• On Monday, Oracle announced that Vishal Sikka joined its board.
• Buried in the SEC forms announcing the appointment was a tidbit about a three-month consulting contract, where Oracle paid Sikka $2,000 an hour for up to 50 hours worth of consulting work.
• Sikka has a long and storied history in the tech world and was once the star of Oracle's eternal arch-rival SAP.
• Today he's CEO of a startup launched earlier this year with $50 million in seed funding from undisclosed sources and a who's who from Silicon Valley to serve as advisors.
• Click here to read more BI Prime stories.

On Monday, Oracle announced that Vishal Sikka joined its board, in what has to be a cat-eats-the canary moment for Oracle CEO Safra Catz.

Sikka is known as an expertise in databases and AI with a long and storied career in the tech industry.

Today, he's perhaps best known for his tumultuous three years as CEO of Indian outsourcer Infosys. He was first hired in 2014 to transform the Indian tech powerhouse, but a power struggle with founder and former CEO Narayana Murthy — a board member and major shareholder — dogged his tenure there.

Sikka grew so frustrated by what he perceived as unfair personal attacks by Murthy that when he resigned in 2017, he published his resignation letter. This, in turn, caused the company's board to also publish an unusual letter which defended Sikka and shook a finger at Murthy.

Before that, though, Sikka served as CTO of SAP, known as the genius technologist behind Hana, the company's all-important database product. Hana is an in-memory database that was supposed to help SAP best its arch-rival Oracle on its own turf, the database. Many of SAP's customers use Oracle's database and Hana was to be their alternative.

Hana has become a major product and platform for SAP and Sikka's star was bright when he shocked the world in 2014 by leaving the company to take the role at Infosys.

Sources told Business Insider at the time that Sikka had hoped to be promoted into a co-CEO role or other prominent position but instead Bill McDermott took over as sole CEO. (McDermott left SAP earlier this year, too, and is now CEO of a smaller company, ServiceNow.)

A new startup

Sikka founded his own AI startup, Vianai Systems, earlier this year, with a $50 million seed round from undisclosed sources.

Vianai is being advised by a who's who of Silicon Valley including self-driving car guru Sebastian Thrun; Divesh Makan, the founder of ICONIQ Capital, a venture firm known for managing the money of many Silicon Valley billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg; and Henning Kagermann, the former chairman and CEO of SAP.

Vianai was launched at Oracle's big tech conference in September, but if Oracle has any interest in the company beyond that, it has not said so.

A $2,000/hour consulting contract

However, in the paperwork announcing Sikka's appointment to its board, Oracle did disclose that it signed a three-month contract with Sikka's consulting company, Hang Ten, that pays $2,000/hour. Oracle says the contract will involve between 20 - 50 hours of consulting services and sales support per month, which works out to $40,000 - $100,000 a month. That's on top of the pay and stock Sikka will receive as an Oracle board member.

While Sikka has been Oracle's friend during the years since leaving SAP, having him on the board with fiduciary responsibilities to Oracle has got to feel pretty good to Catz and Ellison.

Catz admitted in a rare 2015 press conference that SAP's position as the No. 1 in enterprise apps, with Oracle at No. 2, still fires up her competitive spirit. "Silver medal is the first loser," she said then.

Today, the battle is on for cloud dominance and Oracle has its dukes up with Amazon Web Services and is less focused on SAP. McDermott took SAP out of that fight, opting to partner with the major cloud players (including Microsoft and Amazon, but not Oracle) rather than build its own cloud.

Oracle's push into AI

Sikka's expertise with AI will help Oracle build more AI into its cloud, Ellison said in the press release announcing the appointment.

And who knows? Maybe Sikka will find his way into a co-CEO role with Catz, taking over for the late Mark Hurd. There's something full-circle about that thought.

In any case, Oracle has been steadily refreshing its board. It added Rona Fairhead last summer and it added Charles "Wick" Moorman and William Parrett last year.

As we previously reported, Oracle's board is currently involved in an unusual shareholder derivative lawsuit over Oracle's $9 billion cash purchase of NetSuite, a company Ellison controlled, where its own board committee, that included Moorman and Parrett, gave its blessing for the suit to proceed against all the board members who were on the board at the time of that transaction.

Should that suit prevail, Ellison may be on the hook for giving back to Oracle some of the $4 billion cash he pocketed in the deal. An Oracle spokesperson has said the suit is without merit.

• Now read:
• Oracle must decide quickly if Safra Catz really needs an exec to step up as her new co-CEO
• Read Larry Ellison's email to employees honoring the memory of 'brilliant and beloved' Oracle CEO Mark Hurd
• SAP CEO Bill McDermott resigned six months after activist investor Elliott elbowed in
• Larry Ellison is giving Oracle's board 5 internal candidates for the next CEO

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders recently announced a $150 billion, four-point plan that would fundamentally transform how the internet works in the United States.
• The plan would effectively turn the internet into a publicly-provided utility, similar to how water and power are distributed.
• The broadest goal of the proposal is to provide every American with access to affordable high-speed internet. "High-speed internet service must be treated as the new electricity," the proposal says, "a public utility that everyone deserves as a basic human right."
• Here's how Bernie thinks it can be done.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders just unveiled a sweeping $150 billion proposal that would fundamentally reshape how the internet works in the United States.

The plan, dubbed "High-Speed Internet for All," would effectively turn the internet into a public utility along the lines of water and power. "High-speed internet service must be treated as the new electricity,"the proposal says, "a public utility that everyone deserves as a basic human right."

To that end, the $150 billion would go to creating "publicly owned and democratically controlled, co-operative, or open access broadband networks." 

Here's how it works:

SEE ALSO: Photos capture how Bernie Sanders went from being a working-class kid in Brooklyn to a top 2020 Democratic presidential candidate

1. Requiring internet service providers like Verizon and Comcast to offer "a Basic Internet Plan that provides quality broadband speeds at an affordable price."

The core of Sanders' high-speed internet plan is to provide internet for everyone in an affordable way.

Its primary method for doing that: FCC regulation.

"The FCC will review prices and regulate rates where necessary, ensuring areas without competition aren't able to run up prices," the plan says. "We will also require providers to offer a basic plan for a regulated rate to all customers, ensuring everyone will be able to affordably connect to the internet."

The "providers" in question are massive media conglomerates like Verizon, Comcast, and Charter. "Bernie will regulate these providers like a utility," it says.

The proposal includes further subsidies for people who qualify for government assistance programs like SNAP, Medicaid, and TANF, and it proposes free broadband in all public housing.

2. Redefining "minimum broadband speeds" so that 100mbps down/10mbps up is the floor.

Calling for "high-speed broadband" doesn't mean much if your definition of "fast" internet is stuck in the past. The current FCC minimum to be considered broadband is 25 Mbps down/3 Mbps up. 

It works, and it gets the job done well enough, but it's a slouch compared to many other parts of the world. Under this proposal, the FCC would increase its minimum to 100 Mbps down/10 Mbps up. 

It's a little detail that makes a big difference in the broader plan, as it guarantees a base level of internet speed that makes using the internet a far easier process.

3. Breaking up companies that offer internet service and provide content — like Comcast and Verizon.

Over the past several decades, the telecommunications industry has consolidated into a few major players who provide internet access, and those companies have, in turn, merged with the major media companies. The resulting giants will sell you the internet and cable service you use and provide the content that runs on those services. 

Under the Sanders proposal, these conglomerates would be broken apart.

Rather than the FCC, the proposal says Sanders would use "existing antitrust authority" to dismantle "internet service provider and cable monopolies." Moreover, he would "bar service providers from also providing content." 

Comcast, which owns NBC, would likely have to unwind that purchase. AT&T, which owns WarnerMedia (HBO, Turner, Warner Bros.), would likely have to unwind that purchase.

4. Providing $150 billion to create "publicly owned and democratically controlled, co-operative, or open access broadband networks."

While enforcing regulations on major internet service providers, the proposal includes a major expenditure: $150 billion to create "the necessary resilient, modern infrastructure" for high-speed broadband that's widely available and affordable.

The money is part of the broader Green New Deal initiative, and is intended for "municipalities and/or states to build publicly owned and democratically controlled, co-operative, or open access broadband networks."

One major condition is included: Grants from the funding must go "toward creating good-paying union jobs," and come with rigorous standards.

5. Ending data caps and speed throttling.

Another notable detail in the proposal: Putting an end to data caps and speed throttling.

As people stream more content and download larger, higher-definition movies, TV shows, and games, they use more data. Just as that amount has increased, some internet service providers have begun placing caps on users — 200 GB per month, for example. If you go over your cap, there's a chance you'll get slapped with a charge.

In some cases, your provider may even "throttle" your service speed in an attempt to dissuade use. The proposal from the Sanders campaign explicitly calls for the elimination of both practices.

• The Pentagon has ordered a pause on operational training for all Saudi military personnel training in the US in the wake of the Naval Air Station Pensacola shooting.
• The move will limit training for all 852 Saudi students training at US military facilities to the classroom, pending the completion of a review of relevant vetting and security procedures.
• This decision follows a deadly shooting Friday in which a member of the Saudi military killed three and injured several others at NAS Pensacola.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Department of Defense has ordered a pause on operational training for all Saudi military personnel training in the US as the department conducts a review in the wake of the deadly shooting last Friday at Naval Air Station Pensacola, according to a DoD memo.

Deputy Secretary of Defense David L. Norquist, at the order of Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, issued a memo Tuesday calling for the department to take "immediate steps to strengthen personnel vetting" for international military students and complete a review within 10 days of "policies and procedures for screening foreign students and granting access to our bases."

"Pending the completion of a security and safety stand-down," he wrote, "training of KSA students at US installations will be limited to the classroom."

The Pentagon notes that the US has trained more than 28,000 Saudi students "without serious incident," but the "tragic loss of life" that occurred last Friday has led the department to reassess its security procedures. The latest move will affect all 852 Saudi students currently training in the US.

The decision follows an earlier decision by the Navy to suspend flight training for more than 300 Saudi military aviation students at three different Navy facilities, namely NAS Pensacola, NAS Whiting Field, and NAS Mayport as part of an ongoing safety stand-down and operational pause that began Monday.

Last Friday, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, a member of the Saudi military in the US for training, shot and killed three US Navy sailors and injured several more people at NAS Pensacola before he was neutralized by local law enforcement. Those killed included Airman Mohammed Sameh Haitham, Airman Apprentice Cameron Scott Walters, and Ensign Joshua Kaleb Watson, 23, from Enterprise.

SEE ALSO: Trump and his team are going out of their way to tell everyone how sorry Saudi Arabia is about the shooting at a Florida naval base

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NOW WATCH: A podiatrist explains heel spurs, the medical condition Trump said earned him a medical deferment from Vietnam

• Authorities said in a press conference on Wednesday morning that six people are dead, and eight people remain missing after one of New Zealand's most active volcanoes erupted on Monday.
• New Zealand's geological monitoring agency, GeoNet, said the eruption began at around 2:11 p.m. local time on Whakaari, also known as White Island, a popular tourist spot which features an active volcano.
• The death toll is expected to rise as police said that "no signs of life have been seen at any point" by helicopters and rescue aircrafts flying over the island.
• GNS Science, New Zealand's geoscience agency, said on Wednesday that the volcanic tremor has "significantly increased overnight," leaving open the "likely" possibility that another eruption could occur within the next 24 hours. 
• Authorities say conditions at the volcano remain "too unsafe" for rescuers to retrieve the remaining bodies.
• Police released the nationalities of 47 people who were on the island when the volcano erupted, which included 24 Australians, two Chinese nationals, four Germans, one Malaysian national, five New Zealanders, two people from the UK, and nine people from the US. 
• Police say it is too early to confirm whether there will also be a criminal investigation on the circumstances which allowed large numbers of people to visit the volcano before its eruption.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Authorities confirmed in a press conference on Wednesday morning that six people are dead, and eight people remain missing after one of New Zealand's most active volcanoes erupted on Monday.

The death toll is expected rise as police said that "no signs of life have been seen at any point" by helicopters and rescue aircrafts flying over the Island. 

The eruption occurred at Whakaari, also known as White Island, a popular tourist spot located about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the east coast of country's North Island.

According to New Zealand's geological monitoring agency, GeoNet, the unexpected eruption began at around 2:11 p.m. local time on Monday and sent ash plumes 12,000 feet into the air.

Police acting assistant commissioner Bruce Bird said on Wednesday that conditions at the volcano remained "too unsafe" for rescuers to land safely.

GNS Science, New Zealand's geoscience agency, said on Wednesday that the volcanic tremor has "significantly increased overnight," leaving open the "likely" possibility that another eruption could occur within the next 24 hours. 

The agency added that the volcano is producing "vigorous steaming and localized mud jetting in several of the craters created by the eruption," which they are interpreting as signs of continued high gas pressures within the volcano.

"It is important to note that the environment on the island has changed since the eruption," police said on Wednesday.

Police say they are still working to confirm the identities of those who have died and who are injured.

"The nature of the injuries that people have suffered is severe and means identifying them is a complex matter," police said.

On Wednesday, police said that search and rescue missions will be carried out once conditions on the island are clear. Police launched a drone on Wednesday morning to gather information on the island's conditions, including gas levels in the atmosphere. Windy conditions on the island prevented drones from being sent out on Tuesday morning.

"Those deploying to the island will likely encounter serious physical and chemical hazards, for which we must be prepared," police said. 

30 people are still being treated for burns in several hospitals around New Zealand, 25 of whom remain in critical condition as of Wednesday morning, police said.

Authorities said in a press conference on Tuesday that 27 victims had burns on at least 30 percent of their bodies.

Police say they expected more bodies to be discovered once the rescue operation was able to be carried out.

"We understand people's desire to recover their loved ones and we are working around the clock to get onto the island so we can recover them as soon as possible," police said Tuesday. "Based on the effects of the eruption on the bodies, this recovery will need to be handled with expert skill and care." 

Police on Tuesday released the nationalities of 47 people who were on the island when the volcano erupted, which included 24 Australians, two Chinese nationals, four Germans, one Malaysian national, five New Zealanders, two people from the UK, and nine people from the US. 

Police added that it was too early to confirm whether there will also be a criminal investigation on the circumstances which allowed large numbers of people to visit the volcano before its eruption.

Prime Minister Jacinda Arden said that about 100 people were believed to have been on the island when the volcano erupted, according to the New Zealand Herald.

It is not clear how many of these estimated 100 people were rescued prior to the helicopters being sent over the Island. 

Prime Minister Arden expressed her condolences for those affected at a cabinet meeting on Monday afternoon.

"All our thoughts are with those affected at this stage," Ardern said. 

New Zealand's National Emergency Management Agency said on Monday that the immediate vicinity of the volcano remains hazardous.

A no-fly zone has been established above the island. 

According to GNS Science, White Island has been New Zealand's most continuously active volcano for the last 40 years. 

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Salesforce's goodwill balance, or the premium it paid beyond the book value of its acquisitions, jumped to $25 billion last quarter.
• That's nearly twice the size of the previous quarter's balance, bringing it to over half of the company's total assets for the first time.
• Most of the increase in Salesforce's goodwill last quarter came from the $15 billion Tableau acquisition. 
• The large goodwill balance shows the massive market opportunity and potential returns Salesforce sees in its acquisitions, but it also adds risk, as it could be written off as a loss.
• Some experts say it could be a sign that Salesforce is overpaying for these acquisitions by assigning them too much value for intangible assets like customer loyalty.
• Click here to read more BI Prime stories.

A closer look into Salesforce's goodwill balance shows how far the software company is willing to go for acquisitions — and the potential risk that comes with it.

Salesforce's goodwill balance, or the premium it paid for beyond the book value of its acquisitions, has ballooned to $25 billion in its most recent quarter, the company said in a filing last week. That's nearly twice the size of the previous quarter's balance, bringing it to over half of the company's total assets for the first time.

Most of the increase in Salesforce's goodwill last quarter came from the $15 billion Tableau acquisition. Goodwill from that deal accounted for $10.7 billion, or roughly 70 percent of the acquisition price, company filings show. Salesforce said in the filing that goodwill is "primarily attributed to the assembled workforce and expanded market opportunities."

The large goodwill balance shows the massive market opportunity and potential returns Salesforce sees in its acquisitions. But it also adds risk, as goodwill is tested for impairment every year, and is written off as a loss when those returns don't turn up as expected.

"The soaring goodwill signals Salesforce's strategy of growing by acquisition and reflects the premium prices paid for the target companies," J. Edward Ketz, an accounting professor at Penn State University, told Business Insider. Indeed, co-CEO Marc Benioff has indicated that acquisitions are a pillar of Salesforce's strategy to double its revenue within 5 years. 

"But there's the rub — if such future excess returns do not materialize, it will require at some point impairment losses on the goodwill, thereby lowering earnings," Ketz said.

A representative for Salesforce declined to comment on this story.

What is goodwill? 

Goodwill is recorded when a business buys another company for more than the value of the hard assets on the target's balance sheet. That premium accounts for intangible factors like customer loyalty and workforce quality, rather than hard numbers like a company's share price or its revenue. 

If, however, a company's accountants find in later assessment that those intangible factors were overvalued, a company might take an impairment, meaning they take a big write-off on some or all of the deal.

It's rare that goodwill impairments happen soon after an acquisition, but there is some long-term risk: Tech giants, like Microsoft and Hewlett Packard, had to write off billions of dollars in recent years after their respective acquisitions for Nokia and Autonomy failed to work out. Last year, Verizon wrote off $4.6 billion of its Oath business, which includes Yahoo.

Goodwill write-offs, in fact, are growing among publicly traded companies in the U.S. In 2018, total goodwill impairment of U.S. publicly traded companies reached $78.9 billion, more than twice the previous year's figure and the highest level since the 2008 financial crisis, according to last month's report by valuation firm Duff & Phelps. Much of the impairment in 2018 came from General Electric's $22.1 billion write-off, but even without it, the total would have grown 62% from the year before, the report said.

Also important to note is that Goodwill can technically stay on the balance sheet forever if no impairment is found each year.

Overpaying for acquisitions?

For Salesforce, acquisitions are a key part of its growth strategy, even as its core customer relationship management business slows.

Just a year before buying Tableau, Salesforce acquired Mulesoft for $6.5 billion, which helped expand its customer-base. Previous deals for companies like ExactTarget and DemandWare have also built the groundwork for getting into marketing and commerce industries. Salesforce hasn't had any meaningful write-offs from its past acquisitions so far.

Data shows Salesforce's goodwill balance is high compared to most other S&P 500 companies. Only 32 companies reported goodwill balances of over $25 billion, and just 19 companies had goodwill account for over half of their total assets, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. Only two other companies — Fidelity National Information Services and Broadcom — had both goodwill exceeding $25 billion and accounting for the majority of their assets.

Paul Chaney, an accounting professor at Vanderbilt University, said that Salesforce's large percentage of goodwill raises the question of whether it overpaid for some of its acquisitions. It could also mean Salesforce is undervaluing other intangible assets that don't fall under goodwill, like brand names or developed technology, boosting the goodwill value instead, he said.

"Either Salesforce is overpaying for the acquisition, or the amounts assigned to other intangible assets might be lower (potential undervaluation)," Chaney said in an email to Business Insider.

Wall Street looks elsewhere

Wall Street analysts tend to care less about goodwill largely because it's a non-cash item. Even if write-offs occur, they don't directly impact the company's cash balance because the deal is already paid for.

