Author: openjargon

• Anant Ambani, a son of the richest man in India, is marrying Radhika Merchant this weekend. 
• The over-the-top festivities will partially held at the family's luxurious Mumbai home, Antilia. 
• Antilia's interiors have rarely been photographed, but it has a 50-seat cinema and three helipads.

Rihanna, Justin Bieber, and Katy Perry have already serenaded Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant in glittering parties that have captured the world's attention.

And the happy couple hasn't even walked down the aisle yet.

That will change this weekend as Mukesh Ambani — India's richest man and father of Anant, the groom — hosts thousands of guests from July 12 to 14 at his youngest son's wedding, the most anticipated nuptials of the year.

Festivities are said to be happening at the Ambani family's custom-built, 27-story tower on Mumbai's most exclusive street, according to CNN. Other rumored venues for wedding events include the Jio World Convention Center, which can accommodate 16,000 people and is owned by the family's company, Reliance Industries.

Dubbed Antilia, the Ambanis' tower is named for a mythical island off the coast of Europe. Reported to cost $1 billion to build, it has been crowned the "most expensive private residence in the world" by the Guinness Book of World Records. It is rumored to contain three helipads and a 50-seat movie theater — and require a staff of 600 employees.

The interior of the building has rarely been photographed, so Business Insider compiled everything we know about the Ambani family home where parts of the wedding of the year may take place.

The Ambani family’s opulent pre-wedding festivities have lasted for months.

The pre-wedding festivities for Anant, 29, and Radhika, 29, included a private Rihanna concert and meals prepared by 100 chefs. The young couple both sit on the board of their family's companies, conglomerate Reliance Industries and pharmaceutical giant Encore Healthcare, respectively.

Anant Ambani’s pre-wedding parties hosted tons of high-profile guests.

High-profile guests, including Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, flocked to Jamnagar, India, in March to toast the marriage of Anant, whose father, Mukesh, is reported to be worth $113 billion.

Mukesh Ambani and his wife Nita have three children.

Isha and Akash are twins, and they're the oldest Ambani children. Anant is their younger brother. It's unclear who lives at Antilia full-time, though the Huffington Post reported that the home required a staff of 600.

Mukesh Ambani is considered India's richest man.

Mukesh Ambani is the chairman of the energy, retail, and media conglomerate Reliance Industries and is considered India's richest man. The tower he custom-built sits on Altamount Road, the Billionaires' Row of Mumbai.

The Ambani family’s Mumbai residence is the most expensive home in the world.

The Ambani family's home is the most expensive private residence in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. (Other rankings put it second, after Buckingham Palace.)

The tower is called Antilia, named after a mythical island in the Atlantic Ocean.

The 400,000-square-foot structure is officially 27 stories high, although its many double-height ceilings mean it's closer in height to a traditional 40-story building.

Antilia reportedly cost $1 billion to build.

The Ambanis' house was constructed between 2006 and 2010, according to Architectural Digest India. At the time, it cost an estimated $1 billion to build, but there's no way of knowing what the tower is worth today.

Inside Antilia, there are nine elevators, a 50-seat cinema, and a full-service spa.

Plus, the tower has a 168-car garage and is equipped with three helipads.

Antilia opened in February 2010.

In 2011, The New York Times reported Mumbai's elite were speculating that the Ambanis hadn't yet moved into the tower. Antilia didn't align with Hindu architectural philosophy, one expert said.

There's luxury art inside Antilia.

In 2020, Vogue India cataloged some high-end art inside the Ambani house, including work by the modern Indian artist Francis Newton Souza and "Love" sculptor Robert Indiana.

Antilia was a site of celebration in early 2024.

The Ambani family hosted a light show at Antilia in January 2024 in honor of the historic inauguration of Ram Mandir, a gigantic new temple in the ancient city of Ayodhya.

Holograms of religious sayings adorned the building. Visitors flocked to see the bedazzled tower and get close to one of India's most iconic homes.

Antilia's opulence has drawn criticism.

In 2011, Ratan Tata, another one of India's richest men, told the Times of India: "It's sad because this country needs people to allocate some of their enormous wealth to finding ways of mitigating the hardship that people have."

Antilia is decorated with marigolds and bright yellow lights ahead of the wedding.

Preparations have begun at the tower, according to Reuters, but organizers remain tight-lipped about the details of the exclusive event.

A-listers including Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Nick Jonas, and Priyanka Chopra had already landed in Mumbai by July 11, ahead of the main event, according to Fortune and People.

The particulars of the actual events are still under wraps, but Vanity Fair said the wedding date was chosen based on the couple's astrological charts.

Locals are already complaining about the traffic the wedding is expected to cause in Mumbai.

Traffic has already slowed down around Antilia and the Jio World Convention Center, Reuters reported.

Mumbai is notorious for traffic congestion and the city is expecting additional slowdowns during the massive event.

