The eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, like many of the country's urban areas, suffers from intense smog.

The Air Quality Index, which uses a scale from 0 to 500 (with higher numbers indicating worse pollution), rates Nanjing's air quality as 132— a level considered unhealthy for the public, especially those with respiratory disease.

The Italian design firm Stefano Boeri Architetti believes that building towers covered in plants could help the city reduce its pollution. The company recently announced that it will build two skyscrapers that will hold a total of 1,100 trees and 2,500 cascading shrubs on their rooftops and balconies.

Construction on the buildings, called the Nanjing Green Towers, began in early 2017 and is set to wrap up next year. The design will be similar to that of a two-tower complex that Boeri designed in Milan. Another tower in Lausanne, Switzerland will follow a similar plan and is expected to open by early 2018.

Though only two forest-like towers are currently underway, Boeri's ultimate goal is to create an entire "forest city" in Nanjing and other Chinese cities.

Take a look at the plans below.

SEE ALSO: Taiwan's smog-eating twisting tower will feature luxury apartments — take a look inside

The "forest towers" in Nanjing will feature offices, a 247-room luxury hotel, a museum, and an architecture school. Here's a rendering of what they will look like:

The Nanjing Green Towers will look similar to the two that Stefano Boeri Architetti designed in Milan, which measure 360 and 250 feet tall.

The Milan complex, called Bosco Verticale, was completed in 2014.

Nowadays, we want it all.

We want the space of suburbia with the amenities of a city, but who can afford that?

Luckily, real estate company Redfin recently released its list of the hottest neighborhoods of 2017 — neighborhoods that experts expect to become up-and-coming hotspots. Thanks to their location, affordability, and plethora of things to do, from bustling cafés to hip new restaurants, these areas are the most searched for and sought after neighborhoods on Redfin.

Keep scrolling to see some of the coolest new 'hoods in the country.

SEE ALSO: 19 US cities where you can live comfortably on less than $50,000 a year

Adair Park in Atlanta, Georgia

"Lately, neighborhoods like Adair Park have seen a new wave of popularity, as people move back in from the suburbs around Atlanta and want to be closer to the city center. Many home buyers have been priced out of more established neighborhoods, but Adair Park is one of the last neighborhoods close to downtown where first-time homebuyers can still find nice homes in the $100,000 to $200,000 range,"realtor Victoria Hurd says. 

Median sale price: $128,000

Check out the area here»

Riverside in Austin, Texas

"There’s a lot about Riverside that’s appealing right now. Hiking and biking trails have been revitalized, and being so close to the water is a big draw for many homeowners. There’s also great dining, plenty of public transportation and close proximity to the airport," realtor Andrew Vallejo says. 

Median sale price: $266,500

Check out the area here»

Centennial District (Ellicott City) in Baltimore, Maryland

"Centennial District has been a very desirable place to live for a long time and it doesn’t look like that will be changing anytime soon," says realtor Dan Bowory. "The schools have some of the highest ratings in Maryland, which is often a key reason why many home buyers express interest in moving here."

Median sale price: $475,000

Check out the area here»

Anyone who has worn Apple's futuristic wireless earbuds, AirPods, gets the same question: What happens when one falls out and you can't retrieve it? 

That's exactly what happened to Paul Canetti, founder and CEO of MAZ, a company that builds apps for media companies like Forbes and USA Today.

He was rocking one of his AirPods on Monday, listening to a New York Times podcast, when — whoops! — one fell down a grate in New York City.

"As I opened the case to take out the second 'pod,' I fumbled and it flew out in a cartoonish arc straight into the grate," Canetti told Business Insider. 

Not content with a single-AirPod setup, and wanting to avoid spending $69 for a replacement, he jury-rigged a magnetic retrieval device, and got his single earbud back. 

Here's how he did it: 

SEE ALSO: Apple will replace your busted or lost AirPods for $69

Here's the grate that Canetti's lonely 'pod flew into:

"I was already thinking about how much it costs for a new pair, all the naysayers who I had assured this would NEVER happen, my wife who had surprised me over the holidays with this long sought-after gift," Canetti told Business Insider.

Not great.

In the era of the selfie, there's no shortage of apps that can make you better looking, turn you into a dog, or even swap your face onto someone else's. 

Now, there's an app that can alter your gender entirely, age you, or add a smile to your face. 

Called FaceApp, the app can take a selfie or a photo saved to your camera roll and alter it using neural-network technology. FaceApp is capable of adding two different kinds of smiles to your photo, aging you or making you look younger, or swapping your gender. There's also a filter called "Flash," which seems to lighten and smooth skin. 