Steve Koenig, an analyst at Wedbush, said the more meaningful metric may be how each company's goodwill compared to its market value, instead of their total assets. That way, you can measure the company's acquisitiveness (goodwill) against its ability to create market value, he said. Under that measure, Salesforce appears to be more efficient in terms of its spending, but it's still worse than the ratio you'd find at Microsoft or Adobe.

"I don't buy the argument that Salesforce's M&A hasn't created good return-on-investments for shareholders," Koenig said.

Salesforce reported third quarter revenue of $4.5 billion last week, up 33% from the year-ago period. The company's shares have more than doubled in the past three years, but they are up just 14% this year, underperforming the broader S&P 500's 25% gain.

At last week's Wells Fargo TMT Summit, Salesforce co-CEO Keith Block emphasized the importance of looking at intangible assets when making acquisitions. He said Salesforce does a "deep evaluation" of those factors, including the culture of the company and quality of customers.

"A lot of companies, when they do acquisitions, they don't look at the soft stuff," Block said. "And actually, all of those are huge difference makers."

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• You can set an alarm on your Android device — as well as start a timer, use a stopwatch, and check the time around the world — through the built-in Clock app.
• When you set an alarm, you can customize its ringer noise, its snooze settings, and more.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

It's a sad fact of life that on most days, we have to get out of bed earlier than we'd like. Luckily, nearly every device nowadays has some sort of alarm feature to keep you on schedule.

This includes your Android phone and tablet, which comes pre-loaded with a Clock app that's reliable, easy to use, and very persuasive.

Here's how to set an alarm on your Android device, so you never accidentally sleep in again.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Samsung Galaxy S10 (From $899.99 at Best Buy)

How to set an alarm on an Android phone or tablet

To set an alarm on Android, first open the Clock app. If it's not already on your homescreen, you can find it by swiping up from the bottom of the screen and going through your App menu.

1. Tap on the "ALARM" tab at the top-left of the Clock app.

2. Press the plus symbol (+) at the bottom-right corner of the screen. Set the time by scrolling through the numbers, the date by tapping on the word "Date," and how often you want the alarm to go off under the word "Repeat."

3. Take a moment to customize the alarm's sound, snooze, and vibration options, and name it if you'd like.

4. Hit "SAVE" and you're done.

Once you've made your alarm, you can turn it on and off by flipping the switch next to its time.

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

• How to turn on and customize Do Not Disturb settings on your Android phone

• How to clear the cache on your Android phone to make it run faster

• How to update apps on your Android device manually or automatically

• How to change the keyboard on your Android device, and get new keyboards

• How to clear your Google search history on your Android phone or tablet

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• Aryeh B. Bourkoff, a tech, media, and telecom banker who founded LionTree Advisors, said "profitable, scaled businesses" that have survived many new challengers should last for at least the next five to 10 years.
• Instead of fighting startups, as they did in the last few years, those incumbents will battle each other for market share. 
• He also highlighted hot areas for young companies, including audio, video gaming, beauty/fashion/luxury, food technology, and health and wellness. 
• Despite a public-private disconnect, Bourkoff said he expects the IPO market to stay open for private equity-driven companies and exits. 

A top tech banker used a Futurist sculpture that sold last month for a record price – $16.2 million – as a metaphor for how he's thinking about market tensions right now. 

Aryeh B. Bourkoff, the LionTree founder and renowned tech, media, and telecom banker, said in a letter to staff on Wednesday that Umberto Boccioni's "Unique Forms of Continuity in Space" sculpture "serves as a metaphor for the tension and synthesis between scale and motion that we are seeing right now." 

Bourkoff wrote that "profitable, scaled businesses" that have survived many new challengers should last for at least the next five to 10 years. In the last few years, fighting startups made these businesses "stronger and more creative." Now, established companies' fight needs to focus on battling peer incumbents for market share and to continuing to innovate internally. Last year, Bourkoff wrote that one of 2019's hottest issues would be direct-to-consumer video. 

For 2020, Bourkoff said that the streaming wars represent one area where scale players are crowding a space that's also competing with video games and other entertainment for consumers' time and money.

Now, incumbents' scale across industries could limit startups' access to capital, making funding more expensive.

"The differentiated cost of capital for scale players relative to smaller companies, driven by more discerning capital markets, bodes well for larger companies. This reality will likely force mergers among sub-scale companies and sharpen distinctions between winners and losers," Bourkoff wrote. 

Despite those challenges, he highlighted a number of hot sectors for young companies: audio (music and podcasting), video games, beauty/fashion/luxury, food technology, and health and wellness.  

Bourkoff said incumbents will also look to some of those areas for acquisitions. He added that there will be fewer cross-border deals in 2020, with more in-market focus. Because of the ongoing public-private market disconnect, Bourkoff expects to see an uptick in private sales, although the IPO market will remain open for private equity-driven companies and exits. 

Read Bourkoff's full letter here: 

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• Snowshoeing is a fun and casual winter activity that's easy to pick up, but it can also be extremely challenging.
• There are different types of snowshoes for various kinds of snow and tasks.
• But for most people, the versatile MSR Lightning Ascent Snowshoes perform well in various conditions, making them the best snowshoes you can buy.

Modern snowshoes are lighter, more efficient, and more highly specialized than ever before, allowing outdoor enthusiasts and mountain athletes to travel faster and more confidently in the backcountry. Snowshoeing is also a casual activity that many novices can learn easily.

As with most other types of footwear, the best snowshoes now incorporate high-tech materials and unique designs that make them more capable without holding the wearer down, which in turn has broadened the scope for how they are used too.

Snowshoes can trace their origin back to Central Asia, where they've been in use for more than 6,000 years. The goal back then — as it is now — was to make it easier for people to walk on deep snow without sinking in, up to their knees. By increasing the surface area of the feet, snowshoes help to redistribute body weight in such a way that it allows the user to float on top of the snow instead.

Over the centuries the snowshoe has evolved dramatically. Gone are the wooden frames and leather laces, replaced with aluminum, plastic, nylon, and rubber. This has not only allowed them to become smaller in size, but more durable and versatile too.

Modern snowshoes are typically equipped with built-in crampons (spiky traction devices) that give them a better grip on a wide variety of terrains. They also include unique binding systems that are designed not just to keep them securely attached to the feet, but easy to get off and on too. Because of this, snowshoes now perform at an exceptionally high level, for both experienced users and beginners alike.

These days, there are a wide variety of snowshoes to choose from, each with their own set of features and unique design elements. Sorting through which ones are worth your time and money can be a challenging endeavor. As an outdoors journalist, based on my testing, experience, and research, I've rounded up the best snowshoes you can buy for various types of terrain and individuals.

Here are the best snowshoes you can buy:

• Best snowshoes overall: MSR Lightning Ascent
• Best budget snowshoes: MSR EVO Trail
• Best snowshoes for beginners: Crescent Moon EVA
• Best women's snowshoes: Tubbs Mountaineer
• Best snowshoes for kids: MSR Shift

Updated on 12/11/2019 by Lisa Sabatini: Updated prices and links.

SEE ALSO: The best sleds you can buy for winter fun

The best snowshoes overall

The MSR Lightning Ascent is the go-anywhere, do-anything snowshoes for those looking to explore the backcountry both on- and off-trail, in a wide variety of conditions.

If any snowshoe has stood the test of time, it is the MSR Lightning Ascent. This is a model that has been on the market for several years (introduced in 2004), and yet it continues to perform at a higher level than its competitors. 

Despite being relatively lightweight, the Lightning Ascent is built to withstand the rigors of the backcountry. The integrated steel crampons make it easy to maintain your footing on both snow and ice no matter the terrain. This helps to provide a great all-around experience, whether you're hiking snow-covered trails or climbing upwards into a more demanding alpine environment.

For 2019, MSR is upgrading the Lightning Ascent's binding system, replacing the venerable PosiLock AT model with its new Paragon version instead. This new binding simplifies the users ability to step in and out of the snowshoe, while keeping the system free from snow and ice too. These continued updates and medications are what helps to keep this snowshoe at the top of the list for the best models on the market year in and year out.

It should be noted that Outdoor Gear Lab felt that the bindings were a bit restrictive and could lead to some discomfort depending on the boots or trail shoes that are being worn. The new Paragon binding should help alleviate some of those issues however, bringing increased comfort and stability.

Pros: Durability, versatility, great traction, relatively lightweight, good performance on a variety of terrain types

Cons: Binding doesn't always pair well with every kind of boot or shoe

The best budget snowshoes

The MSR EVO Trail snowshoes offer sturdy construction, good traction, and solid all-around performance at a budget-friendly price.

With its EVO Trail snowshoe MSR has proven that a bargain price doesn't have to come at the expense of performance. Quite the contrary in fact, as the EVO Trail is a very good all-around snowshoe that may lack some of the features of its more expensive brethren, but you'll hardly notice when out on the trail.

As its name implies, this is a snowshoe that feels most at home on groomed trails rather than deep, untracked snow. That doesn't mean that you can't take them into the backcountry however, provided you understand their limitations and don't use them too hard on technical terrain.

The EVO Trail provides good float and solid traction to the point that you'll wonder how MSR managed to get them down to such a low price. Durability is good, the bindings are simple to operate, and weighing in at 3.6 pounds, the snowshoes are surprisingly lightweight too.

While this model does serve as an excellent entry-point for those looking to get started snowshoeing without spending a lot of money, they do have their limitations. The EVO Trail can't compete with higher-end models on more difficult terrain for instance, and the shoe's bindings aren't as comfortable as more expensive models either. Those bindings are functional, but not as well suited for longer treks, particularly in deep snow.

