• Networking is key to finding new job opportunities and advancing your career.
• Make the discussion all about the person you're networking with.
• It takes years to build a rich web of connections but a great network can last a lifetime.

There's no better way to find a new job than through a network. Oftentimes, the best hires and best roles are found through people you know.

With a robust set of connections, when that dream job opening comes up, one of your network friends could say, "Hey, I know a great person for that role." For this reason, people constantly say you need to network to get ahead.

But how exactly do you do that?

In my over 40 years in business, including being the VP of HR at Microsoft, I've seen people truly excel at building career-enhancing networking. Here's what they do.

Connect with coworkers outside your department

The key to success in networking is to expand your visibility beyond the people you work with every day. Get outside your own bubble.

When you get exposure beyond your immediate sphere, you multiply your presence. Those new people introduce you to more new people, and the size of your network expands exponentially.

Yes, it's fun to interact with those who share your interests and skills. But if you stay entirely within your area, your network will never expand beyond it. The trick is to look outside your discipline. If you work in finance, find people in sales, marketing, development, HR, manufacturing, or wherever. Get to know people far and wide.

Learn how every part of the organization works. It will help you perform your job better and build allies across the company. "Yes, I know Anne who works over there, let me talk to her about that."

Step outside your bubble and network with other organizations in your industry

Better yet, get outside your current organization. Look to other companies in your industry that are doing interesting things. Consider organizations that work far differently than your current one.

The value here is in understanding how things work elsewhere. How different companies handle the challenges you see every day. How do they motivate people? Work together across disciplines? Hire great talent? Handle lean times?

Every organization faces many of the same challenges, and it can be incredibly enlightening to see how other people and teams handle them. It makes you smarter and more valuable to your company. You'd want to be able to say, "I've seen how they do it in the sprinkler system industry. They handle it like this."

The best thing is to build a range of options in your career, as you see the broader world around you.

Where do you look?

But where do you find all these people? They're everywhere.

Inside your organization, the people to network with are in your budget meeting, your HR training class, your company all-hands meeting, and that monthly Zoom meeting that you hate but have to attend.

Outside your organization, they're at that conference you went to last year. On social media talking about the frustrating parts of their industry. They're in the Reddit forum for your discipline or on that gaming Discord server.

They're the other parent at your kid's soccer match. The neighbor down the street, or the person across the room at church. The other volunteer at the nonprofit fundraiser. Or the other hiker in the group you occasionally go to.

The right people to network with are literally all around you, you just have to reach out and ask. "Hey, I'd love a coffee or a Zoom to understand more about what you do." Almost no one would refuse that conversation.

Be curious

But I don't know anything about those other disciplines or organizations, you say?

That's the good part. That's what's fun. Meeting people like this is a chance to learn, and to broaden your scope.

The key is to be curious and ask lots of great questions. Not just what do you do, but tell me about how that works. What does a typical day or month look like? What are your biggest challenges?

Also, dig deeper and ask more engaging questions. "Gee, that seems like it would be tough to make progress. How do you keep motivated?" "That sounds like it would be cool, what are some of the big wins you've had?"

The conversation should be about the person you're networking with

Remember in these conversations to make the discussion all about the person you're networking with. Or at least mostly about them. Ask great questions to get them talking about themselves, their job, their challenges, and their successes.

Don't dive into personal things, unless they invite it. There are too many sensitive areas, and it's too easy to step on toes. Just keep it all about work. All about what they do, their role, and their company.

You'd be surprised at the results. People love a good conversation like this, where they get a chance to sit with a good listener and share what they know. Best of all, they'll think you're smart and thoughtful. Just because you showed interest, asked great questions, and listened thoughtfully.

The results take time but can last forever

The results of great networking aren't fast. They don't happen in days or weeks. It takes years to build a rich web of connections.

But a great network can last a lifetime. If you simply keep in touch with the many people you've met, those connections will endure forever. And the payback will be a rich life of options and opportunities.

Networking also builds resilience in your career. If your company is headed into hard times, there's nothing better than a network of people who know you. They will defend you when you need it and be there to help when you need a new job. In conversations they might say, "We should keep them around, let's find them a spot" or "I know they're hiring over there, let me see if I can find a connection for you to talk to."

Make your network a priority. Try to make a new connection each week. Soon, you'll have a rich network as invested in your success as you are.

Chris Williams is the former VP of HR at Microsoft. He's an executive-level advisor and consultant with over 40 years of experience leading and building teams.

• This post originally appeared in the Insider Today newsletter.
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Welcome back to our Saturday edition! Eating healthy just got a lot easier. A longevity expert says two pantry staples are actually the cornerstone of a hearty diet.

On the agenda:

• A 64-year-old says she reversed her biological age with a simple, cheap diet.
• Taylor Swift knew exactly what she was doing bringing Travis Kelce onstage.
• The first-ever Delta One Lounge is just as bougie as you'd expect.
• Summer camps are cracking down on "Sephora Kids."

But first: It's time to talk about work BFFs.

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

This week's dispatch

To friend or not to friend — that is the question

Lisa. Nicole. Malorie. Those are the names of my work besties from newsrooms across New York City.

They made the intensity of meeting deadlines bearable, offered great conversation during otherwise monotonous lunch breaks, and gave me much-needed companionship while working well beyond 40 hours a week.

A few years ago, this wouldn't have seemed revelatory. But now, with hybrid work in full swing, having a work best friend has become rarefied air, and there's a growing debate around whether it's even worth it to have work friends at all.

Business Insider's Emily Stewart said it may be a good thing that work friendships are disappearing. She writes, "After years of being told to bring our whole selves to work, many of us could stand to leave a little more at home."

Meanwhile, BI's Madison Hoff and Ayelet Sheffey noted that a lack of work friendships is bad news for not only companies, but employees too. "Humans need each other and collaborate more effectively when they have real relationships," Gallup's director of research Ben Wigert told them.

Personally, I can't help but form friendships at work. Blame my southern upbringing or the fact that I've seen how connection benefits me — and the quality of my work.

So, what do you think? Let me know if you're for or against work friendships.

An age-reversing diet

Amy Hardison, a 64-year-old grandmother of 11, has earned a top spot in the Rejuvenation Olympics. She's even outpaced Bryan Johnson, the tech CEO who spends $2 million a year on his longevity routine.

