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- 07/19/18--11:53: _The 20 best college...
- 07/20/18--08:16: _Hollywood insiders ...
- 07/20/18--11:29: _This $530 Android p...
- 07/20/18--11:33: _Uber just hinted it...
- 07/20/18--12:53: _Google's incredible...
- 07/20/18--12:56: _Director James Gunn...
- 07/20/18--13:29: _Krispy Kreme just b...
- 07/20/18--14:08: _People are donating...
- 07/20/18--14:17: _The perfect way to ...
- 07/20/18--14:34: _26 surprising thing...
- 07/21/18--02:06: _The 10 hottest fash...
- 07/21/18--04:00: _Charity's expanding...
- 07/21/18--05:13: _How to build the pe...
- 07/21/18--07:30: _I spent 2 years liv...
- 07/21/18--07:40: _The health war agai...
- 07/21/18--08:30: _A matchmaker says t...
- 07/21/18--09:42: _15 signs you're abo...
- 07/21/18--09:42: _Panera Bread employ...
- 07/21/18--10:45: _New evidence sugges...
- 07/21/18--10:47: _Sales are soaring a...
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- A list from the American Institute for Economic Research ranked top college towns.
- It looked to economic, demographic, and quality-of-life factors.
- Boulder, Colorado was the top-ranked town.
- Comcast announced Thursday that it would not pursue assets of 21st Century Fox, including the Fox movie studio, clearing the way for Disney to acquire them.
- It will change the movie business forever.
- Other movie studios are "clear acquisition targets" that could potentially be merged together, like Disney and Fox, says UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television lecturer and former network television/movie studio head Tom Nunan.
- And for the moviegoer, the Disney/Fox deal's "creative and synergistic possibilities are exciting and truly mind boggling," says Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore.
- Since February, Uber users have been able to book an electric bike through the app. Now the bikes are taking a big chunk out of Uber's core car-ride business.
- An Uber employee published early results of an analysis showing that it booked 10% fewer rides in cars and SUVs in San Francisco after the company got into bike-sharing.
- The data suggests that Uber could be in serious trouble if the emerging scooter-sharing market also cuts into its car-hailing business.
- Disney has fired the director James Gunn from the third "Guardians of the Galaxy" movie because of old offensive tweets of his that recently resurfaced.
- "The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James' Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio's values, and we have severed our business relationship with him," Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn said in a statement.
- Krispy Kreme announced that it had acquired a majority stake in Insomnia Cookies on Friday.
- Insomnia Cookies is now part of JAB Holdings' coffee and café empire, which includes Krispy Kreme, Panera, Au Bon Pain, and Keurig.
- Insomnia Cookies started in 2003 and has since grown to over 135 locations, most of which are near college campuses.
- We visited an Insomnia Cookies location in Manhattan to see what the hype was all about.
- Kylie Jenner, 20, has an estimated net worth of $900 million, according to Forbes.
- A GoFundMe campaign is raising money to help Jenner become the world's youngest billionaire.
- The perfect way to start an email, especially when you're writing to a stranger, is to keep it simple.
- Email greetings you should avoid are ones that could be construed as too casual, too formal, and even insulting.
- Here's how to start an email the right way.
- Success isn't just a result of hard work — it's also a result of seemingly random factors.
- Some, like birth order, are out of your control. Firstborns are likely to earn more than later-born kids as adults.
- Other factors are within your control. For example, bosses look more favorably on employees who show up to work early.
- These shoes can expand five sizes.
- They were created by Kenton Lee with the help of charity Because International.
- Over 175,000 pairs have been given out to children in need.
- The commercial version of the shoe is now available to pre-order.
- For each pair bought, one will be given out.
- A summer capsule wardrobe could help eliminate decision fatigue, save you time in the morning, or just save you some money.
- A capsule wardrobe is a collection of just a few dozen clothing pieces that can be combined to make hundreds of outfits.
- It might make choosing what to wear to work this summer less of a hassle.
- Southeast Asia is home to several fruits that most Americans probably haven't heard of.
- They include the durian — the pungent "king of the fruits" — and the unusual-looking rambutan.
- I compiled 14 of the most bizarre fruits that I tried during my two-year stay in Malaysia.
- Cheese lovers, rejoice.
- There's new evidence that the saturated fat found in cheese, milk, and other kinds of dairy is not tied to an increased risk of heart problems or death from any cause.
- The study falls in line with increasing evidence that the fat in our diets is not the villain when it comes to negative health outcomes and weight gain.
- If you're looking for a relationship, tell your friends and ask them to set you up.
- That's advice from Miami-based matchmaker Claudia Duran.
- Research suggests most people still met through friends as of 2010, and our friends can sometimes know us better than we know ourselves.
- If you've been working towards getting a promotion at work, you're probably wondering what are the signs your boss wants to promote you?
- Sudden invitations to meetings and lunches you were previously excluded from could be indications you're about to be promoted.
- Keep an eye out for a combination of these and other signs to know if you're being groomed for promotion.
- Panera Bread's menu looks like a lot at first glance.
- The chain boasts everything from soups to salads to sandwiches. And then there's the bread, too.
- A number of current and former employees have posted about their favorite orders on social media.
- Business Insider also spoke with a number of current and former employees about their favorite menu options.
- Here are their recommendations for your next Panera Bread run.
- Vitamins and supplements are a roughly $37 billion industry, but new research suggests they're mostly useless.
- A crop of fresh studies looking at multivitamins and vitamins B, C, and D have concluded that for most people, they do little to no good.
