actor.

"I hope I challenge him as much as he challenges me for authenticity, to keep each other on our toes," Kitsch said. "I think that's why he comes and brings me along these rides. I think he knows that I will try and make him look incredible and make him look right every time he casts me."

Berg's buy-in kickstarted Kitsch's career. But six years and five seasons on the "Friday Night Lights" set ironically left him unprepared for the very thing he was expected to chase after next: movie stardom.

"'Friday Night Lights' was no marks, no rehearsal, natural light, a lot of improv, which I love," said Kitsch, who was known for sometimes scrapping Riggins' lines entirely and replacing them with just a look. "[Berg] wants you to take risks, because that's where you're going to uncover something. And I love that."

While Kitsch was able to "learn and fail" many times on "FNL," he encountered far more rigidity on the set of his first big-budget blockbuster, 2009's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine."

"My first fucking day on 'X-Men' was like, 'Hit the mark, find the light, say your line, and don't say it like that,'" Kitsch recalled. "I've never been told this, and then it's like, 'Whoa, whoa, whoa. You guys are actually using lights and marks and this and that?' So it was a huge switch for me."

Kitsch was on the brink of movie stardom after 'Friday Night Lights,' but it all fell apart

It was the first of many obstacles in Kitsch's ill-fated pursuit of a career as a blockbuster leading man.

Much has been made of the infamous critical and commercial flop that was "John Carter," the 2012 Disney movie about an American Civil War veteran transported to Mars. But at the time, the decision to star in a movie based on a seminal sci-fi book series with major franchise potential seemed like a no-brainer.

Kitsch still stands by his choice: "When Andrew Stanton, who just won a couple Oscars, knocks at your door and he blows your mind in prep…"

He noted that at the time, the title character was a coveted role. "No one knows the people I beat out, but I can't believe at the time I beat them out."

"John Carter," along with "Battleship," a 2012 military sci-fi action flick based on the board game and directed by Berg, became the proving ground for Kitsch's post-"FNL" career. Expectations for both were high: Kitsch's contracts reportedly would have locked him into franchises for both if they performed well at the box office. Magazine profiles of Kitsch at the time anointed him the next big action hero, predicting he was poised to take over Hollywood's new A-list alongside the likes of Ryan Reynolds and Chris Pine.

He was on the brink of something major — or at least, that's what he was told.

'John Carter' was a flop, freeing Kitsch up for more interesting work

Ultimately, it didn't pan out that way. Both movies underperformed at the box office and garnered largely negative reviews. It changed the course of Kitsch's career, though it may have been kismet.

In reality, becoming the next blockbuster action star was never actually what Kitsch wanted for himself; he simply thought it would open doors.

"It's the cliché: one for them, one for you," he recalled. "You're told, 'You do this, you'll be able to do anything you want.'"

In an alternate universe where "John Carter" was a box-office smash that led to that slew of sequels, Kitsch may not have had the time to explore the character-driven stories he finds the most fulfilling, like "True Detective" season two, or the biggest challenge of his career: playing cult leader David Koresh in the 2018 limited series "Waco." Kitsch credits the latter with helping him define the kind of actor he wants to be.

"'Waco' scared the shit out of me," said Kitsch. "I had no idea how I was going to do that." He spent six months intensively preparing to inhabit the role, losing 30 pounds, learning to play guitar, and watching every clip and sermon of Koresh's he could find.

He brought a similar ethos to "American Primeval," losing 20 pounds, learning some Shoshone, and working with a medicine man to prepare to play Isaac. Doing the most is a nonnegotiable for Kitsch, who previously told The New York Times that this kind of prep is "the only thing that eliminates self-doubt."

While he had to start from scratch to build out both the charismatic cult leader and the rugged frontiersman, Kitsch already had a personal connection to Glen Kryger, the opioid-addicted car mechanic he played in "Painkiller."

"That one was so fucking important to me," Kitsch said. The subject matter hit close to home; his sister has struggled with opioid addiction.

"She's eight years clean now," he said. "She was my advisor on the show, so it doesn't get more full circle than that, to have her with me, and me ironically playing the addict and her telling me how."

Despite the rabid fandom Kitsch inspired on "Friday Night Lights," he said more people have reached out to say they were touched by his performance in "Painkiller" than about any other job he's done.

"To humanize and hopefully bring up a conversation of that and to normalize it, not put shame towards that, meant the world to me," Kitsch said.

Kitsch wants to keep telling stories he cares about

Up next for Kitsch is a return to one of his most popular roles (no, not that one). He'll be reprising his role as former Navy SEAL Ben Edwards on Amazon's "The Terminal List" prequel "Dark Wolf" opposite Chris Pratt, who plays the lead character in the flagship series.

He also wants to prioritize getting his own project off the ground: telling his sister's story.

"Her story is just, it's insane and very empowering and inspiring," Kitsch said. "I'd love to direct that and keep it at a crazy low budget so I have creative control."

Not on the agenda? Stressing over things like viewership numbers or ticket sales.

"Here's a good story," Kitsch recalled. "I was living in Austin doing 'Friday Night Lights,' and it had just been the opening weekend of 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine.' And it was Monday and I was going to a different movie, and all of a sudden, all these texts came in like, 'Oh, congratulations. Oh my God, the box office. BO is at $70-something million!' and all this," he said.

"I was with my girlfriend at the time and I was like, 'I have no idea what this means,'" he continued. "All these congrats were coming in. And I'm like, 'What are we celebrating?'"

Years later, Kitsch has held onto that desire to ignore outside expectations. He's keeping that in mind when it comes to how his new projects, like "American Primeval," are received.

Still, he's hopeful the show will lead to more opportunities to immerse himself so fully in a character that he disappears — the work he loves best.

"We'll see what happens," he said. "I'll just keep swinging regardless."

• My twins are both in college, and they just so happened to go to the same school.
• Their dorm rooms show just how different their personalities really are.
• My daughter's dorm is decorated with her favorite things, while my son took a minimalist approach.

My twins both attend Fordham University in New York, but that's where their similarities stop.

Over the summer before their freshman year, my daughter asked me several times, "When can we go shopping for my college dorm room?"

