When Larry Ellison bought most of the island of Lanai in 2012, he obtained two Four Seasons hotels. The Oracle founder spent years renovating one of the properties and in February the spectacular new Four Seasons Resort Lanai re-opened.

The new resort offers the kind of luxury you'd expect from a self-made billionaire with an obsession for high-end real estate.

Ellison was heavily involved in the design details and reconstruction and had the designer Todd Avery Lenahan and hundreds of workers "redo the lobby from scratch four different times, until the ocean views on entering were framed just right," reports Bloomberg's  Charles Runnette.

The renovation also including adding a $21,000 a night suite (among the most expensive in Hawaii) called the Ali’i Suite.

Ali'i is 3,984 square feet with three bathrooms that can accommodate 6 adults and two children. Naturally, it features spectacular ocean views.

SEE ALSO: The rise of Peter Thiel, the iconic Silicon Valley VC who wants to cheat death

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Ali'i features a formal living room with adjoining powder room, and the deck includes binocular tripods for observing the Bay where spinner dolphins are known to play.

It has a dining room that seats six.

And you can turn it into a three-bedroom suite with the addition of the Four Seasons Prime Ocean Front Studio Suite.

Kobe Bryant's career as one of the greatest players in NBA history will come to an end on Wednesday night. He will also go out having earned more than $320 million in his career in salaries alone, the second-highest earning player in league history.

While Kobe has an insane work ethic and at times appears completely consumed by basketball, he does find time to enjoy life, including nice houses, fancy cars, and even a helicopter.

He's living the life — saying and doing whatever he wants in endlessly entertaining fashion.

Let's take a closer look at how Kobe spends his millions:

He went to high school in the Philly suburbs, but he grew up in Italy. He loves Italian cars.

He once walked into a Ferrari dealership and wrote a $329,000 check for a 458 Italia.

Source: TMZ

He also owns a Lamborghini, a Bentley, and a Range Rover.

Source: Pricing Insider

It turns out homebuyers are really into barn doors.  

When Zillow looked at design features that sell homes at the best price and with the shortest listing time, that topped the list. 

Anything craftsman-style, like rectangular farmhouse sinks, also got homes off the market at a premium. 

Zillow Digs screened over 2 million listings for homes sold between January 2014 and March 2016, and looked for the keywords that had the best effect on how much more than the expected price and how much faster they sold.  

Here are the top 15 design features:

Outdoor kitchen

Percent of homes that sell for above expected values: 3.7%

How many days faster than expected the home sells: 19

Most common metro: Tampa, FL

Tankless water heater

Percent of homes that sell for above expected values: 4%

How many days faster than expected the home sells: 43

Most common metro: Los Angeles, CA

Backsplash

Percent of homes that sell for above expected values: 4.1%

How many days faster than expected the home sells: 46

Most common metro: Philadelphia, PA

Soccer magazine France Football has ranked the sport's highest earners in the game, and the amount of money in play might make your eyes water.

The football rich list is collated by adding club salaries, endorsement deals and performance bonuses.

Europe cemented its position as the home of big money soccer — all the clubs featured are on the continent, while all but two of the players are European.

Despite the Premier League being the most watched in the world, English football clubs did not take part in the survey.

France Football notes that Manchester United player Wayne Rooney would have been ninth is they had.

Check out the list below:

9. Andrés Iniesta (FC Barcelona, ​​31)

Annual Salary: €15m (£12m; $17m)

Performance Bonus: €2m (£1.6m; $2.3m)

Other Income: €4.5m (£3.6m; $5m)

We kick off with Barcelona's captain, who is known for his versatility. He's also a nice guy too, winning the "Golden Foot" in 2014 which awards personality as well as athletic ability. 

8. Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich, 26)

Annual Salary: €16m (£12.8m; $18m)

Performance Bonus: €600,000 (£478,600; $677,000)

Other Income: €7m (£5.6m; $8m)

Muller is something of a legend in Germany, having led the country to World Cup glory in 2012. And his extended contract with Munich to 2021 ensures his bank account will stay healthy for at least another half decade. 

7. Gareth Bale (Real Madrid, 26)

Annual Salary: €14m (£11.2m; $16m)

Performance Bonus: €500,000 (£399,000; $565,000)

Other Income: €10m (£8m; $11.3m)

The only Brit on the list, Bale was a wonderkid at Tottenham Hotspur before being sold to Real Madrid for a whopping €100 million. Corporations took notice too, and he is now the face of the Pro Evolution Soccer videogame series. 

When you're grinding it out at work — whether at home or in an office — it's easy to fall into the trap of measuring your productivity based on how many items you tick of your ever-mushrooming to-do list.

But there are many potentially more useful (and more important) ways to judge.

Ask yourself some of these questions at the end of the day, or when you're planning your schedule.

SEE ALSO: 4 signs a relationship has long-term potential

1. Did you do anything today that sets you up for a big payoff in the future?

Did you do anything that you could see as an investment — in that you expect your effort to pay you back over and over again in the future?

Examples:

• Developing or implementing strategies or approaches that will make you more productive on an ongoing basis going forward.
• Learning a new tool that will make you exponentially more productive.