While Hardison said she spends about $300 a month on supplements, the rest of her longevity routine is cheap or free. She said she does exercises she enjoys, eats homemade bread, and always has dessert.

More longevity tips from the 64-year-old.

Also read:

• A healthy, active 100-year-old shares her 3 science-backed tips for living a long, happy life

A move from the Swiftian playbook

Taylor Swift has practically trained fans to analyze her actions for potential easter eggs. Just like her songs and social media posts, there's a lot to unpack in the decision to bring boyfriend Travis Kelce onstage at the Eras Tour show in London.

The Kelce feature is a callback to the success of Swift's "1989" era, when she basked in the public spotlight. It's also a savvy business move: She's leveraging peak headline dominance with a maximalism true to her brand.

Taylor Swift, business mastermind.

Inside the first Delta One Lounge

Delta Air Lines just unveiled its first-ever business-class lounge, located in New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The highly anticipated lounge — which comes in at nearly 40,000 square feet — offers high-class perks like a wellness center, terrace, and full-service restaurant. BI's reporter got a tour, and says it's the best lounge of its kind.

Check out the new lounge.

Also read:

• Luxury air travel is on the rise. Experts say you don't have to be rich to experience it.

Summer camps crack down on "Sephora kids"

In the past year, beauty influencers on TikTok have helped turn niacinamide serums and eye creams into playground status symbols. But high-end summer camps are drawing a line in the sand.

Some have sent letters to families demanding kids leave their luxury skincare at home. But for every parent relieved by this crackdown, there's a kid who's upset about leaving their mini-fridge full of creams behind.

More on camps' skincare bans.

What we're watching this weekend

• "The Bear": The third season of the critically acclaimed comedy-drama is now on Hulu.
• "I Am: Celine Dion": This intimate new documentary about the iconic singer and her health struggles with stiff-person syndrome serves as a "love letter" to her fans.
• "Owning Manhattan": Netflix's latest reality series centers on the glamorous lives of luxury realtors selling multimillion-dollar properties in New York City.

See the full list.

Deals we love

• Sweet dreams: Heads up hot sleepers — we found the 10 best cooling pillows to help you stay chill at bedtime.
• Independence Day deals: Tons of stores are celebrating the 4th of July with a sale. Here are the best ones from our favorite home, kitchen, and outdoor brands.
• Viral swimsuits for summer: TA3 may not have made it with Shark Tank's investors, but the brand is blowing up on TikTok for its waist-snatching swimsuits that we love.

More of this week's top reads:

• A summer in Europe costs less than sending her kid to camp in the US.
• The Hamptons are back. Here are the hottest places to see and be seen this summer.
• What it's like to move from Colorado to Florida.
• Six places where you can travel in luxury — on a budget.
• A stay in Arizona's top hotels shows why Scottsdale is a luxury travel hotspot.
• You can book free personal-styling appointments at Nordstrom and Saks.
• I went on a trip with my 91-year-old grandmother to her home country.
• Review: Flying 22 hours in Turkish Airlines' business class.
• A couple saved thousands on their wedding by focusing on these details.
• I bid $290 for a premium economy seat on a 10-hour flight. I'm glad I didn't win.

The Insider Today team: Joi-Marie McKenzie, editor in chief of life, in New York. Jordan Parker Erb, editor, in New York. Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York City. Lisa Ryan, executive editor, in New York. Grace Lett, associate editor, in Chicago. Amanda Yen, fellow, in New York.

• Wealthy buyers and celebrities are increasingly choosing Florida for its tax benefits and weather.
• Athletes like Tom Brady and stars like Scott Baio are establishing themselves in the Sunshine State.
• A growing tech population is greatly influencing the housing market down south.

Florida has always been an appealing destination for movers, thanks to its lack of income tax and great weather. Celebrities have always found their way there for vacations or second homes, but in recent years, more high-end buyers are putting down more serious roots in the Sunshine State.

Superstar athlete Lionel Messi, for instance, made his way to Florida after leaving Barcelona. Actors like Sylvester Stallone, one of the many Hollywood stars who've left California, also opted to make Florida his new home base.

And while international celebrity moves aren't all that surprising, there's also been a new crop of mover — ultrawealthy business and tech icons.

During the pandemic, Miami tried to establish itself as the third coast for tech behind San Francisco and New York, and the city was able to lure some large players, from startup founders to investment firm CEOs.

The realignment of wealth has made some regions more popular than they were previously, but Florida, especially, has emerged as a great place to call home for the wealthy.

Business Insider rounded up a list of 14 celebrities and businesspeople who have left various parts of the country to establish themselves — and, in some cases, their businesses — in sunny Florida, presented in alphabetical order by last name.

Scott Baio moved to Florida due to California’s homeless issue.

The "Happy Days" and "Charles in Charge" actor posted on X in May 2023 that he was leaving California after 45 years, citing the homeless issue in LA County.

"Florida is pretty much what America was like 50 years ago," Baio told Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo weeks after the post. "It's just people hanging out. Everything's wide open, it's free, the people that I meet are all just nice."

David Beckham bought a massive condo in Miami after taking ownership of its Major League Soccer team.

Retired soccer great David Beckham is spending more time in Miami these days.

He and his wife, Victoria Beckham, bought a $24 million, five-bedroom condo in 2020 that features a swimming pool and rooftop helipad. The couple moved to Miami after Beckham became co-owner and president of the Major League Soccer team Inter Miami CF.

"Miami is the gateway to the Americas, embracing people from all over the world, and Inter Miami CF was built to bring world-class football to this world-class city," Beckham wrote on his website of his interest in owning Inter Miami.

Jeff Bezos left Seattle's tech hub for a more laid-back city in Miami.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos bought a $68 million mansion in Biscayne Bay in August 2023. Two months later, he bought a seven-bedroom house next door for $79 million. In April, he bought another property in Florida — this time for $90 million.

Bezos said he was leaving Seattle, where his company is headquartered, for Miami to be closer to his parents and to the operations of the aerospace company he also founded, Blue Origin.

"I've lived in Seattle longer than I've lived anywhere else and have so many amazing memories here," Bezos said in an Instagram post. "As exciting as the move is, it's an emotional decision for me."