Once we picked a day, we asked her twin brother if he wanted to join, and his answer was, "Nope."

Meanwhile, their younger sister was excited not only to join us but also offered to help pick out items like a comforter for her brother.

Although they're twins, this difference reflects their differing personalities. My daughter is a planner and an artist who loves colors and design. She likes to know what to expect. She also had a clear vision of how she wanted her dorm room to look. Her plans weren't extravagant; she didn't hire interior designers like some students.

My son, on the other hand, is laid back and more of a "go with the flow" type. So it wasn't surprising that he was only interested in purchasing the essentials — with no preference for colors or materials. We bought him a plain gray comforter and basic items like sheets and towels.

The process of decorating the dorms showed their personalities

When we arrived at their college, it took about twice as long to move my daughter in compared to her twin brother. He's a minimalist, so he didn't have a lot of clothes or extra furniture like his sister did. She brought a rug, chair, rolling cart with shelves, and all her art supplies.

Once they were moved in, the process of decorating began. As you can imagine, it didn't take my son too long to make his bed and unpack his clothes. Whereas his sister spent several hours lining up her posters and artwork, organizing drawers, and arranging string lights.

She brought a plant because she loves the outdoors. Over the summer, she worked at a garden center, and she frequently went on hikes or outdoor runs.

The following year showed some changes but also stayed the same

For their sophomore year, they used most of the same décor from their freshman year — with a few additions.

My daughter's plant didn't survive her freshman year, so she decided to purchase a new one from the New York Botanical Garden. As a Fordham student, she receives free admission to the gardens and goes on weekly runs along the trails. By buying a plant there, she hoped to bring her love for the outdoors into her dorm. She also bought a plant poster from the gift shop that identifies different plant varieties and added some of her own newly created artwork to the walls.

My son still has his basic gray comforter, but he added a rug and some posters. He loves music, so most of the posters reflect his musical tastes. He doesn't watch much television, but over the summer, he watched "Breaking Bad" with his friends, so he decided to get a poster from the show. Since his dorm is dimly lit in the basement, he added some LED strip lights that change colors. His personality is slowly coming through in his dorm room.

Still, their shared college has brought them together

Despite their different personalities and interests, attending the same college has brought them closer.

My daughter even helped her brother pick out the rug for his dorm this year. They've also decided to meet for dinner once a week to explore the city's restaurants.

Who knows — maybe while they dine, they will swap décor tips and start a quirky twin design business.

• I've always loved my mother, but our relationship has always been complicated.
• When she started texting me in her 80s, our communication started to feel lighter.
• I'm so glad that I have our texts to look back on now.

Mother-daughter relationships can be challenging, and my relationship with my mother was no exception. But one thing my mother and I could always do was talk — whether in person or on the phone — though our chats often ended in some sort of argument. If we could figure out how to have shorter conversations, we would have been just fine.

An intellectual and a therapist, my mother had a penchant for delving deep, and sometimes I just wanted the short catch-ups my friends had with their mothers, but this wasn't how we did things. I needed to find my own way, so I moved away from home to explore.

Then, after years of living in different cities, I was ready to come home. And with this return to my old ZIP code, I inherited endless family obligations and outings. This also meant more phone calls with my mom to make plans.

When we started texting, our relationship changed

When the pandemic hit, it was the first time I had not seen her regularly since I moved back. I began to miss her and her constant questions. There were no more Sunday dinners, sushi, or long talks in her living room. Instead, we started to do something we've rarely done. We began to text. And then, something magical began to happen.

It started off simple.

Our texts were the short check-ins I'd always wanted, as one or the other of us would send a simple, "Doing OK?"

In lieu of children, I sent her pictures of my foster kittens. To my surprise, on the days when I didn't, she requested more.

"Where are the grandkits?" she wrote.

And I would blow up her phone with photos of adorable felines.

Over time, our text conversations got longer, but the tone was still light and easy. When I sent her pictures of sweet donut peaches from a farm upstate, she thanked me and sent a peach icon. She took to technology right away.

These are the cutesy conversations I would never have imagined from my mother. Yet they were as sweet as the fruit I bring to her. I finally got my own version of "normal."

As we started texting each other more, we had fewer intense conversations and, as a result, less tension. Instead, I began to send short messages almost daily, and started to feel closer to her. Before texting, it had felt stressful to get a call from my analytical mother; texting brought levity, and I started to look forward to hearing from her. It brought a balance to our relationship and allowed me to appreciate our longer in-person conversations, too. In some ways, I think it saved our relationship.

I'm grateful I have our texts to look back on

After a while, I wanted to spend more time in person with her, talking and belly laughing. Somehow, about a year after introducing texting into our relationship, the friction had dissipated. But soon, my mother fell ill. She didn't have a diagnosis yet, but her energy started to wane, and it was clear something was wrong. Now I was the one calling her to check in, and she was the one who needed to get off the phone.

I visited my parents in Upstate New York for Father's Day weekend in 2022, and even brought the kittens with me. We made a Sunday night dinner together, the first in a long time. We talked about film, life, and politics, and then my mother rested. This was unusual; she typically loved to sit and talk for hours. To comfort her, I went to Home Goods and picked up cough drops, scented soaps, and the brightest coral towels I could find to brighten her mood.

The day after I left, I texted my mother, worried she was more tired than usual.

I sent a lovely picture of the two kittens perched on my ottoman and wrote, "Same as it ever was…"

She wrote back a few minutes later. The text read, "Delicious as always."

That was our last text. She died a week later.

The first thing I did was look back at our correspondence. I am gifted with these modern-day notes — digital proof of just how much my mother truly loved me. How fortuitous, I thought, to spend her last weekend together. What a gift to have made our peace before it was too late. How wonderful to have all these texts of our relationship 2.0.

• Chili's is hitting it off with young people.
• Its social media strategy and value deals have aided its growth in recent quarters, an analyst says.
• Offers like the 3 For Me deal and Triple Dipper have gone viral online.

Chili's is capturing the attention, tastebuds, and money of young customers.