2. Did you build or strengthen any important relationships today?

This is self-explanatory, but if you don't naturally prioritize relationship building and the potential value of social engineering, it's important to make this principle explicit.

3. Opportunity cost.

Even if what you did was productive, was there anything you could've spent your time doing that would've been more productive? Ask yourself: "By doing what I did today, what did I choose not to do?"

One of the biggest challenges in personal finance is figuring out ways to spend less money — and one of the best ways to accomplish that is to cut down on your monthly expenses.

Even though some of our regular bills might seem small and insignificant on their own, their cumulative effect can be enormous – and become a huge drain on our resources.

To minimize the damage caused on a monthly basis, many people look for ways to cut expenses that are both easy to implement and effective. Here are a few ways to save money that you can try one by one without too much hassle, but offer the potential to save huge sums of cash over time.

SEE ALSO: What the median rent in New York City buys you in 25 big US cities

How to save money on transportation

Let’s face it: Cars are money pits. Not only does their value constantly go down, they also devour fuel by the gallon and require all kinds of pricey maintenance.

Between car payments and interest, insurance, gas, maintenance, and other costs, AAA estimates the price of owning a car to be over $8,600 a year– and that doesn’t even include parking. So how can we reduce the cost of automobiles in our monthly budget?

1. Use public transportation

If you have access to public transportation, you can save quite a bit of money on gas, parking, and maintenance over time. For a small percentage of the cost of owning a vehicle, you can get from one side of town to the next, to work and back, and to most important events. Each time you’re able to leave the car behind, you’ll be saving money.

And that’s just the money you’d save on gas and maintenance and the like — you’ll save far more if you’re able to forego buying a car completely. Rideshare services like ZipCar and Uber make it easier than ever to live car-free in major cities, allowing you to rent a car or hire a ride for the occasional IKEA run or day trip to the country. 

I’ve used this strategy myself: During my earlier days, I exclusively used public transportation to get around and save money, and it was downright painful to add a car to my monthly finances.

2. Sell a vehicle

If a vehicle you own is rarely used, consider selling it. If nothing else, you’ll save money on insurance. If you’re able to get market price for your vehicle, you could also use the proceeds to beef up your savings account or pay off high-interest debt.

3. Carpool to work

If you have an opportunity to share a ride to and from work with someone else, you can significantly reduce wear and tear on your car, save on gas, and take advantage of carpooling lanes that might make it easier to get to work.

4. Keep the tires on your automobiles properly inflated

Once a month, stop by a local gas station that offers free air and check the air pressure in your car tires. If they aren’t inflated to the optimal PSI, fill each one to the maximum recommended amount as stated in your manual. Every two PSI of air you’re able to add to your tires can improve your gas mileage by 1%.

Ways to save on debt

Any time you can reduce how much money you owe, it will help lower your ongoing monthly expenses. For starters, paying off debt means fewer monthly bills to pay, leaving you with more money to save. Here are a few ways to cut down on debt and save money over time.

5. Refinance your home and/or automobile

If you think you might be eligible to refinance your home at a lower rate, contact some lending institutions and inquire. Even if you’re underwater on your mortgage, you may still be able to refinance using the HARP program. Locking in a lower interest rate can not only save you money over the life of the loan, but can also lower your monthly payment and increase your monthly cash flow.

6. Consolidate your student loans

If your student loans are locked in at a high interest rate, figure out whether it makes sense to consolidate all or some of them. While this isn’t the silver-bullet saver it used to be now that most federal loans have fixed rates, if you do find a good loan consolidation option, it could pay off every single month.

7. Take advantage of balance transfers

If you’re carrying debt with a high interest rate, a balance transfer might be a good option. The best balance transfer cards offer perks such as 0% APR for up to 18 months – and some even offer rewards programs. Taking advantage of a 0% APR offer can help you pay down your debt and save quite a bit of money on interest. Just make sure to factor in the balance transfer fees, and pay down the entire transferred balance during the introductory period if possible.

8. Request a credit card rate reduction

If you’ve got a fairly large balance on your credit card, call up your credit card company and request a rate reduction. If you pay your bill on time every month, they may be willing to negotiate. If they won’t go for it, get a 0% balance transfer onto another card. The key here, though, is to stop buying on credit until your financial situation is healthy.

9. Sign up for automatic debt repayment plans

Many installment plans, particularly those associated with student loans, offer an interest rate reduction if you sign up for automatic monthly billing. You should never pass these up – not only do they save money automatically each month, they’re also incredibly convenient and ensure you won’t miss a payment or incur a late fee. If you have any installment payments (particularly student loan debt), see if such an offer is available to you.

10. Sell unused items

Dig through your closets or attic and look for items you no longer use that may have value, then sell them on eBay or Craigslist. You can then use the money you bring in to pay off debt and put it behind you once and for all. I did this myself with a number of items, including my baseball card collection, when my debt load became almost unmanageable.

Ways to cut down on energy bills

From hot summers to cold winters and all the gadgets we plug in, Americans spend a lot of money on energy bills; in fact, the average house spends about $2,200 a year. Fortunately, technology has brought us a few effective ways to improve energy efficiency and lower that figure.

