Author: Christopher Palma

Female entrepreneurs are denied on business loan applications more frequently than men and also often end up with lower loan amounts and higher interest rates. This disparity makes it less surprising that there is a $1.7 trillion worldwide financing gap for female founders. Despite this gap, businesses owned and controlled

I was in the hospital with a very sick relative. The rest of the floor grew quiet as visitors left and the minimal overnight staff came on shift. But then, the door opened unexpectedly, and in walked the emergency room doctor who had admitted my relative the day before. “You

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has warned us about some serious things in the past, including social media for youth and gun violence. Now, a less obvious yet widespread threat joins his list: parenting. On August 28, Murthy released an advisory about parents’ mental health and well-being. In the

From the first batch ever baked with Grandma, chocolate chip cookies are a sugar fix we indulge in, both to celebrate and to console us. Since the invention of the chocolate chip cookie in the 1930s, the baked goodie has maintained its hold over our hearts and waistlines, making cookie

Personal branding expert Claire Bahn, founder and CEO of Los Angeles-based boutique strategic communications and marketing outfit Claire Bahn Group, says she got into the field professionally after learning to market herself as an actor and model. “I found that the people who marketed themselves the best were able to

Getting sued might be every freelancer’s worst nightmare. A decade ago, Reyna Gobel, MBA, MPH, a freelance journalist and speaker, was asked to edit and fact-check an article about 10 celebrities who had declared bankruptcy. The online publication paid her $125, well below Gobel’s normal rate, but she took it

Welcome! I hope this letter finds you thriving in your pursuit of success (excuse the pun!). As the editor-in-chief of SUCCESS+, it’s my absolute pleasure to present our Freelancer’s Handbook issue. I’ve had the incredible privilege of working in the media industry for over three decades and have been fortunate

Have you ever paired a task you enjoy with one you dread just to get it done faster? Maybe you put on your favorite ‘80s playlist while washing dishes or played a rerun of a classic sitcom while folding laundry. Without knowing it, you might have been utilizing the behavioral

Kendrick Lamar’s Big Steppers Tour was a visual spectacle, a groundbreaking hip-hop opera hailed for its intricacies and ambitiousness. For two hours each night, Lamar and a swarm of dancers interacted in finely tuned movements; one critic said it was like “watching the engine of a fine-tuned Mercedes.” Few rappers

I started working with a new editing client in 2022 as a freelance journalist. He didn’t bat an eye when I told him my rate to copy edit his legal blog. And, he eventually went on retainer with me. I wanted to be able to attract more clients like him: