Even billionaires think about starting side hustles.

If Mark Cuban was 16 years old again and “needed to make some extra money,” he’d start one specific side hustle in just three steps, he tells CNBC Make It.

First, he’d learn how to write prompts for artificial intelligence language models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Google’s Gemini. Next, he’d teach his friends how to use those prompts on their school papers. “Then, I would go to businesses, particularly small- to medium-sized businesses that don’t understand AI yet,” says Cuban. “Doesn’t matter if I’m 16, I’d be teaching them as well.”

More than half of Gen Zers in the U.S. currently have side hustles, a LendingTree report found in February. AI prompt engineering — or, the ability to phrase inquiries to chatbots to get desired responses — can be a particularly lucrative opportunity. The average pay for AI tutors starts at about $30,000 per year, and full-time AI prompt engineers can make up to $129,500, according to job board platform ZipRecruiter.

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You don’t need a college degree to become an AI prompt engineer, but you do need practice — and, often, certifications — to learn how those large language models operate. Some online certification courses, like Vanderbilt University or IBM’s offerings on Coursera, say you can master the basics in one month.

Cuban’s hypothetical side hustle is more high-tech than his actual first job, selling garage bags door-to-door to his neighbors outside of Pittsburgh at age 12 to save up for a new pair of basketball shoes. He continued to earn extra cash as a teenager by selling collectibles like baseball cards, stamps, and coins, eventually helping him pay to attend Indiana University. There, he bartended, hosted parties with cover charges and even picked up work as a dance instructor.

After a brief post-college stint in banking, Cuban turned to entrepreneurship full-time. He sold his first company, a software startup called MicroSolutions, to CompuServe for $6 million in 1990. His second company, audio streaming service Broadcast.com, made him a billionaire when he sold it to Yahoo for $5.7 billion in 1999.

Today, Cuban has a net worth of $5.7 billion, according to a Forbes estimate. He spends much of his time advocating for his online pharmacy Cost Plus Drugs, which aims to make a variety of common prescription drugs more affordable by selling them at cost, plus a 15% markup.

 “I was a hustler … I have always been selling,” he said during an episode of ABC’s “Shark Tank” that aired in 2016. “I always had something going on. That was just my nature.”

Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank,” which features Mark Cuban as a panelist.

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There’s no such thing as a perfect parent, says Tovah Klein.

“Being a parent is so humbling. It’s throwing at us probably daily [reminders that] we are far from perfect,” says Klein, a child psychologist, author and director of the Barnard College Center for Toddler Development.

Fortunately, making mistakes and owning up to them is one way that parents can actually help teach their kids how to become healthy, successful adults. “Perfection is impossible, but it’s also important that we’re not [perfect], because our children learn how to handle real life,” Klein tells CNBC Make It.

Even so-called experts are no exception. In her latest book “Raising Resilience,” which was published in September, Klein shares some examples of moments she let her emotions get the better of her when raising her own three now-grown children.

Like most parents, Klein raised her voice in heated moments on more than one occasion: “I could really yell at my kids,” she says. She points to “rough times” in the evenings when her children were younger and could become rowdy between dinner and bedtime.

The rowdiness could sometimes devolve into loud arguments that left Klein “embarrassed if people would have come over to my house at 6 p.m.,” she says. Yelling is common, even understandable, in the heat of an argument, she adds — but it’s far from ideal, and parents should commit to repairing the situation once everyone has calmed down.

“I wish I had never been that parent who went over the top and really got into battles with my children. But I did,” Klein says. “And, when I did, I had to very shamelessly own it.”

In her book, Klein writes about how these difficult moments create a “disconnection” in the relationship that can have harmful effects if they go unaddressed. Raising your voice or lashing out, even in a heated moment like a toddler’s tantrum, can be disruptive and potentially scary for the child. 

A child might mistake their parent’s outburst as something more serious and long-lasting. That can lead to self-blaming and shame, which can cause negative long-term effects to their mental health. Children who are regularly yelled at are more likely to develop behavioral problems, low self-esteem and depression, according to a 2013 study published in The Journal of Child Development.

Parents should quickly apologize to repair the relationship and put their child’s mind at ease, says Klein. She recommends being “honest and direct.” That can be as simple as saying, “I’m sorry I yelled,” or, “I apologize. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Apologizing models exactly the sort of positive, mature behaviors parents want their children to emulate, according to Klein. It “brings relief to your child and provides a model of how to deal with anger and disruptions in other relationships in their lives” going forward, she writes in her book.