Tom Brady has lived in Florida since winning a Super Bowl in Tampa Bay.

After signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, and winning a Super Bowl with the team before he retired from the NFL in 2023, Brady has stayed put in Florida.

First, he was living in a 1.2-acre mansion during his time as a Buccaneer while married to Gisele Bündchen (it was once owned by Derek Jeter).

Since his divorce, he's moved to Miami. The bachelor pad features floor-to-ceiling windows and an indoor/outdoor living space with a fireplace and pool, according to snapshots he's shared on Instagram.

"I was a native Californian for a long time in my life, went away from it for about 25 years, and you won't catch me dead living in the Northeast anymore," Brady said in 2020, referencing his time as a New England Patriot. "I'm loving the warm weather, and it's been a great feeling."

Guy Fieri has an estate near West Palm Beach that can dock a 100-foot yacht.

The king of "Flavortown" has spent most of his career on the West Coast, having gone to college in Las Vegas and building his restaurant empire in California. Now, as one of the major food personalities in the world and with his children growing up, he's thinking of the next chapter in his life.

Fieri bought a waterfront home near West Palm Beach in 2023 for $7.3 million, according to The Palm Beach Post.

The estate has five bedrooms, five bathrooms, 6,621 square feet of indoor living space, and a 5-foot infinity pool. Its 230-foot frontage on the Intracostal Waterway has enough room to dock a 100-foot yacht.

"Even a cloudy day in Florida is an awesome day," he said while opening up one of his Chicken Guy chains in Winter Park, Florida in 2023. "I will be in Florida way more than you know."

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin moved his family and his business to South Florida.

Ken Griffin founded the investment firm Citadel in 1990 in Chicago but has since ditched the Windy City for the warmer climate of Miami.

Griffin not only moved his firm — which has about $58 billion in assets managed — to Florida, he moved himself. He plans on building a $1 billion office for the new Citadel headquarters and isn't skimping on his own digs either.

In 2022, Griffin bought a waterfront property for more than $106 million, breaking the previous record (which he set himself the year before, after buying a home on Star Island for $75 million).

Karlie Kloss and Jared Kushner left Manhattan for South Florida.

Josh Kushner, venture capitalist and brother to Jared Kushner, left Manhattan for a $23.5 million property in Miami Beach in 2020.

Kushner and his wife, model Karlie Kloss, moved into an eight-bedroom, 14,000-square-foot mansion on a waterfront lot.

According to Architectural Digest, Kushner and Kloss bought another property in Manhattan in 2021, but property records show they still own their home in Miami Beach.

Lionel Messi enjoys his Fort Lauderdale mansion when he's not playing for Inter Miami CF.

Three years after taking the team, David Beckham acquired arguably the world's greatest soccer player.

Lionel Messi signed on to play for Inter Miami CF in 2023, and when he's not on the pitch, he enjoys his $10.75 million waterfront mansion in Fort Lauderdale.

The 10,500-square-foot two-story house has 10 bedrooms, nine bathrooms, two docks, and 170 feet of water frontage, according to the Miami Herald.

"It has been very easy, very easy," Messi said at a 2023 press conference about adapting to his new surroundings in Miami. "We were convinced we wanted to come here, and the people made it very easy, the people in the club and the people I see day to day in the streets and the amazing city, it makes living here very easy and happy."

Adam Neumann is establishing himself in Florida and has a large footprint to work with.

In 2021, WeWork cofounder Adam Neumann sold his Bay Area compound for $22.4 million and bought two properties in Miami.

Neumann bought two adjacent properties totaling 50,000 square feet for $44 million. The waterfront properties are located on the Bal Harbour marina, an exclusive part of Miami Beach.

Larry Robbins vacated New York to live in Florida, but will still commute for work.

Billionaire and hedge-fund manager Larry Robbins is leaving New York City, but he's not bringing his company with him.

Robbins, the CEO of Glenview Capital Management, bought a home in Palm Beach Gardens for $13.9 million earlier in 2024, according to The Real Deal.

Unlike other bosses who are moving their operations with them, Bloomberg reported that Robbins will keep the fund in New York while he commutes back and forth.

Judge Judy Sheindlin has been a fixture in Florida for years, and even a hurricane won't stop her from living there.

Judge Judy Sheindlin has been enjoying the Sunshine State for some time. For years, she and her husband have lived in Naples.

At one time, they owned an 8,550-square-foot condo with two private elevators and a sauna but put it on the market in 2015.

She then moved into a 10,000-square-foot mansion about a mile away that overlooks a man-made lake.

In 2022, a month after the devastation of Hurricane Ian through Florida, Sheindlin told "Good Morning America" that she lost a couple of cars due to the storm, but that wouldn't stop her from going back to Florida.

"We kissed goodbye a couple of cars, which went floating," she said. "But, generally speaking, we were luckier than most people down in Florida. And we're hoping to get back before the season ends."

Sylvester Stallone is enjoying life as an empty-nester in the Sunshine State.

After decades of living in Los Angeles, the iconic actor packed up for Florida in 2023.

The move was revealed in early 2024, when season two of his reality series, "The Family Stallone," aired.

"After a long, hard consideration, your mother and I have decided, time to move on and leave the state of California permanently, and we're going to go to Florida," Stallone told his kids. "We're going to sell this house."

Stallone and his wife, Jennifer Flavin, gave multiple reasons for the relocation, including the desire for a fresh start after their children moved out of the family home.

Howard Stern is enjoying life on his oceanfront property in Palm Beach.

The legendary shock jock spent decades living it up in the Hamptons, and now he's doing the same in Florida.

Stern bought the massive 20,000-square-foot oceanfront property in Palm Beach in 2013 for a reported $52 million.

The property is so desirable that in April, rumors spread that Jeff Bezos bought Stern's estate for $300 million. However, Page Six later reported that the rumors were false and that Stern even told the billionaire his place wasn't for sale.

"New York is the center of the world," Stern once told listeners of his show in 2015. "Why wouldn't everyone just move to Florida and build a New York there? I don't get it."

Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner deserted DC and landed in Miami Beach.

Former president Donald Trump's daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner, reportedly spent $30 million in December 2020 on a waterfront lot on Indian Creek Island — a gated community home to a handful of celebrities.

When they bought the property, the home was billed as a "fixer-upper," and they spent years on renovations.

After leaving Washington, DC, but before moving into their new home, the couple rented a condo tower, Arte Tower, in Surfside, Florida, about a mile from their property.

• I'm a plus-sized woman who moved from the Midwest to Southern California.
• I was lovingly accepted until a stranger made a derogatory remark in the grocery store.
• I was shocked, and it caused me to reconsider my thinking about my body.

The man who fat-shamed me at a grocery store in Irvine, California, bounced into the store, wearing his too-short shorts and a tank top that revealed his contoured abs. At a glance, he appeared as the epitome of a California stereotype: a health nut and yoga enthusiast, perfectly poised, with his nose a little too high in the air.

I don't fit in that stereotype. I am a plus-sized woman who spent the majority of my life in the Midwest. When I moved to California to start my life over as an adult, I was shocked by the options for Botox and contouring surgeries, the focus on organic foods, and the attentiveness toward fitness.

And yet, no person I met in California has ever treated me as less than or looked down upon me — at least not until this man showed his face in the grocery store.

I was shocked when the stranger called out my weight

I remember lighting up when I saw this man and greeting him with a huge smile. Honestly, he looked like some of the men I've dated — men who were delighted with my plus-sized body, many of whom declared a preference for someone shaped like me.

I'm not sure what I was expecting when I greeted him. But I wasn't expecting him to say, "You don't need those," as I walked by holding my only grocery item — a package of bakery cookies.

It took me a minute to register what he said because I was so shocked. When the message registered, I looked back in horror — only to find him cocking his neck, intently staring back at me with a huge smirk. His piercing glance declared pride in having disseminated such a judgment.

I held it together long enough to walk across the parking lot to my car — a distance I purposely kept to get extra steps in. I asked a stranger to take a photo of me because I wanted to remember the moment when I became fearful, when I no longer felt safe to walk around as myself, and when California's humanity showed its face as the mean and vile place many people expect.

It was October 9th, 2020, at 3:28 p.m. — precisely three years, three months, and three days after I moved to California.

I struggled to move past the interaction

I frequently wondered how I'd gotten so lucky to arrive in a new state where most people look, live, and move differently than I do, yet I've been so lovingly accepted. I've met many strangers from varying backgrounds and walks of life who've become best friends. One such person told me that LA is "the heart chakra of the US," and I banked on acceptance being an energetic thing. Many people here are accustomed to noticing energy. Most of the time, I'm loving, open, free, and fun. People can feel that and want to connect with me to soak it in.

So, my immediate response was to blame this man for only seeing my size and making judgments about my purchase. Random questions rushed through my mind. Did he not see that I'm a person just like him? Does he not even have feelings? What story did he make up about the cookies? Did he expect me to binge eat and wash them down with dairy milk or a Diet Coke? For the record, I do not drink either.

How did he know the cookies were not a gift or a treat I was taking to an event? The real story is that I went in to buy one cookie, but they only had giant, oversized cookies. Having just come from an important medical appointment and suffering from massive stress, I agonized over my purchase. So, instead of buying one cookie with a tempting, too-large portion, I bought a package with smaller cookies to eat one and freeze the rest.

It was an eye-opening encounter

For nearly four years since that interaction, I've pondered what was different about that day and why my interaction with him was so unlike every other interaction I've had in California. As hard as it is to admit, the answer is simple.

He read my energy, and he didn't tell me anything I hadn't already told myself.

For weeks, I'd been stuck in a cycle of beating myself up for not being perfect. And you better believe I said those exact dreaded words, "You don't need those," to myself while shopping for cookies. On that particular day, after feeling extremely stressed from the effects of living alone during a pandemic and arguably one of the most intensive times in history, I wasn't the same woman who arrived in California full of vim, vigor, and abundant life.

Instead, my energy was laced with fears and worries about not fitting into the mold of what I was "supposed to" look like. Rather than owning my power and settling into the good energy and sharing the heartfelt beauty I carry, I was projecting an energy of feeling and looking "less than," and he clearly could tell.

Thank you, Sir Fat Shamer, for showing me how vile and ugly the mirror can be when it's not grounded in love, compassion, and, at the very least, curiosity.

• Alison Weinsweig told BI she lost over $170,000 in rent and spent almost 3 years trying to evict a tenant.
• When she eventually got access to the apartment, she found it in disarray.
• She said she cried after seeing blood-stained floors, cigarette burns, and a life-sized dummy.

When Alison Weinsweig, 67, rented her luxury Westwood apartment to a tenant in 2020, she never anticipated it would turn into an almost three-year ordeal, let alone one that would set her back more than $200,000.

It was a "strain on many levels," she told Business Insider.

"I felt terribly violated," she added. "I never thought I'd get him out. I thought I'd be stuck with him for the rest of my life."

When Weinsweig finally gained access to her property in April, she found it in an eerie state of disarray, which caused her to run out in tears.

Images provided to BI appear to show blood-stained floors, cracked countertops, and, disturbingly, a life-sized human dummy.

Now she's left picking up the pieces, needing to fork out thousands in repairs, according to contractor estimates seen by BI, on top of the more than $170,000 she said she had already lost in unpaid rent.

Weinsweig, a semi-retired real estate broker, purchased the two-bedroom penthouse on Wilshire Boulevard in 2004, and lived there for a decade before moving to Pennsylvania to be with her unwell mother.

She had previously rented it out to two tenants without issue and expected Ramin Kohanim's tenancy to be no different.

"He appeared to be a reasonable tenant," she said, noting that a rental agency had vetted him, showing a Social Security Number, an acceptable credit score, and an account with significant funds.

But Weinsweig said that even if there were "red flags," she would have likely overlooked them — she was too focused on her mom getting better.

She explained that the first year of Kohanim's tenancy was unremarkable, despite some late payments. But after he signed on for a second year in July 2021, things got messy.

"He paid the first month and never paid anything again," Weinsweig claims.

Kohanim and his attorney didn't respond to BI's requests for comment.

Despite repeated excuses, Weinsweig says she received no rent for months, prompting her to take legal action in January 2022.

According to legal documents reviewed by BI, the tenant was subject to the COVID-19 Tenant Relief Act, which prevented evictions for nonpayment of rent for those experiencing hardship due to the pandemic.