The app isn't perfect by any means. It often added strange colors to people's skin when making them look younger, and changing a woman's face into a man's often yielded some truly horrifying results. 

We decided to test it out on various tech CEOs and celebrities. Here's what it looks like. 

SEE ALSO: Here's how to use Memoji, the popular new app that turns your selfies into emojis

First, we tried FaceApp on Apple cofounder Steve Jobs. It did OK with adding a smile, but female Steve Jobs is terrifying and young Steve Jobs has purple lips.

A photo of Snap CEO Even Spiegel, on the other hand, worked perfectly. Female Evan Spiegel bears a striking resemblance to Natalie Portman...

...but male Natalie Portman is a bit frightening. Elderly Natalie Portman isn't much better.

The leaders of the biggest companies on the planet are always trying to figure out what to do with their time, and it seems they all have come to one conclusion: work.

Approaching their ambitions with a single-minded intensity, none works less than 70 hours a week, including weekends, even at the expense of aspects of life other people value.

However, being armed with a strong idea, determined to be the best, and supported by a superhuman work ethic pays off: Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and Elon Musk are among the wealthiest people in the world, and, beyond that, they each helm technologies that have, or have the capacity to, change society in irreversible ways.

Each of the three, to make sense of his own busyness, has developed his own coping mechanisms.

From wearing the same faded grey T-shirt every day to escaping into the woods once a year to parse through volumes of paper, here are some unorthodox efficiency hacks from the three men at the very top. 

SEE ALSO: 'Million Dollar Listing' star explains how waking up at 4:30 a.m. supercharges his productivity

Mark Zuckerberg's quest for simplicity

Much has been written about Zuckerberg's uniform of identical grey t-shirts and hoodies he rotates through his work week — it helps him stay focused and expend as little energy as possible figuring out what to wear every day — but less noted is that this simple way of living extends to almost every aspect of his daily life.

The 31-year-old wunderkind-turned-billionaire CEO of Facebook rolls up to FBHQ not in the Audis favored by his counterparts at other companies, but a fairly modest black Acura.

While he has recently acquired the three properties surrounding his home in Palo Alto, he has famously kept his abode (located just a few blocks away from the offices, where he supposedly works up to 15 hours a day) pretty sparse. By eliminating a lot of the extravagance available to him, his most focused goal is still the work that he does.

In a Q&A at Facebook last year, he was quoted as saying, "I feel like I'm not doing my job if I spend any of my energy on things that are silly or frivolous about my life so that I can dedicate all my energy into building the best products and services."

How Bill Gates keeps his email, life, and reading list in check

In a blog post back in 2006, Bill Gates, then chairman, CEO and chief software architect at Microsoft, shared how he hacks his email with a simple solution — a larger three-monitor display area.

Back then, he was tackling more than 100 emails a day. With all his philanthropic work as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, social activism and his continuing role as technical advisor to Microsoft, one can only speculate how much that number has grown.

With one monitor displaying incoming emails, one set on whatever email he's working on, and one screen for his regular desktop, he can multi-task without falling off a task. By concentrating on his work, one email on its own monitor at a time, Gates gives each correspondence the time and attention it deserves. This is something all younger entrepreneurs can implement into their lives.

Gates goes on an annual ThinkWeek to a cabin in the woods to completely unplug with reams of documents and books. By sequestering himself from all manner of distraction, he gets a years' work of reading and thinking in a week. He plans strategies, carefully examines the companies and organizations he's partnering with, and goes over his past year. ThinkWeek moves him into a mode of ultimate productivity.

Elon Musk takes multitasking to the extreme

With three executive job titles (as CEO of SpaceX, CEO of Tesla Motors, and chairman of SolarCity), five kids and a wildly ambitious — indeed out-of-this-world — vision for the future of technology, it's hard to see when the 44-year-old Elon Musk gets the six to six-and-a-half hours of sleep he says he averages a night.

Writer Max Chafkin, in a 2007 profile of Musk, noted, "To get through the day, Musk relies on two stimulants: caffeine and a desire to help humanity colonize Mars."

Musk, who divides his week between SpaceX and Tesla Motors, has also perfected the art of multitasking: He sends emails while scanning invoices, holds meetings and takes care of business on his phone at the same time, and even texts with his children on his lap (an admission that gathered no small amount of criticism from the public).

While he officially clocks in no more than 15 hours at the office, he has said that he doesn't ever stop working. With these round-the-clock responsibilities, it seems understandable that the most effective way to save time is by doing everything at once.

Few of us have the desire to clock 15 hour days, or to head multibillion-dollar companies. But, getting more done in less time will give you more time to focus on whatever it is that really matters to you.