Accepting the fact that you can never be perfect, and being open with your kids about your mistakes, will benefit both you as a parent and your kids as they grow into mature adults, says Klein.

“I’m most proud of the moments that I could catch myself and [remember], ‘You’ve got to be the adult in this room,’ even when it was really hard to be,” she says.

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Resilience isn’t simply an ability to bounce back after disappointments or loss, or the ability to adapt to changes big and small. 

In my 30+ years of working with children and their parents, as well as conducting original research and population-wide studies, I’ve come to understand resilience with more nuance. I see it as a set of characteristics that parents can teach their children and nurture through everyday interactions. 

Often, people assume that we become resilient as a result of facing adversities. While overcoming hardship can strengthen a person and show our resilience, it doesn’t have to have to take hardship or tragedy to build resilience. 

There are other ways to help children become independent, resourceful, caring people who can handle life’s ups and downs and thrive. Here are seven steps you can take on a regular basis to raise resilient children: 

There will be times when you get pulled into your child’s or teen’s emotional spiral. It’s not a place you want to be. On the other hand, if you make an effort to restore your equilibrium, you can help them find their calm.

Note what’s happening. Regain your balance. Think of a mantra like:

• “I am the adult here.”
• “She is not out to get me; this is just one moment in time.”
• “This won’t be forever; he’s just little.”
• “I must keep myself centered; my child needs me.”

By reminding yourself that you’re okay and that you can handle this, you’ll be able to turn to your child in a clear, stabilizing way. Your steadiness will help steady them. 

Every day is filled with multiple transitions, forcing us to face a bit of uncertainty each time. Those can destabilize us and cause stress.

A mostly set routine makes transition more predictable, provides a sense of control and helps a child move toward being more independent. They begin to think, “I know what comes next. I know what’s expected. I can do this.”

The more routines are in place, the steadier people feel. 

If your child tries to hang their coat on the same hook every day, eventually they’ll be able to do it on their own. Same if they have a place for homework following their afternoon snack, or if they find clothes laid out to facilitate dressing in the morning. 

These daily routines provide stability. They are also practice for larger transitions, whether planned (new house, new school, first after-school job) or unexpected, like dislocation due to flooding or fire, or the death of a loved one.

When you show you trust your child can do something, they learn to trust themselves, even when a situation is difficult. 

Ask yourself: 

• “Can my child handle this challenge?”
• “Is her frustration okay?”
• “Do I trust him to figure this out?” 

Giving them space to try to solve a problem using their own ideas and resources allows children to test themselves and gain confidence to try again. That’s helpful whether they’re climbing at the playground, buttoning their own shirt, or completing a chemistry problem set. 

Knowing that you’re on the sidelines, ready to assist if they ask, gives them the security they need to try.

Learning to regulate emotions is the secret to building resilience. To give your kids this powerful tool, help them sit with and handle the difficult ones. 

When a child experiences negative emotions and isn’t ridiculed or punished, they learn how to feel, accept, and get through them. 

As a parent, it can be hard to allow a child to be upset. If you feel your job is to make your child happy, though, their negative emotions will be harder to handle. You may end up thinking you’ve failed. 

Instead, help your child accept hard feelings by reiterating that all feelings are normal and they’re loved no matter what. That way, they can learn to experience varying emotions, process them, and eventually move forward.

Children see, feel, and absorb your actions. If you model being reasonable, kind, and compassionate, kids learn to treat others the same way.

Talk to them, put up limits, and give them room to ask or push back within reason. This teaches them how to treat other people with respect. When you’re harsh with your child, they learn to use the same tactics to get what they want or need. 

When children are having a hard time, screaming, stomping, or being rude and talking back, your reflex may be to yell, scold, try to control, or shame them. 

Staying steady with kindness will go further. Sending the message, “I am here for you always, even when you fall apart,” reminds them that you care and that they’re not alone.

No one is perfect, nor should you expect to be. Relationships are about connection, trust, and, at times, uncomfortable disruptions and disconnections. Sometimes you’re going to lose your cool. And that can be scary for a child, even for a teenager. 