After Kohanim's application for rental assistance was approved, Weinsweig received a fraction of the lost rent, and the case was automatically dismissed that summer.

Later that year, Weinsweig filed another lawsuit seeking possession of the premises and monetary damages, but it did not go as planned.

After dismissing her attorney and the case, she eventually rehired her first attorney and waited for LA County's eviction Moratorium to expire in March 2023.

It would take months of deliberation before the parties reached a settlement, but under the terms of a stipulated judgment in November 2023, Kohanim was ordered to leave by April this year.

According to legal documents reviewed by BI, Weinsweig agreed to pay the tenant $20,000, half of which was to be held in trust only to be paid out once he had vacated the property and followed the terms and conditions.

Although this felt unfair, Weinsweig thought it would give her a sense of finality, she said.

Kohanim left the property in April, but Weinsweig alleges that her former tenant has yet to return the keys or fob. However, this was the least of her worries.

According to a transcript reviewed by BI, in a hearing on May 23 at the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles, Weinsweig told the court that the apartment was left in an "absolutely deplorable" condition.

She told BI and the court that when she arrived at the property, she saw cigarette burns and trash everywhere, and what appeared to be blood on the floors of the bedroom and bathroom.

Images provided to BI and the court appear to show the damage.

Other images provided to BI also appear to show a life-sized dummy on the bathroom floor, next to zip-tie packets. It's unclear why they were there.

Quotes from contractors, shared with BI by Weinsweig, suggest repairs could cost upwards of $24,000.

During the hearing, Kohanim conceded that there was "discharge" on a mattress, though he and his attorney dismissed the rest of the damage as normal "wear and tear."

The defense made no suggestion in the hearing that the images were staged or unreliable.

Kohanim's attorney told the court that his client wasn't the "best tenant in the world" or the cleanest, but he refuted that the apartment had been intentionally destroyed.

The judge disagreed, stating that "80 square feet of blood is not ordinary wear and tear."

He ordered that the $10,000 being held be returned to Weinsweig and the case be unsealed.

Weinsweig said she wanted the case unsealed to share knowledge of her ordeal. For her, that is a small victory worth holding onto.

"I felt vindicated when they lifted the seal because not only was I subject to all these injustices… I was compelled to keep it quiet," she said, adding: "This can't go unnoticed."

• I stayed in a Deluxe Veranda suite on Silversea's new ultra-luxury Silver Ray cruise ship.
• The cabin had a walk-in closet, balcony, butler, and caviar room service.
• In 2024, the Deluxe Veranda suite starts at $5,400 per person for an eight-day cruise.

I regret to report that my new favorite cruise cabin starts at $675 per person per day.

But before you click away, hear me out: It could be worth the cost.

In mid-June, ultra-luxury cruise line Silversea's latest ship, Silver Ray, set sail on its maiden voyage, marking the second Nova Class vessel to join the company's now 12-ship fleet.

Silversea invited travel agents and journalists on a complimentary five-night test sailing a week before its debut. Luckily, my cabin was one of the most luxurious I've ever stayed in, both on land and at sea.

Silversea assigned me one of the ship's Deluxe Veranda suites.

The cabin has accrued a waitlist on several of Silver Ray's itineraries this year, the company says. The cheapest available one in 2024 is on an eight-day cruise from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Cartagena, Colombia, this June, starting at $5,400 per person.

Broken down, that's about $675 per person and day.

The price is steep compared to the average mass-market cruise.

Silversea is Royal Caribbean Group's most luxurious brand, known for small, high-end vessels with fares far exceeding those of its parent company's eponymous cruise line.

Silver Ray and its one-year-old predecessor, Silver Nova, are the largest in Silversea's fleet. But both only accommodate 728 guests — a stark contrast from Royal Caribbean's largest 7,600-guest ship.

At 357 square feet, the Deluxe Veranda is the same size as the ship's two cheaper cabin categories.

The cost difference comes down to where they're located on the ship. Deluxe Verandas are mid-ship, perfect for guests prone to seasickness (like me).

Like many luxury cruise ships, every cabin on Silver Ray has a furnished balcony.

Sheer and blackout curtains and a heavy glass sliding door separated the open-air 54-square-foot lounge from the interior.

I’ve had my fair share of cramped cruise cabin living 'rooms.' No complaints here.

This one felt roomy, even with an additional ottoman that turned the cozy couch into a small sectional.

The coffee table also doubled as the room-service dining table — perfect for eating complimentary caviar and foie gras while watching the passing waves.

The suites also come with a welcome bottle of Champagne, a common touch on most premium cruise ships.

If you don't finish the complimentary bottle, store it in the desk's mini-fridge.

The desk also houses a tablet that functions as a three-in-one ship directory, planner, and cabin control center. It was my go-to device for perusing Silver Ray's daily schedule, checking the onboard restaurants' menus, and controlling the suite's temperature and lights — all without needing to stand up.

If that wasn't convenient enough, the TV and your mobile Silversea profile also have the same features.

The TV could pull out and swivel toward the queen-sized bed.

Just make sure you adjust it before lying down. It'll be hard to get back up.

The bed was plush and sumptuous, stocked with pillows so soft I felt like I was being swallowed alive.

But if you don't like down pillows — look, I'm not proud of it either — you can always peruse the pillow menu for a different option.

The sleek bathroom was located down a short hall, closer to the front door.

Some of the suites have both a bathtub and a shower. Mine only came with the latter (woe is me), but it did cosplay as a dual-vanity bathroom with two sink heads that shared one basin.

This setup left me ample counter space. But if you'd rather tuck your toiletries away, the bathroom also had generous shelves and drawers, one of which had a built-in organizer perfect for my obscene skincare collection.

The products were all labeled Otium, after Silversea’s spa.

Guests can select different toiletries from the bath product menu. Options included soaps from Bulgari, a signature of rival-owned Oceania Cruises.

A walk-in closet and vanity separated the bathroom from the bedroom.

The closet had less storage than my suite on competitor Regent Seven Seas' latest vessel. But it was still sizable, with enough space and hangars for two guests.

If you, like me, hate doing post-vacation laundry, Silversea has a solution. Guests can wash, dry, and iron their clothes in the communal laundry rooms.