As Switchback Travel— and other reviewers — pointed out, the EVO Trail can be a bit noisy too. The plastic decking on these snowshoes tends to slap against the bottom of a hikers boot, which while not particularly loud can still be annoying.

Pros: Inexpensive, versatile, lightweight, built to last

Cons: Older design, wide toe box may cause stumbles, using wraps and bindings requires some practice

The best snowshoes for beginners

Made from lightweight EVA foam, the Crescent Moon EVA snowshoes are incredibly lightweight, comfortable, fun to wear, and budget-friendly.

If there is a snowshoe that feels like a pair of trail running shoes, it's probably the Crescent Moon EVA. Made from lightweight, yet surprisingly durable, dual-density EVA foam, these snowshoes tip the scales at 3.5 pounds for the pair. That, plus the unique rocker design, allows them to feel more agile and responsive on the trail, which is exactly what a beginner needs.

The EVA snowshoes utilize spike-shaped lugs along the bottom to maintain their grip and control. That makes them a good option for use on groomed trails and relatively easy terrain. With a $159 price point, they're also great entry-level snowshoes.

Crescent Moon has outfitted these snowshoes with bindings that are simple and straightforward to use, which only further helps to make them even more beginner-friendly. The use of Velcro makes it easy to get up and moving very quickly, although some reviewers felt that the Velcro tabs lost their ability to hold tightly over time.

The EVA snowshoes don't offer the best performance on more technical terrain, nor do they provide a lot of float in deep snow. Those shouldn't be major concerns for beginning snowshoers, but they could become more significant over time.

Pros: Lightweight and nimble, a lot of fun to use on flat trails and easy terrain, simple to use, affordable, ideal for beginners

Cons: Not made for use on steep, demanding terrain, don't provide a lot of float in deep snow

The best snowshoes for women

Versatile and comfortable, the women's edition of the Tubbs Mountaineer is fantastic both on and off the trail. This model has excellent traction on snow and ice and maintains very good float in deep powder.

Some outdoor companies have a tendency to "pink it and shrink it" when it comes to making women's gear. In other words, rather than actually create a female-specific product they simply scale down the men's version and release it in "female-friendly" colors. That isn't the case with the women's model of the Tubbs Mountaineer, which is one of the most capable and versatile snowshoes on the market designed for women.

With crampons integrated into both the toe and heel, the Mountaineer chews up all but the most technical of terrain. This unique set-up gives it the ability to not just climb well, but maintain control on the descents too. Combine this level of traction with the Mountaineer's excellent flotation performance and you gain the ability to move quickly and adeptly both on- and off-trail.

That said, on more technical terrain, I agree with some reviewers, like Outdoor Gear Lab, that the women's version of the MSR Lightning Ascent is more preferable (but more expensive), which is built for use in challenging alpine environments. Those snowshoes are a bit lighter as well, as a common complaint with the Mountaineer is that it is on the heavy side.

However, if versatility is what you're looking for, this is the snowshoe for you. It is durable and comfortable enough to be used in just about any environment and is equally at home on a groomed trail as it is the backcountry. Most of us only have a budget to splurge on a single pair of snowshoes and these are so reliable that they can fulfill nearly any role when hiking in the winter.

Reviewers at MooseJaw lauded the Mountaineer for its excellent bindings and good heel lift while climbing uphill. Both of those features provide a more athletic feel that comes in handy on extended winter treks. Outdoor Gear Lab also liked the versatility of the Mountaineer, but found them to be overly heavy though.

Pros: Great combination of traction and float, high level of comfort, ease of use, versatile enough for use on- and and off-trail and on both icy and snow-covered surfaces

Cons: Not as svelte as some of the other models, heavy

The best snowshoes for kids

When creating the Shift Snowshoe for kids, MSR didn't scrimp on the design or features, ensuring that even younger adventurers will enjoy their time on the trail.

MSR is one of the premier manufacturers of snowshoes (it made our list thrice), so it should come as no surprise that its youth-oriented Shift model is a high-quality product. Designed specifically for preteens, this model offers everything budding young snowshoers – and their parents – could ask for, including good traction, solid all-around performance, and binding that adjusts to a wide array of shoe types and sizes.

According to MSR, the Shift's binding can accommodate kids shoe sizes from 1 to 7. That means that these snowshoes should stay viable for years at a time, allowing a child to continue to use them even as their foot and boot size grows larger. The Shift is also capable of supporting a higher weight limit than most other youth models, which comes in handy as a child grows as well. This is all good news for parents too, as they won't have shell out a lot of cash for a new pair every year or so.

The Shift is also quite durable, with simple, yet effective, construction. That means they won't just fit your kid's feet for years to come, they'll also continue to perform at a consistently high level throughout that time too. And while these snowshoes aren't as athletic and responsive as their adult counterparts, they still allow the wearer to have a good time in the outdoors during the winter months.

Some shoppers at REI found the Shift's bindings to be difficult for children to adjust or close effectively on their own. Others found them to offer a little less float than expected, particularly in light, fluffy snow. Most appreciated the versatility and durability that they bring to the table, however, particularly with their ability to grow with the child using them.

Pros: Uses same traction bars found on MSR's adult snowshoes, stable, bindings adjust to a wide variety of shoes sizes (ensuring some longevity as kids grow)

Cons: Don't offer as much float, bindings can be a bit difficult for kids to master

Tips on how to choose the right pair of snowshoes

Types of snowshoes

There are a few different types of snowshoes and some are better for walking on beginner-friendly trails, while others are best for those who want to go off the trail entirely. 

• Recreational/flat terrain: Entry-level models fit in this category, as these snowshoes are aimed at beginners. They're made for walking across a field or on a novice trail. They have simple systems for gaining traction and work well for hard-packed snow. You'll often see a wide tail on these types of shoes to help with balance.
• Running/rolling terrain: When hiking on normal trails in hilly areas, these types of snowshoes have a nice mixture of performance and comfort. They aren't made for the steepest conditions, but they do have solid bindings and mid-level crampons. This will be the most common style of snowshoe for most people. If you want more of an aerobic workout, look for a shoe in this category with a tapered tail. Snowshoeing provides a great type of workout, according to Snowshoe Magazine.
• Backcountry/mountain terrain: When hiking on difficult trails or when hiking to a remote area for snowboarding, you'll want some top-end snowshoes. These shoes often are small, allowing the wearer to have more control while hiking on icy and steep terrain. You'll find strong, highly adjustable bindings on these shoes to ensure they stay on your feet, as well as aggressive crampons for maximum control, according to Backcountry.

Finding the right size of snowshoes

When you think of the size of the snowshoe, you don't want to think about the fit on the foot, as you do with other types of shoes. A snowshoe size refers to the amount of coverage area the snowshoe has. Use the right size of snowshoe, and you'll enjoy wearing it a lot more.

• Larger shoes: A larger snowshoe will be one that has a lot of surface area, such as 10 by 30 to 36 inches. Men's snowshoes will be larger than those designed for kids or women, so they can carry more weight, according to Sierra Trading Post. You'll also want a larger surface area if you plan to be carrying a large backpack while hiking. Aluminum shoes offer the largest surface area, although composite snowshoes can accommodate tails to gain a larger surface area. Snowshoes with larger surface areas work better on powdery snow.
• Medium-sized shoes: For average-sized people, you can make use of an average-sized surface area, such as 9 by 25 to 30 inches. If you're going to be hiking with a day pack, an average-sized snowshoe should work well. Aluminum sized shoes are available in this size, or you can use a composite style shoe with a smaller tail.
• Smaller shoes: Kids snowshoes and some women's shoes will fit in this category, where you'll see shoes 8 by 25 inches and smaller. If you are going for a day hike with little to no extra gear, a small size of snowshoe works well. Both aluminum and composite snowshoes fit in this category. If you'll be walking on icy surfaces or hard-packed snow, a smaller sized snowshoe will work well.

You'll probably want to use the smallest shoe that you can, based on your weight and on what you're carrying because a smaller shoe is easier to control.

When seeking a snowshoe, you should see a recommended load or a user weight range for individual pairs of snowshoes, according to Eastern Mountain Sports. This number can help you figure out the best snowshoe for your weight and the load you'll be carrying. Some people even own multiple sizes of snowshoes to accommodate different snow conditions and loads that they'll be carrying on a particular day. — Kyle Schurman

• Dick's Sporting Goods CEO Ed Stack had an "emotional" meeting with the families of several Parkland victims after the retailer he runs exited the gun business.
• In an October interview with Business Insider, Stack said he was awed by the "rational" and "common-sense" things the grief-stricken relatives had to say about gun control.
• "I thought, 'If these families who've just gone through this feel this way, clearly Washington is going to get the message and do something,'" Stack said.
• But that's not what ended up happening.
• Stack said that he encountered partisan gridlock while lobbying for gun reform in Washington, DC, with Republican politicians refusing to engage with ideas like universal background checks.
• Sign up for Business Insider's retail newsletter, The Drive-Thru.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

On Valentine's Day in 2018, a gunman shot and killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. It would later come out that accused shooter Nikolas Cruz had purchased an AR-15-style rifle at Dick's Sporting Goods. That gun wasn't used in the shooting, but it was the catalyst for the retailer nixing sales of all AR-15-style guns in its stores.

Dick's Sporting Goods CEO Ed Stack, who spoke with Business Insider in October, said that his company also destroyed $5 million worth of guns to prevent the weapons from ever being used.

Gun control advocates applauded the decision, including Parkland shooting survivors David Hogg and Emma Gonzalez, as well as Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime was one of the victims. Stack said that he and his wife were invited to travel down to Florida to meet with the families of several Parkland victims.

"It was one of the most emotional days I've ever had, to listen to these parents talk about what happened to their son or their daughter," Stack said. "When I left, I asked them, 'What would you like me to do?' And they said, 'We'd like you to keep the conversation going.'"