The casual dining chain has become a hit with Gen Z, and Chili's says it's due, in part, to a push to attract a younger generation on social media.

"Given how heavily younger audiences consume social media, standing out on their feeds means being one of the first to jump on current trends," Jack Hailey, the 25-year-old social media manager for Chili's, said.

Chili's CMO George Felix credits Hailey as the mind behind the restaurant's popular X account. Hailey said marketing execs had given the social media team the freedom to take risks online and maintain a "cheeky, quick, and confident" presence.

The other attraction: deals. While snappy posts might attract Gen Zers to Chili's, Hailey said its food deals resonate with his generation, who "grew up ordering from value menus."

Restaurants and customers have been struggling recently as inflation soars. Many food joints have taken a hit to sales, leading them to lean into special offers to lure people back. Chili's, for example, has started offering an appetizer sampler called the Triple Dipper for under $20.

Restaurants like McDonald's and Wendy's unveiled new offers aimed at drawing customers in last year. But many people are expecting more than just a low price, said R.J. Hottovy, the head of analytical research at the location-data provider Placer.ai, who follows the restaurant industry.

"Value was certainly important, but it had to be value with either menu innovation or something else" such as a sit-down dining experience, he said.

TikTok and other social media have helped Chili's, Hottovy said.

"You have your marketing department, but then you also have thousands of potential marketers in terms of influencers and TikTokers that can really help to change the image of a brand overnight," he said.

Many Gen Zers have reciprocated Chili's social media manager Hailey's energy with their own Chili's-themed videos on TikTok. Creators have garnered millions of views for taste-testing the Triple Dipper, which includes three portions of menu items, like fried mozzarella, chicken tenders, egg rolls, and more for under $20. They can pair it with a margarita for less than $10.

Chili's 3 For Me deal, which includes a main dish, an appetizer, and a drink for $10.99, has also offered an affordable eat-in option, Hottovy said. "I could pay a [fast-food] price, or I could pay or get effectively an even cheaper deal at Chili's and get a nice sit-down meal," he said.

Chili's parent company, Brinker International, reported a 7.4% increase in same-store sales at Chili's in 2024; sales jumped 14% on the same basis in the first quarter of fiscal 2025.

In April, Chili's added a burger to the entrée options for 3 For Me. In May, visits to the restaurant chain jumped nearly 20% year-over-year and grew by similar percentages through the end of 2024, according to data from Placer.ai.

The deal was successful enough that some of Chili's rivals followed suit, Hottovy said. In November, Applebee's started offering a $9.99 deal with a choice between a chicken sandwich and a bacon cheeseburger plus fries and a beverage. Red Robin offered a burger plus a bottomless side for $9.99 for a few days in September for National Cheeseburger Day.

But "sometimes, you need to have a margarita and Triple Dipper in sweatpants with your friends," Hailey said.

Do you work at Chili's or another restaurant and have a story idea to share? Reach out to these reporters at [email protected] and [email protected].

• The author is a California native who grew up witnessing reoccurring wildfires.
• She moved to Indiana due to rampant West Coast wildfires and climate change concerns.
• She's urged her friends and family to leave California as well and doesn't plan on returning.

When I graduated from high school in 2004, there were over 8,000 wildfires across California.

I was born and raised in Southern California, and I've experienced more than my fair share of wildfires. In fact, it's one of the major reasons I left and continue to call Indiana home. I've toyed with the idea of returning someday, but the constant fires — and larger climate change and land mismanagement problems — keep me from buying property there.

I've urged my family and friends from high school to leave, but California can be a bubble. When life is good, no one sees the problems: the increase in homelessness, traffic, etc.

California wildfires have always been a part of my adult life

In 2009, when I graduated from UCLA, over 9,000 wildfires burned across the region from February through November, well beyond the typical fire season. It was worsened by years of drought.

That summer, I watched billows of smoke rise above the skyscrapers in the deadliest fire of the season, the Station Fire, north of LA, before we were all urged to hop into gridlock to evacuate. It was hellish: choking smoke and nowhere to go on the 110 freeway.

In 2018, wildfires struck again. This time my family had moved to Irvine, California, and I was on a date at a Barnes and Noble in Aliso Viejo. My date and I were suddenly urged to drop everything. Fleeing the parking lot, I snapped a quick picture of smoke in the distance, burning dangerously close to Soka University, where I used to teach.

That evening, lying in bed, I felt like I couldn't breathe. My family members felt the same, and later, we installed the highest-quality HEPA filters we could find and portable ones we could move throughout the house.

I left California and moved to Indiana

I moved to Southern Indiana a year prior, in 2017, and still live here now. As a freelance writer of home tours, I encounter many ex-Californians living here and in the Midwest more generally. Concerns about climate change and the fires that result from it are at the top of our list for moving away.

Californians seem to be moving to Indiana and Michigan for access to clean water at the Great Lakes — but that's just my pet theory.

The cost of living is much lower here than in California, and I really feel like I'm a part of a community. People tend to know their neighbors, and there's much less sprawl, so there are plenty of green spaces and state forests to wander in.

Still, Indiana is a more rural state, so everyday conveniences can be difficult to find outside the major cities like Indianapolis and Fort Wayne — there's no Starbucks on every corner.

I love visiting California, but I'd never buy property there

This year, the Palisades fire was projected to be the costliest in California's history. I'm frustrated with the state's wildfire strategy, which has prioritized fire suppression over prevention for years.

Though millions of dollars are spent on California fire prevention, efforts like removing dead and felled trees aren't enough in the face of climate change, which has lengthened the state's dry season.

What's more, places like LA are experiencing budget cuts that impact emergency responses to natural disasters, and it's unclear if fire insurance requirements will hold in urban areas that have been densified to meet housing demands.

Based on my experiences, I believe California's fire season will only grow and worsen

I'm not surprised to hear about the fire hydrants running dry in Los Angeles. SoCal gets much of its water from the Colorado River — which has been drying up of late. Every year SoCal experiences more water cuts.

In the early 2000s, we were asked not to water our lawns, and starting in 2022, businesses were forbidden from watering decorative grasses. The lack of fresh water is a real problem making the fire season worse.