11. Install CFL or LED light bulbs

If you’ve never updated the lightbulbs in your home, consider switching to either CFLsor, better yet, LEDs. These bulbs are about four times more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs and last for many years. One tip: When comparing bulbs, use thelumens number to compare bulbs, not the equivalent wattages. Lumens indicate the actual amount of light emitted by the bulb.

Remember also that under normal usage (four hours a day) and average electrical rates ($0.12 per kilowatt hour), replacing a 60-watt bulb with a 14-watt CFL or LED saves about $0.66 per month. Now multiply that by all the bulbs in your house to see how much you’ll save every month. Even switching just the five most-used light bulbs in your home could save you upwards of $40 a year on your electric bill.

12. Install a programmable thermostat

A programmable thermostat allows you to automatically change the heating and cooling of your home when you’re not at home, when you’re asleep, and so on, saving significantly on your heating and cooling bills. You can also set it to heat or cool your home right before you arrive home from work.

13. Unplug all unused electrical devices

Are there any electrical devices around the house that stay plugged in, but that you rarely use? Most electronic devices constantly draw a small amount of electricity, a phantomcharge, that can add up quickly when you consider just how many devices and small appliances you own. To eliminate that usage, unplug any items or power strips you use infrequently.

14. Utilize timers and power strips

Along those lines, consider utilizing power strips and power timers to turn electrical devices on and off. A power strip with a switch on it, when turned off, blocks the phantom charge on those devices; a timer can automatically turn off the charge going to a power strip (or anything plugged into it) at a certain time each night.

“Smart” power strips can even manage electricity flow based on a control device — for instance, your DVD player will only receive power if the TV is turned on first. These are all great ways to eliminate phantom charges on your home electronic equipment at night or when they’re not in use.

15. Lower the temperature on your hot water heater

The hot water heater is a major energy drain in most homes, accounting for about 14% of energy costs. Often, the water is kept hotter than most people ever need, plus the heat is constantly lost to the environment, meaning you have to burn more energy than ever to keep the water so hot.

Solve both problems by dropping the temperature down to 125-130 degrees Fahrenheit (around 60 degress Celsius) and also installing a water heater blanket to keep in the heat – a blanket can pay for itself in about a year, after which you’ll be saving money monthly. While you’re at it, insulate any exposed hot water pipes as well for additional savings.

16. Air seal your home

Air sealing your home can prevent drafts — common efficiency culprits in older homes. The loss of cool air in the summer and the loss of warm air in winter can both increase your utility bills substantially. Here’s a great guide to this weekend project from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Short Oval racing may look like a version of Nascar, but they are nothing alike. While both sports require racing around a track, Short Oval racing comes with a dangerous twist — the drivers intentionally crash into each other.

There are different categories, such as stock cars and bangers. Bangers is the most popular category, and is also the most dangerous seeing as the goal is to take your opponent out of the race.

Photographer Dan Giannopoulos started documenting the sport in 2014.

"The one constant that I've found in photographing this community is how warm and good natured it is," Giannopoulos told Business Insider. "A race day is full of humor, camaraderie, and competitiveness that never veers into animosity between racers off of the track."

 Ahead, see brutal images of the dangerous sport. 

SEE ALSO: The women's wrestling league in Japan is way more intense than WWE

Short Oval racing takes place on a track that is similar to lower-level tracks in the US. It has been popular in the UK for decades.

The races are popular for family get-togethers, where families come to support their favorite racer.

"I've never raced before," Giannopoulos said. "I think it's far too dangerous."

Whether you come from the California coastline or the snowy forests of Maine, reading a book set in your home state can make you feel a warm nostalgia for that beloved place.

After scouring the internet and surveying our colleagues on their picks, we rounded up the most famous book set in every state in America. 

Did we get your state right? Let us know in the comments if you have another pick.

An earlier version of this article was co-authored by Melissa Stanger.

SEE ALSO: 24 books that will change your life forever, according to my coworkers

ALABAMA: "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee

When a local attorney is asked to defend an African American man accused of rape, he has to decide between doing what's right and doing what society expects of him, launching his children right in the middle of the conflict.

This Pulitzer Prize winner is set in Maycomb, a community divided by racism and inspired by Lee's hometown of Monroeville. 

Buy the book here »

ALASKA: "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

A young man from a family of money donates all of his savings to charity and abandons his possessions before hitchhiking into the Alaskan wilderness to reinvent himself.

This true story survival-drama was made into a movie of the same name in 2007, directed by Sean Penn and starring Emile Hirsch, shedding light on McCandless' idealism of a life unburdened by material possessions, as well as the harsh realities of the Alaskan wild.

Buy the book here »

ARIZONA: "The Bean Trees" by Barbara Kingsolver

Taylor is well on her way to escaping small-town life. But shortly into her journey to Tucson, where she hopes to start over, a stranger leaves her with a Native American toddler with a traumatic past.

Kingsolver's story of finding salvation in a barren situation is appropriately set in the Arizona backdrop, and is packed with real places and events.