Or just have your butler do it for you.

Yes, you read that right: Butler.

Several mass-market and luxury cruise lines offer these personal assistants to travelers who've booked the highest-tier suites.

On Silversea's cruises, every guest has a white-glove-donning butler to help with tasks like packing luggage and setting up luxurious showers with scented steamers and fake candles.

My suite also had several small, well-thought-out details that made it stand out from other five-star cruise lines.

For example, the "sleep" setting — which could be activated from the thermostat, TV, tablet, or phone — slowly dimmed all the lights, giving me ample time to navigate back to bed before the room went dark.

And my cabin steward (different from the butler) placed a small microfiber cloth over my sunglasses and glasses whenever he tidied up my suite. I've yet to receive this kind of high-touch housekeeping service on a cruise ship.

While it's not something I would've ever requested, I certainly didn't mind.

So, do microfiber cloth-covered sunglasses and free caviar make this suite worth $675 per person and day?

I hate to say it, but yes.

It's undoubtedly a steep cost. But let's not forget that the fare also includes drinks, excursions, access to the saunas, and meals at six of the ship's eight restaurants — all aboard one of the most luxurious vessels I've ever been on.

If you aren't worried about seasickness, you could always reserve the two cheaper cabin categories, which are virtually identical but located closer to the aft and bow. You might feel the waves more, but you'd save almost $90 per person and day.

However, I, a girlie hypersensitive to seasickness, was relieved by the mid-ship position. And that alone makes the premium price worth it.

• Despite booming travel, airlines are struggling to turn a profit.
• Southwest expects seat-mile revenue will decline up to 4.5%, while American predicts up to 6%.
• Experts blame fewer last-minute business travelers, overcapacity, Boeing delays, and inflated costs.

Making money in the airline industry has never been easy.

It's a capital-heavy business with the constant need to expand and innovate while simultaneously managing ever-changing demand and costs.

Expensive fuel, maintenance, and labor don't help, nor do unpredictable setbacks outside the airline's control, like pandemic travel bans and production slowdowns at planemaker Boeing.

Despite the challenging environment, 2024 is still set to see record-breaking passenger numbers, according to the International Air Transport Association, or IATA,

With so many people traveling, US airlines were poised for success. Some, like Delta, have found it. But across the industry, many airlines are struggling to turn profits thanks to issues like overcapacity, unrelenting competition, and unexpectedly high costs, according to experts.

Take Southwest, for example, which in June cut its forecasts and now expects revenue per seat mile — a key financial metric for airlines — to fall by up to 4.5% where it had previously expected 1.5% to 3.5%.

Before that, American in May warned it expected the same metric to fall by 5% to 6% compared to last year. Its earlier prediction was 1% to 3%.

Across the board, airlines have trailed the benchmark S&P 500 index with more debt than the average publicly traded company and thinner margins.

Airlines got overambitious with their expansion plans

Travel analyst Henry Harteveldt told Business Insider that thining margins are, in part, because airlines added too much to the market too fast amid confidence in the soaring demand and now can't sell all of those seats.

Reuters reported American hurt its pricing power after aggressive growth in its domestic market. The airline also missed out on revenue from corporate customers due to a flawed ticket sale strategy it has since admitted was a mistake to adopt.

"We're seeing softness in customer bookings relative to our expectations that we believe is in part due to the changes that we have made to our sales and distribution strategy," American CEO Robert Isom said during a May conference.

Southwest also cited its struggle to predict demand as part of its revenue problem. And, unlike ultra-low-cost carriers, Southwest doesn't charge extra for ancillaries like bags or seats — another missed revenue opportunity.

In fact, activist firm Elliott Investment Management recently pumped nearly $2 billion into Southwest, questioning strategies like its lack of add-on fees and calling for a board shake-up and the firing of Southwest CEO Bob Jordan.

Business travelers are booking fewer last-minute premium-priced tickets

Part of the industry's overcapacity problem is because lucrative business travel still hasn't completely rebounded since the pandemic, Harry Kraemer, former CFO and CEO of healthcare firm Baxter International, told BI.

Corporations aren't spending as much on last-minute business travel since the pandemic made Zoom and Google Meet more convenient.

"Half of the market is gone, and it's their highest margin," Kraemer said. "You've got all this excess capacity, and you've bought these planes, so what are you going to do with them."

Further, Harteveldt said companies have become more price-sensitive and are looking for cheaper options, noting ULCCs Frontier and Spirit are even getting business customers.

Over the past 12 months, shares of Spirit and Frontier have declined roughly 79% and 50%, respectively, far underperforming competitors and the market.

In an effort to boost revenue, they've changed their strategies to capitalize on the demand for more premium perks, such as dropping change and cancel fees and creating "business" class-like seats.

Boeing delivery delays have eaten into profits

Harteveldt said Boeing's ongoing delivery delays have cost airlines like American, Southwest, and United millions of dollars. This has forced them to adjust their planned flying, impacting revenue opportunities and flight availability.

He also said the lack of new planes means airlines are flying older ones for a longer time. The costs of maintenance and lesser efficiency can add up, and customers can't get access to the nicer amenities and reliability of newer jets.

Airlines need to expand with new routes and planes, he said — it's the nature of the highly competitive industry.

However, Harteveldt noted these forced network shake-ups, like Southwest's exit from four airports, could be beneficial for better leveraging airline pricing power, as capacity can be brought back in line with demand.

"The airlines should find and serve routes that are the most profitable, and that means they may need to increase capacity in some markets and completely exit others," he said.

Low-cost competitor JetBlue Airways overhauled its network to stay above water after its failed merger with Spirit.

Harteveldt noted that Airbus is also facing production setbacks that are impacting deliveries and worrying investors, though not as dire as Boeing.

Airlines are plagued by high costs in an extremely competitive industry

Nearly everything is more expensive than it was before the pandemic, and airlines are no exception.

"It's the worst possible combination of high fixed costs and inflation on the variable costs," Kraemer said, pointing to costs like planes, labor, and fuel. "There are so many permanent changes like virtual meetings that airlines will need several years to adjust for."

Fuel costs in April were 33% higher than they were during the same time in 2019, according to the most recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, US airline pilots have gotten huge pay raises in recent years to help fend off a labor shortage.