I miss seeing my family, but for all these reasons and more, I'm hesitant to move back to California.

If you moved away from your hometown and would like to share your story, please email Manseen Logan at [email protected].

• Karen Windsor, 37, struggled with burnout as a new mom.
• Counseling sessions and a couple's retreat helped her reassess her priorities.
• She recently quit her corporate job to focus on her relationship with her husband and daughter.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Karen Windsor, 37, from Perth, Australia. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I've always been high-achieving and a hard worker. I expected that I would approach motherhood like every other challenge.

As many new parents will tell you, it was anything but easy. That came as a shock.

In 2018, just after I had her, my baby daughter wouldn't let me put her down. My husband had to go away to work in the mines for weeks before she was a month old — he was a "fly in, fly out" miner. When he returned, she wouldn't even go to him.

It was heartbreaking and exhausting. She was a terrible sleeper, and I was desperate for a break. I asked him to stop working away from home, so he switched roles to a similar job closer to home.

Yet I still really struggled. I'd excelled at every other job, but I felt I was failing at this one.

I went back to work and quickly felt burnout

Returning to work when my daughter was 8 months old felt easier than the uncertainty of being a new mom. I loved having adult conversations and an actual lunch in peace — "me time."

I also knew if I was given a task in my corporate role as a personal assistant, I'd have clearly measured deliverables and positive feedback for doing a good job. But things were still extremely difficult. As we were approaching my daughter's second birthday, I broke down to my mom. I remember saying, "It's all just too hard."

I was scared that the next two years would be like the last two and that I would feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and inadequate. It was then that I realized something was very wrong; it wasn't OK to feel like this. I saw my doctor and booked free counseling via my workplace's employer assistance program.

Counseling sessions helped me put things in perspective

From my first session, everything fell into perspective. The counselor said, "You've set exhaustingly high expectations for yourself." I realized that while working long hours in my corporate job, my family got the worst of me and I wasn't taking care of myself, either. By the evenings and weekends, I had no energy left to truly connect. I'd feel resentful if my daughter didn't sleep and get grumpy with her because it meant I was too tired to bring my A-game to work.

Whenever I sat down to play with her, I had too little energy to be present or enjoy it. Life admin overwhelmed me. I wasn't emotionally available or patient enough to have deep conversations with my husband or even ask him how his week had been.

Counseling made me realize I was showing signs of burnout. I initially reduced my long hours in my corporate job, and my fantastic boss agreed to let me work five fewer hours each week.

During that time, I'd prioritize things like acupuncture or taking the dog for a walk with my husband. But we still needed to rekindle the spark we had previously had in our relationship; we still felt slightly out of sync.

A couple's retreat that helped me reconnect with my husband

I saw a relationship coach advertise a nearby couple's retreat, and it felt perfect. It was less of a long-term commitment than couple's counseling and still an opportunity to reconnect.

On the retreat, we did a breathwork session to release tension and wrote goals and a vision for our relationship. We had to look into each other's eyes for five minutes, then hug for five minutes. I couldn't remember the last time we'd done that; I felt oxytocin travel through my body. We also had an ice bath together, holding hands through it, to symbolize how we'd face upcoming challenges. By the end, we felt invincible.

As I started implementing some things from the retreat — turning off the TV and chatting instead, having more date nights with my husband, and setting my phone to "do not disturb" earlier in the evening — I realized how much I'd been missing out on, and I dropped down to three working days a week.

After a comment from my daughter, I decided to leave the corporate world

The crunch point came when my then-5-year-old daughter asked me if I could stay off my phone during her swimming lesson and watch her instead. That hit me hard. I'd been using the time to pay household bills, and I realized how much my focus on work and getting life admin jobs done had impacted my relationships. I felt like I should always be doing something to be productive; the curse of a working mom.

For the past year, I've taken advantage of my part-time schedule and have started building a flexible business as a freelance PR agent. Initially, it was actually more work while I kept the two jobs going. But I kept my eye on the long game: having the flexibility and independence to step back and work for myself.

This month, I permanently quit my corporate job and I now work for myself with flexible hours.

I'll finally be able to prioritize self-care, which has been a low priority for years. I hope my new schedule will make me a more relaxed and present mom and wife. In the afternoon, I'll bake cookies and play in the park. No more picking my daughter up late from after-school care and racing home at 5 p.m. just in time for the rush of dinner, bath, and bed.

I can't get the past six years back, but I'm committed to making the next six years and beyond better for my daughter, husband, and family.

I've learned that you can have it all, just not all at once.

• Bill Gates is the co-founder of Microsoft and one of the wealthiest men in the world.
• Gates was a software genius who dropped out of Harvard to launch a wildly successful career in tech.
• He now spends much of his time on philanthropy through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bill Gates is perhaps best known as one of the wealthiest people in the world, becoming the first-ever centibillionaire in 1999 at the height of his Microsoft career.

But wealth is hardly all that defines this complex, accomplished, and immensely influential man, whose other titles rightly include philanthropist, entrepreneur, software developer, father, and occasional lightning rod for controversy.

Understanding Bill Gates as a whole requires looking at the varied aspects of his life more closely, and then stitching together a portrait of the legendary Microsoft CEO, co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and generally peerless man whose efforts have shaped much of the latter decades of the 20^th century and the early decades of the 21^st.

Gates' childhood and early years

Gates, 69, was born in the autumn of 1955 in Seattle, Washington. He was the only son in the family, with a sister named Kristianne who is one year older, and another sister, Libby, who is nine years younger.

Gates' childhood fostered his love of technology. He largely eschewed sports and more typical childhood activities, instead taking an early interest in technology. He wrote his first lines of code while still a young teen; it was a software program that allowed a human to face off against a computer playing tic-tac-toe.

By the time Bill Gates was in high school at Lakeside Prep School, he was writing code for the school itself and was soon working with the Computer Center Corporation, a local business in Seattle that offered users time on their computers, personal computers still being a thing of the future. (Gates was briefly banned from the CCC for sneaking in lines of code that granted him extended free time using the machines.)

Bill Gates would go on to matriculate at Harvard University in the fall of 1973, but he would not finish his college degree.