Correction: March 7, 2024 — An earlier version of this story incorrectly described the age of Anant Ambani. He's the youngest son of Mukesh and Nita Ambani, not the eldest. It also misidentified one of the people in a photo from the family's pre-wedding celebrations. It's Paula Hurd, not Melinda French Gates.

• Apple jobs are highly coveted in the tech industry.
• Apple CEO Tim Cook has said he favors candidates who are creative and not afraid to ask questions.
• Tech recruiters, career coaches, and an employee shared their advice on how to ace an Apple interview.

Apple's decades of game-changing product launches have helped it become a top employer for tech talent globally.

But candidates hungry for a role at the iPhone maker might find it harder to get a job there than ever before.

After years of surging growth, Apple's head count has been contracting. At the end of last year, Apple employed about 161,000 people, down nearly 2% from 2022. But Apple remains a force: Wedbush analyst Dan Ives has predicted that the tech giant will become "the gatekeepers of the consumer AI Revolution" with the launch of Apple Intelligence and the upcoming iPhone 16 and clear a path to hitting a $4 trillion market cap.

So, what can set you apart from a sea of Apple candidates? We asked an Apple employee and four tech career experts and recruiters.

They said the ideal Apple candidate should demonstrate curiosity, energy, and a collaborative mindset during an interview.

"What Apple is looking for in candidates is workhorses, not show horses," said Marc Cenedella, career expert and founder of work advice site Ladders, Inc. "Working at Apple is all about burnishing and improving the Apple brand, not tooting your own horn."

One Apple employee said tried to show brand identity by matching the font on her résumé to the company's own typeface. She said this likely helped her résumé stand out during the hiring process.

Job candidates can expect several rounds of interviews and tests

Depending on the leadership level, the application process for a corporate position at any large tech company typically includes a rigorous vetting process, conversations with hiring managers, technical interviews with coding tests for software engineers, and a series of conversations within the team known as an "interview loop," ex-Meta and Amazon recruiter Daniel Harten told BI.

Harten said the first stages of interviewing for a job at a Big Tech company are "transactional, focusing on technical abilities," and the second half is situational, "with behavior-based questions."

The interview process at Apple is "generally straightforward," Theresa Park, a former creative recruiter at the company, said. An elevator pitch and an anecdote summarizing your experience are sufficient for the introductory call with a hiring manager.

According to Glassdoor, Apple's software developers can earn well over $300,000 a year, and human resources specialists and recruiters can earn from $40,000 to over $100,000 annually.

One Reddit user said that during a monthlong interview process as a software engineering candidate, he was asked to design a vending machine. Another Redditor who said they applied for Apple's hardware team in Munich described an hourlong interview with no behavioral questions and technical questions that "felt very cherry-picked to my resume/experience."

Apple has shared some interview tips for hopeful candidates on its own careers site. They include:

1. Be yourself.
2. Avoid oversharing about past employers.
3. Don't be afraid to ask your recruiter for accommodations.
4. Come with specific examples of your expertise.
5. Be patient.

Harten emphasized Apple's tip on recruiters, telling BI they're meant to be "your partner in the interview process."

Harten said candidates should leverage their recruiter's expertise ahead of their interview. According to posts on the anonymous employee forum Blind, some Apple recruiters might even disclose the exact questions that will be asked in an interview.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has also shared advice on what the company looks for in candidates. In a podcast last year, he said everyone he works with at Apple believes that "one plus one equals three."

"It's an incredible feeling to work with people that bring out the best in you, and fundamentally, we all believe that one plus one equals three," Cook said. "Your idea plus my idea is better than the individual ideas on their own."

He said he favors candidates who are curious, creative, and not afraid to ask questions.

Cook is known for grilling employees with questions, according to the book "Tim Cook: The Genius Who Took Apple to the Next Level" Leander Kahney.

"He's a very quiet leader," Greg Joswiak, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, told Kahney, according to the book. "Not a screamer, not a yeller," he said, adding: "He's just very calm, steady, but will slice you up with questions. You better know your stuff."

Social media research can help

Former American Express talent manager and career coach Arianny Mercedes said she advises her clients to network proactively via social media to build relationships within the company and gain insight into its culture. Her advice helped one of her clients secure a role at Apple, she said.

Park said professionals should also update their LinkedIn profile if they've been inactive for a while — even if they aren't actively looking for a new job.

"As an experienced recruiter, I can tell you that we often actively source candidates, so it's crucial to have your LinkedIn profile updated with relevant keywords to make yourself searchable," Park said.

But getting too candid on social media about Apple, or any company you're interviewing for, is "a surefire way to get dinged," Cenedella said.

"No posting on Instagram. No lip-sync TikToks. Do nothing that draws attention to yourself or to the workings of Apple's processes," he told BI.

Representatives for Apple didn't immediately respond to BI's questions about working at the company.

• Russia plotted to assassinate an executive of a German armaments firm, CNN reported.
• The reported target was Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger.
• Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the CNN report.

US intelligence helped thwart a Russian plot to kill the CEO of a German arms firm that has made munitions and military equipment for Ukraine, according to reports.