- Still, some specific vitamins can be helpful for people with specific health conditions.
- When Meghan Markle or Kate Middleton wear a new item in public, it's not uncommon for it to sell out almost immediately.
- Canadian retailer Aritzia told investors that it had experienced a boost in sales in the first quarter after Markle had been photographed wearing its clothing.
- "By all accounts, Meghan remains a huge fan of Aritzia," the store's CEO and founder, Brian Hill, said during a call with investors.
Boulder, Colorado, is the top-ranked college town in the US, according to a list from the American Institute for Economic Research.
The city of roughly 200,000 (for its metro area population) earned the top spot thanks to its accessibility — more than 20% of commuters take public transportation or cycle around Boulder Creek Corridor — and diverse and educated population. Boulder also has an active bar-and-restaurant scene, with plenty of coffee shops and microbreweries.
AIER compiled its list using nine economic, demographic, and quality-of-life factors. It defines college towns as having fewer than 250,000 residents.
Aside from the overall ranking, we included cities' individual scores for noteworthy metrics including rent, earnings, and bars and restaurants. We chose the one metric where the city scored the highest out of the nine.
Scroll through to find out the 20 best college towns.
SEE ALSO: The 11 best colleges for business majors
20. Bellingham, Washington — home of Western Washington University
Metro area population: 208,832
College student population in the metro area: 24,926
No. 4 in arts and entertainment
19. La Crosse, Wisconsin — home of the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse
Metro area population: 136,824
College student population in the metro area: 16,081
No. 1 in youth unemployment
18. Jacksonville, North Carolina — home of the University of Mount Olive
Metro area population: 186,684
College student population in the metro area: 15,297
No. 3 in rent
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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With the news on Thursday that Comcast is stepping aside in trying to buy assets from 21st Century Fox, including its movie studio, it now seems to be smooth sailing for Disney to move forward and take the pieces off Fox's hands.
Back in December, after months of speculation, Disney announced that it had agreed to acquire the Fox studio and a large portion of its television production for $52.4 billion. Recently, Comcast swooped in with its own offer for the Fox assets (excluding Fox News and Fox Business channels). This led to Disney raising its offer to $71.3 billion. Comcast has now cut bait to put its focus on buying the European broadcast company, Sky.
With Fox under the Disney umbrella, the studio Walt Disney created goes from being the most envious in the movie industry to now becoming an unimaginable Goliath. Not only does it beef up Disney's Marvel Studios with the addition of the likes of the X-Men and Deadpool characters, which are currently Fox's big moneymakers, but it also brings countless options of content for Disney's upcoming streaming service with its pick of everything from family-friendly fare like "The Greatest Showman," to prestige dramas from the Fox Searchlight library, which released last year's best picture Oscar winner, "The Shape of Water."
If you combined the 2018 box office market share for both Disney and Fox, it's close to 50%.
It's another win for Disney CEO Bob Iger, and it will add to a legacy that is becoming one of the most successful Hollywood has ever seen.
"In terms of the history of the Walt Disney Company, there's no question that Bob Iger has really done more for that company than perhaps any other individual — even more than Walt Disney," Tom Nunan, UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television lecturer and former network television/movie studio head, told Business Insider. "If you think about the number of characters and franchises that Iger has brought under the same umbrella. Disney himself built it on the shoulders of a little mouse, and that's spectacular. But it's nothing compared to the acquisition of Pixar, Lucasfilm, Marvel, and now the acquisition of Fox. There's just been no comparable experience in the history of Hollywood in terms of a series of success under one individual. It's a tremendous story."
But for a business that's lived on being reactionary, the merging of Disney and Fox has set the stage for an overhaul of Hollywood, in an even more visible way than has already been happening under the surface.
The "big six" — Disney, Fox, Sony, Paramount, Warner Bros., and Universal — have never been shy about making major deals with huge conglomerates. Universal is under the Comcast umbrella. Just recently, AT&T bought Time Warner for $85 billion, giving the large wireless carrier the Warner Bros. studio as well as all the binge-worthy content on HBO. But the studios have never swallowed each other until now. And don't be surprised if you see more deals like the Disney/Fox one in the future.
"There's no doubt that the big acquisition targets seem to be Paramount, Sony, and Lionsgate," Nunan said. "All three of those companies for a variety of different reasons are clear acquisition targets in this market. But in a world of Google, Amazon, and Apple any of these 20th Century-created entertainment giants could possibly get picked off by 21st Century technology wizards."
And that's the reality of today's Hollywood. The magic is no longer created on movie studio lots. It hasn't been for some time. The Disney/Fox deal proves that most of the business is spread out to many other entities, leaving the "big six" as dinosaurs only good at doing one thing.
"They really are just blockbuster movie companies and that's a very small list of people who actually know how to make and produce those movies," Nunan said, noting the emergence of Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu as major employers in Hollywood. And then there's Lionsgate, Annapurna Pictures (which recently took the domestic franchise rights of James Bond from Sony), and STX Entertainment.
"That's become a smaller part of the overall employment in Hollywood," he said of the big studios. "I don't think we should get our violins out too soon to grieve the loss of that. It's really such a tiny part of the overall food chain that exists in the entertainment industry."
But for moviegoers, Disney bringing in Fox leads to more content than many could have imagined.