The foundation and growth of Microsoft

In January of 1975, Gates and fellow software genius and childhood friend Paul Allen moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to work for the company Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems, Inc. (MITS), a company that was just beginning to create PCs (personal computers). Gates managed to convince the executives he and Allen could create software for their new hardware.

That role did not last long. Later that same year, Gates and Allen founded their own company, named for "microcomputer" and "software," known today as Microsoft.

Microsoft relocated to Bellevue, Washington, in 1979, and in 1980, the company made a deal with tech juggernaut IBM to develop an operating system for the company's first consumer-ready PC. The MS-DOS 1.0 OS was released in the summer of the following year.

Then, just four years later, in 1985, Microsoft released the first version of its now vaunted Windows OS. New versions of Windows would come out every few years from that point on, and it has grown so dominant that nearly three-quarters of the world's computers run Windows.

Allen departed from Microsoft for medical reasons in 1983 (though he would live another quarter of a century), while Gates would remain the CEO until the summer of 2008, when he voluntarily stepped down from the leading role of the company he had grown into a company that would enjoy revenues of more than $60 billion that same year.

Gates' post-Microsoft career and philanthropy

When Gates stepped down as CEO of Microsoft, he stepped up as the co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the charitable organization he and his then wife Melinda Gates had founded in the year 2000. (The foundation was a revamp of the organization Gates had established in 1994 under the name the William H. Gates Foundation.)

The BMFG is a nonprofit with global reach that happens to make a tidy profit, thanks in no small part to its massive holdings of Microsoft stock. The foundation has offices around the world and is, in words from its own site: "Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives."

The BMGF funds research into the fight against malnutrition, malaria, gender inequality, to name a few, and in support of causes such as agricultural development, clean water programs, and much more.

The foundation has an endowment of more than $75 billion and planned to spend a staggering $8.6 billion on philanthropic work in the year 2024. Bill Gates has donated an estimated $36 billion-plus of his own fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Gates' relationships and friendships

Bill Gates married Melinda French Gates, whose maiden name was Melinda Ann French, on New Year's Day in 1994 on the Hawaiian island of Lanai. The couple met at work, Melinda being a Microsoft employee, though she departed the company in 1996 to focus on family and, soon, on charitable work.

The Gates have three children together and would remain married until their divorce on August 2, 2021, after a span of 27 years. The reasons for the divorce were several, one reportedly being that Gates spent one weekend each year vacationing with (and possibly physically involved with, though this was always denied) an ex-girlfriend, Ann Winblad. This was an arrangement Melinda Gates tacitly approved, though with displeasure.

The largest issue, and indeed the thing that finally compelled Melinda French Gates to end the union, was Bill Gates' regular association with Jeffrey Epstein the financier, convicted sex offender, and accused trafficker who died by suicide in his New York City jail cell in 2019.

Gates is currently in a relationship with Paula Hurd, who was born in 1962 and is seven years his junior. Hurd, formerly married to the late Co-CEO of Oracle Corporation Mark Hurd, has two adult daughters and works primarily coordinating and planning large-scale philanthropic events.

Gates and Hurd had been known to be in a relationship since early 2023, but were not to appear together at a major public event until April of the following year, when they accompanied one another to a major red carpet event.

Melinda French Gates, for her part, was reportedly briefly in a relationship with a Fox News correspondent named Jon Du Pre, but the pair are no longer together.

Another contentious relationship — one that likewise soured after many years — is Gates' friendship with billionaire Warren Buffett. The two men were on close terms for decades, with their relationship going beyond mere affinity. Gates joined the board of Buffett's investment firm, Berkshire Hathaway, in 2004 and would remain on it until 2020.

Buffett, for his party, was a trustee on the board of the BMGF from 2006 until 2021. He stepped away and also went cold on Gates for reasons rather in line with his divorce: Buffett was deeply troubled by the association of Gates with Epstein. He had also come to dislike the growing bureaucracy of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and was off-put by how rude Gates could often be to others.

There are also some wild conspiracy theories about Bill Gates, such as that he was behind a scheme to place microchips into COVID-19 vaccines, that Gates wanted to do away with the American cattle industry and instead compel people to eat insects, and that a fund backed by Gates that was developing a new way to produce baby formula has led to a nationwide baby formula shortage.

There is, of course, no evidence to support any of these plots and plenty of common sense to debunk them, but these wild theories and others abound nonetheless

Bill Gates' net worth and land

Bill Gates' net worth can change by the millions in any given day as markets rise and fall, but it is usually near $160 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. That places him in the bottom half of the top 10 richest people in the world. As noted, he achieved the top title in 1995 and maintained it most years up until 2017.

Gates has less wealth today largely because he has given so much of it away in the name of philanthropy.

Today, Bill Gates' primary property is a 66,000 square foot mansion in Medina, Washington, which is just east of Seattle, across Lake Washington. Construction took seven years and involved a team of 300 workers. There are six kitchens and 24 bathrooms.

Gates also owns vast swathes of farmland, totaling approximately 275,000 acres. For comparison, all five boroughs of New York City cover just 193,700 acres. During a Reddit Q&A session (called an "AMA" for "ask me anything"), Gates explained the massive holdings, saying: "I own less than 1/4000 of the farmland in the US. I have invested in these farms to make them more productive and create more jobs. There isn't some grand scheme involved - in fact all these decisions are made by a professional investment team."

Gates' lifestyle, hobbies, and beliefs

Gates, who has a 2,500-square-foot gym in his mansion, is a firm believer in the benefits of exercise. He reportedly works out for at least an hour every day, whether running, swimming, playing tennis, or doing strength training. He is also reportedly a fan of pickleball.

While he grew up attending a Protestant Reformed church, Gates seemed drawn to the Catholic church in the 2010s, largely because of Melinda. These days, he seems to skew agnostic, with religion not playing much of a role in his life.

Books, however, play a huge role. Gates has claimed he reads up to 50 books a year. And he also collects rare books, such as a manuscript created by Leonardo da Vinci for which he paid well over $30 million.