Emails can be a serious time sink.

As Reuters reported, one 2015 survey found that US workers spend "6.3 hours a day checking emails, with 3.2 hours devoted to work emails and 3.1 hours to personal messages."

If you want to save some time and energy, it's important to figure out how to optimize your email experience.

Here are some shortcuts that can seriously cut down on the time you spend in your inbox:

SEE ALSO: 6 things you should never store on your work computer

Watch your email headers

"Be clear and concise with your email heading," Michael Kerr, an international business speaker and author of "The Humor Advantage" told Business Insider.

"Your email subject line should make it clear why you are writing and make it easy for the receiver to file and later retrieve the email as needed. And don't forget to change the email heading as needed. If you are engaging in a lengthy back and forth over several days then change the subject line to reflect the new direction the conversation has taken to avoid confusion at a later date."

Throw in a clear call to action

"What is it you want the person to do with your email — are you simply letting them know something, do you need an answer to a question by a certain date, or is there a specific action the receiver needs to follow up on?" Kerr asked. "Always end your email with a summary call to action."

All in all, it's best to keep your emails concise.

"Use plenty of white space and whenever possible bullet points to summarize your main points or calls to action," Kerr said. "This will make your emails easier to read, easier to follow, and improve the likelihood of getting a clear response back."

Include a signature

Kerr said that a signature file at the bottom of your email will make it far easier for people to connect with you "without having to hunt down your contact information."

In order to create your own automatic signatures, head to your Gmail's "settings." You'll land right in the "general tab." Just scroll down till you hit the"signature" section, and then type your own into the box. That signature will be added to the end of every one of your emails, from there on out.

There are currently three Tesla vehicles on the road: the original Roadster and its later variations; the Model S sedan; and the Model X SUV.

If all goes according to plan, the mass-market Model 3 sedan will hit the streets in 2017. It could be as early as July.

As it turns out, I've driven all of Tesla's cars, and I went for a brief ride in a prototype of the Model 3 earlier this year.

They each have their own cool features, but they all share numerous aspects — stuff that you get on each and every Tesla.

Here's a breakdown:

SEE ALSO: Here are the best new features coming to Tesla cars

THE ROADSTER: Tesla's first car was a sexy little two-seater that redefined what an electric car could be. I drove the Roadster in 2010 (it was the Roadster Sport), and I sampled the car again in 2016.

COOLEST FEATURE: Acceleration! Electric cars are fast. The Roadster is fast — The Sport posts 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds. There are faster Teslas, but in the Roadster, you really feel the speed.

SECOND COOLEST FEATURE: None! The Roadster was all about proving that a modern electric car didn't have to be a glorified golf cart. Other than that, the Lotus-derived design is a bare-bones sports car that doesn't even have power steering.

Oh, the places you'd go — if you could. While most people have exotic locales on their bucket lists, there are also many places in the United States and abroad that are just as enticing but won't cost your retirement kitty. Here are some ideas for where to take a memorable vacation and still be able to afford your golden years.

SEE ALSO: Thanks to a little-known airline hack, traveling around the world could be cheaper than you realize

SEE ALSO: 11 exclusive events around the world where you're most likely to spot a billionaire this summer

Oaxaca, Mexico

Recognized as the culinary capital of Mexico, Oaxaca is irresistible to anyone interested in food and drink. It's the birthplace of mezcal, the agave-based ancestor of tequila, and mole, the family of rich sauces found throughout the country. This bustling, bohemian city has cobblestone streets, colonial charm, and low prices.

At Las Brisas Huatulco, an all-inclusive resort with its own coral reef and myriad other amenities, rates start at $116 a night. Other types of accommodation can be found for about $25 a night for a private room, breakfast included.

Nascar's oldest track

Martinsville Speedway celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2017, and there's more to see in this quaint, historic town. All but one of the museums are free, and the Smithsonian-affiliated Virginia Museum of Natural History is $5 a person.

Outdoor recreation is cheap and plentiful, and there's a free loaner bike program. Hotels range from $70 to $140 a night, although rates can be higher during Nascar weekends.

Northern Lights, Alaska

Fairbanks, Alaska, is situated in the auroral oval, about 200 miles from the Arctic Circle, making this cold city a hotspot for travelers who want to see the Northern Lights. City officials recommend at least a three-day stay in fall, winter, or early spring for an 80 percent chance of successful viewing.

Area hotels offer Northern Lights wake-up calls, but visitors can opt for a more quintessentially Alaskan experience like a cabin stay or sled-dog trip, too.