Stack said he wrote his memoir "It's How We Play the Game" in part to honor their request. Retailers have increasingly been shoved to the forefront of the gun control debate, as the public's belief that Congress will take action wanes.

Stack said that during the meeting, he was particularly struck by the family members' composure and reasonable requests regarding gun control, especially given their grief.

"Sitting down with those families in Parkland, they didn't say we should ban all guns," Stack said. "Basically what they said is, 'We need to have common-sense gun reform so what happened to my family — my son, my daughter — never happens to anybody else.'"

Stack said that nowadays, many "rational people" fall into irrational arguments when advocating for their political position.

"And as I thought about that, if there was ever a group of people who had the right to argue their position irrationally, it was them," he said. "And they didn't. I thought, 'If these families who've just gone through this feel this way, clearly Washington is going to get the message and do something.'"

The CEO joined other retail leaders in signing a letter in support of a bill that would require background checks for all firearm sales. The House of Representatives passed the bill in February, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has not brought it up in the Senate. Stack said that when he traveled to DC to lobby for gun reform, he still expected to find politicians who were receptive to such measures.

But that's not what ended up happening. The Dick's CEO said that while all the Democratic figures he met with were open to his advocacy, Republicans would reflexively reject his message.

Stack said he was surprised by the reaction, given that certain gun control measures are no longer a "political hot button" among the electorate. A 2017 Quinnipiac poll found that 94% of respondents supported universal background checks.

According to The Center for Responsive Politics, the National Rifle Association — a gun lobby group that blasted Dick's for exiting the gun business — donated $880,521 to Republicans and $10,500 to Democrats in the 2018 election cycle. During the 2016 election cycle, Republicans received $1,096,659 and $10,500 went to Democrats.

"I can't understand why Congress argues their positions on gun control irrationally," Stack said. "I was just disappointed, surprised, and fill-in-the-blank about how people in Washington can't argue this in a rational way and come together with the intent to solve a problem."

SEE ALSO: Dick's Sporting Goods CEO, who is reportedly testing a presidential run, told us why he doesn't regret losing $250 million after taking a stand on gun control

DON'T MISS: Plummeting participation in youth football is a huge opportunity for fall baseball leagues across the US, according to the CEO of Dick's

SEE ALSO: Dick's CEO: CEOs need to step up to solve America's gun problem because 'there's just not much leadership coming out of Washington'

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• Harvey Weinstein and the board of his film studio have reached a tentative $25 million deal with dozens of women who accused him of sexual misconduct, according to a New York Times report. 
• The deal would not require Weinstein to directly pay anything to his accusers or admit wrongdoing, according to the lawyers. The payout would be provided by the Weinstein Company insurers, according to the lawyers
• Part of the settlement would be paid out to the dozens of actresses and former Weinstein Company employees who have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct.
• More than $12 million of the payout would go toward some of Weinstein's legal costs, Weinstein's brother and business partner Bob, and other former members of the film company's board, The Times reports.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Harvey Weinstein and the board of his film studio have reached a tentative $25 million deal with dozens of women who accused the disgraced Hollywood mogul of sexual misconduct, lawyers involved in negotiations told the New York Times.

The deal would not require Weinstein to directly pay anything to his accusers or admit wrongdoing, and funds would be supplied by the Weinstein Company insurers, according to the lawyers. In order for the deal to be official, it needs to be approved by the courts and signed off by all parties.

The payout, which would resolve lawsuits filed by dozens of women since 2017, is part of a larger $47 million settlement meant to close out Weinstein's bankrupt company, lawyers told The Times.

More than 30 actresses and former Weinstein Company employees have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct, ranging from sexual harassment to rape.

Part of the settlement would be paid out to the dozens of women who have come forward with claims against Weinstein. More than $12 million of the payout would go toward some of Weinstein's legal costs, Weinstein's brother, and other former members of the film company's board, The New York Times reports.

Two women who brought civil suits against Weinstein — former Weinstein producer Alexandra Canosa and actress Wedil David — plan to challenge the settlement.

David's lawyers, Douglas Wigdor and Kevin Mintzer, said they cannot confirm the tentative settlement, but said in a statement provided to Insider that they "reject the notion that this was the best settlement that could have been achieved."

"It is shameful that $12 million of the settlement is going to the lawyers for the directors who we alleged enabled Harvey Weinstein and it is even more outrageous that the proposed settlement will seek to bind non participating members by providing a release to the insurance companies and the directors of the Weinstein Company itself," they said about The Times' report. "While we don't begrudge victims who want to settle, we plan to vigorously object to any provision that tries to bind victims who want to proceed with holding Harvey Weinstein accountable for his actions which is exactly what we intend to do."

Weinstein is still facing a criminal trial in a separate sexual assault case involving two women. The case is due to start in January.

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• These are the NBC executives who allegedly tried to shut down the Harvey Weinstein story and are still at the company

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• You can save an iMovie project on your Mac computer in two different ways. 
• To save an iMovie to your Mac, you can navigate to the Projects tab in the iMovie app or click on the File menu from the top toolbar. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

On your Mac computer, you can work on multiple iMovie projects at once, and easily save them once you're finished.

Apple's iMovie allows you to build a project from the pre-downloaded trailer templates, or make a new movie to compile videos from a family vacation or birthday party. Once a project is complete, you can save it to your files, whether it's a specific folder or directly to your desktop.

To save an iMovie project to your Mac, you can select the "Files" option after clicking "Share Project" in the "Projects" tab. You can also select the same option the dropdown menu.

Here's how to do both.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Macbook Pro (From $1,299 at Best Buy)

How to save your iMovie on a Mac computer

1. Open iMovie on your Mac.

2. Select an ongoing project from the "Projects" tab. You can also start a new project by clicking the plus (+) option and selecting a trailer template or starting a new freeform movie.

3. If the project you want to save is already complete, click on the three dots to the right of its name and select "Share Project" from the pop-up list.

4. Select "File" from the bottom of the list. The other options allow you to share the project directly through email or social media, but sharing to "File" will directly save a copy to your Mac. Sharing to "Theater" will only save the project to iMovie, and you won't be able to access it anywhere else on your computer.

5. This will open a pop-up with options to customize your saved video. You can add a description and tags, along with adjusting the resolution and quality. Check the "Add to Theater" box if you want to view your movie in the "Theater" tab. 

6. Click "Next..."

7. iMovie will then prompt you to choose a file name and location. Enter a file name next to "Save As" and choose a location next to "Where"— a specific folder or your desktop. 

8. Click "Save" to complete the process.

How to save an iMovie project on Mac from the File menu

1. You can also access this same pop-up from within the iMovie project. Click to open a project or create a new one.

2. Once you've completed the project, navigate to the "File" tab in the toolbar at the top of the app. This will be the first option to the right of the Apple icon and bolded "iMovie" settings.

3. Select "Share" from the drop-down menu.

4. Select "File." This will open the pop-up to save the project on your Mac computer.

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

• How to crop a video on your Mac computer using iMovie

• How to quickly resize an image or many images at once on a Mac computer, using its default Preview app

• How to sign, annotate, and edit a PDF on a Mac computer using Preview

• How to set a password on your Mac computer and lock it, in 5 different ways

• How to create folders on a Mac computer and organize your files

SEE ALSO: The best Macbooks you can buy

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• Life insurance beneficiaries receive the payout from a life insurance policy.
• A will or trust doesn't supersede a life insurance policy. Life insurance beneficiaries are final.
• Most life insurance policies make it easy to change or update your beneficiary if you change your mind about who should get the death benefit, for example after a divorce.
• Policygenius can help you compare life insurance to find the best coverage for you, at the best price »

What is the point of life insurance? To ensure the financial security of your loved ones if you pass away. You choose the person or people who get your life insurance proceeds, but if you don't keep them updated, the results can be catastrophic for your family's money.

If you don't know what a life insurance beneficiary is or want to find out how to avoid a critical mistake, make sure you understand these vital facts about life insurance beneficiaries.

What is a life insurance beneficiary?

In life insurance, the term life insurance beneficiary is the person who receives a death benefit if the insured individual passes away during the covered term. In other words, if the person with life insurance dies, the beneficiary gets the cash from a life insurance policy.

The entire purpose of life insurance is to give someone money if you die, so it's important to choose who will get that money, and keep that person up to date. Whether you get life insurance through work or a policy you purchased on your own, the beneficiaries work the same.

You can generally add one or more life insurance beneficiaries. If you put multiple people, you can divide the proceeds evenly or give a specific percentage to each. You can also designate a contingent beneficiary. That's a fancy way of saying backup beneficiary in the event your chosen beneficiary has also passed away.

If you don't choose a beneficiary, the policy generally pays out to your estate. That puts the cash up for creditors and lenders who will try to get the money for unpaid debts instead of writing a check directly to your loved ones.

Life insurance beneficiaries are final

If you get divorced, something very common in the United States today, you probably don't want your ex-wife or ex-husband to get your life insurance payout if something happens to you. However, that very scenario happens quite frequently.

A will or a trust controls what happens to your assets like bank accounts, investments, real estate, and possessions if you pass away. However, life insurance is outside of a will or trust. You have to update your life insurance beneficiaries even if you update your will. Life insurance beneficiaries are final.

Nothing overrides your choices here, so make sure to update your beneficiaries if you have a major life change or change in preferences.

It's easy to designate or update beneficiaries

My first life insurance came from work in my early 20s. I wasn't married and didn't have kids, but life insurance was a completely paid-for benefit from my employer. You can't beat free! I chose my sister as my life insurance beneficiary at that time.

When I got married, I filled out a form on my company's intranet to update the beneficiary from my sister to my wife. It took less than five minutes. All I needed was her name, contact information, and optionally her Social Security number for verification.

For your own life insurance outside of work, contact the insurance company for information on making updates. It usually requires a quick form, which may be completed online in some cases.