Like many other billionaires and tech moguls, Gates collects cars, and has a 23-car garage at his Washington home. His collection is filled with high-end sports cars and luxury vehicles alike. And, apparently, a blue Ford Focus.

• Gen Z and millennials keep buying plushies, or stuffed animals in a boost for the toy market.
• A Mintel analyst said plushies are "kind of hot right now."
• Adults spent more than $1.5 billion on toys for themselves in the fourth quarter of 2024, Circana found.

Gen Z and millennials' love of plushies is bringing some cheer to the toy industry.

Young adults adore their stuffed animals, whether they're hanging onto the battered old ones from their childhood, buying a viral 5ft goose on TikTok shop, or spending a premium to add to their collections of Squishmallows.

A recent Jellycat pop-up in the London department store Selfridges was filled with patrons buying fuzzy $25 or more versions of cod and fries, mimicking a British fish and chip shop, The Economist reported. In Asia, a furry, spikey-toothed rabbit creature called Labubu has a hold over people well into their 30s.

This comes amid struggles for the toy sector.

A report by the market research company Circana found that toy sales across the G12 nations declined by 1% in the first half of 2024. That was an improvement on the 8% decrease in 2023, which Circana credited to purchases being made by adults — for themselves.

The report found that people aged 18 and over accounted for sales worth more than $1.5 billion in the last three months of 2024, putting them ahead of purchases made for toddlers aged 3 to 5 as the industry's most important age group.

Juli Lennett, Circana's vice president and toy industry advisor, said in a statement that "while the toy industry is feeling the heat, it is ripe with opportunity."

Mintel's Traditional Toys and Games report, published in October 2024, found that plushies were particularly in demand. The report found that stuffed toy sales have been growing, and just over a third of all toys and games purchased in the US in the past year were building sets and plush toys.

Brian Benway, the senior tech and gaming analyst who worked on the report, told Business Insider plushies are "kind of hot right now."

He said plushies are "tracking right along with Lego and building-set type of toys and games. Lego, of course, is a huge brand in the toys and games industry, so to see plushies up there with Lego is very positive for them."

Spark nostaglia

Melissa Symonds, executive director of UK toys at Circana, told BBC News that adults buy toys for the "positive mental health benefits, as they spark nostalgia and bring escapism from global turmoil."

A more cynical outlook is that some millennials and Gen Zers are slow to grow up, partly because they faced delays in reaching pivotal life moments such as getting a job, moving out of their parents' homes, and buying a house. For them, plushie collecting is merely a coping mechanism.

Carter Kench, a content creator and avid Squishmallows collector, told The Washington Post in 2023 that he owned more than 400 of the round stuffed animals made by Jazwares. The company was bought by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway in 2022.

Kench said the experience of searching for a specific plushie was "something special — I feel like Indiana Jones every time I'm on the hunt."

Data from Mintel showed that 52% of all people buying games last year were adults buying for themselves.

'Little bit of happiness'

"It's becoming more acceptable," Benway said, with communities on social media being more open about sharing their interests.

"A lot of people are taking the approach that, well, I don't care if other people think this is dumb, this brings me a little bit of happiness, a little bit of joy, so I'm going to keep doing it."

Benway added: "Lady Gaga posted a picture of her bed just absolutely covered in Squishmallows on Instagram. So if Lady Gaga can do that, anybody can."

A report by Grand View Research found the global market for stuffed animals and plush toys is expected to grow 8.2% annually until 2030. Sales of cartoon toys catering to fandoms are predicted to rise even more, with a 9.8% annual increase.

• Wildfires are ravaging the Los Angeles area, spreading rapidly due to dry and windy conditions.
• The fires have burned through more than 39,000 acres. Officials report that at least 16 people have died.
• Analysts estimate damages caused by the fires may top $50 billion — breaking previous state records.

Across Los Angeles, a series of wildfires fanned by the powerful Santa Ana winds have been leveling homes in the area for nearly a week, leaving a path of record-breaking destruction in their wake.

The largest of the fires, ripping through the wealthy enclave of the Pacific Palisades, is just 11% contained as of early Sunday morning, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire). It is moving toward the densely populated neighborhood of Encino in the San Fernando Valley. About 30 miles northeast, the Eaton Fire, which is 15% contained, is threatening the city of Altadena.

Nearly 40,000 acres have burned in four separate blazes, and the LA County Medical Examiner has reported 16 deaths related to the fires so far.

At least 153,000 residents have been ordered to evacuate the area and another 166,000 have been warned to be ready to evacuate, Los Angeles Sheriff Robert Luna said during a Saturday morning press conference.

"Critical fire weather conditions are predicted to continue through Wednesday," Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said during the Saturday morning conference. "Moderate to locally strong Santa Ana winds will affect Los Angeles County today, tomorrow, and then again on Monday through Wednesday."

The winds, combined with dry air and dry vegetation, will keep the fire threat in Los Angeles County high through at least the middle of next week, Marrone added.

A representative for the electric services company Southern California Edison said on Saturday afternoon that more than 50,000 residences were without power.

Local water districts have also issued numerous water advisories, warning residents not to drink or use the water, which may be contaminated with debris from the fire. Air pollution levels have also remained high in many parts of the city.

Amid the chaos, residents have also been contending with opportunistic looters burglarizing empty properties, inaccurate evacuation orders sent out in error through the county's emergency alert system, and rapidly spreading misinformation online regarding the causes of the fire and current evacuation zones.

Analysts from JPMorgan have estimated that the blazes tearing through the region may lead to about $50 billion in total economic losses — including over $20 billion in insured losses, Business Insider previously reported. If the estimates prove to be accurate, the damage caused by the current fires would be significantly more severe than the 2018 Camp Fires, which racked up $10 billion in insured losses.

The state has, in recent years, been subject to a mass exodus of major insurers including State Farm. The company announced in 2023 that it would stop accepting new home insurance policies in California, citing risks from catastrophes.

Palisades Fire

The Palisades fire in the Pacific Palisades area north of Santa Monica has burned through more than 23,000 acres and is 11% contained as of Sunday morning, according to Cal Fire.