Russia planned to kill Armin Papperger, the CEO of Rheinmetall, which has made artillery shells, tanks, and other military equipment for Ukraine during the country's battle against Russian forces, CNN reported, citing five US and Western officials familiar with the situation.

German security services were able to foil the plot by providing Papperger with extra security after receiving a tip-off from US intelligence, the report said.

Papperger was one of a number of defense industry executives that Russia had planned to kill, the unnamed sources said, the report added.

According to the German publication Der Spiegel, the main reason for the Russian plot was Rheinmetall's plan to create a tank factory in Ukraine while building up the local arms industry.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the CNN report.

"It is very hard for us to comment on reports by various news media that don't contain any serious arguments and are based on some anonymous sources," Peskov said, per Russia's Tass news agency. "All this is presented in the style of fake stories. One can't treat such reports seriously."

German politicians have reacted with shock and anger to the CNN report, with foreign minister Annalena Baerbock telling reporters at a NATO summit that Russia is "waging a hybrid war of aggression."

Analysts say that Russia is stepping up campaigns to destabilize the West using covert methods, including arson plots, interfering with airline GPS signals, and pushing disinformation.

"We're seeing sabotage, we're seeing assassination plots, we're seeing arson. We're seeing things that have a cost in human lives," a senior NATO official told reporters earlier this week, per CNN. "I believe very much that we're seeing a campaign of covert sabotage activities from Russia that have strategic consequences."

According to experts who spoke to Business Insider earlier this year, Russia is seeking to internally weaken NATO members as part of a plan to undermine support for Ukraine.

• Former US Navy Seal Rick Jones and his wife retired to Paris in 2018.
• The 72-year-old said they were an adventurous couple not tied down by kids or other family in the US.
• He shared the pros and cons of leading an ex-pat lifestyle in France.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Rick Jones. It has been edited for length and clarity.

My wife, Ellen Bryson, and I have always been adventurous people who've lived in Buenos Aires and different cities in the US, such as Norfolk, Virginia, and San Diego.

Ellen worked as a professional dancer in London when she was younger. I served as a Navy SEAL officer for 20 years and was stationed in the Persian Gulf at one point.

We met when we were 40. Our lives have been characterized by not having children, allowing us to move as often as we have without worrying about interrupting the school year.

Ellen was a member of Alliance Française, an organization centered on learning French and understanding the culture in France. In 2016, she came home from a meeting and said, "Why don't we move to Paris?"

I'd been enamored with the city since first visiting in 1979 as a college student. We went on a three-day retreat and talked it over. If we sold our house, we'd no longer have a mortgage. We did the numbers and decided that it made sense for our retirement.

It took a couple of years to get everything in order. Then, after Ellen found us an apartment on the Left Bank, we took the plunge in 2018.

It helped that we belong to the Association of American Residents Overseas, which has about 1,000 members in Paris. It's helped us integrate. The organization has social events, but it also represents our interests, such as voting rights and tax treaties.

We enjoy our lifestyle here, where the pros outweigh the cons. Here are three things I particularly love about Paris — and two that bug me a little.

The food markets are phenomenal

On any given day except Monday, Paris hosts huge, open-air food markets where farmers arrive to sell their fresh produce.

There are more food choices than you would ever see anywhere in the US. The market in our neighborhood has about six different butchers on Sundays. One guy specializes in organ meat, where you buy anything from lamb brains to beef hearts.

The restaurants are great, but many people cook at home and share recipes. I'm the cook in the family and take the time and thought for food preparation three of four days a week.

We experiment with new dishes. With so many different foods available, you can't help but try them.

It's a walkable city

Paris is the most walkable city I've ever been in. The only other city that compares in terms of walkability is San Francisco, where I was stationed there for two years.

My goal is to walk 7,500 steps a day — about four and a half miles. It's easy to achieve in Paris. The most I've probably walked in a day is 16 miles. At one point, I decided to walk the length of every metro line.

A friend who's lived here for 40 years told me that Paris is inexhaustible — it never ends. Every time walk, I find new streets I've never been on, some quirky little shop or an interesting-looking restaurant.

The architecture is beautiful. You never get tired of looking up at the facades. It's almost as if, for centuries, everything that was built was built simply to delight the eye.

The railways are quick, inexpensive and efficient

It's rare for a French train to be delayed. You can tell the exact time when it pulls away from the platform.

Ellen and I tend to travel on high-speed trains called Trains à Grande Vitesse (TGVs). It's due to their excellent performance. They get you places fast and inexpensively.

One of our favorite destinations is Marseille, in southern France. The trip is about three and a half hours each way and costs the equivalent of around $220 round trip.

We'll stay in a hotel in the old port for three days, which is fascinating.

Or we'll use the train for day trips outside Paris. Within an hour to an hour and a half of the city, there are many interesting places to visit.

The amount of red tape is mind-boggling

There is a conventional wisdom that the French are thin, especially compared to Americans. I joke to people that, to some extent, it's true. "It's because the French subsist on paperwork — they eat paperwork," I'll say. The bureaucracy is unbelievably frustrating.