It "will essentially combine under one umbrella a very powerful slate of content that will be almost second to none in terms of its creative scope and potential combined revenue market share," Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at comScore, told Business Insider. "The key Fox brands — including of course the all-important 'X-Men,' 'Deadpool,' and 'Fantastic Four' franchises — will be brought into the Disney/Marvel fold and the creative and synergistic possibilities are exciting and truly mind boggling."
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Why the World Cup soccer ball looks so different
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We're at the point where you can buy a premium smartphone for as low as $530 and still get a similar high-end experience as you would on a $1,000 smartphone, and the option to go the less expensive route is more alluring than ever.
One of the biggest deciding factors between cheaper and more expensive smartphones — and even between phones that cost about $700 — is camera performance. The smartphone-camera debate rages on, and it's likely to keep going until smartphone makers can't possibly improve smartphone cameras any further.
This time, I looked at how a $1,000 phone, the iPhone X, compared with one of my favorite Android phones, the $530 OnePlus 6.
With such a massive difference in price tags, you'd image the iPhone X has the better camera. And you'd be right — at least in certain situations. But there were certainly some instances where the OnePlus 6 actually did better than the iPhone X.
Check out how the $530 OnePlus 6 does against a smartphone that's almost twice its price:
Starting off with this view right outside Business Insider's New York offices. The iPhone X's photo is vastly superior. The OnePlus 6 shot captures some glare and looks far too hazy for my taste compared with the iPhone X's.
Without glare, the OnePlus isn't as bad. But the iPhone still takes a better shot with richer colors and contrast.
As for bright colors in bright situations, the OnePlus 6 seems to add too much color saturation and voids some details as a result. The iPhone X takes a great shot here.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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Electric-scooter sharing startups are racing to become as dominant as Uber or Lyft in this wacky and well-funded transportation business that's revolutionizing transit in America.
At the same time, Uber is learning that it may need to end up dominating scooter-sharing, before companies like Bird, Lyft, and Ofo cannibalize its core car-hailing business.
On Thursday, Santosh Rao, a policy researcher at Uber, published a Medium post showing that Uber trips in San Francisco fell 10% overall after the company got into the bike-sharing business in February. During peak traffic hours, Uber trips in cars and SUVs declined as much as 15%.
Mike Dudas, an entrepreneur who previously led mobile business development at Venmo, PayPal, and Google, shared the Medium post in a tweet that's going viral.
According to Dudas, the analysis shows Uber's "core car business would be REKT in dense urban areas by scooters if they didn't own them," in his own words.
Bird and Lime— two scooter-sharing companies that investors say are destined to become the Uber and Lyft of scooter-sharing based on their explosive user growth — are "looking like increasingly brilliant investments and businesses," Dudas said.
Jump, a startup that makes the fire-engine red electric bikes that cover the streets of San Francisco, Chicago, Austin, and Washington, DC, teamed up with Uber in February to let users book rides on its app. Uber later acquired Jump for close to $200 million, giving it skin in the game as consumers tried new modes of transportation.
According to the Uber researcher, the overall number of trips booked on Uber's app increased 15% among "early Jump adopters" — people who averaged at least one trip a week (in an Uber car or on a Jump bike) after their first Jump ride — between February and July in San Francisco.
"The entire increase can be attributed to the use of eBikes," Rao wrote.
He added, "To sum up, eBikes were popular with these early adopters and some Uber trips, especially during congested periods, were replaced by Jump trips. This is a promising early sign of the ability of eBikes to alleviate congestion and reduce car trips. The fact that demand for eBikes is currently constrained by limited supply (there are only 250 Jump bikes in San Francisco) makes this all the more promising."
The post neglected to mention the meteoric rise of scooter-sharing, which could someday cut into Uber's car-hailing business in the same way Jump bikes have. Scooters are good for even shorter trips than the electric bikes, and are one fewer reason to book a car.
Shortly after Jump bikes cropped up on the streets and sidewalks of San Francisco, electric scooters invaded. Hundreds of vehicles covered the city before local officials issued cease-and-desist letters to their operators, forcing a temporary ban.
Twelve companies, including Bird, Lime, Uber (via Jump), and Lyft applied for permits to operate scooters in San Francisco. The city is expected to issue a maximum of five permits, sometime in August, TechCrunch reported on Thursday.
With Uber joining the fray, the company shows it refuses to be left in the dust.
Join the conversation about this story »
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It's time to admit the truth: I'm in love with Google's Pixel 2 smartphone camera.
Admittedly, it's easy to fall in love with. The Pixel 2 camera produces stunning, vibrant, better-than-real-life photos regularly.
The building here, for instance:
In reality, the building was actually darker than in this photo — the Pixel 2's high-dynamic range (HDR) function pulled a wider range of lighting than my own eye was capable of seeing. It also managed to dim the incredibly bright street light and capture the movement of a car speeding past.
And this was all during sunset, when natural lighting conditions are at their worst.
I've been using the Pixel 2 for months now, but spending the last two weeks traveling throughout Israel with Google's flagship phone highlighted to me just how incredibly impressive the Pixel 2's camera is. Let's get into it.
SEE ALSO: 6 months later, Google's Pixel 2 is still one of the best phones in the world
The Pixel 2 camera captures an incredible level of detail.
Looking to see individual strands of ground chickpea in your falafel photos? Look no further than the Pixel 2.
I take a lot of food photos. I have an Instagram account dedicated primarily to food and travel photos.
I cook a lot. I eat a lot. I care deeply about taking pretty photos of food — probably more than I should. And the Pixel 2 makes it incredibly easy to take gorgeous photos of food.
