Forget a Kitchen-Aid mixer. Snoop Dogg surprised his daughter, Cori Broadus, with a $1 million gift ahead of her upcoming wedding, the rapper said during a recent appearance on “The Jennifer Hudson Show.”

Snoop Dogg explained how he would take advantage of the gift if the roles were reversed. “If it was me, my wedding would have been $100 [thousand], and $900 [thousand] would have went in my pocket,” he said.

Although a seven-figure wedding gift isn’t in the cards for most of us, Snoop Dogg’s suggestion for handling a financial windfall — spending 10% on fun and saving 90% for the future — checks out, financial experts say. 

“Snoop Dogg’s comment highlights the importance of prioritizing long-term financial stability over immediate gratification, which is solid advice,” says Maria Castillo Dominguez, a certified financial planner and founder of Valoria Wealth Management. 

That goes for anyone who comes into any unexpected sum of money, she says, no matter the size of the windfall. 

If you receive money unexpectedly, it can be tempting to envision yourself spending on a whole new lifestyle. In reality, you’d be better off putting money toward your long established goals, experts say.

So before you do anything with your money, experts advise that you first give yourself a moment.

“Take a pause before making any decisions,” says Catherine Valega, a CFP and founder of Green Bee Advisory. “Don’t do anything rash,” such as buying your “long-lost cousin a new car when they come out of the woodwork to ask for it,” if word gets around that you’ve come into extra cash.

Once you’ve composed yourself, Dominguez suggests asking yourself a simple question: What have I been wanting to do if I had more money? For many, it’s buying a home, paying off your mortgage, starting an emergency fund or getting out of credit card debt. 

By carefully thinking through your next steps, you can make the most of your extra money.

“Setting clear goals and even consulting a financial planner can help ensure the windfall works for you over the long term,” says Dominguez. With the right guidance, a windfall can be an opportunity to generate even more money for yourself and build happiness that lasts. 

A financial planner can take your specific situation and design an individualized plan for your extra cash. 

“Everybody should work with a financial planner,” says Valega. “We know how to prioritize your extra funds.”

Whether it’s in the form of a tax refund, a holiday bonus or an unexpected lottery jackpot, a windfall can provide a huge boost to our bottom line when we least expect it. And the ability to use that money to make a better life for yourself is cause for celebration, says Dominguez.

After you’ve identified your goals, using a portion of your extra money to treat yourself is within reason. Having a plan for your money can help make sure you keep your celebratory spending reasonable, she says. After all, treating yourself shouldn’t infringe on the success of your long-term plans. 

“It’s important to strike a balance,” Dominguez says. “Celebrating life’s milestones is valuable, but aligning spending with overall financial goals ensures sustainability.”

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When I started as a social media marketer in 2009, I had no master plan. I had made the risky decision two years earlier to drop out of college, and I just knew I loved creating content about how to leverage social media.

Today, I’m the author of three books, a global speaker, and an award-winning content creator focusing on motivational productivity and business. My business generates about $18,000 a month in passive income, based on my calculations from a recent month’s deposits. In addition, I coach clients on building profitable personal brands and business models. I do all that working just four hours a day. 

My work looks completely different than it did 15 years ago, and that’s okay. You don’t have to have the perfect idea to get started. In fact, the biggest mistake I see my coaching clients make is waiting for one — and letting perfectionism and fear hold them back. 

Here’s what I’ve learned and shared with my clients about breaking through hesitation, perfectionism, and fear to build a thriving business and sustainable passive income. 

When my coaching clients tell me they’re waiting for the “right time” or holding off until their idea is “perfect,” I know what they’re really saying: They’re scared to start. 

I get it. But here’s the truth: Perfectionism is just procrastination wearing a fancy suit. It makes us feel productive because we’re “preparing.” We’re actually just putting off the real work. 

One of my most successful clients had been planning to start a YouTube channel for two years before working with me. Once she realized perfectionism was just fear in disguise, she filmed her first video using her phone in her living room. That imperfect video led to her first 100 subscribers, and she now has a thriving YouTube channel with an audience of potential customers. 

The perfect circumstances don’t exist. The right time to start is always now.

Every “embarrassing” moment I’ve had — whether it was making grammar mistakes or missing big business milestones — taught me so much that ultimately made my business better.

My first YouTube video about social media marketing was badly lit, awkwardly scripted, and shot with a bed in the background. Each one got a little better than the last, and ultimately led to my first course and passive income. 

If I had waited until I had professional equipment and the perfect filming set, I might never have made any passive income at all.

I still have to overcome perfectionism! I made a more recent video when my daughter was sick. I had barely slept and I didn’t even have a place to film in our new house yet. I shot the video anyway but almost didn’t post it because I thought I looked tired and the energy wasn’t right. 

I’m glad I did it anyway. Because that imperfect video has generated over $7,000 in passive income through ad revenue and sponsorship.

Remember that people who might be judging missteps or imperfections from the sidelines aren’t the ones taking risks. You can’t let their opinions from the cheap seats dictate how you feel about your work.