The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

Finding the right dress shirt for your needs may require a little research. Different brands use different materials, and their shirts can vary in quality, fit, and price.

The Insider Picks team has gotten to try dress shirts from established workwear brands like T. M. Lewin and startups like Twillory and Ministry of Supply. Whether you're looking to overhaul your entire closet or searching for something special, like a shirt that regulates your temperature in the summer, there's an excellent option for you on this list.

SEE ALSO: This startup’s dress shoes prove guys don't have to spend a lot to get great quality and style

READ MORE: A former investment banker designed sweatpants that are nice enough to wear in public

DON'T MISS: This is the perfect watch brand for anyone who doesn’t consider themselves a watch person

Ministry of Supply

Ministry of Supply impressed us with its Apollo 3, a dress shirt that claims to be 19 times as breathable as cotton. At first touch, the shirt feels more like a workout shirt than dress shirt, but it’s extremely comfortable and a great purchase for anyone who has to dress in a suit and tie all year long.

What we recommend:The Apollo 3 Dress Shirt

Cost: $115

Special offer: First-time Ministry of Supply customers can get a site-wide 15% discount when they use the code "INSIDER0417" at checkout

Features: Made of fabric 19 times as breathable as cotton

Great for: Any guy who is constantly sweating through his dress shirts

Buy Ministry of Supply dress shirts here >>

Twillory

Guys love non-iron and wrinkle-free shirts for their convenience, and Twillory’s SafeCotton non-iron shirts are some of the best we’ve tried. The brand claims its SafeCotton line is the first in its category to be formaldehyde-free, a nice perk for anyone who doesn't like chemicals. The shirts feel great, come in many work-appropriate colors, and also include the best collar stays we've used.

Twillory shirts normally go for $99 each, but with the code "STOCKUP" you can get four shirts for $49.75 a piece.

What we recommend:SafeCotton Non-Iron Dress Shirts (and collar stays)

Cost: $99

Special offer: Shirts are $49.75 each when you purchase four or more and use the code "STOCKUP"

Features: Only non-iron dress shirt on the market that is formaldehyde-free

Great for: Those who take their fashion more seriously than their ironing

Buy Twillory dress shirts here >>

T.M. Lewin

Founded in London in 1898, T. M. Lewin has been making dress shirts for more than 100 years. With its first location on Jermyn Street in London, an epicenter of men’s fashion at the time, the brand grew through its commitment to craftsmanship, quality, service, and value.

It’s a great choice for anyone looking for a brand-new wardrobe, as you can get everything from standard white dress shirt to colorful checks and stripes all in one place. Through the brand’s multi-buy deal, you can get new shirts for $50 each when you purchase four or more.

What we recommend: I love my block check twill shirt, but my coworkers both went for moreformal dress shirts

Cost: $69-$79

Special offer: Select shirts $50 each or less when purchasing four or more

Features: Nothing special here, just a well-constructed shirt

Great for: Any guy on a budget looking to buy dress shirts in bulk

Buy T.M. Lewin dress shirts here >>

The INSIDER Summary:

• There are certain words that describe love in other languages but don't exist in English.
• For example, the Norwegian word forelsket describes the high you get when you start to fall in love with someone.
• Viraag in Hindu refers to the pain of not being in the same place as your loved one.

Sometimes, there just isn't a word in the English language that adequately describes the kind of feelings and actions that are brought on by love.

But that doesn't mean those words don't exist.

Below are 10 words— along with illustrations — that exist in other languages (but not in English) that accurately describe different aspects of love.

From Norwegian to Arabic, keep scrolling to see how other cultures explain love and the feelings that come along with it.

Forelsket

There's no high quite like the feeling of falling in love, which is what the Norwegian word forelsket refers to.

Mamihlapinatapei

Mamihlapinatapei comes from the Yagán language, an indigenous language spoken in Tierra Del Fuego, an archipelago off the southern tip of South America.

It refers to that look that passes between two people who have feelings for one another, but who are both too timid to act on them.

Iktsuarpok

The Inuit, an indigenous culture that resides partly in Greenland, use the word iktsuarpok to describe that antsy feeling you get in anticipation of having a loved one come over.

Glassdoor has released its annual ranking of the highest paying companies in the UK, featuring all the workplaces where people can expect to earn huge amounts of money.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the companies where pay is highest are concentrated in three key sectors: technology, finance, and consulting, with all the top entries being from these fields.

Since 2016's ranking average salaries have increased substantially, with the best paying company offering a median total compensation of £110,000 in 2017, compared to just £90,000 last year. Five companies offered average pay of £90,000 or more this year.