For low-cost carriers like Frontier and Spirit, these high costs make it challenging to make money, Kraemer said. Still, they force competitor fares down — creating another profit obstacle for mainline carriers. IATA reported in June that industry ticket prices, including ancillary, are 15% below 2019 levels despite high growth.

Harteveldt said beefing up revenue in any way possible is the best way to counteract the ever-growing costs.

"These days, it's less about having the lowest costs and more about generating the most revenue," he said, suggesting strategies such as charging for more ancillaries, reducing the number of discount tickets sold, or creating more enticing bundle packages.

• Unpasteurized milk may be spreading the H5N1 bird flu between cows and to humans.
• A new study showed the virus can survive in raw milk on milking equipment for over an hour.
• Better cleaning of milking equipment and protective gear for workers could limit the virus's spread.

Contaminated milk may be spreading H5N1 bird flu between dairy cattle, contributing to a major outbreak across 12 US states. It may also be how humans are getting infected.

A new study shows the virus can survive for over an hour in raw (unpasteurized) milk left on the surfaces of materials used in equipment for milking dairy cattle.

That's a clue in the mystery of how the virus has spread so rapidly between US dairy cattle, infecting over 130 herds in Idaho, Michigan, Colorado, Texas, and more.

The cattle outbreak has scientists increasingly worried that the H5N1 virus could mutate enough to cause an outbreak in humans. The more the virus spreads through cattle, the more opportunity it has to mutate.

Since April, three farmworkers have tested positive for the virus, but experts have found no evidence of human-to-human spread.

Understanding how the virus spreads between cattle is key to reigning in the outbreak and preventing further human infection.

"We need to know which dairy herds are infected, with what strains of virus, how infection is spread between farms, and how frequently dairy farm workers and other people are exposed," Christopher Dye, an infectious disease expert and professor at the University of Oxford, told Business Insider in an email.

According to the FDA, pasteurized milk purchased at the grocery store remains safe to drink. However, raw milk could be an agent of infection.

How to help stop the spread of H5N1 bird flu

Officials already knew that H5N1 was jumping farm-to-farm through the movement of cows, equipment, and people and that the virus concentrates in sick cows' udders and milk.

"That means even just a small splash of milk can spread the disease," Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack wrote in an op-ed on June 21.

Indeed, the new study found that H5N1 virus remained infectious in raw milk for over an hour on stainless steel and rubber inflation lining — material used in milking equipment.

The research was published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases on Monday.

Milk may not be the only transmission route. It's possible that cows infect each other by licking each other or shoving their heads into feed together, for example, according to Meghan Davis, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and former dairy veterinarian.

However, the study suggests that cleaning milking equipment between cows and outfitting workers with protective gear could help prevent the spread.

"The workers are down in a, usually, recessed area and the udder is at face height," Davis told BI.

That's for their comfort and ability to work at milking for long periods of time, but it puts them at risk of milk splashing into their faces.

Goggles and face shields could help. For now, they are not common practice on the dairy floor.

Other forms of protective gear, such as N95 masks, can be difficult to implement on dairy farm floors because of hot and humid conditions, Davis said. That can make heavy protective gear incredibly uncomfortable or even put workers at increased risk of heat-related illness.

As for cleaning the milking equipment, she added, "there are processes for cleaning, but the level of disinfection that you need in order to inactivate virus is generally going to be beyond what might be normal practice."

The ideal cleaning process may look different farm-to-farm depending on the transmission dynamics, the vulnerability of the different cows there, and how finicky the animals are.

Long pauses for cleaning in between milkings can affect how much milk a cow produces and even be harmful to the animal, Davis said. It could also result in longer exposure periods for workers because it takes longer to milk a lineup of cows.

On the consumer side of the dairy industry, the study is also further evidence that nobody should drink raw (unpasteurized) milk.

• Captain Theresa Claiborne signed up to the Air Force in 1980, and later worked as a captain for United Airlines.
• She was below the height requirement and the first Black woman recruited to the Force. 
• Claiborne spoke to Business Insider about the hurdles she faced and why piloting is a great career.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Captain Theresa Claiborne, the first Black female pilot in the US Air Force and a captain at United. The following was edited for length and clarity.

I had spent my younger days bouncing all over the world because my father was in the military. But life felt so stationary when we returned to the States.

During college, I applied to the Reserve Office Training Corps (ROTC) in Berkeley. During the six-week training camp, they took us up on a T-37 [a small training plane made by Cessna].

Flying a plane is freeing. It's this amazing feeling of control but no control.

I decided right then: I wanted to be a pilot.

The hardest period of my life

In 1980, the Air Force only had 10 slots for women per graduating class, and they had already been filled for the year.

But halfway through my junior year, they came back and said the women seemed to be graduating at the same rate as the men, so the allotment was increased to 30.

I flew out to Laughlin Air Force base in Texas to start pilot training.

It was daunting in a lot of ways.

Unlike a lot of people in my class, I didn't have prior flying experience. And when you're in training, flying is a lot like a loop-the-loop on a roller coaster… but I'm not one for roller coasters.

So I was just trying to get the task done and not be fearful all the time.

In high school, my teacher said it was fine for me to be bad at Math because I could do English. But in training, everybody knew the instructors' formulas, and I didn't.

So when my classmates were out having a good time on the weekends, I was back at the dorm studying. It was probably the hardest period of my life that year. I was lonely.

I almost didn't make it to that point because I was short. You are supposed to be five feet four inches, and I was five feet two inches. For my entire career, I've had to stand on the balls of my feet when I was measured.

I only found out I was the first Black woman in the Air Force a couple of weeks before I graduated when a friend from ROTC mentioned it.

Looking back, that was lucky. I was only 22. It would have been too much pressure for someone my age to carry my gender and race together.

Just do the work

Being the only person who looked like me created challenges. A lot of it was very subtle. But you could just feel it — people looking at you and thinking, "OK, she's here."

Entering active duty in the Air Force, I did feel the pressure.

If I didn't do well, then when people see another person that looks like me, what will they think?

My attitude was always to do the work and get an A. Don't allow someone to have a subjective opinion that either puts you there or denies you something.

But who's to say that through those years, there were people who did not give me a break because of what I looked like?