The cause of the fire, which started on Tuesday morning, is still under investigation.

Over 5,000 structures have been damaged or destroyed, with 426 homes in Malibu and the Pacific Palisades area confirmed destroyed.

The wealthy enclave houses many celebrities who have lost their homes, including Paris Hilton, Billy Crystal, and Milo Ventimiglia, BI previously reported.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office has reported five deaths related to the Palisades fire so far.

Eaton Fire

The Eaton Fire, which has impacted the Pasadena-Altadena since it began on Tuesday, has now swept through more than 14,000 acres, per Cal Fire. The blaze is 15% contained.

The fire's cause is still under investigation, but the flames have damaged more than 160 structures and destroyed over 1,200 more, per Cal Fire.

Eleven deaths have so far been attributed to the Eaton Fire, per a Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office report.

Other fires

While the Palisades and Eaton fires have grown to be the largest in size, additional smaller fires have been reported throughout the region.

The Hurst Fire, impacting the northern part of the San Fernando Valley, started late Tuesday night and has spread to around 800 acres. According to Cal Fire, it is 76% contained. The evacuation order for the area was lifted on Thursday afternoon, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said on Thursday.

The Kenneth Fire, now 90% contained, has covered just over 1,050 acres across Los Angeles and Ventura counties after starting on Thursday, per Cal Fire. The evacuation orders related to the blaze have been lifted.

Further North, the Lidia Fire broke out Wednesday in the Angeles National Forest and burned 395 acres in three days before being 100% contained, per Cal Fire.

• An RTO push by some employers is leading to logistical challenges and space shortages.
• Many companies cut office space during the pandemic, complicating the return-to-office.
• Still, many CEOs are "ripping that Band-Aid and getting people the heck back in."

You might not have a parking spot or a desk, but you might have a CEO who wants you back in the office anyway.

That's the situation facing some corporate workers who've had a bumpy return-to-office process thanks to logistical hiccups.

Late last year, Amazon delayed RTO requirements for some workers because of a dearth of office space and a need to reconfigure some setups. At AT&T, which has also called workers back, employees at some offices have had trouble snagging workspaces in the new year and have resorted to working in a dining area or at conference tables, BI recently reported.

The push to populate hot desks and cubicles comes as many leaders appear fed up with talking about working from home. Some chiefs might see RTO mandates from high-profile companies like Amazon as the cover they need to issue similar orders. Yet, in the effort to bring workers back, not every office was ready for the influx.

"Towards the end of last year, it became clear that CEOs were just done," Dan Kaplan, senior client partner at the recruiting firm Korn Ferry, told BI.

However, he said, some organizations didn't do sufficient prep work to call everyone back — especially after cutting office space during the depths of the pandemic when those who could do so logged on from home.

Now, Kaplan said, for some CEOs, the thinking goes, "We'll clean up the mess later, but for now, we are ripping that Band-Aid and getting people the heck back in the office, come hell or high water," he said.

AI could be adding uncertainty

Some employers are shifting back to the office even as they don't know how much space they'll ultimately need in the next few years because artificial intelligence could one day replace some workers, Dan Root, head of global strategic alliances at Barco ClickShare, which makes tech used in office meeting rooms, said.

"That starts to really make you question, 'OK, well, how much square footage am I going to be committing to?'" he told BI.

Last week, the World Economic Forum reported that in a survey of companies worldwide, 41% said they planned to cut their workforce during the next five years in instances where AI could take on the work.

Another challenge: Some employers adjusted for hybrid setups — and added places for couches and other amenities to draw workers back to the office — that worked well when offices weren't always fully staffed. Yet now that more workers are coming back, space can be tight.

Nick Romito, CEO of VTS, a commercial real estate technology firm, told BI that two to two-and-a-half years ago, many employers looking for office space might have been shopping for less square footage than they'd need to accommodate a full staff. Many employers optimized for hybrid, yet that only works if people don't show up at the same time.

"People trying to adjust for that a few years ago has now hurt them," he said. "They took 10,000 feet when they really needed 15,000."

Employers are catching up

An AT&T spokesman told BI that the company is "constantly enhancing" its facilities to make them desirable and ensure workers have what they need. Office seating for 70% to 80% of employees is an industry standard, given the variables that can affect attendance on any given day, they said.

AT&T is "quickly working through the challenges in select locations so the rest of our employees are best positioned to support their coworkers," the spokesperson said.

An Amazon spokesperson told BI that as of last week, the "overwhelming majority" of its workers had dedicated workspaces and have returned to the office full time. Among Amazon's hundreds of offices globally, "only a relatively small number" aren't yet ready for workers to return five days a week, the spokesperson said.

One reason some CEOs might feel comfortable calling workers back to the office is that while the overall US jobless rate remains low, it's often still a challenging job market for white-collar workers.

The difficulty many might face in finding other work could mean they're at the mercy of their employer's plans, Dan Schawbel, managing partner of the research firm Workplace Intelligence, told BI.

"They might have no choice but to return to the office," he said, though added that in some cases, workers won't be able to comply because of family circumstances or owning a home too far from the office.

Worksites could get crowded if more workers comply with RTO orders than employers might have expected.

"Strategic companies have made these calculations, but there is room for error," Schawbel said.

If workers do quit because they're unhappy with the RTO, Korn Ferry's Kaplan said, it's an easy way for employers to reduce costs without generating negative headlines around job cuts or incurring related expenses like severance or extended benefits.

"For some of them, it's a free layoff," he said.

Do you have something to share about your RTO experience? Business Insider would like to hear from you. Email our workplace team from a nonwork device at [email protected] with your story, or to ask for one of our reporter's Signal numbers.

• Park City ski patrollers reached a deal with Vail Resorts on January 8 after a labor strike.
• Ski patrollers told BI they must work multiple jobs to survive in mountain resort towns.
• Seasoned patrollers say they may change jobs due to unsustainable wages and steep living expenses.

Days after a historic labor strike in Park City ended, America's ski patrollers are caught between their love of the slopes and the steep price of mountain resort living.

Kali Flaherty, for example, doubts she will ever own a home.