"This report shows that the big guns in tech and finance still dominate when it comes to large salaries in the UK. Companies like Salesforce, Facebook and SAP are all fighting for the best talent and they are prepared to pay top dollar to get it," said Dr. Andrew Chamberlain, Glassdoor’s Chief Economist.

Check out the UK's best-paying companies below:

11. UBS

What they do: One of Switzerland's big two banks along with Credit Suisse. UBS is also the world's largest manager of private wealth assets.

Median Total Compensation: £74,000

Median Base Salary: £67,250

10. Credit Suisse

What they do: Another of Switzerland's top banks, Credit Suisse employs 46,000 people globally, 6,600 of whom are in London. That number could decrease, however if the bank chooses to follow other institutions and move jobs out of London because of Brexit.

Median Total Compensation: £80,000

Median Base Salary: £73,500

9. Nomura International

What they do: One of Japan's biggest banking and securities firms, Nomura grew its operations outside of Japan significantly during the financial crisis by buying up Lehman Brothers' investment banking and equities unit in Europe and Asia.

Median Total Compensation: £80,000

Median Base Salary: £75,000

Macy's is beginning to look a lot more like discount stores such as TJ Maxx and Nordstrom Rack.

In the past two years, the struggling department store has launched an outlet store called Macy's Backstage, added dedicated Last Act clearance sections to stores, and said it would add more self-service systems to its beauty and shoe sections. 

These changes mark a decisive shift away from being a full-service retailer. 

Off-price retail is one of the only bright spots in the industry. This year, TJ Maxx announced plans to open 1,800 more stores globally and reported 21 consecutive years of positive same-store sales. Meanwhile, Macy's closed 66 stores in 2016 and plans to shutter another 34 in the next few years. 

We took a trip to Macy's to see how the shopping experience has changed:

We visited Macy's flagship store in New York's busy Herald Square. The store was built over a century ago and at the time, was the world's largest store.

Our first impressions were positive. On a gray Friday afternoon, the ground floor beauty section was pretty busy.

Beauty is an important area of growth for the store, especially as apparel sales weaken. The US beauty industry of premium products grew 6 percent in 2016 and reached $17 billion in sales, according to NPD market research group.

Arizona public schools claimed four of the top five spots on the US News & World Report's 2017 ranking of best high schools.

BASIS Scottsdale, a charter school that's part of a larger charter network, was ranked the best public high school in the nation. The school boasts a 100% graduation rate, and every single senior at the school takes at least one Advanced Placement exam.

US News looked at four factors to determine the ranking: student performance on state standardized tests, the performance of traditionally disadvantaged groups on exams, graduation rate, and the participation rate on Advanced Placement exams.

Read on below to see the 15 best public high schools in America.

SEE ALSO: The 3 most popular majors at every Ivy League school

15. University High School —Tucson, Arizona

• Grades served — 9-12

• Total enrollment — 1,033

• Graduation rate — 99%

14. Whitney High School — Cerritos, California

• Grades served — 7-12

• Total enrollment — 1,019

• Graduation rate — 100%

13. Pine View School — Osprey, Florida

• Grades served — 2-12

• Total enrollment — 2,186

• Graduation rate — 98%

The INSIDER Summary:

• Americans spent nearly $782 billion eating out last year.
• There are some ways to still enjoy dining out without racking up a bill.
• Consider ordering a combo or sharing an entree with a friend. 
• If you're looking to sip on some alcohol, pick a BYOB establishment or hit up happy hour. 

Dining at restaurants while trying to save money on food may seem a lot like trying to lose weight while eating stacks of decadent cookies on the reg. And there's no wonder why. To turn a profit, restaurants generally charge about four times as much per dish as they paid for its individual ingredients—that's a 400 percent markup. (I know, we died a little, too, when we found out!) And According to the National Restaurant Association, Americans spend more than $782 billion—yes, billion—at restaurants each year.

But here's a bit of good news: You don't have to ditch your favorite restaurant fare altogether to stick to your food budget. According to the group of restaurateurs and wait staff we interviewed, there are tons of ways to cut $5, 10, and even $20 from your bill—without saying farewell to your favorite waitress or forgoing the food you love. Read on to discover their must-know money-saving secrets and put all that extra cash towards something amazing—like a vacation or a new pair of running shoes. And speaking of dining out smart, be sure to check out The #1 Worst Menu Option at 40 Popular Restaurants—and stay away from them at all costs!