Just look at the shots of falafel from famed Tel Aviv spot Hakosem. I was already freaking out because I was handed free, fresh falafel to eat while standing in line to order — and seeing that my phone camera was able to capture the crispy, dark exterior and the creamy, spice-flecked, bright green interior of said falafel was a tremendous bonus.
That stunning level of detail applies to most lighting conditions.
I shot this photo from within a dark, unlit ruin — Masada, the over 2,000 year old fortress left by King Herod the Great. Outside of the ruin, around 7 in the morning, the desert sun had just begun filling the valley.
Yet, remarkably, this photo captures the stunning detail of the rocks inside as well as the mountains (and Dead Sea) in the distance. I didn't doctor the brightness settings; this is a completely untouched photo.
If anything, the quality is slightly lower than the original photo — I'm slightly dropping the quality from the originals here to make the files smaller (so this article doesn't take forever to load). And the photos still look this good!
The range of colors, while still retaining remarkable levels of detail, is incredibly impressive.
I came away from photos like this marveling at the Pixel 2's ability.
Smartphone cameras aren't ususally able to capture remarkable views like the one above. What often happens is you see an incredible view, attempt to capture it in a photo, and fail miserably. It crops a section, or the lighting is all wrong, or whatever else — the essence of the gorgeous view is lost in translation from reality to digital.
In the case of the Pixel 2 camera, even without taking a panorama shot (which you can do!), photographs of landscapes like the one above are remarkable. The subtle bokeh effect in the foreground, the depth of lighting in the rocks on the left side, and the hazy beauty of the background — to say nothing of the fuzzy, luminous sun and its reflection on the Dead Sea — was all done automatically.
I pointed, framed the shot, and clicked. The Pixel 2 did the rest.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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The "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchise writer-director James Gunn has been fired by Disney after old offensive tweets of his resurfaced this week.
"The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James' Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio's values, and we have severed our business relationship with him," Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn said in a statement to Business Insider.
Gunn was writing the script for the third "Guardians" movie, which was set to begin shooting in the fall with a 2020 release date.
Gunn's offensive tweets, mostly from 2010 and 2011, were brought to light by conservative personalities who opposed Gunn's criticism of President Donald Trump and the Republican Party.
In one 2010 tweet, Gunn wrote: "The Expendables was so manly I f---ed the s--- out of the little p---- boy next to me! The boys ARE back in town!"
On Thursday night, Gunn addressed the controversy in a series of tweets, saying, "As I've developed as a person, so has my work and my humor."
He said in another tweet: "In the past, I have apologized for humor of mine that hurt people. I truly felt sorry and meant every word of my apologies."
The "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchise has been one of the most successful for Disney/Marvel. Last year's "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" was the fifth-highest-grossing domestic release of 2017 and earned over $860 million worldwide.
Gunn gave the following statement to Business Insider after publication:
“My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since — not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don’t reflect the person I am today or have been for some time.”
“Regardless of how much time has passed, I understand and accept the business decisions taken today. Even these many years later, I take full responsibility for the way I conducted myself then. All I can do now, beyond offering my sincere and heartfelt regret, is to be the best human being I can be: accepting, understanding, committed to equality, and far more thoughtful about my public statements and my obligations to our public discourse. To everyone inside my industry and beyond, I again offer my deepest apologies. Love to all.”
SEE ALSO: Paramount TV president reportedly fired over "racially charged" comments made in a conference call
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Why the World Cup soccer ball looks so different
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Krispy Kreme is getting into the cookie-delivery business.
On Friday, the beloved doughnut chain acquired a majority stake in Insomnia Cookies, a cookie-delivery chain with a cult following on college campuses across America.
The deal means that Insomnia Cookies is now part of JAB Holdings, the parent company of Krispy Kreme, Panera, Au Bon Pain, and Keurig.
Insomnia Cookies was founded in 2003 by Seth Berkowitz, who at the time was a student at the University of Pennsylvania. Today, there are over 135 locations — almost twice as many locations as there were in 2015. Many of the locations are strategically placed near college campuses, building a loyal following among students who are drawn to the idea of having warm, fresh cookies delivered to their dorms at 3:oo a.m.
Berkowitz said in a statement about the acquisition: "My team and I are confident that this shared vision makes Krispy Kreme the ideal partner to support Insomnia through our next phase of growth."
See what it's like to eat at the cult-favorite cookie chain:
We went to an Insomnia Cookies location in New York City's Financial District. The store is open until 3 a.m. every night.
In addition to the more than 135 locations the brand operates, it also delivers, ships nationwide, and caters events.
The inside of the store was tiny, and it smelled like fresh, homemade cookies. There was a small counter with three seats at it by the door, and a counter to place orders. It was early in the day when we went, so it was quiet.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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When Forbes reported this week that Kylie Jenner, the 20-year-old cosmetic mogul from the Kardashian/Jenner family, was just $100 million shy of becoming the world's youngest self-made billionaire, fans of the reality-TV star banded together.
On Twitter, multiple people joked that they intended to help raise the additional $100 million that would make Jenner the world's youngest billionaire.
we need to raise $100 million to give to Kylie Jenner so she’s a full billionaire! let’s fucking go! let’s send a message! no negativity 🙏🙏🙏
— DarkSydePhelix (@ByYourLogic) July 11, 2018
"Skipping my child support payments to help this fierce female become an iconic billionaire!" one woman wrote.
Skipping my child support payments to help this fierce female become an iconic billionaire! I believe my daughters would support this if I were allowed contact with them!!!!