Engaging in a repair with a genuine apology and acknowledgment of your part is key. Be honest and direct:

• “I’m sorry I yelled like that.”
• “I apologize. I should not have done that.”
• “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you earlier.”

Taking responsibility can bring relief to your child and provide a model of how to deal with anger and disruptions in other relationships in their lives, including with friends or romantic partners. 

Children need the repair and reconnection. It reminds them the disruption is not their fault. Otherwise, the belief that it is can turn into shame.

Know that your child might not be ready to accept an apology right away. Be open to their coming back to you later. 

In the everyday building of your relationship with your child and teen, you create a buffer for when inevitable hardships come their way. 

Knowing you’ll be there for them, as focused and calm as possible, a child doesn’t have to absorb the enormity of a highly charged or frightening situation alone. 

When crises occur, your ability to keep your own anxiety and fear in check will let you offer support and guidance in a steady way, enabling your child to learn to regulate on their own as they grow up. 

This is a way to protect them from long-term negative impacts of stress, trauma, or life’s many challenges. It’s a way, in other words, to make them more resilient. 

Tovah P. Klein, PhD, is a psychology professor at Barnard College and the director of Barnard’s Center for Toddler Development. She is the author of ”How Toddlers Thrive″ and ”Raising Resilience.”

Want to earn more money at work? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Negotiate a Higher Salary. Expert instructors will teach you the skills you need to get a bigger paycheck, including how to prepare and build your confidence, what to do and say, and how to craft a counteroffer. Pre-register now and use coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 50% off through Nov. 26, 2024.

Excerpt adapted from ”Raising Resilience: How to Help Our Children Thrive in Times of Uncertainty″ by Tovah P. Klein . Copyright © 2024. Reprinted with permission of Harper. All rights reserved.

Angel Reese may be one of the faces of the WNBA, but her time on the court hardly pays the bills. The Chicago Sky’s All-Star rookie last week revealed that her $73,439 salary isn’t anywhere close to enough to help her make ends meet.

“I just hope y’all know the WNBA don’t pay my bills at all,” she said during a recent Instagram live, according to ESPN. “I don’t even think that pays one of my bills.”

Reese said her monthly rent payment is $8,000, meaning that a year’s housing costs her $96,000 — more than she earns in a full season. “I’m living beyond my means,” she joked.

Her salary wasn’t even enough to “pay my car note,” she said, laughing that she “wouldn’t even be able to eat” and “wouldn’t be able to live” on her earnings from the league.

It’s not the first time that Reese has opened up about her pay, or lack thereof. Back in May, she told ESPN that her primary income came from her numerous endorsement deals, describing her WNBA earnings as “a bonus.”

“Being able to play for what, four to five months, and get $75,000 on top of the other endorsements that I’m doing, I think it’s a plus for me,” she said at the time.

Reese has partnerships with brands including Reebok, Beats by Dre and Reese’s chocolates.

She also spends part of her offseason participating in Unrivaled, a new 3v3 league whose inaugural season will take place in Florida, to earn some extra cash. In the past, WNBA players have traveled to countries like Russia to supplement their salaries.

“A lot of us never wanna have to go overseas, but some people do have to go overseas, unfortunately,” she said in August. “Being able to make six figures within three months [in Unrivaled], being able to be housed in Miami, just being able to get better …. I think it’s amazing.”

Currently, the highest paid WNBA player is Las Vegas Aces star Jackie Young, who earned just over $250,000 this season. The NBA’s salary leader, meanwhile, is Steph Curry, who earned $51.9 million from the Golden State Warriors last year and will make $55.7 million this upcoming season.

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert emphasized at the CNBC Changemakers Event earlier this year that the league is making progress in catching up to men’s leagues that are “75 to 120 years old.”

“We’re tipping off our 28th season. I would say if you look at [the other leagues] 28 seasons in, we’re further ahead,” she said. “But we realize we still have a lot of work to do, and it’s all about the ecosystem around us that drives revenue.”

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In 2021, my husband Evan and I sold our small urban farm in Louisiana and set out on a continent-spanning adventure that would change our lives.

We spent five years on the outskirts of New Orleans, where we taught ourselves how to garden, keep honeybees and raise chickens, selling our honey and eggs. I ran my photography business, and Evan worked as a licensed massage therapist. 