Get it to-go & Size up

Strange but true: Getting your order to-go may be more economical than eating it in-house—and you'll oftentimes get more food for your money, too. "If you're looking to order a small chicken salad to-go, for example, ask for it in a large to-go box," Becca, a former waitress from New Jersey, suggests. "Servers will often fill the box with more food without ever measuring it, so you'll get more bang for your buck." By taking your food to go, you can also save cash on costly meal add-ons like salad, wine and dessert. (Skip delivery, though — the tip and delivery premium are tough on the wallet.)

"If you order something like chicken parm to go, you can easily split it into two servings and beef up the meal with a make-at-home salad, which costs just a few bucks, a $2 glass of wine and some fruit for dessert. In a restaurant, a meal like that could be $35 per person," Becca tells us. Following her strategy, however, will cost you about $14.

Skip bottled water & sodas

Restaurants make a killing on bottled water and sodas—especially pricier places with an upscale or exclusive ambiance. The same bottle of H20 you can get for next to nothing in a grocery store is bound to be 50 percent more in a trendy restaurant; I found that one out the hard way. (Six bucks for a bottle of fancy water in a glass bottle? No thank you!) Even some restaurant owners suggest nixing water to save cash: "One of the easiest ways to save money—without giving up your favorite food—is to skip the bottled water," says David and Tricia DiCenso, owners of Lakeside Restaurant and Bar in Wayne, New Jersey. "Restaurants wouldn't offer tap if it wasn't palatable and safe to drink."

Katy Perry cemented herself in the entertainment industry with her 2008 hit "I Kissed A Girl."

Since then, she's become an international pop star known not only for her hit singles, but also for her eccentric looks and daring fashion choices.

While she enjoyed stepping out in outlandish, themed outfits in her early years, these days she tends to keep things classic, chic, and shiny. 

Here's how Katy Perry's style has evolved through the years. 

Back in 2008, Perry was known for her wildly colorful outfits.

For Spike's Guys Choice Awards in 2008, she wore a metallic orange mini, reminiscent of a candy wrapper.

Later that year, after she hit it big with her single "I Kissed A Girl," she guest starred on MTV's TRL in a retro romper.

Whether you need to boost your cash flow to pay bills, save more or simply improve your lifestyle, there are plenty of ways to make more money.

Some methods of saving are easy, while others require more effort.

But all have the potential of paying off if you want to boost your bottom line.

Try any of these 45 ideas to start making more money in 2017.

SEE ALSO: 8 ways to make your money work for you

DON'T MISS: Here's how much you need to earn to be in the top 1% of every US state

1. Ask Your Boss for a Raise

If you want to make more in 2017, start by asking for it. According to compensation data company PayScale, 75 percent of workers who negotiate their salaries get pay raises. However, less than half of workers have asked for raises, according to PayScale’s salary survey. So, if you’re not asking for more, you could be leaving money on the table.

To get a general idea of what you’re worth, check the going rate for your position at sites such as PayScale.com, Salary.com and Glassdoor.com. Then build your case for why you deserve higher pay based on your accomplishments and the value you’ve added to the company, according to PayScale’s salary negotiation guide.

2. Give Yourself a Raise

You can boost your paycheck on your own by keeping more of what you earn. Do this by adjusting your tax withholding if you typically get a large refund every year. A big refund indicates that you’re letting Uncle Sam hang on to too much of your money during the year.

Rather than wait until the spring to get your money, file a new Form W-4 with your employer to claim additional allowances and have less tax money withheld. IRS.gov has a withholding calculator that you can use to figure out how many allowances to claim. Considering that the average refund was $2,777 in 2016, you could be adding more than $230 back to your paycheck each month.

3. Refer Other Employees to Your Company

You might be able to score a bonus at work by referring potential employees for job openings at your company. About two-thirds of large employers have documented referral processes in place, according to iCIMS, which provides software for screening new hires.

“Check to see if your company has a bonus policy for referrals,” said Lisa Rowan, a writer at personal finance site The Penny Hoarder. “For example, at The Penny Hoarder, employees receive a $500 bonus upon referring job seekers who get hired.”

Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway has lavish new digs in the nation's capital, according to a report by The Washingtonian.

An anonymous real estate source told the magazine that Trump's former campaign manager was the likely buyer of a house listed for $8 million by the late Moeen Qureshi, former interim Prime Minister of Pakistan and a former vice president of the World Bank.

The house was originally purchased as two separate properties, but Qureshi combined them into one. It's been on and off the market for years, though there's no word on the price that Conway actually paid for the home.

The home has eight bedrooms, eight full bathrooms, and three half-baths, in addition to staff quarters that house another three bedrooms and two bathrooms. 

Stewart Coleman, Edward Poutier, Amanda Mitchell, and Douglas Blocker of Coldwell Banker had the listing. 