— Birdy (@palebirdy) July 11, 2018
Now, the joke has been realized. A GoFundMe campaign has been created in Jenner's honor by Josh Ostrovsky, an Instagram celebrity who goes by the nickname "The Fat Jew." So far, $268 has been raised on her behalf.
The campaign description reads: "I don't want to live in a world where Kylie Jenner doesn't have a billion dollars. We must raise 100 million dollars to help her get to a billion, please spread the word, this is extremely important."
While most people are donating about $5, one person gave $100.
This isn't the first time the internet has crowdfunded on the behalf of an extremely wealthy person. A GoFundMe campaign that kicked off in April raised more than $7,000 to purchase a couch for Elon Musk after CBS reported that Musk had been sleeping on the floor of Tesla's factory.
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Everything wrong with Android
Figuring out how to start an email — especially when you're writing to someone you don't know very well — can be a real challenge.
Is "Hey" too casual? Is "Dear" overly formal? Is "Morning!" too cheery?
If you're thinking the email greeting isn't all that important and that it's silly to overthink it, you're wrong. How you begin an email sets the tone and may shape the recipient's perception of you. It may also determine whether they keep reading. So, yes, it's very important.
"Many people have strong feelings about what you do to their names and how you address them," Barbara Pachter, a business-etiquette expert, tells Business Insider. "If you offend someone in the salutation, that person may not read any further. It may also affect that person's opinion of you."
We had Pachter and Will Schwalbe, who coauthored "Send: Why People Email So Badly and How to Do It Better" with David Shipley, weigh in on a handful of common email greetings.
Of course, the perfect way to start an email will depend on who you're writing to, but in general, when you're writing a business email to someone you don't know well or at all, they say there's one safe choice — and a bunch you should usually avoid:
SEE ALSO: 22 email-etiquette rules every professional should know
DON'T MISS: 21 unprofessional email habits that make everyone hate you
WINNER: 'Hi [name], ...'
If you want to make it a little more formal, you can always use the person's last name: "Hi Ms. Gillett, ..."
"The reason I like this one is that it's perfectly friendly and innocuous," says Schwalbe.
It's also Pachter's favorite. She says it's a safe and familiar way to address someone, whether you know them or not.
ALSO ACCEPTABLE: 'Hi everyone, ...'
If you're addressing a group of people, Pachter advises you write, "Hi everyone."
GREETINGS TO AVOID: 'Hey!'
This is fine to use with your friends, but the very informal salutation should stay out of the workplace. It's not professional — especially if you're writing to someone you've never met, says Pachter.
Schwalbe agrees: "I can never get out of my head my grandmother's admonition 'Hey is for horses.'"
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
Sure, we all know that an Ivy League education, a stint at a blue-chip firm, and stellar sales skills can help us get ahead. But it may surprise you just how many other, seemingly random variables can contribute to your professional success.
From the month you were born to your comedic timing, the weirdest quirks can affect how successful you'll ultimately be.
We combed through research on success to identify 26 surprising things that can influence your career trajectory. While some factors can be sought out, others are beyond your control.
SEE ALSO: 18 habits of highly successful people
DON'T MISS: Parents of successful kids have these 12 things in common
Defiant, rule-breaking kids often grow up to earn higher salaries
Recent research suggests there's a connection between rebelliousness in adolescence and earning a high income later in life.
In 1968, nearly 3,000 sixth-graders living in Luxembourg took intelligence tests and answered questions about their feelings toward school. Their teachers also filled out questionnaires about the students' behavior. At the time, researchers assessed the students' family background as well.
In 2008, researchers revisited this data in order to see which childhood traits predicted career success and income. They were able to get in touch with 745 of the students, who were now about 52 years old. Perhaps unsurprisingly, more studious kids (as rated by teachers and by the kids themselves) went on to land better jobs.
But the researchers were surprised to find one childhood characteristic — beyond IQ, parents' socioeconomic status, and the amount of education the students attained — that predicted higher adult income: rule-breaking and defiance of parental authority.
Parents' high expectations for their kids tend to matter more than income or assets for their child's success
Using data from a national survey of 6,600 children born in 2001, University of California at Los Angeles professor Neal Halfon and his colleagues discovered that the expectations parents hold for their kids have a huge effect on attainment.
"Parents who saw college in their child's future seemed to manage their child toward that goal irrespective of their income and other assets," he said in a statement.
The finding came out in standardized tests: 57% of the kids who did the worst were expected to attend college by their parents, while 96% of the kids who did the best were expected to go to college.
That parents should keep their expectations high falls in line with another psych finding — the Pygmalion effect, which states "that what one person expects of another can come to serve as a self-fulfilling prophecy" — as well as what some teachers told Business Insider was most important for a child's success.
Being married is linked to higher salaries for men and lower salaries for women
A recent study finds that men experience a "marriage premium": Their salaries generally go up when they get hitched. Women, on the other hand, tend to see their salaries go down when they tie the knot.
Specifically, married men between 28 and 30 years old earn about $15,900 more per year in individual income compared to their single counterparts, while married men between 44 and 46 years old make $18,800 more.
And although these findings were not statistically significant, married women between 28 and 30 years old earn $1,349 less per year in individual income than their single counterparts, while married women between 44 and 46 years old earn $1,465 less.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
The battle of the brands wages on.
Every quarter, fashion search platform Lyst analyses the behaviour of more than five million online shoppers to determine the hottest brands and products.
The Q2 (April-June) results are in and it's good news for Nike and Versace, who broke the top 10 after climbing 20 or more places.