If you have children or other preferences for where your life insurance money goes, make sure to include them as well. Take a few minutes to update or review your choices if you have any doubts or questions.

Beneficiaries are the most important part of life insurance

Life insurance is meant to protect someone else. You won't be around to enjoy the proceeds of your own life insurance, should it ever pay out. To make sure your monthly premiums provide your loved ones the benefits you expect, make sure your life beneficiaries are up to date. It's simple and takes just a few minutes to make sure your loved ones are protected.

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• Nicholas Powers, a single dad who shuttles his son on four trains to his co-parent, was experiencing burnout.
• Parental burnout, a recognized condition, can lead to exhaustion, depression, and feelings of inadequacy. 
• When his son was not around, Powers took marijuana edibles, which can lead to a psychedelic-like experience. It ultimately helped to ease his anxiety and guilt. 
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. 

"It's all about your child now," a cashier said as he pointed at my 2-year-old son who squirmed in my arms while I bought groceries. I rolled my eyes. It was the umpteenth time a random stranger told me the painfully obvious. Of course it's all about him. Is his diaper dirty? I'll clean him. Is he hungry? I'll feed him. Is he hurt? I'll apply a band-aid.

What I didn't need was a reminder about the all-consuming nature of being a parent. What I needed was a reminder to check out. 

Parental burnout is real, and it's worse than it was in the past. Parents today are expected to pour more time, energy, and money into their children than past generations, yet there's been minimal improvement in government support such as paid leave and subsidized childcare. Parental burnout can lead to overwhelming exhaustion, depression, and feelings of inadequacy.

While financial factors certainly contribute to burnout, research shows that a parent's personality traits, such as being a perfectionist, actually account for more of a risk. 

For me, there was also the added stress that comes with being a single dad. 

I developed parental burnout, which led me to feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and depressed

I'm a co-parent who rides four trains a day to shuttle my son to his mother. It is exhausting. We were never married and constantly balance our separate lives while passing our child back and forth. It's not official custody. We just do what is best for him, which is hard to do.

The pressure on young families in the US is also panic-inducing. Good schools have waiting lists. Private ones are prohibitively expensive. So I practice intensive parenting and give the best of what I have. I read to him, sing to him, get the highest quality daycare I can afford and stack building blocks like a small towers. It leaves me wrung out like a rag. I rush to meet deadlines. I forget to cut my hair. I don't call friends. I have "Baby Shark" playing in a loop in my head. 

I felt guilty about not being able to give my son a traditional family unit, so I tried to be a 'perfect' dad

When my son was born, I held him in one hand and a copy of "Your Baby's First Year," a book about child development, in the other. It was like getting a PhD in baby.

How do I feed him? How do I cure a diaper rash? I threw myself into childcare and it numbed me to everything else in my life.

Months after he was born, his mother and I made our unofficial separation official. In order to compensate for failing at a family, I focused on being the dad of all dads. I buried any problems I couldn't deal with under a ton of dirty diapers. 

I talked of child-rearing constantly, even at a bar with friends or at a mentor's birthday party. I talked about how much I loved my son and the cool new words he could say or how he was running so well. I did not talk about the struggle to be everything all the time.

I didn't tell anyone I was depressed and exhausted, but it was clear to others 

After a year of co-parenting, I was a mess. My hair was a bunchy afro. My clothes were covered in baby vomit, urine and food; they looked like a painter's splattered overalls. I didn't tell anyone I was depressed and exhausted.

But my friends could see it for themselves. They said it was time for a psychedelic vacation. It wasn't a wild idea. I did LSD in college. A lot of us tripped at underground raves just outside of Boston in the '90s. But I was a dad now, so I resisted. 

It was almost two years into fatherhood before I had a psychedelic experience. I was in Portland at the time for a professional event. An acquaintance took me aside and offered me a microdose of LSD, or an old fashioned mind blowing one if I wanted. I nearly said yes. But, again, the taboo of mixing parenting and psychedelics held me back. Instead, I opted for a heavy dose of marijuana.

While visiting a local dispensary, we sang "God Bless America" as I bought my first legal joint in the United States. It felt amazing to not be criminalized over marijuana.

My friends recommended psychedelics, but I decided to smoke a joint and eat edibles

Back at the hotel, I smoked, and ate a few edibles. Nothing. I ate the rest. Nothing. Damn it, does "Made in America" mean nothing anymore? 

I ventured to the hotel spa and was amazed at how bright their towels were. Each one was glaringly white. How potent was the soap? I waved at the mirror and like the Hindu goddess Durga. I had multiple arms. The floor under me heaved and fell as if the hotel was a cruise ship at sea.

I was tripping. Hard. I had only smoked and eaten some marijuana-infused snacks. But some mental health experts say the effects of cannabis can resemble those of psychedelics. 

I stumbled to the hotel room and loved how clean and antiseptic it was. The carpet was soft and felt soothing against my bare feet. I crawled into bed. 

The drugs lead to a trip-like experience where I suddenly felt every difficult emotion I had been avoiding

Was this was my solo, undisturbed time to check out? 

It wasn't.

Every feeling I had held down shot up like a geyser. Here was sadness at never knowing my father. Guilt at being a co-parent and not waking up with my son every day. Fear at the gunshots in my neighborhood. Anger that he will inherit a dying planet. Frustration at not having the money to move us into a better zip code. I sank into a pit, seeing how I urged him too hard to say his ABCs or said something wrong or lost a chance to improve our lives. 

I plummeted into myself and at rock bottom, a warm memory filled me. It was the last time my son had stayed overnight and slept on my chest. He woke up for a moment, kissed me and dozed off again.

Laying in the hotel bed, I hugged my chest as if my son were resting on it.

Everything felt perfect. I was happy. He was happy. So many times, we had rolled on the floor, giggling and chasing each other. So much of my self-doubt was my own fear. To him, I was a good enough father.

The experience made me realize that I am a good enough dad

"How was Portland?" my co-parent asked when we met to trade our son. I told her Portland was a good city. I didn't go into the "trip" part of the trip. The effects had worn off but a glow stayed like orange coals in a campfire. 

I put our son in her arms. In the past, when I had done so, I felt resentment boiling in my chest for not having a traditional family unit. But this time, I felt at peace. 

I had been running from myself. Self-doubt had painted the world in lurid and threatening colors. But it wasn't true.

Yes, some streets in my neighborhood are dangerous. But there's also a lot of loving people here. Yes, I didn't know my father. But I am nothing like him. Yes, I'm not rich. But I can provide my son with the most invaluable things. Yes, the nation is politically split and the planet is on fire. But I can protest and organize. Parenting is hard work, but it makes me stronger. 

My son reached out to me for one last hug. 

"I love you," I told him and kissed his face, "I love you. I love you. I love you." He stared at me intently for a long time then leaned in and kissed me back.  

• Read more:
• Parents have started using LSD and 'magic' mushrooms because they say it helps them be more present with their kids
• WeWork's utopian school had a rock-climbing wall, meditation, and language immersion. Now parents are fighting to save it.
• I spent a month cleaning diapers by hand and confiscating toys, and learned why it's nearly impossible to be a plastic-free parent

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NOW WATCH: A 45-year-long study discovered trends in successful hyper-intelligent children

Lola.com CEO Mike Volpe thinks business travel on the whole is just horrible – but he saw that as a big business opportunity.

Lola focuses on making it easier for medium-sized companies to manage corporate travel arrangements. Companies use the service to authorize employees to make travel-related purchases and set their own policies for those purchases. Employees then use the custom Lola experience to book work-related trips.

The Boston-based company is competing in an increasingly crowded space, but Volpe thinks Lola has another edge over rivals: its deal with American Express Global Business Travel, one of the largest players in the corporate travel market. American Express is using Lola to target medium-sized companies; its sales team markets Lola to those kinds of customers. And through that relationship, Lola gets access to special deals on airfare and hotels that are only available to American Express that it can offer its customers.

Corporate travel systems have traditionally been clunky, slow, and difficult to use for both employees and administrators alike, Volpe told Business Insider. From the company’s start in 2014, he designed Lola.com to be different. Co-founder Paul English, who was also a cofounder of Kayak, has experience in designing a popular and easy-to-use consumer travel sites, which helped inform the design of Lola.

Companies can get set up on Lola in less than an hour, according to Volpe, and once they're on the system, their employees can book a trip in minutes. Lola offers 24/7 customer support that's available within a minute, he said.

Investors are excited about Lola's potential. In June of 2019, the company raised $37 million in a Series C funding round co-led by General Catalyst and Accel, according to PitchBook. Volpe expects the company to grow from about 75 employees to about 130 by the end of the year, all within its Boston headquarters.

To fully understand Lola’s strategy, Business Insider Prime has published the pitch deck the company used to raise its latest funding round. Simply enter your email address to receive a FREE download of the full deck!

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• Praveen Akkiraju, a managing partner at SoftBank Vision Fund, is leaving the company.
• Akkiraju, a former executive at Cisco Systems, joined the $100 billion investment vehicle last year to focus on enterprise technology investments. 
• A Vision Fund spokesperson said senior managing partner Deep Nishar would shoulder some of Akkiraju's former responsibilities, including his board seat at the Indian company Automation Anywhere. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. 

Praveen Akkiraju, a managing partner at SoftBank Vision Fund, is leaving the company. 

An email announced the news internally, and said that Akkiraju was "leaving to explore his passion for working with early-stage start-ups (operating or investing role),"Axios's Dan Primack reported Wednesday. A spokesperson from SoftBank Vision Fund confirmed the news. 

"I want to thank Praveen for everything he's done for the Vision Fund. His deep technical expertise, thoughtfulness and passion for entrepreneurs will be missed. We wish him all the best on his next adventure," a statement from Vision Fund CEO Rajeev Misra said. 