When applying for an apartment, you must assemble a dossier of documents that cover your whole life. The file can be about an inch thick.

As for banks, I've been working with one for over a month to try to get the paperwork done to make international transfers. It's hard to be patient.

Things can be overly rigid

Most people think of the French as being very liberal, with things like going topless on the beach or producing explicit movies. In terms of their excellent social policies, they certainly live by their motto of "Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity."

However, I've found them to be a conservative society in some regards. They stick to the Napoleonic Code — establishing uniform laws in France in the early 1800s — and rarely question it.

Paris has a housing shortage, yet there are so many empty apartments. Parents have to divide their property equally between their children after they die. You might have an apartment or a house, and two or three or four kids are involved, and they can't agree on what to do with it. And so it just sits there empty for years.

There have been big demonstrations against change. People don't want to change the retirement system, even though everybody knows it can't continue to function economically. In 2023, President Macron wanted to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, and the whole country was up in arms.

I've heard three or four French people who have spent time in either the US or Canada and then moved back to France. They say they admire Americans' constant willingness to try new ways of doing things.

Do you have an interesting story about retiring outside your native country that you'd like to share with Business Insider? Please send details to jridley@businessinsider.com.

• Everyone has complaints about the way Elon Musk runs Twitter.
• Add European regulators to that list: They don't like the way he's changed the service's "blue check" program for "verified users."
• I don't like it either. But it seems stupid to fine him over it.

Elon Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion in 2022 and promptly went about making the company worth much, much less by scaring away users and advertisers.

That seems dumb! But not illegal.

European regulators feel differently. They think that Musk's self-imposed penalty — owning a service so hapless it can't even launch a half-baked slate of video podcasts — isn't nearly enough. So they want to fine him for screwing up his own service.

What specifically did Musk do to incur the European Commission's wrath? The first sentence of its press release accuses Musk of violating regulations regarding "dark patterns, advertising transparency and data access for researchers." And, to be fair, "dark patterns" sounds pretty ominous!

But it turns out that European regulators — who are still using Twitter, which Musk now calls X — are just like any run-of-the-mill Twitter addict: They have complaints about the product. Specifically, the blue checks.

Here's Commissioner Thierry Breton:

The story of Elon and the blue checks has been told — many, many times. The latest update is that after taking away blue checks from many "verified users" like myself and my colleague Katie Notopoulos, he handed them back this spring. For free. Anyone else who wants one can pay $8 a month.

Which, again: Dumb.

But in America, if you want to run through your own store, tear down the signage, and throw your merchandise on the floor, that's your right. Hard to see why it should be any different in Europe.

The sober, big-picture analysis I'm supposed to provide here is about what this says about Europe's overall efforts to reign in Big Tech, and how it's become the world's primary tech regulator since the US can't or won't do real regulation, and how some of Europe's moves seem well-intentioned but muddled, and other moves may be flat-out overreach.

But you can read that somewhere else.

This one is way simpler: The world is full of problems. Elon Musk's approach to blue checks is not one that requires government intervention.

• I went to In-N-Out for the first time and tried every kind of burger.
• I also tried every kind of fries, from the classic fries to the "not-so-secret menu" animal-style fries.
• I was disappointed by the cheese fries but loved the flavor and texture of the animal-style version.

In-N-Out is famous for its burgers, but how do the chain's fries measure up?

On a trip to Austin, I tried every single kind of fries on In-N-Out's menu, from its standard salted fries to "well-done" and animal-style. I walked away impressed by only one style of fry — and slightly let down by the others.

In-N-Out is slowly expanding, but it's still largely considered a West Coast chain, with around 400 locations in eight states and territories. It has no immediate plans to come to the East Coast — where I live — anytime soon. So even though I didn't love most of the fries on its menu, I would travel across the country to have my favorite kind again.

Here's every type of fries at In-N-Out, ranked from my least favorite to my favorite.

Of all the fries I tried, the cheese fries came in last place.

The cheese fries cost me $5, excluding tax. 

On the order I received, the cheese clung to the top layer of fries in an unappetizing way, at least to me.

Since the cheese was under-melted, they were easier to eat with my fingers. However, I really wished the cheese had been slightly gooier. 

The cheese itself was tasty — it was a tangy, classic American cheese. However, most of the fries didn't even get a drop of cheese on them.

While I did enjoy the cheese, I would have much preferred the cheese to actually cover the fries. However, this can probably be chalked up to an error on the day I visited In-N-Out.

The regular fries were a tad underwhelming, in my opinion.

The regular fry cost me only $2.79, which I thought was a good deal.

They were crispy but could have used a touch more salt.

The inside was also not fluffy at all, which I thought gave them an odd texture. Overall, I was just slightly underwhelmed by the regular fries — an opinion that I share with other In-N-Out diners.

I much preferred the crispier, well-done fries over the regular fries.

The fries also cost me $2.90, meaning there was no extra charge for asking them to stay in the fryer a little longer.