Lyst takes into account data from its own search engine and Google as well as engagement statistics, conversion rates and sales worldwide to form its quarterly Index.
Rising through the ranks can come down to one great commission — as demonstrated by Givenchy who rose two places after dressing Meghan Markle for the royal wedding in June.
Scroll down to see who took the top spot and who is rising — and falling — through the rankings.
10. Prada.
Up one place since Q1. Lyst says Prada's reinvention of its signature nylon accessories helped push it back into the top 10 this quarter.
9. Nike.
Up a grand 11 places since Q1. The only sportswear brand in the ranking, Nike shares are at an all-time high after the brand saw a major sales rebound in North America.
"They are becoming a halo brand," Jessica Ramirez, retail analyst at Jane Hali & Associates, told Reuters in June.
8. Fendi.
Rising nine places since Q1, Fendi cashed in on the logomania craze by reinventing its FF "Zucca" monogram.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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Kenton Lee has created a shoe that expands for children in developing countries.
The shoe is designed to last five years and can be altered as the child's feet grow.
With the help of the charity Because International Kenton successfully handed out over 175,000 pairs of shoes across 100 countries.
A commercial version of the expandable shoes are now available to pre-order on Kickstarter. For each pair ordered a pair of shoes will be donated to a child in a developing country.
Produced by Amanda Villa-Lobos.
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A capsule wardrobe is a collection of just a few dozen clothing pieces that can be combined to make hundreds of outfits.
Think Mark Zuckerberg's allegiance to a t-shirt and jeans, but with a lot more style.
If you want to save money or just pare down your possessions, creating a capsule wardrobe might be the ideal move for you. It can also cut down on decision fatigue, the exhaustion we feel as we use up willpower making mundane daily choices like what to wear and where to grab lunch.
But building an entire one from scratch may be intimidating. Image curator Scarlett De Bease, style coach Stasia Savasuk, and Lauren Bowling, an editor at the Financial Best Life and author of "The Millennial Homeowner: A Guide to Successfully Navigating Your First Home Purchase" shared their tips on creating a capsule wardrobe.
Here's how to make a capsule wardrobe that can keep you professional, sweat-free, and stylish this summer.
SEE ALSO: 13 things you should never wear to work in the summer
DON'T MISS: How to dress for your first job without blowing your paycheck
Women can choose three to five bottoms and five to 10 blouses
For women, Savasuk recommended three to five basic bottoms with five to 10 blouses and shirts — or five to 10 dresses.
De Bease recommended two to three pants, eight tops, and two casual jackets or cardigans.
"With the addition of necklaces, earrings, shoes and scarves that suit your character and personality, and you can personalize these professional outfits to reflect your own personal style," Savasuk told Business Insider.
Men can buy three to five pairs of pants and up to 10 shirts
For men, Savasuk said to choose three to five pairs of pants with five to 10 high-quality button-downs.
"If ties are required, purchase a few that reflect your character and personality, so you can bring your own flavor to 'business professional,'" Savasuk said.
Stick to a few colors
Whether you're buying new pieces or just shopping your closet, sticking to mostly neutral colors is important.
Griffin recommended picking a neutral base like black or gray for most of your pieces, and a few articles of clothing in accent colors like blue or red.
"Everything should work together," Griffin told Business Insider. "You shouldn't have any closet singletons."
It might seem boring, but it's important so you can mix and match pieces. Having tops and bottoms in all shades of the rainbow is exciting until you realize you can only wear your striped yellow pants with the one black shirt you decided to buy.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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Trying new foods is one of the best parts of visiting Southeast Asia.
In the two years I lived in Malaysia, I came across dozens of fruits I had never even heard of in the United States, let alone tasted. Some of the most notable were durian — the so-called "king of the fruits" whose smell is so strong it's banned from hotels — and rambutan, nature's answer to the Koosh ball.
Nothing can compare to tasting these exotic fruits for the first time, but after one bite it's clear to see why they are so beloved throughout the region.
Here are 14 fruits from Southeast Asia that the average American didn't know existed.
SEE ALSO: 14 surprising things you didn't know about Malaysia
The quintessential Southeast Asian fruit is the durian. Malaysians call it the 'king of the fruits' and it's a source of national pride.
Source: Business Insider
Durian has an incredibly pungent taste and smell that many outsiders can't tolerate. Anthony Bourdain once said of durian, "your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." The fruit is banned in many Malaysian hotels.
Source: Business Insider
Speaking of forbidden fruits, the mangosteen is another popular one.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
Cheese lovers, rejoice. There's new evidence that the saturated fat found in cheese, milk, and other kinds of dairy is not tied to an increased risk of heart problems or death from any cause.
The study, published this month in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that people who regularly indulged in cheese, whole milk, and other full-fat dairy products did not face a higher risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from any cause compared to people who avoided the products.
The paper is the latest in a series of recent studies that together suggest fat is not the health villain that it's long been portrayed to be. Instead, sugar and simple carbs may be a much bigger issue. Such findings runs contrary to the dominant belief that eating rich foods like butter and cheese is a bad habit that should be broken.
For the study, the researchers looked at nearly 3,000 adults over 22 years and measured the levels of dairy fats in their blood to estimate their intake of cheese and other high-fat products.
"Our findings not only support, but also significantly strengthen, the growing body of evidence which suggests that dairy fat, contrary to popular belief, does not increase risk of heart disease or overall mortality in older adults," Marcia Otto, the study's lead author and an assistant professor at the University of Texas School of Public Health, said in a statement.
