Barbara Balfour

On a recent trip to Rome, I drove as the Romans do: on the back of a Vespa behind a ruggedly handsome local who, despite the heat, stayed impeccably chic in loafers and a salmon-coloured linen shirt.
For the next four hours, Riccardo, my private tour guide with Scooteroma, would weave through the narrow streets and bustling piazzas of the Eternal City, bringing its rich past to life in ways no guidebook ever could.

Yes, Bolognese is the name of a pasta sauce, but it also belongs to another, equally wonderful Italian export: a sweet-tempered toy dog breed who was once a favorite of Roman nobility. You’ll be instantly smitten with the beauty, playfulness and charm of this silky white ball of fur, as will everyone you pass on your daily walks together. (Be sure to budget extra time to get home!)

The American Pit Bull Terrier is the Hollywood action star of dogs. It’s hard to imagine how you could find anyone more qualified to defend your family from peril or scoop you away from a fiery inferno than this often misunderstood, yet fiercely loyal muscleman (er, dog). If you’ve been looking for a teammate for life, you’re in luck, because these high-energy super dogs certainly fit the job description.

With the unique way it juts out into the Pacific, it’s hard to miss Point Dume State Beach in Malibu, California. The long bluff that forms the northern end of Santa Monica Bay offers up some out-of-this-world views of Palos Verdes Peninsula and Santa Catalina Island. You can even spot Zuma Beach right to the northwest.
Use this helpful travel guide to learn more about Point Dume’s history, how to get there, and all of the activities that await in Malibu, California.

Each year in the month of April, National Park Week promotes the natural beauty widely available across the entire expanse of the United States. To make the experience even better, weekend visits are often free during National Park Week, which might give you extra motivation to explore at least one of the more than 400 unique national parks scattered across the country.

If you’ve ever wanted the feeling of having an entire island to yourself, consider taking your next vacation in the stunning archipelago of the Maldives. This collection of nearly 1,200 tiny coral islands in the middle of the Indian Ocean is a paradise of powdery white sand and crystal-clear, bathtub-warm waters, where walking barefoot is the norm, and aquatic playgrounds are steps outside your front door.

In today’s legal landscape, small and mid-sized law firms often grapple with managing documents, workflows, and costs while simultaneously providing value to their clients.

Now imagine an environment where traditional practices seamlessly intertwine with cutting-edge technology to optimize operations, streamline collaboration, and elevate your client services at a lower cost to you.

If you borrow money through a fixed rate loan, or other financial product, you may expect to pay the same monthly interest rate on your balance. However, if your borrowing terms include a variable annual percentage rate (APR), you’re likely to see your interest charges fluctuate periodically. Some forms of lending that may have a variable APR include credit cards, personal loans, auto loans, and mortgages.

As a small business owner in Canada, you can save money on taxes by claiming eligible deductions on your annual returns. Keep reading for a deeper understanding of how this works, and whether you could qualify for the common tax deductions below.

Even if you're prone to hitting the snooze button and grabbing your coffee on the road, you can still make time for a personalized morning skincare routine. It's much simpler than you think. Not only does it start your skin off clean, hydrated, and glowing, it allows customized treatments to work even better. While the basic steps — cleanse, exfoliate, and moisturize — are the same for everyone, your routine and the number of steps required may evolve according to your individual skin type and concerns.

If you’ve ever blamed traffic for being late for work but judge others for being tardy, you might be suffering from a universal human struggle: the inability to admit your own mistakes.
Despite the celebratory Silicon Valley mantra of “fail fast, fail often” and the recent popularity of corporate “failure parties,” the stigma associated with making a mistake persists. After all, no one should be celebrating a heart surgeon or automobile plant manager who fails fast or often.

While almost two-thirds of Canadian businesses in the private sector are family-owned, many of them won't survive past the first generation. The reasons for this can range from a lack of interested successors to being too busy managing the day-to-day to plan for the future. Succession planning can often bring challenging issues to the surface, leading to difficult conversations with family and facing a future where you won't be running the business.

Your reputation as an employer is more important than ever, especially in Canada's increasingly tight talent market. The interview process has become a two-way street, as job candidates flock towards companies offering not just salary increases, but also intangible benefits such as work-life balance, flexibility, and training and development opportunities.

From greenhouse gas emissions to labour productivity and economic growth, many of Canada’s most pressing problems could be addressed through infrastructure already in place, stakeholders say.
What’s missing, said panelists at a recent summit in Ottawa, held by the Canadian Urban Institute (CUI), is the collaboration between stakeholders and all levels of government required to make it happen.

In 2012, Malika Pannek embarked on a creative journey with a single goal: to bring her illustrations to life. What started as a side hustle selling hand-painted greeting cards at small craft shows soon blossomed into a bustling paper goods design studio called The Paperhood. Today the Toronto-based company's products grace the shelves of hundreds of shops across Canada and the United States — their catalog includes calendars, tote bags, art prints, and even puzzles.