They were well-salted and the extra time in the fryer definitely gave them a better texture.

Overall, I was impressed by the crispier fries and would order them this way again.

However, the next time I find myself at an In-N-Out, I know I'll be ordering my fries animal-style.

The chain serves its animal-style fries with special sauce, a slice of melted American cheese, and chopped grilled onions. They cost me $6. They were slightly more expensive than the cheese fries, the regular, and the crispy fries.

The fries were covered in cheese, which was perfectly melted, and the other toppings.

The fries were covered in so much sauce and cheese that I needed to use a fork to eat them. The bottom layer of fries didn't have a ton of cheese or sauce, but the toppings were more evenly distributed than in the case of the cheese fries.

This will be my go-to fries order in the future — the special sauce and chopped onions added a ton of flavor.

In my opinion, the animal-style fries won by a landslide. I thought they had the best flavor, texture, and were well worth a couple of extra dollars compared to the regular fries. 

• The Atlantic diet has similar health benefits as the Mediterranean diet but with more options. 
• A dietitian said it offers a flexible options for eating healthy, including dairy and carbs. 
• Try dietitian-approved, high-protein snacks like bean dip, Greek yogurt, and tuna on crackers.

The Atlantic diet, based on traditional eating habits in regions of Spain and Portugal, could help you switch up your snacking habits for a longer, healthier life, according to a dietitian. Recent research has linked the diet to a lower risk of chronic illness and potentially a longer life.

It has a lot in common with the Mediterranean diet, ranked one of the healthiest eating patterns in the world.

However, the Atlantic diet includes a wider variety of options, including more dairy, lean meats, seafood, nuts, and carbohydrates like potatoes, said Amanda Blechman, registered dietitian and director of health and scientific affairs at Danone North America.

"It's very plant-forward and nutrient-rich," she told Business Insider. "What I love about it is that it leaves room to make it more applicable and customizable to your unique preferences."

Following a flexible eating plan like the Atlantic diet can help you make healthier long-term choices, such as swapping out processed snack foods for nutritious but delicious alternatives.

"Too many changes at once aren't sustainable, so making small changes and incorporating foods you enjoy will increase your likelihood of continuing," Blechman said.

She shared four simple snack ideas to help you get started.

Add more beans to your diet as snackable dips or spreads

Blechman said one grocery store staple in her household is beans, a convenient way to make meals and snacks more filling and nourishing.

"We always keep beans around. They make it so easy to add fiber and a plant-based protein source," she said.

Beans are sometimes called longevity superfoods because they're a key food source in Blue Zones, areas where people live the longest, healthiest lives.

Adding more beans to your diet can also help you follow the more flexitarian eating style of the Atlantic diet and its Mediterranean cousin by eating meat in moderation. Consider using meat as more of a flavor enhancer than a main course, and try subbing in beans for half the meat in dishes like chili, stew, or even pasta sauce.

For bean-based snacks, try a simple spread like hummus or three-bean dip, or consider roasting some chickpeas for a crunchy option that can be sweet or savory.

Greek yogurt is a dietitian-approved, high-protein snack

Blechman (whose company sells yogurt, among other dairy products) is a big fan of Greek yogurt for its nutritional benefits, and she's not the only one.

Greek yogurt is rich in protein, which can help keep you full between meals, dietitians previously told Business Insider.

It's a complete protein, which means it contains all nine essential amino acids we need in our diets, along with vitamins and minerals like calcium, vitamin D, and B vitamins.

"When choosing foods, you want to assess the overall nutrition value and overall package," Blechman said.

Greek yogurt is a versatile ingredient, which makes it convenient to incorporate into your diet, she added. Try it with fruit and granola for a quick, satisfying breakfast or snack, blend it into sauces or dips, or mix it into baked goods.

Tuna is rich in healthy fats to keep you full

For another protein-dense snack, look no further than humble tuna, according to Blechman. Paired with whole grain crackers, it checks many nutritional boxes by providing protein, healthy fats, and complex carbs.

You don't have to opt for tuna if you prefer salmon or even sardines since all kinds of seafood are encouraged on the Atlantic diet.

"So many kinds of fish are nutritious," Blechman said.

Try fruit and nuts for a balanced sweet treat

When you're craving a sweeter snack, Blechman said a combo of fruit and nuts is a filling choice packed with nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

If fresh fruit isn't in season, frozen produce is just as nutritious and often more convenient and budget-friendly.

"I never want anyone to feel like nutrition is expensive and out of reach," Blechman said.

You don't necessarily have to forego other desserts or treats, either. While the Atlantic diet does emphasize whole foods, the focus is adding more healthy foods to your diet, instead of trying to cut back or deprive yourself.

"Naturally, as you incorporate good foods, there will be less space for less nutritious foods without feeling restrictive," Blechman said. "The best eating patterns are ones that incorporate a lot of nutrition foods but aren't too restrictive."