Buy the book here »

Spring is in the air — and your home is in need of some proper post-winter attention.

Out with the coats and boots, and in with the fresh air. From house cleaning to storage solutions and services to update your home's look and feel, here's a rundown of the apps and companies you'll want to check out as spring rolls around and you're ready to bring back the "new year, new you" feeling that comes with the emergence of the sun.

SEE ALSO: This guy has tracked every meal he's eaten for the last 4 years — and he was shocked to see just how much he spends on food

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's lifestyle page on Facebook!

Book a professional cleaning service to scrub away winter.

Cleaning apps like Handy will give you a discounted rate on your first multi-hour cleaning, which you can easily schedule via your phone. Check out sites like LivingSocial and Groupon for further deals on local cleaning services.

Because sometimes, having a professional scrub the sink is exactly the kickstart you need to get yourself in high-cleaning gear.

Get rid of all those bulky winter coats and boots with MakeSpace.

Short-term storage solutions like MakeSpace make it easy to clear out your closets of bulky, unseasonal items. Snow boots and ski parkas? Out the door. Heavy sweaters, mittens, and scarves? No need when the sun is shining.

MakeSpace drops off the pre-made boxes or containers you need straight to your door, then gives you 20 minutes to pack up before whisking them away to their storage facilities. They'll send you a snap of your boxes when they're in place, to confirm everything's found a (temporary) home. You can schedule deliveries via their app when you're ready to get your stuff back.

Prep for warm weather with an AC installation service.

Installing an air conditioner correctly can be extremely tricky — and dangerous if done improperly. But in hot, humid cities like New York, there's no way to survive the sticky summer without them.

Take advantage of handymen-for-hire sites like TaskRabbit or Handy to book a professional who can make sure your AC is set up appropriately — and isn't in danger of falling onto unsuspecting passersby on the sidewalk below. You'll thank them all summer long.

Bookworms and knowledge seekers, rejoice! You can make money off your insatiable thirst for a good story. No matter your day job, there are lots of ways to earn a little extra side cash by capitalizing on the very things you like to do in your free time — namely, reading.

Here are several side gigs that are made for cash-strapped book lovers:

SEE ALSO: Why you shouldn't quit your job to become a full-time entrepreneur

1. Blogger

Bloggers are a dime a dozen these days. But talented bloggers are actually quite valuable. If you have the foresight and the skill to make sense of life's little intricacies, or the daily happenings in the news — and if you can write about it with gusto, ease, and good grammar — there's a special place for you in the bookmarks bar of countless people perusing the Internet.

Further, if you have something smart and interesting to say, and you're not going to just regurgitate what's already been said, then you can make it. And these very qualities will help you attract a following. That's the hardest part of cracking into the blogosphere business.

But once you've cultivated a following with your stellar content, there are several ways to go about making a few extra cents. From ads and affiliate links, to product reviews and targeted social media promotion, you'll be on your way to supplementing your income in no time.

2. Museum tour guide

A part-time tour guide gig at your local museum might just be the perfect way to earn an extra chunk of cash while bridging the gap between modern life and the world in your favorite history books.

3. Bookstore clerk

A sincere love of literature will land you an interview, at the very least, for a job at your local bookstore. If you're up for the challenge of helping customers find a literary adventure that suits their specific interests, and if you think you'd actually enjoy it, then the part-time bookstore clerk gig is made for you.

Bonus: A coveted discount on books and other merchandise is a staple perk of the job.

It's a Tuesday night and you're in bed with your laptop, your iPhone buzzing from the nightstand.

You have to be up for work in six hours, but this fact is quickly lost among the thousand other thoughts running through your mind.

If this scenario seems familiar, you're not alone. More than a third of Americans don't get enough sleep, according to a study released by the CDC's Division of Population Health in February.

The survey found that almost 35% of adults get less than seven hours of sleep per night, the recommended minimum amount to reduce the risk of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, and cardiovascular disease.

Dr. Ana Krieger, medical director of the Weill Cornell Center for Sleep Medicine, says carving out the time for adequate sleep during the workweek is one of the greatest obstacles many people face.

"The biggest issue is time constraints that we have. A lot of the time, people just can't afford to spend eight hours in bed," she says. "But beyond that, people need to be aware of how important creating routine is to your sleep, and how beneficial this can be to optimizing the quality of the sleep time you do have."

So, how do you get better sleep on a work night? Here are five tips from Dr. Krieger:

SEE ALSO: 8 tips that will help you ace one of the most awkward types of job interviews

1. Create a routine to help yourself wind down

Having a pre-bedtime routine is key to getting a good night's sleep. "Insert a 10-minute period before going to sleep where you do quiet activities, decrease the light in the apartment, and maybe play some soothing music," Krieger says. 

"It's about just getting the time to unwind a little bit in your mind, to slow down from that racing pace that we mostly live during the daytime," she says.

Avoid working until you crash, and try to set aside this small window of time for decompressing instead. 

2. Banish electronics before bed

Particularly on weeknights, when you have emails to catch up on and texts and missed calls to return, it seems impossible to be further than arm's length from your smartphone and laptop.