SEE ALSO: A New Jersey town is panicking because it's about to become Trump's summer getaway

The Mediterranean-style home is situated on a half-acre lot not far from Embassy Row in Washington, DC.

The S-shaped staircase, marble floors, and chandeliers make for a dramatic entrance.

The 11,478-square-foot home was built in 1927 and renovated in 2001.

The following is a guest post from Jon at Money Smart Guides, a personal finance site that helps readers get out of debt and start investing for their future. You can learn more about Jon here and check out his ebook, "7 Investing Steps That Will Make You Wealthy."

Ever curious about how the wealthy live?

Wish you could see inside their finances in hopes of learning something?

I had the privilege of a view into how the wealthy manage their money when I worked for a high net worth financial planning firm. In order to invest your money with us, you needed at least $2 million. Not just $2 million in net worth, $2 million in liquid assets in order to invest.

We had a handful of clients that just met the minimum and a few that had close to $50 million. The majority were in the $10-$20 million range.

As a guy in my early 30s who was somewhat successful with money, I didn’t know what to think, working for the wealthy. At first I felt out of place, to be honest. How could a guy making $50,000 a year really relate to and understand the needs and struggles of those worth 40 times that?

However as I met these people and became intimate with their financial lives and their goals, I felt more at ease. They were a lot like me. Except they could buy almost anything they wanted on a whim.

I also learned a lot. In fact, I have started to use many of the things I learned from working with them in my personal life to help me get ahead. Today I am going to share with you 10 lessons I learned. They aren’t listed in order of importance nor is any one most important. But taken together, you can go far.

SEE ALSO: I've spent nearly 15 years working in finance, and here are the 7 best pieces of advice I can give you about money

1. Appearances are deceiving

If you have read "The Millionaire Next Door," you know that most of the wealthy don’t appear to be wealthy. They live in modest homes and don’t drive flashy cars.

While the sample size of my experience was small, only 300 wealthy people, I found this to be very true. When clients would come in for a quarterly meeting or just to say hello, you would never guess they were worth millions by just looking at them.

One client always wore shorts, even in the middle of winter! They didn’t spend their money on sports cars (except for a few of the doctors) or McMansions. They were smart with their spending and didn’t show it off.

At first, the lack of exotic cars disappointed me as a car guy. I would look out the window into the parking lot hoping to see something exciting. But all I kept seeing were Honda’s, Toyota’s and Subaru’s.

Takeaway Lesson: Being rich isn’t about appearances. It is about being smart with your money. Sure when you make it, you could buy a huge house and drive brand new cars, but chances are you are going to end up broke.

2. A high-paying job doesn’t mean an easy financial life

Many people might think that being a doctor means you have an easy financial life. While this is true in the long run, in the short term it is not the case. Most of the doctors we dealt with had a lot of debt. But they also had a ton saved for retirement.

Since they earn a high salary, they put everything they can into retirement accounts to shield it from income taxes. This means they have a lot saved for retirement but often had nothing outside of these accounts.

They tend to have education debt and huge mortgages too, which can be stressful. I almost had a heart attack when I was putting together a plan for one doctor and saw his monthly mortgage payment was $12,000! That was a quarter of my annual salary!

When it comes to high paying jobs outside of the medical field, your financial life is not a breeze either. Often you are in social circles with other wealthy people which leads to expensive cars, second houses and country club memberships.

A handful of our clients had country club memberships that cost them $10,000 a year and they never went. They just had a membership because it was a status symbol.

Takeaway Lesson: Don’t think that a high paying job means zero financial stress in your life. At the end of the day, your money decisions determine how much wealth you have. If you choose to spend all of your money, you will never get ahead financially. But if you save, regardless of your income, you can grow your wealth.

3. Don’t focus on the cost. Look at the benefits.

Too many of us look only at the cost of things and not the benefit it provides. For example, you might scoff at paying a CPA $300 to do your taxes when you could file them with a piece of software for less than $100.

Or you might scoff at paying someone to manage your investments when you could do it yourself. For some people, doing your own taxes or managing your own investments is possible. But for others, it might not be the best idea.

For example, we had a long time client come to us one day and tell us that over the time he worked with us to manage his money, he paid us over $100,000 in management fees. (He had been a client for close to 20 years.) To me, and probably you reading this, that sounds like a lot of money. But what he said next is why he was a client.

He said it was the best money he ever spent. In those 20 years, he saw a couple of recessions, the dot com bust, the housing market collapse and a couple of wars. Through it all, we held his hand and kept him invested for the long term.

He admitted if he was managing his own money, he wouldn’t have nearly the same amount as he does now. He would have sold out of his investments a long time ago and not come back.