Akkiraju was one of the fund's twelve managing partners, managed investments in both America and Asia, and served as the co-lead on India investments. 

The former Cisco executive joined SoftBank Vision Fund last spring, and has the fund's enterprise software investments. One of Akkiraju's deals was intelligent automation company Automation Anywhere from India, in which SoftBank Vision Fund invested $300 million. Akkiraju currently holds a seat on Automation Anywhere's board. 

On the company board page, Akkiraju has said that he believed that technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and cloud computing were "redefining the way products and services are being delivered." 

SoftBank's first Vision Fund backed some of the biggest names in tech, including Uber, WeWork, and DoorDash. It also has a few sizable investment in enterprise technology companies like the office-messaging service Slack. But doubts about the investment vehicle have intensified after the collapse of WeWork's planned IPO, as well as Uber and Slack's disappointing stock performances. 

SoftBank Vision Fund had initially targeted raising $108 billion in funding for its second act, which aimed to shake up next-generation enterprise technology. Last month, the company's first fund-raising round collected $2 billion, Bloomberg reported. That's less than 2% of the company's original vision. 

Vision Fund declined to comment on what implications Akkiraju's departure would carry for its second iteration. 

No replacement for Akkiraju has yet been announced. Senior managing partner Deep Nishar is said to be taking on many of Akkiraju's responsibilities, including his board seat with Automation Anywhere.

SEE ALSO: SoftBank is selling back its stake in the embattled dog-walking startup Wag amid the company's 'painful' layoffs

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NOW WATCH: How autopilot on an airplane works

• You can add Google Maps to CarPlay if you prefer its navigation over the default Apple Maps app. 
• Apple CarPlay lets you connect your iPhone to your vehicle, where you can use most built-in iOS apps and a few other compatible apps, like Google Maps and Spotify. 
• To add Google Maps to CarPlay and customize your home screen, you'll have to use the Settings app on your iPhone. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Apple CarPlay is an infotainment system many cars now offer, and the software allows drivers to easily sync an iPhone to their vehicle. 

However, you weren't always able to access Google Maps on Apple CarPlay. Thankfully, that changed last year with an update to the system, and you can now use Google Maps instead of the default Apple Maps. 

To swap Apple Maps for Google Maps, you'll just have to add Google Maps to your "Include" list in the CarPlay settings on your iPhone. 

Here's how to do it. 

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

iPhone 11 (From $699.99 at Best Buy)

How to add Google Maps to Apple CarPlay

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.

2. Click on the General tab. 

3. Tap "CarPlay" in the second section.

4. This will bring you to a list of cars you have synced with Apple CarPlay. The page also provides instructions for CarPlay setup. Tap the car of your choosing.

5. For each car, you will have the option to customize your settings. Tap "Customize" to do so.

6. On this page, you'll find the standard Apple apps included on your CarPlay home screen. These include built-in iOS apps such as Phone and Messages. Apple Maps is the default navigation app used.

7. Under "More Apps" you can find other apps that still work with CarPlay, such as Spotify and Google Maps.

8. Tap the green plus sign (+) to the left of "Google Maps" to add it to your "Include" list.

9. This will add Google Maps to your list. You can always remove it by tapping the red minus sign (-) to the left. You can also reorder your apps by tapping and dragging the three bars on the right hand side. 

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

• How to avoid highways on Google Maps for your directions on desktop or mobile

• How to update Google Maps on your iPhone or Android phone, to get the latest features and security updates

• How to calibrate your Google Maps app to give more accurate directions, on iPhone or Android

• How to change your default home address on an iPhone, in both Google Maps and Apple Maps

• How to change your route on Google Maps on desktop or mobile, to choose an alternate route or make your own

SEE ALSO: The best iPhone for every type of person and budget

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: People are still debating the pink or grey sneaker, 2 years after it went viral. Here's the real color explained.

• Google released its 2019 Year in Search today, and the list included the most searched dog breeds.
• While some of the breeds were predictable, like golden retrievers, more surprising breeds got in there too, like the cane corso.
• Here are the most searched dog breeds this year, according to Google.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Did you search for a specific dog breed this year? You might have contributed to these 10 breeds that made their way onto Google's Year in Search for 2019.

Google provided Insider with the most popular dog breeds on its search engine this year, from poodles to Rottweilers.

Keep scrolling to find out the kind of dogs people were searching for this year.

10. English cocker spaniel

The American Kennel Club describes these dogs as "merry" and "upbeat in the field and mellow at home," and also says that they're "widely admired for [their] delightful personalities and irresistible good looks."

9. Great Pyrenees

Great Pyrenees can weigh up to 100 pounds, and are "mellow companions and vigilant guardians of home and family,"according to the AKC.

8. Bernese mountain dog

The general temperament of a Bernese mountain dog is "good-natured, calm, [and] strong,"according to the AKC.

7. Malinois (Belgian shepherd)

A Malinois is classified as a variety of Belgian shepherd. There are four in total: the Malinois, the Groenendael, the Laekenois, and the Tervuren.

6. Cane corso

Cane corsos go all the way back to ancient Roman times. The name loosely translates to "bodyguard" in Latin.

5. Doberman pinscher

According to the AKC, Dobermans are "loyal, fearless, [and] alert."

4. Rottweiler

Rottweilers might be known as ferocious guard dogs, but the AKC calls them"gentle playmates and protectors."

3. Australian shepherd

Australian shepherds are especially known for their multi-colored eyes, making them of one of the few dog breeds that regularly has what's called heterochromia.

2. Poodle

Poodles are a diverse breed — they come in toy, miniature and standard sizes, multiple colors, and are frequently mixed with other dogs to create designer breeds like labradoodles, maltipoos, schnoodles, pomapoos, etc.

1. Golden retriever

Unsurprisingly, the golden retriever was the most searched for dog breed this year. This breed is one of the most common in the US, according to the American Kennel Club.

• Read more:
• 20 award-winning photos of dogs from 2019's Dog Photographer of the Year competition
• 9 important things veterinarians want every dog owner to know
• Can you find the hidden puppy in this holiday brainteaser?
• 20 behind-the-scenes photos of the National Dog Show that prove these pups are the hardest-working dogs in show business

• 2019 was a tough year for unicorn startups — privately held companies valued at more than $1 billion — going public through an initial public offering process. 
• Though the first half of the year was strong for IPOs, "investors got really turned off" after big disappointments from companies like Uber and Lyft, according to Kathleen Smith of Renaissance Capital. 
• Still, the IPO market as a whole has outperformed this year. The Renaissance IPO ETF is up 30% this year compared to the S&P 500 index, which is up roughly 25% in the same time frame. 
• Here are the biggest unicorn IPO flops of the year. 
• Read more on Business Insider. 

This year has been a rough one for some companies trying to go public through an initial-public-offering process, or IPO. 

Unicorn startups, or privately held companies with valuations over $1 billion, didn't fare very well in the public markets in 2019, as investors grew increasingly wary of unprofitable companies. 

"I think the market was very robust all the way through the first half," said Kathleen Smith, principal at Renaissance Capital, a provider of institutional research and IPO exchange-traded funds. But then, a few weak IPO performances early in the second half spooked investors, Smith told Markets Insider in an interview. 

"Investors got really turned off," Smith said, and they stopped flocking to buzzy unicorn IPOs. "I'll call it a buyer's strike, not wanting to participate because there were such big disappointments." 

Those large "unicorn" disappointments weighed on IPOs for the rest of the year. In the fourth quarter, most companies going public have priced at the lower end of their proposed ranges, Smith said. 

While that can be frustrating for companies that use the IPO process to raise capital, it is good for investors, Smith said, because companies that are underpriced tend to gain in the market later.

"When investors are risk averse, IPOs are priced better," she said. "This is a good time for investors in the IPO market, not such a good time for companies." 

Overall, the IPO market slowed this year, Smith said. In 2019, 152 companies IPO'd, raising roughly $44 billion, according to Smith. That's less than 2018, when 192 companies IPO'd and raised nearly $47 billion in proceeds, Smith said. 

Still, IPOs in general — not just those with sky-high valuations — performed well for investors in 2019. The Renaissance IPO ETF is up 30% year-to-date through Tuesday's close, compared to the S&P 500 index, which is up roughly 25% in the same time frame. 

Smith said that in 2020, it's likely that companies will try to push back on the processes available to them for becoming public, because the "regular IPO process is not working" for all companies. That could include more direct listings, like Slack in 2019 and Spotify in 2018, even though they haven't been successful for investors, she said. 

Here are the top unicorn IPO flops of 2019, in chronological order:

1. Lyft

Ticker: Lyft

IPO date: March 29, 2019

IPO price: $72 per share 

Performance on first day of trading: +8.7%

Performance from IPO price through December 10: -37%

2. Uber

Ticker:Uber

IPO date:May 10, 2019

IPO price: $45 per share 

Performance on first day of trading: -7.6% 

Performance from IPO price through December 10: -38% 

3. SmileDirectClub

Ticker:SDC

IPO date:September 12, 2019

IPO price: $23 per share 

Performance on first day of trading: -27%

Performance from IPO price through December 10: -65%

4. Peloton

Ticker:PTON

IPO date:September 26, 2019

IPO price: $29 per share

Performance on first day of trading: -11% 

Year to date performance through December 10: +13%

5. WeWork

WeWork actually did not make it through the IPO process. After Uber and Lyft's disastrous IPOs, investors were on high alert for unprofitable unicorn companies looking to list on the public market. 

Then, WeWork released its S-1, or prospectus, a regulatory filing all companies looking to list publicly must submit to the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

"When everyone talked about WeWork and they the opened the prospectus, it was like, you're kidding," Smith told Markets Insider. "No one could believe what was inside." 

She continued: "This was so bad. We heard everything was so good." 