Dietary guidelines still tell people to avoid fat
More and more research is pointing out an unfortunate truth about the world of nutrition: many common beliefs are based on shoddy or non-existent science.
Plenty of people continue to believe that eating eggs gives you high cholesterol, that orange juice is part of a complete breakfast, or that fatty foods make you fat — despite evidence that has disproven these myths.
I was no exception — I grew up with two health-conscious parents and believed all high-fat foods were bad for you. Our fridge was stocked with margarine; low-fat or fat-free milk were the only kinds I drank; and the cereal bars I ate as a kid gleamed with "low-fat" labels.
Yet an increasing body of evidence indicates that when eaten in isolation, fat doesn't contribute to weight gain. Many official dietary guidelines, however, have been slow to adapt to these findings.
In its Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the US Department of Agriculture still advises people against consuming many full-fat products, while encouraging people to eat items like cereals, bread, and other refined grains. And when it comes to dairy, the guidelines are explicit about the kind you should eat: fat-free or low-fat.
The American Heart Association also still recommends limiting saturated fats and specifically calls out cheese other animal-based foods for their potential to raise levels of “bad” cholesterol and contribute to heart problems.
The real culprits may be sugar and refined carbs
Recent research has suggested that unlike fats, refined carbohydrates and sugars do appear to be tied to packing on the pounds.
Take, for example, a large recent review of studies published in the journal The Lancet. For the study, scientists compared more than 135,000 people in 18 countries on either low-fat or low-carb diets. People on the low-fat diets were more likely to die from any cause; they were also at a greater risk of death from heart attacks and heart disease. By contrast, people on the low-carb plans had significantly lower risk of both of these outcomes.
In light of their findings, the authors of the paper concluded, "global dietary guidelines should be reconsidered."
Such results have fueled the popularity of the ketogenic diet, which emphasizes foods like meat, butter, and bacon and cuts nearly all carbs, including those from many fruits.
This newest study adds to the growing body of evidence undermining the old wisdom about fats. Maybe nutritionists should never have told people to stop eating fat in the first place.
DON'T MISS: The best ways to lose weight and keep it off, according to science
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NOW WATCH: The fascinating way helium changes your voice
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Last year, I asked career expert Toni Thompson about the best ways to get ahead at work. Her response was simple: "Talk about what you want with your boss."
If you're gunning for a promotion, a raise, or simply more opportunity, let your manager know. Once you do, they'll be able to advocate for you in conversations with their manager.
Dating, it turns out, may not be so different. If you're looking for a relationship, or at least someone who has relationship potential, let your friends know. Once you do, they'll start looking at their network with an eye toward who'd be compatible with you.
That's according to Claudia Duran, a Miami-based matchmaker with dating service Elite Connections.
Duran told me it's all about "being a little more communicative and vulnerable." In other words, telling your friends, "Hey. I'm really looking to meet someone special. Do you know somebody you could introduce me to?"
As Duran put it, "Ask and you shall receive."
Duran is onto something. Research from 2012 published in the American Sociological Review suggests that, as of 2010, meeting through friends was still the most popular way for relationships to start— though it's gradually becoming less common as online dating becomes more widespread.
In fact, a 2011 paper published in Current Directions in Psychological Science suggests that other people can sometimes know us even better than we know ourselves. That's especially true when it comes to behaviors like talking a lot, or traits we may not recognize in ourselves, like intelligence.
To be sure, app-makers have already capitalized on this: Wingman lets you set up your friends with potential partners, which could be a relief or a recipe for disaster, depending on your perspective. And Hinge matches you with friends of Facebook friends.
If you're not up to asking your friends outright to set you up, Duran had a few similar suggestions. Hang out at clubs, sports games, charity events, and the like — the point is to find someone who shares your interests. "Really," Duran said. "Don't be shy."
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: 8 definitive rules for texting someone you want to date
Maybe there's a sense of euphoria in the air that you can't quite pinpoint.
Or perhaps you have a new sense of confidence at work.
It might be because you're finally getting that promotion at work, but it's hard to tell for sure until it actually happens.
Thankfully, "there are some telltale signs that you may at long last be getting that coveted promotion — you just need to look for them," Lynn Taylor, a national workplace expert and the author of "Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant: How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job," told Business Insider.
"But remember, false reads on promotions happen every day, so even if you think you see the signs, you'll want to remain as neutral as possible and stay focused on doing your best work."
Michael Kerr, an international business speaker and author of "The Humor Advantage," told Business Insider that the signs aren't always obvious, but people can usually tell if they are being considered for a new role.
"Being self-aware is a critical skill for anyone to develop and so you should, ideally, always have a reasonably good sense as to how you are perceived by your colleagues and senior leaders," Kerr said. "And talking about your career goals and potential career paths should be a conversation you have on a fairly regular basis with your boss."
Whether you're having those discussions or not, you'll still want to keep an eye out for the signs a promotion might be in your future. Here are 15 of them:
SEE ALSO: A counterintelligence expert says most of us think about getting hired and promoted all wrong
You're suddenly invited to meetings that you were previously excluded from
"This is a great sign, especially if your advice is sought during these meetings and you're asked to lead future ones," Taylor told Business Insider.
And if you're in meetings with senior management, managers from other departments, or key clients, Kerr said that "reflects a great deal of trust in your abilities."
You've been asked to take on a special assignment or project with added responsibilities
Yes, it's extra work — but it's also a sign that you're trusted to take on more duties.