The 26-year-old works full-time in ski patrol at Colorado's Arapahoe Basin. For the past three winters, she has kept trails clear, stabilized injured skiers and snowboarders, helped prevent avalanches, and trained rookie patrollers.

Flaherty said it's her "dream job." But her $23 hourly pay isn't enough to cover living expenses, and she works shifts at a nearby healthcare clinic to make ends meet. She rents an apartment with a few roommates in Breckenridge, about 20 miles from Arapahoe Basin.

Like many ski patrollers, Flaherty is in a bind. The cost of living in resort towns like Breckenridge, Vail, Aspen, and Park City continues to skyrocket, pushing out the employees who keep them operational. Being close to these areas is also key for employees because of high commuting costs and dangerous winter road conditions. Several patrollers told Business Insider that they struggle to afford housing, groceries, and gas, let alone build savings. Some expect they will have to switch industries for higher-paying work, and many current patrollers work multiple jobs to stay afloat.

These financial challenges have culminated in labor disputes. On January 8, Vail Resorts granted the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association a $2 raise for entry-level patrollers — from a $21 hourly pay floor to a $23 hourly pay floor — and agreed to improve benefits . The deal followed a weekslong patroller strike during the busy holiday season.

Meanwhile, ski patrollers at Arapahoe Basin, where Flaherty works, are voting to formalize their union this month. Several other patroller groups at Vail Resorts and Alterra Mountain Company-owned mountains have unionized or taken collective action in the past few years.

Flaherty wants to be a ski patroller for her entire career — but she said it comes with sacrifices. She hopes Park City's contract helps make it possible for employees like her to build financially stable lives near resort towns.

"I don't see myself being able to buy property up here, which is always the dream," she said. "I would love to not be living with roommates my entire life, but the way that I make money as a patroller now, that's my reality."

Representatives for Vail and Alterra — the parent organizations of the ski resorts where the patrollers BI interviewed work — did not respond to comment requests.

Ski patrollers are facing steep expenses and low wages

The average ski patroller makes $21.56 an hour, per the job platform Indeed. Compensation varies based on years of experience, level of medical training, and safety certifications, said the ski patrollers Business Insider interviewed. For example, an EMT or paramedic license might add a few dollars to patrollers' wages. Patrollers' benefits vary by resort, though most receive free lift tickets — which can range from $120 to $300 a day — as part of their role.

For many patrollers, finding affordable housing in the markets where they work is challenging. The five patrollers BI spoke with rent with several roommates, or have to commute long distances to work. The median monthly rent in a town like Breckenridge is $5,000, per Zillow, a price that exceeds some ski patrollers' total monthly income.

Groceries and gas are also costly in many mountain areas because of limited stores and the high transportation costs for goods. A dozen eggs is just over $4 in Denver, but nearly $7 in Breckenridge.

Kyle Eveland, 24, makes $23.28 an hour as a second-year ski patroller at Breckenridge Resort in Colorado. Before he reports to the mountain every morning to set up avalanche mitigation equipment, Eveland said he shovels snow for a nearby property. He works a full-time construction job over the summer, when the ski resort is closed, and recently began a part-time role pumping concrete between his patrol shifts.

"I would love to do what I love every day and take the sacrifice of not making a lot of money doing that," he said, adding "I pretty much live paycheck to paycheck in the winter. It would be super, super tight if I just patrolled."

Right now, Eveland lives in Breckenridge with seven other roommates. He said he took a pay cut when he decided to join ski patrol, despite the job requiring significant training. He previously worked at Breckenridge as a chairlift operator. Eveland said he may need to leave his patrolling job if he wants to afford a down payment or support a family in the future.

"I got my EMT license and that got me a single dollar raise," he said.

Tate Finigan's experience is similar. The 26-year-old recently began his third season as a ski patroller in Park City. Finigan commutes from Salt Lake City, over a 30-mile drive, every day because he can't afford housing in Park City. When he's not on the mountain, Finigan babysits and walks dogs, and previously picked up shifts as a bartender.

"It's been really hard to try and live in this community that we all so badly want to be a part of," he said.

In a profession that relies on experience, seasoned patrollers aren't sure they can stay

Ski patrolling requires specialized skills: sharp ski competence, outdoor survival and avalanche certifications, and medical expertise. The ski patrollers BI interviewed said that this experience is honed over time, meaning that seasoned patrollers are often best at training rookies and handling on-mountain crises.

Mike Reilly, 33, has been a ski patroller at Park City for six years. He cares about his job, but he isn't sure how long he will remain on staff. Each year, Reilly said it becomes more challenging to pay his bills — even with his second job as a barista. Reilly said that cost of living challenges mean many experienced ski patrollers like him are considering leaving for second, more lucrative careers. He recently finished nursing school.

"I went to nursing school, but that was really out of desperation," he said. "I would much rather patrol and remain a career-patroller, if that meant I could afford to pay rent and not work 20 days in a row."

Max Magill is a 10-year ski patroller at Park City and president of United Mountain Workers, a union that represents ski patrollers, lift mechanics, and other resort employees across the Western US. He told BI that efforts to raise patroller wages are happening across America's ski industry because the job isn't financially sustainable long-term. After a decade in the job, Magill said he's still working side gigs and living paycheck to paycheck.

"The operation of big Western ski resorts with avalanche terrain really does hinge on the work of these experienced ski patrollers," he said. "The guest experience would be completely different if there were not experienced ski patrollers being retained at these resorts."

After the Park City deal was struck, Magill said in a press statement that "the victory will help raise employment standards for all ski industry employees."

To be sure, high living expenses impact other mountain employees besides ski patrollers. Reilly said food service, lift operator, lift mechanic, and ticket scanner jobs are also key to keeping resorts open and safe. Many of these employees make similar wages to ski patrollers.

Flaherty isn't sure she can stay on patrol forever, but she's hoping to keep clicking on her skis for as long as she can. It helps to know others in her profession are also working toward a better future.

"Our patrollers have come together more than ever before," she added. "It has created a positive environment to know that we all have each other's backs."

Do you live in or near a resort town? Are you open to sharing how you manage expenses? If so, reach out to this reporter at [email protected].