Takeaway Lesson: Don’t just look at the cost of something, look at what you get out of it. Many times the price is only a fraction of the benefit. This applies to everything in life. Even clothing. A high quality suit that costs more money lasts much longer than a bargain suit. In the moment, that bargain suit looks like the smarter financial move, but in the long run, you save money by buying quality.

The best way to build wealth is to prioritize assets over income. But ensuring that your assets outweigh your liabilities can be impacted greatly by the city you call home.

This week, online personal finance consultant Bankrate.com released a report ranking America's best and worst metro areas for building wealth.

To create the list, Bankrate.com ranked the 21 largest metro areas in five categories that contribute directly to an individual's ability to build their wealth:

• Savable income: average income after taxes and expenditures
  
• Human capital: unemployment rate, educational opportunities, and productivity
• Debt burden: non-mortgage debt per capita and average credit score
• Homeownership: average annual change in home prices, foreclosure actions, and homeownership rate
• Access to financial services: Percentage of workers with access to retirement plans

San Francisco came out on top as the best place to build wealth, followed by Minneapolis and Washington, DC.

“In some metro areas, like San Francisco, homeownership can be prohibitively expensive, but higher-than-average salaries can help residents stash more money away in tax-advantaged retirement accounts," wrote Claes Bell, a Bankrate.com analyst and the author of the study. "On the other hand, Minneapolis-area residents don't earn as much, but the area's affordable housing and recovering real estate market provide opportunities to build wealth over the long term through home equity."

Read on to see how the 21 largest US cities stack up for building wealth, as well as the average savable income, homeownership rate, and non-mortgage debt per capita for each city. 

SEE ALSO: 10 of the best American cities to live comfortably on $40,000 a year

SEE ALSO: The most expensive housing market in every state

21. Riverside-San Bernardino, California

Savable income: $9,790

Homeownership rate: 62.6%

Debt burden: $27,682

20. Miami

Savable income: -$3,613*

Homeownership rate: 58%

Debt burden: $25,645

*Analysis showed a negative average savable income for the Miami metro area. This may be attributable to the high population of retirees in the area who are spending more of their savings than they're earning.

19. Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida

Savable income: $3,437

Homeownership rate: 62.7%

Debt burden: $27,015

Considering all the advice about interviewing out there, you might feel you have to walk on eggshells when you're interviewing for a job.

Don't worry. Asking to reschedule your interview won't blow your chances. Nor will asking too many questions.

And, believe it or not, neither will showing up late.

While we certainly don't recommend you go out of your way to be late, experts say that most interviewers will understand if you get stuck in traffic. The important thing is to go about informing your interviewer the right way.

In fact, there are quite a few things you might think would cost you the job that, in reality, won't:

SEE ALSO: 9 things people think are terrible for their careers that actually aren't

DON'T MISS: 32 brilliant questions to ask at the end of every job interview

Asking to reschedule

Before you get an in-person interview, you'll likely talk to a recruiter or hiring manager on the phone as part of the preliminary vetting process. If you get this call at a bad time, you don't have to take it right then. 

"I've interviewed too many candidates who simply answered their phone and were distracted, unprepared, and more — it's not their fault," Vicki Salemi, a career expert for Monster, tells Business Insider. "Am I saying to not answer your phone? No. But when you do you can simply state, 'I would love to speak to you but I'm in the middle of something right now. Can we schedule time on the calendar to have this conversation?'" The employer won't think any less of you for doing this, Salemi says.

The same holds true if you're sick or something comes up and you need to reschedule your office interview. Salemi says you just need to give the employer enough notice — at least 48 hours would be best, though, if you're sick, sometimes 24 hours will have to do. When you ask to reschedule, mention the reason without getting into too many gory details, she says. 

Asking which job you're interviewing for

"When I worked in corporate recruiting, it wasn't uncommon for candidates to apply to more than one job at the company," Salemi says. "When you're contacted about your résumé, go ahead and specifically ask which role they're talking about. You'll need it to market your skills and experiences towards that job over another if they vary slightly."

Being late

"In an ideal world, we would all arrive ten minutes early for our interviews," says Vicky Oliver, author of "301 Smart Answers to Tough Interview Questions." "Unfortunately the ideal world is worlds apart from Manhattan traffic."

If you are running late, Oliver says you must call ahead. "You get a lot more sympathy if you call 20 minutes in advance and say, 'I have been sitting in a cab for 40 minutes and am terrified that I am going to be late for our meeting today. I hope you won't hold it against me because I am really looking forward to meeting you.'

Never just slide in late without an excuse. Your interviewer will notice, she says.