"It shows that you've earned the trust of at least your immediate leader and it's a great opportunity to grow and demonstrate new skills," Kerr said.
Your boss is being promoted
If you have an excellent working relationship with your boss and work closely with them, it's good news for you when they move up.
It's possible that you'll join them on the higher rung of the ladder, Taylor said.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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Panera Bread's menu has a ton of options for everyone.
But, given that Panera Bread employees spend so much time preparing these meals, they're natural experts in what's worth buying at the casual dining chain.
Panera Bread employees also receive a discount of anywhere from 50% to 75% off meals up to $10, so many of them opt to eat at the restaurant while they're on break.
Business Insider recently spoke to a number of current and former Panera Bread employees about their favorite meals. We also scoured the web to find more recommendations from employees on Quora and Reddit.
Here's what the employees had to say:
SEE ALSO: McDonald's employees share their 8 best tips for customers
DON'T MISS: 7 insider facts about Panera Bread that employees know and most customers don't
The steak and arugula sandwich
One Panera Bread associate of one year told Business Insider that they prefer this meaty offering.
"It's super unique and has so many flavors," the employee told Business Insider, adding that they'd award the meal ten out of ten stars.
The squash soup
Associate Dorian Bach wrote in a 2016 Quora post that this particular option is the best soup in Panera Bread.
But, alas, fans of this autumnal-gourd-based dish will have to wait until fall to partake once more. It's a seasonal item at Panera Bread.
The chipotle chicken avocado melt
A former Panera Bread associate trainer told Business Insider that they "used to always get the chipotle chicken avocado melt."
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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It seems like simple, obvious advice: Eat your vegetables, get some exercise, and — of course — take your vitamins.
Or not.
Decades of research has failed to find substantial evidence that vitamins and supplements do any significant good. In fact, the results of recent studies lean in the opposite direction, finding that certain vitamins may be bad for you.
Several supplements have been linked with an increase in certain cancers, for example, while others have been associated with a higher risk of kidney stones. Still others have been linked with an overall higher risk of death from any cause.
So here are the vitamins and supplements you should take — and the ones you should avoid.
Multivitamins: Skip them — you can get everything you need with a balanced diet.
It's long been thought that adding a multivitamin to your diet was a good step towards better overall health, but recent research suggests this is false.
Based on a review of studies published this month in the journal Circulation, scientists concluded that taking multivitamins does not improve heart health in the general population. That study comes on the heels of an even larger review published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology in June, which found no evidence that multivitamins are linked to a reduced risk of heart disease, heart attack, stroke, or death from any cause.
Some studies even suggest that consuming vitamins in excess can cause harm. A large, longterm 2011 study of close to 39,000 older women found that women who took vitamins over the course of more than 20 years actually had a higher overall risk of death than those who didn't take any supplements.
Vitamin D: Take it for bone health because it's hard to get from food.
Vitamin D is a critical ingredient that keeps our bones strong by helping us absorb calcium. It is missing from many of the foods we eat, so taking a vitamin D supplement may be a good idea for some people. Getting sunlight is another way to help your body make enough vitamin D, but that can be tough in the winter.
Some researchers hoped that vitamin D could also help protect people from brain-related disorders like Alzheimer's disease, but a review of 73 studies published this month in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience suggests that is not the case. The researchers found no evidence linking vitamin D supplementation with a reduced risk of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, or other forms of dementia.
Antioxidants: Skip them — an excess of these has been linked to an increased risk of certain cancers, and you can eat berries instead.
Touted for their potential to protect against cancer, vitamins A, C, and E are antioxidants found in many fruits and veggies — especially berries.
But studies suggest that antioxidants can actually be harmful, at least when taken in the mega doses offered by some supplements.
A 2007 review of trials of several different types of antioxidant supplements found that people who took the pills were more likely to die of any cause than people who didn't. Plus, a large long-term study of male smokers found that those who regularly took vitamin A were more likely to get lung cancer than those who didn't.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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The world has gone Meghan Markle mad, and it's playing into the hands of the brands she chooses to dress in.
Markle has followed in the footsteps of her sister-in-law, Kate Middleton, to become a global style icon. It's not unusual for any items that are worn publicly by either of these women to sell out almost immediately.
Canadian retailer Aritzia is the latest store to see a boost from this. In its most recent quarterly results, reported in July, the company said that same-store sales were up by 10.9%. Part of its success was attributed to its celebrity endorsements, including Meghan Markle, the company said.
"By all accounts, Meghan remains a huge fan of Aritzia," CEO and founder Brian Hill told investors during a call this month.
Hill added that after Markle was photographed in one of the company's trench coats, it sold out within six hours.
While Markle is actually from the United States, she spent seven years in Toronto filming on the set of "Suits," and it was here that she likely came into contact with the brand.
Aritzia isn't the only designer to profit from the so-called "Meghan effect." When Markle and Prince Harry announced their engagement in November, Markle's $750 white coat from Canadian brand Line The Label sold out minutes after the photos were released, crashing the brand's website.
The P.A.R.O.S.H. dress and Aquazzura shoes she wore also sold out almost immediately.
Find out more about the affordable Canadian brand that Markle loves:
Aritzia was founded in Vancouver in 1984.
Source: Aritzia
Since then, the company has grown to have 65 stores in Canada and 22 in the US.
The company plans to open six new stores across the US and Canada in 2018 and early 2019. The next store opening slated for the US is in San Diego.
The store sells a mix of its own labels ...
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