We may not think about it, but using our gadgets at night can really affect sleep, Krieger says. "The screens all emit light, and that becomes quite stimulating for the brain, affecting the production of neurotransmitters, and therefore impacting our ability to sleep well."

As much as you want to reach for your phone, try to keep the 20 minutes before bed completely electronics-free.

3. Write down your thoughts

If you have a hard time clearing your mind of the day's thoughts, Krieger advises keeping a blank piece of paper on your nightstand and making what she calls a "worry list."

"This is one of the most important things for people who have a lot of content coming into their heads as they're trying to fall asleep, like to-do lists and worries," she says.

She says it can be beneficial to write down bullet points of your thoughts and the things you need to do in order to put them out of your mind.

You expend a lot of time and money when you pursue a college education, so it's not a bad idea to ensure that the investment is worth it.

While the return on your financial investment shouldn't be your only consideration when deciding on what major to pursue, it's certainly important, especially if you don't want to take out loans you won't be able to pay back.

PayScale helps put all that into better perspective with its recent Return on Investment (ROI) Report.

To compile the report, PayScale analyzed data collected from employees who successfully completed PayScale's employee survey.

To calculate the ROI, PayScale looked at the investment in each college, which includes the cost of attending, as calculated by the cost for a graduate in 2015, on and off campus, and then looked at the 20-year return for each college, which is the expected future income stream. (Click here to read more about the methodology.)

Of the schools that provide the best monetary return for their on-campus students, here are the majors that see the highest 20-year return at each:

Some colleges are not on this list because PayScale only includes those schools for which there is enough data from alumni with a particular major.

SEE ALSO: Harvard, Stanford, and 20 other colleges that are worth the money

DON'T MISS: The 20 college majors that lead to the most satisfying careers

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology: Engineering

Type of school: Private not-for-profit

Total cost: $225,000

Net 20 year ROI for engineering majors: $669,000

Overall net 20 year ROI: $769,000

Graduation rate: 72%

Kettering University: Engineering

Type of school: Private not-for-profit

Total cost: $199,000

Net 20 year ROI for engineering majors: $705,000 

Overall net 20 year ROI:  $785,000

Graduation rate: 57%

Babson College: Business

Type of school: Private not-for-profit

Total cost: $238,000

Net 20 year ROI for business majors: $756,000 

Overall net 20 year ROI: $794,000

Graduation rate: 90%

With so many beautiful photographs of far-off destinations circulating the Internet, it should come as no surprise that some of these unbelievable places truly should not be believed. Through the power of Photoshop, artists can create beautiful scenes of fantasy worlds. But oftentimes, such images are taken out of context and advertised as real.

You might have seen some of the following photographs making the rounds — the bad news is they’re totally fake, but the good news is there are places in the real world that are just as beautiful. Luckily for us, we live in a world so magnificent that it sometimes surpasses our imaginations.

SEE ALSO: The 5 favorite airlines of wealthy people around the world

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's lifestyle page on Facebook!

The Fairy Pools, Isle of Skye, Scotland

One of the most popular picture hoaxes on the Internet, this photo and its bright purple trees are totally Photoshopped. On top of the fake color, this photograph isn’t even from Scotland’s Fairy Pools … it wasn’t even taken in Scotland. It is actually a photograph of New Zealand’s Shotover River — it's just as beautiful, but somewhat disappointingly green.

Go Instead: If brightly colored trees stoke your wanderlust, head to Japan for cherry blossoms. In springtime, Japan comes together for Hanami, which literally translates into "flower viewing," to celebrate the short window of two weeks in which the flowers bloom. One of the best places to see the bloom is Goryokaku Park in Hokkaido, but if you can’t make it to Japan, the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. is just as beautiful.

Moon and Star Island

This photo of two neighboring islands that appears to be shaped like a moon with a star is only half false. The crescent shape is real, part of a submerged volcanic crater in Hawaii, but the star is a total fake. Even without the star, Molokini Crater is still amazing, and turns out to be a pretty spectacular spot for scuba diving as well.

Go Instead: If a crescent without its star doesn’t do it for you, there are still some incredibly shaped islands out there, like Heart Island, a heart-shaped resort in in Fiji; or Dolphin Island, part of the Li Galli islands off Italy’s Amalfi Coast.

Temple of Lysistrata, Greece

This enchanting scene of an ancient Greek temple is in reality, a photo mash-up between Rome’s Pantheon and the Benagil Cave in Portugal. There is no temple of Lysistrata and in fact, this photo fake-out takes its name from a Greek play of the same name.

Go Instead: If you want to see the combination of incredible architecture and natural cave formations, and are willing to climb the steep 272 steps it will take to get there, look no farther than Malaysia’s Batu Caves. This Hindu shrine consists of three main limestone caves and holds temples inside where visitors can marvel at the stalagmites and the giant golden statue of Murugan, the Hindu God of War.

RELATED: 25 Photos That Prove Malaysia is the Most Colorful Place in the World

It may seem odd that so many automakers are developing hydrogen-powered cars.