We liked aspects of our life in the city, but over time, we realized how much we wanted a more rural, self-sufficient existence. We couldn’t afford to do something at the scale we wanted in the U.S., so we decided to dream big and look at other countries.

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Evan speaks Spanish and Japanese, which narrowed down our search. We spent the next 15 months traveling through Mexico as full-time house- and pet-sitters before ultimately deciding to plant our roots in the Japanese countryside, arriving at the beginning of 2023. 

Today, we run a small guesthouse and honeybee farm on Japan’s Ōmishima Island and own two formerly abandoned homes that we restored back to life. The move is the best decision we ever made.

We emigrated to Japan on a Startup visa, which is meant to help foreigners set up businesses here. 

The home that is now Benton Guesthouse was built in 1953. It had been sitting abandoned for 10 years when we bought it in the spring of 2023. It is built in the traditional Japanese style, with massive wooden beams, interlocking joinery, tile roofs, sliding screen doors and tatami mat flooring. 

We purchased the property for $9,292 — $7,500 for the house itself, $1,500 in transaction fees, a $212 one-time real estate acquisition tax and an $80 annual property tax.

When we got the keys, it needed a lot of cleaning and restoration to make it inviting once again. We did much of the work ourselves, to help keep costs low. We also hired some expert local contractors. 

We lived in the guesthouse throughout the renovations, and completed the work in under six months due to the time constraints of the Startup visa. We wanted to show that we had a viable business and host our first guests before our visa extension application at the five month mark. 

All told, the renovation, including the rental license and amenities cost $29,000. 

We pay about $40 for the internet, $15 for water, up to $120 for electricity and $10 for gas. We spend about $400/month on groceries, and $100 for our phone bill.

We have a small truck that we bought for $2,000 and pay $300/year for car insurance. 

We bought our second abandoned house, around the corner from the guesthouse, in September 2023, for $18,500. The property, which used to be an inn, includes two plots of unmaintained land.

This home is now our primary residence, and we are in the process of renovating and rehabilitating that space as well. 

We opened our doors to travelers in November 2023 and since then we have maintained a near 5-star rating. To set ourselves apart, we offer a private full-house rental.

To date, we have earned approximately $14,000 in revenue from Benton Guesthouse.

Great care and effort went into decorating the house in Showa-era style, which lasted from 1926 to 1989. We wanted our guests to feel like they were walking into a Japanese grandmother’s house.

To us, even the smallest details can make a space special. We sourced a Nintendo Famicom system from the 1980s, for example, for our entertainment room.

We have so many ideas for future renovations, including restoring the former wood-fired bathtub, adding a second bathroom and building an outdoor barbecue patio.

We plan to plant a garden for the guests to enjoy and set up an educational hive on the outskirts of the property. 

Once these additional renovations are complete, we will be able to comfortably increase the number of guests we host from six to 10, which will boost our revenue.

Over half of our bookings are cyclists groups, but there are some couples and solo travelers, too.

We also plan to turn the guesthouse’s detached garage into a retro-style roadside farm stand, where we will display and sell vintage items, including antiques, furniture, tools and cookware — many of which actually belonged to the previous owners of both properties. 

We started with 10 honeybee colonies, and by next spring, we will have 20. We plan to increase each year. 

Beekeeping in Japan has a bit of a learning curve, so we’re fortunate that a local beekeeper has taken us under his wing to help teach us about the different challenges and predators honeybees face in Japan.

The area is known for citrus orchards, and our first batch of honey this spring had a delicate citrus flavor that people seemed to love. It sold out very quickly.

We also sell tomatoes, tomatillos, and various hot peppers at local farmer’s markets. The long term plan for Benton Homestead is to make hot sauce and salsa, in addition to our honey.

In hopes of sharing as much helpful information as possible, we’ve been documenting each step of our journey on the Benton Homestead YouTube channel and blog.

On our budget, it wouldn’t have been possible to do this in the United States.

Ōmishima Island felt like home from the moment we arrived. At this point, we can’t imagine living anywhere else.

Dani Benton is an award-winning photographer and the owner of Dani Benton Photography. She lives with her husband Evan, cat Ponkan and dog Bosco on Ōmishima Island, in rural Japan. Together, Dani and Evan run Benton Guesthouse and their growing honey business. To learn more about their homestead and home renovation experience, follow them on YouTube and Instagram.

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