In six weeks, the company went from one with a $47 billion valuation to one that was reportedly considering bankruptcy. In addition, WeWork's cofounder and then-CEO Adam Neumann stepped down from the top job.

• The legendary Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker died on Tuesday at the age of 92, but he had a final warning for an American public wrestling with a declining trust in government and each other.
• The Financial Times published the afterword in Volcker's upcoming autobiography which the newspaper said was written in September, three months before his death.
• In it, Volcker condemned President Trump's efforts — without naming him — to pressure the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates in an attempt to juice US economic growth, already undergoing its longest sustained expansion.
• He painted a very bleak portrait of the nation's political environment, noting "forces" are rolling back environmental and other protections considered emblematic of American democracy.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The legendary Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker died on Tuesday at the age of 92, but he had a final warning for an American public wrestling with a declining trust in government and each other.

The Financial Times published the afterword in Volcker's upcoming autobiography which the newspaper said was written in September, three months before his death.

In it, Volcker condemned President Trump's efforts — without naming him — to pressure the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates in an attempt to juice US economic growth, already undergoing its longest sustained expansion.

"Not since just after the second world war have we seen a president so openly seek to dictate policy to the Fed. That is a matter of great concern, given that the central bank is one of our key governmental institutions, carefully designed to be free of purely partisan attacks," the former Fed chairman wrote.

Volcker said he trusted the members of the Fed will fend off any attempts to interfere in its monetary policy decisionmaking so it may act "free of partisan political purposes."

Trump has repeatedly assailed Jerome Powell, the current Fed chair, for not cutting rates. Back in August, Trump called Powell an "enemy" of the United States comparable to China, the Washington Post reported.

The former Fed chair painted a very bleak portrait of the nation's political environment, noting "forces" are rolling back environmental and other protections considered emblematic of American democracy.

"Increasingly, by design or not, there appears to be a movement to undermine Americans' faith in our government and its policies and institutions," Volcker wrote. "We've moved well beyond former president Ronald Reagan's credo that 'government is the problem,' with its aim of reversing decades of federal expansion."

He went on: "Today we see something very different and far more sinister. Nihilistic forces are dismantling policies to protect our air, water, and climate. And they seek to discredit the pillars of our democracy: voting rights and fair elections, the rule of law, the free press, the separation of powers, the belief in science, and the concept of truth itself."

Volcker was best-known for waging a campaign to subdue inflation in the late 1970s and early 1980s as Fed chairman. He later sought to keep regulations in place to oversee the financial industry and became an advocate for financial reform.

The former Fed leader later chaired Obama's Council of Economic Advisory Board after the banking system teetered on the edge of total collapse in 2008.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A big-money investor in juggernauts like Facebook and Netflix breaks down the '3rd wave' firms that are leading the next round of tech disruption

Despite all the festive cheer and time with loved ones that come with the holiday season, it can also be a stressful time if you plan on buying gifts for everyone in your life.

Every year, Insider Picks creates dozens of gift guides to help you find the best Christmas gifts out there — for any budget, hobby or interest, and person. You can find all our holiday gift guides on this page, but to make it even easier on you, we've also rounded up and categorized them below. 

Consider this your ultimate cheat sheet to knocking out your gift shopping for the year. Click on a link below to jump directly to all the gift guides in that category. 

• Gifts under $25
• Gifts under $50
• Gifts under $100
• Stocking stuffers
• Gifts for her
• Gifts for him
• Tech gifts
• Unique gifts
• Home and kitchen gifts
• Food and drink gifts
• Gifts for hobbies and interests
• Gifts from your favorite stores
• Limited-edition gifts

Here's a master list of all our holiday gift guides: 

• 50 clever gifts under $25 that won't end up getting regifted

The elements of a good present — thoughtful, useful, or novel — aren't restricted to a big budget.

• 28 affordable tech gifts under $25

It's tough to be a tech enthusiast when the market is full of expensive gadgets. Some of the best tech gifts, however, won't cost more than $25. 

• 46 cool stocking stuffers on Amazon for under $20

Stocking stuffers have a reputation for being cute but useless. These small gifts challenge that perception.

• 28 unique stocking stuffer ideas — all under $10

Surprise your friendly neighborhood mailman or the cousin you only ever see at the big family holiday gathering with a thoughtful stocking stuffer. 

• 25 beauty gifts under $25

Grab these beauty stocking stuffers from brands like Charlotte Tilbury, Guerlain, and Givenchy. 

• 50 gifts under $50 for everyone on your list

Whether you're searching for practical, nostalgic, quirky, or sentimental, there's an under-$50 gift from brands big and small in this guide. 

• 31 clever gifts from Amazon — all under $50

Not only are all these gifts affordable, but they're also available on a shopping site you know well. 

Kitchen gifts don't have to be expensive. Even a simple and practical accessory like a ramekin or avocado slicer will make them happy. 

• 22 work-appropriate gifts for your boss — all under $50

A good manager isn't easy to come by. Show your appreciation with a useful, thoughtful, and work-appropriate gift.

• 55 hilarious White Elephant gifts under $50

Gift swaps reward the niche, novel, and irreverent, with bonus points going to those who can check the boxes of funny and useful.

• 51 gifts for her, all under $50

Whether you're looking for the perfect gift for your sister, mom, partner, or otherwise, we've put together a list of over 50 great gifts under $50 that we think she'll love. 

• 54 clever and practical gifts for Dad — all under $50

The unique selection of gifts includes picks for every sort of dad, from the hapless car-key-losing fool to the history buff and the masterful (and not-so-masterful) home chef. 

• 76 gift ideas for everyone on your list, all under $100

With a $100 budget, you can buy anything from a smart speaker to an educational cooking class. 

• 40 thoughtful and fun tech gifts under $100

Most people automatically think cool tech has to be expensive. Wireless earbuds, fitness trackers, and smart lights prove the assumption wrong. 

• 28 gifts for him that you can get from Amazon — all under $100

Here's a double whammy: fast Prime shipping and under $100. 

• 30 thoughtful gifts for teachers to thank them for a great year

If you're not already one of their favorite students, you surely will be after they receive something from this list. 

• 50 thoughtful gifts for mom under $50

When it comes to gifting your own mother, the saying "it's the thought that counts" has never been more appropriate.

• 82 cool and unique gifts for her

From classic cashmere sweaters to monthly wine subscriptions, you'll be able to find something no matter your budget.

• 51 gifts for her, all under $50

Whether you're looking for the perfect gift for your sister, mom, partner, or otherwise, we've put together a list of over 50 great gifts under $50 that we think she'll love. 

• 25 tech gifts for women that she'll love to get this holiday season

You won't find bedazzled, dumbed down, and all-pink tech gadgets here. These gifts are both stylish and powerful. 

• 24 great gifts for your grandma

Grandma is another important woman in your life who you know always has your back. Show her the love and appreciation she deserves with these gifts. 

• 39 thoughtful gifts to give your girlfriend

We give you more than three dozen gift ideas that make gifting your partner infinitely easier this year. 

• 50 thoughtful gifts to give your wife

You don't need to spend a crazy amount of money or plan an extravagant gesture to show your wife you appreciate her. 

• 23 beauty gifts from Nordstrom

Nordstrom carries some of the best brands in beauty and skin care, like everyday makeup from Anastasia Beverly Hills and luxurious creams from La Mer. 

• 82 unique gifts for him — at every budget

Find the perfect gift for the man in your life — boyfriend, husband, fiancé, or otherwise. 

• 65 cool gifts for him that you can buy on Amazon

Every gift he could ever want, from a fidget toy to luxury sheets, can be found on Amazon. 

• 50 gifts your dad actually wants

Dads always say they never want anything, but we came up with 50 gift ideas for you anyways. 

• 24 gifts your husband will appreciate

Some of these gifts for your husband might even benefit the entire family, so it's a cost-efficient, win-win situation. 

• 54 clever and practical gifts for dad under $50

If you have a specific budget you're working with, you'll find affordable yet useful gifts in this guide. 

• 28 gifts for him that you can get from Amazon — all under $100

Here's a double whammy: fast Prime shipping and under $100. 

• 21 gifts for the dad that loves to travel

Make his travels more enjoyable, restful, and convenient with gifts like comfortable shoes and a streaming service subscription.

• 18 gifts every Disney dad will love

The unapologetic Disney dad in your life might love a Disney Plus subscription, retro Magic Kingdom sweatshirt, and Mickey Mouse watch. 

• 25 skin-care gifts they'll use every day

If taking care of his skin is something he prioritizes, treat him to any of these gift ideas — and pay no mind to gendered marketing; skin-care is for everyone.

• 25 hidden gems on Amazon

Using the Amazon Gift Finder tool, we found some cool gifts that makes shopping on the site feel less impersonal. 

• 32 kitchen gifts from Williams Sonoma

Carrying legacies like KitchenAid and Le Creuset to modern classics like Instant Pot, specialty shop Williams Sonoma proves it's serious about cooking. 

• 21 unique kitchen gifts from Sur la Table

Sur La Table has a great selection of gifts for cooks of all levels. Or, if your recipient would rather eat than cook, it has gifts for foodies, too. 

• 32 unique kitchen gifts from Food52's online shop

In addition to devising creative and delicious recipes, Food52 sells kitchen products, including ones from its own in-house brand. 

Kitchen gifts don't have to be expensive. Even a simple and practical accessory like a ramekin or avocado slicer will make them happy. 

• 32 thoughtful gifts on Amazon that are Prime eligible

Procrastinators, this is the guide for you. As long as you're a Prime member, you can get any of these cool gifts in two days. 

• 23 gift sets and limited-edition beauty gifts at Nordstrom

Nordstrom carries some of the best brands in beauty and skin care, like everyday makeup from Anastasia Beverly Hills and luxurious creams from La Mer.