Not many people have heard of the technology, and from an infrastructure standpoint, purely electric vehicles make more sense. For example, there are 12,131 electric stations in the United States, and hydrogen stations are really only available in California.

But a lot of work is being done behind the scenes to make hydrogen-powered cars a reality.

Here's a look at all the hydrogen-powered cars we can expect to see in the near future:

Toyota has been working on hydrogen-powered cars the longest, having put 23 years into the technology. Here we see its hydrogen car, the Toyota Mirai.

The automaker has been selling the Toyota Mirai in Japan since December 2014, but began sales in California in October 2015 — marking the first time hydrogen-powered vehicles were sold in the United States.

The automaker has sold 144 Toyota Mirais in California as of April 11, a Toyota spokesperson told Tech Insider. Toyota plans to sell 30,000 a year worldwide by 2020.

The Toyota Mirai can drive for 312 miles before needing a refuel and reaches a top speed of 111 miles per hour.

The Mirai has a frontal radar system so it can detect potential collisions and automatically employ the brakes.

Here we see the interior of the Mirai.

Author Thomas C. Corley spent five years studying the lives of both rich people (defined as having an annual income of $160,000 or more and a liquid net worth of $3.2 million or more) and poor people (defined as having an annual income of $35,000 or less and a liquid net worth of $5,000 or less).

He then differentiated what he calls "rich habits" and "poverty habits"— essentially, the tendencies of both groups — which he details in his new book, "Change Your Habits, Change Your Life."

"From my research, I discovered that daily habits dictate how successful or unsuccessful you will be in life," Corley writes.

No predictions of the future or guarantees of riches here. But if you want to be successful and build wealth, it won't hurt to start by nixing these 11 common, yet costly, habits:

SEE ALSO: 13 habits of self-made millionaires, from a man who spent 5 years studying rich people

1. Gambling

"There is no such thing as getting rich quick," Corley writes. "Financial success takes time, takes initiative, and requires relentless effort. Those who gamble are deluded into thinking there is a shortcut to success."

In his study, 52% of poor people gambled on sports at least once a week and 77% played the lottery every week. Conversely, 84% of rich people did not bet on sports and 94% did not play the lottery.

"Self-made millionaires don't pursue any get-rich quick schemes. Instead, they make a habit of pursuing their dreams and their goals."

2. Eating an unhealthy diet

"Poor health habits create detrimental luck," Corley writes.

In his study, 97% of poor people ate over three hundred junk food calories each day, 69% ate fast food three or more times a week, 69% ate candy more than twice a week, and 66% were overweight by at least 30 pounds.

Wealthy people value their health, says Corley. In addition to eating healthy, they exercise consistently, sleep seven or more hours every night, and make a daily habit out of flossing.

3. Drinking too much alcohol

While the occasional glass of wine or beer is fine, drinking too much could impede your chances of financial success.

"Fifty-four percent of the poor in my study drank more than two glasses of beer, wine, or alcohol each day," Corley reports. "Eighty-four percent of the self-made millionaires in my study drank less than that."

Drinking too much could affect your memory and ability to think clearly, Corley explains. Plus, it's a lot of extra calories and isn't part of a healthy diet.

The fatter paycheck. The bigger office. The increased authority to make decisions ...

To most people, moving into a management role seems like a natural rite of passage when climbing the career ladder. But for all its impressive-sounding perks, joining those ranks may not necessarily upgrade your job satisfaction: According to a 2015 Gallup poll, only 35% of U.S. managers actually feel engaged in their jobs. 

As the numbers attest, not everyone is cut out for management, or will actually enjoy having the increased responsibilities that come with a more impressive title. So how can you tell whether you'll love being a manager — or want to go scrambling back down the ranks as fast as possible?

For starters, you need to decipher what your job will really entail; opportunities that sound impressive on paper may end up not being all they're cracked up to be.

So we rounded up five big questions you should be asking your HR rep or hiring manager before you say yes to the new job — because a move up the corporate ladder won't always be the step forward you want it to be.

SEE ALSO: Science says if you want to be happy, you should consider ditching the promotion and staying where you are

DON'T MISS: The 10 best companies for women who want to get promoted quickly

1. Will I actually be managing people?

Many people may assume that a management title means you'll be, well, managing others. But sometimes a role will be more about managing processes than managing actual direct reports.

"It could be thought leadership or team leadership or people management or project management," says Leigh Steere, co-founder of human-resources research company Managing People Better. "Ask questions to understand the scope of the proposed role so that you have an accurate, comprehensive picture and realistic expectations."

If you discover that you'll have more responsibility but few (or no) direct reports, Steere says, you'll need to probe further to discover how your time will be spent.

"Ask about the types of decisions you'll be involved in as a manager, which meetings you'll attend, if you'll be involved in the budget," she says. Steere even suggests asking if you'll stay in your current work space, lest you assume being a manager means moving into a cushy office — or even one with a door.

Trivial as some of these details may seem, they can help you determine whether the management role is superior to a non-management title based on what you value professionally. If you've loved your job as a hands-on graphic designer for years, for example, but would now have to spend most of your time on conference calls or doing client pitches, your job satisfaction may suffer. 