• Steven and Lauren Keys retired at 29 by saving over 60% of their income and investing early.
• With a net worth of $1.1 million, they visited every state and national park.
• Their favorite is Death Valley, while they weren't as fond of Hot Springs or Gateway Arch.

Steven and Lauren Keys, now 33 and 34, retired at 29 and have visited every state and national park — managing to grow their wealth while doing so.

Though neither earned more than $90,000 a year while they were working full-time, they saved over 60% of their income, began investing early, and avoided unnecessary purchases, allowing them to travel for much of the year while returning with more money than they started with. On one three-month trip, they returned with $26,000 more despite working just part-time by keeping costs low, getting freebies, and achieving large investment gains.

"We never spend down our savings when on vacation, and we usually get richer in the process," Steven said.

They've explored much of the country, deciding their favorite national parks are in California and Alaska — while their least favorite are in the Midwest.

Achieving financial independence

Steven and Lauren are part of the FIRE community — financial independence, retire early — consisting of people who saved and invested enough to be secure financially and not rely on income from work.

They went to high school together outside Tampa and then attended the University of Florida. Lauren put herself through college thanks to scholarships, grants, and various jobs. Steven had some assistance from his parents and received a tuition scholarship. Both graduated debt-free.

The summer after graduating, they did a road trip across the US, driving from Florida to Alaska with a stop in New York. They slept in their car for much of the 45-day trip and didn't spend much on food.

After a stint in California, they moved back to Florida, where Steven got a full-ride scholarship for a master's program in science education. Lauren found a job at a small financial company, and both were making about $40,000 a year. Due to tight budgeting, they saved more than 60% of their income. In two years with both of them working five-figure jobs, they saved over $100,000.

After growing fatigued with full-time employment, they married and took a six-month sabbatical to Hawaii, where they lived frugally. They rented an apartment for six months instead of staying at hotels, bought a cheap car and sold it for more than they paid for it, and did some part-time work. Despite barely working, they returned with over $1,000 more in net worth than they started from part-time work, low-cost purchases, and investments.

They bought their first home — a $71,000 condo in Gainesville — in cash, then job-hopped for a few years until both made about $90,000 a year. By 2019, they were worth about $600,000, and they felt it was time to embark on a seven-month road trip hitting every US national park. Due to their investments and part-time work on the road, the trip cost them nothing on net.

"The best way to save money on any trip is to attack your biggest costs, which are going to be lodging and transportation," Steven said. "Anywhere that you're willing to drive to instead of flying, particularly if there are multiple people, that's going to save you a massive amount of money in terms of airline costs. Another thing is getting away with camping, whether in your vehicle or in a tent or campground or anything like that."

Lauren retired in 2020 while Steven worked full-time for six months before moving to a part-time arrangement. They moved to a condo by the ocean on Florida's east coast and continued to grow their investments in low-cost index funds, real-estate holdings, and retirement accounts. Steven has continued freelancing through tutoring while Lauren does part-time social media work.

It's allowed them to take various one- to three-month vacations over the last four years. Last year, they went on a three-month trip to Australia, after which they came back $26,000 richer. They kept expenses to below $18,000 plus $3,000 in expenses in the US, and they made about $19,000 in freelance income and $28,000 in investment gains. They bought a cheap car on Facebook Marketplace in Australia, which they sold for slightly more than they paid for it, earned free loyalty nights at hotels, cooked many of their meals, and found free museums and concerts.

Their net worth is $1.1 million, and they're gearing up for a road trip to eastern Canada. They calculated their sweet spot is spending at most $26,000 a year to feel fulfilled without breaking the bank, though they don't track their expenses or budget.

Favorite — and least favorite — national parks

Steven and Lauren ranked their favorite and least favorite national parks from their travels on factors such as how much the park took their breath away, how many fun things the park had, and how easy it was to find quiet in the park.

"Nothing's worse than showing up somewhere beautiful, and you can't get a picture of it without a crowd in the way," Lauren said. "We've been to Yosemite a couple of times, and there are areas where you're sitting in traffic literally in a national park for an extra 45 minutes."

Death Valley was their favorite, citing the vast sand dunes of Eureka Valley, the salt flats of Badwater Basin, and the colorful rocks of Artist's Palette. Despite the crowds, Yosemite ranked second overall, as they noted the waterfalls and granite cliffs are superb.

Hawai'i Volcanoes was their third favorite, as they lived nearby for six months and explored the park's intricacies. They ranked Hawaii's Haleakalā, the highest point on Maui, in ninth.

Other parks topping the list include Yellowstone, American Samoa, Carlsbad Caverns, and Canyonlands.

About 41% of the total cost of attending all national parks came from traveling to Alaska, Hawaii, and other American territories. Still, four of their top 10 parks are outside the contiguous US.

They said one of the easiest — and cheapest — places to camp is Alaska, which they've driven to three times.

"You don't really have to pay anything because you can pretty much pull off wherever you want," Steven said. "Nobody stares if you camp or sleep in your vehicle."