There was one evaluation I remember well. It was deemed that I didn't put anti-ice on quickly enough. That's not what I saw. But how do you say that decision was because I'm this or that? You don't know.

After that, there was only one time I didn't 100% pass the check.

Commercial pilots are qualified

After seven years I left active duty and joined the reserves. In 1990, I started working as a commercial pilot for United.

My routes were on a Boeing 757 out of Newark, mostly heading to Cape Town, Johannesburg, Tel Aviv, and Delhi.

In order to be a pilot, you have to be perseverant and a go-getter. You also need a thick skin because, believe it or not, there are still people who believe that we have no business flying airplanes.

There's a lot of noise out there about DEI and pilot qualifications.

People have said, "If I walk up to an airplane and there's a Black pilot, I will get off the airplane."

I've been stopped by passengers after I use the restroom and reenter the flight deck. Once, when I asked a passenger to let me by, he looked at me and said, "What for?"

"Because I'm your pilot," I replied.

The look on his face was like "No, you're not." It's happened multiple times.

Sometimes, even the agents working at my own company have automatically tried to put me in the flight attendant jump seat.

I wish there were magic words to be said, but I think it's almost one pilot at a time, one person at a time. Companies have started enforcing some rules, and HR is stepping in to make the unions handle some of these situations.

Flying internationally is hard on your body

Any time you're in the air for 15+ hours, then on the ground for 24 hours, and then back up again for 15 more, it takes a toll on your body. It was time for me to hang it up.

I flew my last large commercial airplane back from Lisbon this May.

It was a proud moment. I've flown incident-free and accident-free across all these years, and I have strong shoulders that many, many, many women are standing on.

I'm going to miss walking through the airport in my uniform and being able to hand out wings to little kids. Their eyes just get big.

It's funny how they know the difference between a pilot and someone else. They don't look through colored glasses. They just see someone in the hat and know that's a pilot.

Increasing diversity

The reports say that women are about 5% to 6% of the airline pilot population. And the number of Black women is even smaller.

Women can be pilots and have a family, the same way the guys do.

I've become involved in organizations like Women in Aviation and Sisters of the Skies to ensure more little girls know this is a real career.

We introduce young women between the ages of 10 and 18 to aviation and take them up in an airplane flown by a woman who looks like them.

By the time they land, they're smiling wide from ear to ear.

Not everybody is meant to be a pilot, but we want them to know that if they assert themselves, they can be whatever they want.

I tell the young ladies I mentor the same thing I told myself: be so good that they can't say you're not good.

If that's what you really want to do, be the best.

• My wife and I met on a dating app and have always supported each other unconditionally.
• We got married in 2020, and decided we wanted to have a poly vee marriage.
• We have rules for our relationship and make sure to communicate about everything.

We met on a dating app in 2011. Our first date involved piling into my station wagon that had a Phillies magnet covering the broken gas port cover. We had a lovely and intimate sushi date where we chatted and laughed over some nigiri. From then on, our love grew.

My future wife was finishing up her undergraduate degree. I would drive to campus and hang out between classes, often bringing pizza or Dairy Queen for our chats.

That first summer, I became really sick and required surgery. We had only known each other for a few months, but she was there daily to change my gauze and take me to the doctor when my fever peaked. Her genuine care for me never wavered.

We have always supported each other unconditionally. I fully backed her idea of going back to school for a professional degree. She supported me, too, in a long-distance relationship when I went back to Los Angeles to pursue a dream job and conquer a city that had bested me the first time. It was clear that the love between us could surmount any obstacles that life would place in our paths.

I proposed on June 22, 2018. The initial plan was to have this wonderful event in the fall of 2020, but a pandemic threw a massive wrench. We married legally in November 2020 via a video chat with the courthouse and held a public wedding at a local art museum in September 2022.

We decided to have a poly 'vee' marriage

A poly vee-structured relationship involves multiple partners and is shaped like the letter "V." The pivot point represents a person in the relationship seeing two or more partners who aren't romantically or sexually involved with each other. Those partners are known as "metamours" and may or may not know each other.

We decided this was the best fit for us because we have very different levels of sexual needs. Her drive is not as high as mine, and, despite her being my dream woman, I needed more.

Like all serious discussions in our relationship, we approached it with transparency. I vocalized my needs, and she vocalized hers. This is not a marriage failure or a sign that we are incompatible. This is a forever partnership with the flexibility to address everyone's needs.

We decided that a poly vee would be the best fit for our relationship and we took steps to establish baselines of expectations.

We have rules for our relationship

The first step in any ethically non-monogamous relationship is to establish ground rules.

Though we're in a poly vee relationship, my wife chooses not to pursue other partners. She has the freedom to do so, but has not found the need to look elsewhere. If we met someone we were both attracted to, we would be open to a "unicorn" situation as well, where we brought in a third partner for both of us at the same time.

On my end, I am allowed to freely date and pursue sexual and romantic relationships externally. I use dating apps, and the first line of every dating profile is, "I am married and ethically non-monogamous (poly vee)."

My external partners have the freedom to check in with her to make sure everything is above board, and I'm not just cheating and calling it polyamory.

One of the rules we have is that I cannot have any partners in our shared bedroom or bed, as that is our sacred space.

Hierarchically, my wife will always have top billing. We live together. She is the love of my life. If she has a need to veto a situation, she has the right to if she feels it is damaging our relationship. She has never exercised that right, but the "abort" button remains.

Consent-wise, I do not divulge the identity of my external partners for their sake unless they want me to. I tell my wife when I'm going out and where I'm going for safety. I only bring people to our home when she is not there, and we schedule accordingly.

Obviously, safe sex is always practiced with all partners, and I am regularly tested when I do my normal blood work.

It works well for us

We are people who love to love. The deep emotional connections and ability to meet, learn about, and experience different types of people in my life is a gift. Just like traveling or trying new foods, it's all a learning experience.

We are both autonomous people. She is the first woman I've been with who I never had to ask for permission to hang out with my friends, and she doesn't need to ask, either. We have our own identities and private spaces. This allows us to connect incredibly well because we're fully formed people who aren't codependent.

We're both not religiously bound, and we don't have children, so in our eyes, there is only one life to live. Nothing should stand in the way of either of our happiness, and the support and trust that go along with an arrangement like this makes our bond even stronger.