If the role does manage employees, Steere says to ask more specifically about how much autonomy you'll have leading the team, and what kind of training and development you'll be given to hone your management skills.

And if your proposed role is in a start-up with a fluid organizational chart or your company adheres to matrix management (meaning there are dual reporting structures within cross-functional teams), be clear on how the responsibility over your reports will be divided.

"I recently worked with a company where two or three different people were managing each employee. The employees didn't know how to prioritize, and each manager assumed the other(s) took care of the management tasks. There needs to be clarity on who is responsible for pay decisions, performance coaching and setting performance expectations," Steere says.

RELATED: Performance-Review Reboot: 3 Ways Companies Are Taking Appraisals to the Next Level

2. What will my typical day look like?

Whether you're managing budgets, presenting to the C-suite, networking or maneuvering office politics, there's likely to be one constant across any management position: Your schedule will be a lot more packed.

That being the case, you have to know what your average day will look like. Will you be in meetings nonstop? Will you be asked to make on-the-spot decisions all day long? How many fires or urgent requests will fall into your lap each day?

"There is a premium on my time and where my attention goes in terms of real dollars and opportunity costs … and it's fantastic for someone like me who likes formulating the big picture and directing the moving pieces," says Chad Modad, a managing director at a Houston–based software consulting firm. "[But] sometimes I really miss just sitting down and building something from beginning to end."

Indeed, Modad says, it's often hard to block off more than an hour at a time to focus on things like presentations, strategic planning or employee development plans. If that sounds more nerve-racking than exciting, you may want to reconsider that future management role, suggests Steere.

"If interruptions bother you, that's a signal you may prefer individual contributor work and may find people management stressful and/or distasteful," adds Steere.

3. How will my performance be measured?

Speaking of individual contributors, one big change that may take some getting used to is the shift from being measured by your solo efforts to being measured by your team's output or productivity.

Kathleen Steffey, CEO of Tampa, Florida–based Naviga Recruiting & Executive Search, says you should ask detailed questions about exactly what metrics you'll be measured on, such as your department's revenue or profitability.

"There isn't a right answer, but it's an important one. [For example,] revenue is the top-line number, which means it's greater than the margin," Steffey says. "If you're only being measured on profitability, which would be a lower number, then you need to make sure your compensation program is designed to meet your needs."

You'll also want to be clear on departmental profit expectations as well as budget-trimming requirements before you take the job, says Modad. If expectations are too high or performance timelines too tight, you may want to pass on the promotion.

Steere says you should also ask whether employee feedback is used to assess a manager's performance — if it is, you have to be ready to inspire your team, give them the coaching they need, provide adequate direction and be able to monitor without micromanaging.

If the thought of potentially basing your raise, your bonus or even your whole job on your team's performance sounds scary, take heed before accepting that manager role. "To succeed as a manager, you need to care about getting great work done through others, as opposed to focusing on your own personal output," Steere says.

Take a moment to reflect on how much time you spend in your email inbox each day, compared to how much time you spend actually working. How many of those emails even yield positive results?

Sevenshift CEO, McKinsey senior adviser, and former McKinsey partner Caroline Webb says that if you're like most people, you're probably wasting hours every week. Thankfully, she has some solutions, she writes in her book "How to Have a Good Day," a collection of career best practices she's learned in her 16 years as a consultant.

Here are four simple techniques that, if used correctly, can profoundly change your workflow.

SEE ALSO: A former McKinsey partner shares 7 steps to having productive meetings you won't dread

Stop looking at it all the time.

One of the worst things you can do to your productivity is keep a tab open for your inbox, so that your eye is consistently drawn to any change in the email count.

As you switch from task to task, in this case from your work to your inbox, your brain is expending a limited amount of energy refocusing its attention. For nearly everyone, this information overload exerts the brain and causes performance to suffer.

"Instead, 'batch' your emailing so that you process emails a few times every day, not a few times every minute," Webb writes. Consider bookending your work day with email checks, and checking again after lunch.

Filter your inbox.

"Just as our brain wastes time switching from tasks to email and back to tasks again, it wastes some time by flipping between different types of emails requiring very different types of cognitive response," Webb writes. That email with your boss isn't of equal importance to the calendar invite to a happy hour.

Make use of your email client's filtering features, whether that's assigning types of emails to different tabs or folders.

Separate emails sent to you directly from those in which you're CCd, and also separate out things to read when you have more time.

Once you open an email, do something with it.

Procrastination is one of your biggest enemies when handling emails. As soon as you open one, decide what to do with it.

Webb points to author and consultant David Allen's "four Ds" from his book "Getting Things Done." As soon as you open a message, you have four options:

• "Do: Make the decision and respond."

• "Delegate: If it's something that can reasonably be handled by someone else, forward it on."

• "Defer: File for future action or reference. Send an 'I'll get back to you' response if needed." Webb notes that she does a weekly check to ensure that one of these doesn't get lost forever.

• "Delete: If none of the above applies, delete."