Their least favorite national park was Hot Springs in Arkansas, which was the first national park they visited. They felt it didn't live up to the status of "national park," which they also felt about the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. They also weren't thrilled by Voyageurs in Minnesota, which didn't have many activities other than inexpensive boat tours; Guadalupe Mountains in Texas, which had fantastic views but difficult-to-access sites; and Lassen Volcanic in California, which they found peaceful but smelled like "an ugly pot of bubbling sulfur water."

Best and worst states

The Keys' top four favorite states are California, Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah.

"In terms of just natural beauty and uniqueness, California has so much diversity," Steven said. "Northern and Southern California are two completely different places with two completely different awesome experiences."

Though everyone goes to Oahu, the Big Island in Hawai'i is "super underrated," Lauren said, due to the scenery and relative calm.

Their home base of Florida didn't make the top of their top states list, as they viewed the state's three national parks as less interesting above-ground than many others, though they're great for scuba or snorkeling.

Their least favorite states included Kansas, Missouri, South Carolina, and New Jersey. They found Kansas rather monotonous with plenty of cornfields, and they thought St. Louis and Kansas City were very congested but didn't have the same charm as other large cities.

They felt North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho, and Montana are underrated, as each has some of their favorite national parks, affordable accommodations, and cities with a calmer, suburban feel. Still, they found Mount Rushmore overrated, as they expected it to be larger.

Have you visited every — or most — state or national park? Are you part of the FIRE movement or living by some of its principles? Reach out to this reporter at nsheidlower@businessinsider.com.

• North Korea executed 30 middle schoolers for watching South Korean dramas, according to reports.
• The shows were reportedly stored on USBs that were floated over the border by North Korean defectors.
• North Korea has been accused of using harsh penalties for those caught watching South Korean media.

In North Korea, watching your favorite Korean dramas could end in tragedy.

According to reports from South Korean news outlets Chosun TV and Korea JoongAng Daily, around 30 middle schoolers were publicly shot last week for watching South Korean dramas.

The shows were reportedly stored on USBs that were floated over the border by North Korean defectors.

Business Insider was unable to independently verify the report.

South Korean officials did not comment directly on the report, but according to Korea JoongAng Daily, one unnamed South Korean Unification Ministry official told reporters that "it is widely known that North Korean authorities strictly control and harshly punish residents based on the three so-called 'evil' laws."

One of these is North Korea's Reactionary Ideology and Culture Rejection Act, which forbids individuals from disseminating media that originates in South Korea, the US, or Japan.

It is unclear whether those restrictions apply to foreigners visiting the country, such as the Russian schoolchildren preparing to attend summer camps in the country.

This is not the first instance of North Koreans reportedly being killed for their association with content from their southern neighbor.

According to a 2022 UN Secretary-General report, a man in Kangwon Province was killed by a public firing squad after his neighborhood watch unit saw him selling digital content from South Korea.

A 2024 report on North Korean Human Rights, released by South Korea's Ministry of Unification, claimed that phones in North Korea are regularly checked for "South Korean-style language" and that wearing white wedding dresses is punished for being "reactionary".

A video was released earlier this year showing two teenagers being sentenced to 12 years of hard labor for watching a K-pop video.

Despite eyewitness accounts compiled by Amnesty International, the North Korean government has denied that public executions take place in the country.

According to North Korean authorities, the last execution took place in 1992.

North Korea is still technically at war with its southern counterpart, with their conflict in the 1950s ending in a truce rather than a peace treaty.

A defector told the Korea Herald that in 2020, North Korean parents were forced to sign a pledge stating they would ensure their children do not watch "impure video content" at home.

Recently, experts have speculated that North Korean military personnel could be sent to aid Russian efforts in Ukraine, following closer ties between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

Representatives from North Korea and the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea didn't immediately reply to requests for comment.

• Elite recruiter Deepali Vyas has seen top executives sabotage job prospects with avoidable mistakes.
• Common errors include outdated LinkedIn profiles, poor networking, and generic applications.
• Executives must prioritize their online presence, tailored applications, and interview etiquette.

After nearly 25 years of headhunting for the corporate elite, I've seen it all. From Fortune 500 CEOs to unicorn startup founders, I've placed hundreds of CEOs, CFOs, chief technology officers, and other top-tier executives in career-defining roles.

But here's the kicker: even the most brilliant minds in business can fumble the ball when it comes to landing their dream job.

Let me pull back the curtain on the 10 most cringe-worthy mistakes I've witnessed. These mistakes have cost exceptional candidates their shot at the corner office.

1. Digital ghosts: The LinkedIn lurkers

In today's digital jungle, there's nothing more infuriating than trying to stalk — I mean, research — a candidate only to hit a virtual brick wall. Or worse, stumbling upon a LinkedIn profile so outdated it might as well be carved in stone tablets. I can't count how many times I've asked, "Why are you making me Google you?" It's 2024, folks. Your digital presence is your first impression. Neglect it at your peril.

Pro tip: Your online presence is a critical part of your personal brand and should be cultivated throughout your career.