Manhattan's famed Four Seasons restaurant is known for its power lunches and a clientele that includes Henry Kissinger, Martha Stewart, and Michael Bloomberg, as well as plenty of bold-face names in the art world and finance industry. 

The restaurant's current location at 99 East 52nd Street has been its home for more than 50 years. However, due to a rent hike and struggles with Aby Rosen, the restaurant's landlord at the Seagram Building, the Four Seasons has been on thin ice for over three years now, and it's set to close on July 16. A sexual assault scandal with co-owner Julian Niccolini certainly hasn't helped its case. 

But the restaurant has already found a new home, just "five minutes' walking distance" from the original, co-owner Alex von Bidder told Bloomberg.

The move will cause the restaurant to shut its doors for a full year. "What we're hoping is that absence makes the heart grow fonder," von Bidder said.

Let's take a look back at the restaurant's rich history, as well as the incredible food that has kept power lunchers coming for years.

SEE ALSO: 12 photos of New York City's quickly disappearing small businesses

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's lifestyle page on Facebook!

Celebrated architects Philip Johnson and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe designed the original restaurant space. It's noted in the book "The Four Seasons: A History of America's Premier Restaurant" that it was a challenge, since the Seagram Building wasn't originally meant to house a restaurant.

Source: "The Four Seasons: A History of America's Premier Restaurant"

The architects built the restaurant with a "less is more" philosophy. Here, in the main dining room — known as The Pool Room — there are 20-foot ceilings and a white marble pool sitting in the center.

The trees in the Pool Room change in tandem with the four seasons.

Microsoft has bounced back from its "Tay" bot disaster, and released a new artificial-intelligence experiment to the world.

CaptionBot is a bot that will automatically create captions for any photos you upload, and is the latest in a series of periodic releases from Microsoft's AI division to show off its technical prowess in novel ways.

Here's how it works. You can upload photos to it, and it will tell you what it thinks is in them using natural language. "I think it's a baseball player holding a bat on a field," it says in response to one example photo.

We decided to have some fun with CaptionBot, and asked it to interpret some famous works of art. The results were sometimes hilarious, sometimes accurate, and sometimes just plain bizarre.

Here's what happened when we put CaptionBot through an impromptu Art History course.

SEE ALSO: Facebook's bots are an 'existential threat' to Apple, says Wall Street analyst

I'm just wondering who the stuffed animal is.

Yes, yes it is.

Someone is not a modern art fan.

The NBA playoffs are finally here.

In some ways, the Eastern and Western conferences have flip-flopped from last year. The West was less competitive than expected this season, and while the Cavs still rule the East, it's wide open beneath them.

Meanwhile, in the West, the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs look poised to steamroll to the semifinals, likely to meet the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers.

Nonetheless, anything can happen in the NBA playoffs, and an exciting series could pop up where we least expect it.

Here are our picks for the first round of the playoffs:

Cleveland Cavaliers (1) vs. Detroit Pistons (8)

Head-to-head record this season: 3-1 Detroit

One thing to know If the Cavaliers need five games to beat Detroit, they will bump Justin Bieber and his Purpose World Tour out of the Quicken Loans Arena on April 26. Sorry!

Emmett: The Cavaliers are an extremely fragile No. 1 seed. Expect Reggie Jackson and Andre Drummond to dominate in the pick-and-roll. No matter. LeBron has hit that next gear over his past 10 games. Cavs in 5.

Scott: The Pistons match up well with the Cavaliers on paper, and Stan Van Gundy's game-planning can't be discounted. But LeBron and the Cavs are rolling, and the Pistons' starting lineup has a combined zero games of playoff experience. Cavs in 5.

Toronto Raptors (2) vs. Indiana Pacers (7)

Head-to-head record this season: 3-1 Toronto

One thing to know: The Raptors' playoff hopes could be tied to DeMarre Carroll, who returned from knee surgery in April. If healthy, he represents a wing defender the Raptors haven't had and unlocks more options on offense, including small-ball possibilities.

Emmett: I want to talk myself into Paul George, Myles Turner, and the Pacers, especially since the Raptors have crashed out of the playoffs in the first round for the past two seasons. But I don't think Toronto will do it three times in a row. Raptors in 5.

Scott: The Pacers' offense has fallen off after a hot start, and their stingy defense could muck this up to give the Raptors a challenge. But this Raptors team, unlike years past, can defend right back, even if their offense stalls out. Raptors in 6.

Miami Heat (3) vs. Charlotte Hornets (6)

Head-to-head record this season: 2-2

One thing to know: The Heat were lucky to lock up the No. 3 seed. They lost their last game of the season, even after leading by 26 points, and needed some help elsewhere to finish third in the East. Will their recent loss affect them come the playoffs?

Emmett: I have to talk myself into at least one upset, right? I'll take the Hornets, who are sneakily really fun to watch. There's not much play-off experience in #BuzzCity, but Kemba Walker has that special something in the big games. Hornets in 7.

Scott: The Hornets are one of the feel-good stories in the East as a reimagined, pace-and-space, borderline superstar-less offense with a tough defense. This could be a close series, but ultimately, the Heat have the bigger stars and more experience to grind it out. Heat in 7.