Keep that LinkedIn profile current and compelling, actively engage with industry content to showcase your expertise, and invest in a high-quality, professional headshot. Remember, your digital first impression should scream "executive material," not "casual Friday at a family reunion."

2. The 'I know everyone' syndrome

You'd think C-suite execs would be networking ninjas. But I've seen too many candidates rest on their laurels, assuming their existing Rolodex (yes, some still have those) is enough. News flash: the business world moves fast. If you're not constantly expanding your network, you're falling behind.

Pro tip: Treat networking like a vital organ — it needs constant care and attention to keep you alive in this game.

Attend industry events, join new professional groups, and for the love of all that's holy, accept those LinkedIn connection requests.

3. The copy-paste catastrophe

Nothing makes me cringe harder than receiving a generic résumé or cover letter. Yes, even for C-level positions. I once had a candidate send me a cover letter addressed to the wrong company. Ouch.

Pro tip: Tailor every single application.

Show me you've done your homework on the company, the role, and the challenges they're facing. Generic applications scream, "I'm not that interested," even if you are.

4. The 'I'll wing it' wipeout

Imagine this: A tech giant CEO walks into an interview for a dream role, confident they can charm their way through based on past glories. Thirty minutes later, they're stumbling over basic questions about the company's recent pivot. I've seen it happen, and it's not pretty.

Pro tip: Prepare like your career depends on it — because it does.

Know the company inside and out. Be ready to discuss its challenges and opportunities and how you'd tackle them from day one.

5. The nostalgia trap

War stories are great at the bar, but not so much in an interview. I've watched brilliant execs spend 90% of an interview reliving their glory days, forgetting to connect those experiences to the challenges of the role they're interviewing for.

Pro tip: Use your past wins as a springboard to discuss future strategies.

Show how your experience has prepared you for the company's next big challenge.

6. The EQ fail

Technical skills get you in the door, but emotional intelligence gets you the job. I once had a candidate — a brilliant strategist — who managed to insult the interviewer's management style within the first 10 minutes. Needless to say, they didn't get the job.

Pro tip: Soft skills matter, especially at the top. Show empathy, active listening, and adaptability.

These traits often outweigh technical prowess in leadership roles.

7. The salary stumble

Even seasoned execs can trip over the compensation question. I've seen candidates lowball themselves out of insecurity, and others demand outrageous packages out of hubris. Both approaches are recipes for disaster.

Pro tip: Do your research. Know your worth, but also understand the market. Be prepared to discuss total compensation packages, not just salary.

To ensure you don't undersell yourself, start by flipping the script and asking the company what salary range they have in mind. Try saying, "I'm thrilled about this opportunity and confident in the value I bring. What salary range do you have in mind for this position?"

For some executives, time is money. Skip the drawn-out haggling and be ready to dive into the total compensation package, covering base salary, bonuses, stock options, health benefits, retirement plans, and other perks.

And please, leave the negotiation tactics you used to buy your last car at home. I once had a CFO candidate hesitate over $3,000 in a $3 million package — that's a big mistake! It makes you appear shortsighted and unprofessional.

8. The culture clash

Here's a hard truth: Most executive placements fail because of cultural misalignment, not competence. I've placed technically brilliant CEOs into companies where they lasted less than a year because they were like oil in water.

Pro tip: Ask probing questions about decision-making processes, communication styles, and company values. And be honest with yourself about whether you'll thrive in that environment.

Culture fit is not about whether you'll be best friends with everyone. It's about aligning your working style and values with the company's.

9. The follow-up faux pas

The interview isn't over when you walk out the door. I'm amazed at how many executives neglect the crucial post-interview period. No follow-up email? No additional insights sent over? It's a missed opportunity to stand out.

Pro tip: Send a thoughtful, personalized thank-you note within 24 hours.

Use the note to reinforce key points, address concerns, and demonstrate your continued enthusiasm for the role.

10. The bridge burner

The executive world is smaller than you think. I've seen candidates ghost companies after multiple rounds of interviews or respond poorly to rejection. Remember, today's rejected offer might be tomorrow's dream opportunity.

Pro tip: Maintain professionalism at all times.

Respond graciously to rejections. If you're turning down an offer, do it with class. You never know when paths might cross again.

The bottom line

Even the brightest stars in the corporate galaxy can dim their own light with these cringe-worthy mistakes. After nearly a quarter-century of placing top executives, I've learned that the difference between landing a dream job and being passed over often comes down to these seemingly small but crucial details.

Remember, at the C-suite level, you're not just being evaluated on your past achievements or technical skills. You're being scrutinized for your potential to lead, inspire, and drive the company forward. Every interaction, from your LinkedIn profile to your thank-you note, is a chance to demonstrate that potential.

Deepali Vyas is a Senior Partner at Korn Ferry. She is a seasoned executive-level advisor and consultant with over 24 years of experience, specializing in placing world-class talent.

If you're a recruiter with unique advice for job seekers and want to share your story, please email Tess Martinelli at tmartinelli@businessinsider.com