Here’s what works for me:

1. Set learning goals instead of performance goals. When I started my YouTube channel, my goal wasn’t to get a million subscribers. It was to learn how to communicate effectively on camera. This mindset shift takes the pressure off each piece of content and turns “failures” into valuable learning experiences. By making my objective something I could control, all I had to do was get my “reps” in and soon enough, I was a master communicator.
2. Use the 24-hour rule. Give yourself 24 hours to complete and publish a project — or a similarly reasonable timetable depending on the size of the task. This prevents endless tweaking and forces you to focus on progress over perfection. I used this strategy to write my first book, “Vlog Like a Boss.” By challenging myself to write a little bit everyday, I got the entire manuscript out of my head in less than a month! It has sold roughly 20,000 copies across e-book, paperback, hardcover, and audio versions.
3. Start before you’re ready and iterate. Launch your product or service when it feels 80% perfect. My signature paper product, “The Good Morning, Good Life 12-Month Planner” wasn’t perfect when we first launched it. But by listening to our customers, it gets better every time we roll out an update. 

Every stumble in my journey has become a teaching tool. When I tell these “failure stories” — about bombing an early speaking engagement or launching a product that barely sold — something powerful happens. People share their own experiences, creating genuine connections. Your audience will trust you more for talking authentically about your challenges.

Remember: Your first attempt won’t be your best attempt, but with each one you will get better. The path to generating passive income isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being persistent and willing to learn from every misstep along the way.

Amy Landino is a personal brand coach and the award-winning creator of AmyTV on YouTube. She is an instructor in CNBC’s online course How to Earn Passive Income Online. Follow her on Instagram.

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As parents, we often wonder if we’re doing the right thing for our children. No one is immune to that kind of thinking.

I have interviewed hundreds of young entrepreneurs and their parents to learn how they were raised. Most parents who raised highly successful adults did a great job.

What surprised me is that many parents admitted that there were a few things they would have done differently, if they could go back in time. 

These were the top regrets they had in common:

Many future successful entrepreneurs were great students and breezed through top universities. Some finished, but were miserable. Others dropped out of college or didn’t go at all. 

While education is important, it has to be a good fit. Looking back, some parents realized they would have preferred that their kids thrive, perhaps in an untraditional environment, rather than slog through an expensive, unhappy four years. 

Similarly, many parents recalled pushing their children to spend less time doing what they loved, and more time studying or doing an activity that would make them more appealing to a top school.

In hindsight, the parents now realize that when their children put in the 10,000 hours to gain a skill in what they loved — even though the parents may have thought it was a waste of time — it proved to be more useful as they began their career.

Of course we want to keep our children safe — but holding on too tightly can prevent them from flying.

I don’t often hear parents say they wish they had given their children less freedom. Instead, it’s the opposite: “Why didn’t I let them go off on their own more?” or “I feel bad they never had any independence until they went to college. I should have started letting them do things on their own earlier.”

There are a few terms for over involved parents: helicopter parents, who hover over their children and intervene in their decisions; snowplow parents, who move obstacles and challenges out of the way. 

Even parents who only did that some of the time regret it. They tell me, “I shouldn’t have fixed things for them; I shouldn’t have made their path so easy. They needed to learn how to solve problems on their own.” 

Looking back, they tell me they understand now that resilience is key to success.

My personal regret, which I heard from many others, is that I didn’t give our children enough chores. They had to make their bed and keep their room clean. But I never asked them to do their laundry; I never asked them to help me in the garden; and except on rare occasions, I didn’t ask them to help me cook. 

I did these tasks myself because they were so busy and I didn’t want to over-burden them. 

Ironically, they now tell me they wish they had learned those skills in high school! Giving our children more chores not only helps them become responsible, it teaches them useful skills for when they’re on their own.

Many parents told me they urged their kids to be cautious, to take the “safe” approach. They told them to take the practical route that “works more often.” 

When they watched their children take big risks to start a new venture, or sell something they started, or pivot in a new direction, or not take a job with a guaranteed paycheck to pursue their dream, they were proud of them.

But they wondered, “Did I make them fearful? Would it have been easier for them if I had told them more often to go for it?”

Or if they scolded them when they failed — for getting a bad grade, or not scoring a goal — and made their children nervous about taking risks. They now understand that you can’t innovate if you’re afraid to take risks. And you’re only not afraid to take risks, if you’re not afraid to fail.

Even if they did feel this regret, many of these parents also said they often told their kids how proud they were of their hard work, no matter the outcome.

Ultimately, I want to remind us all: Nobody is perfect. We all do the best we can, and as long as our children know we love them, and that we tried our best, they will be fine.

Margot Machol Bisnow is a writer, mom and parenting expert. She spent 20 years in government, including as an FTC Commissioner and Chief of Staff of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, has spent the last 10 years speaking to parent groups about raising fearless, creative, confident, resilient, entrepreneurial children who are filled with joy and purpose, and is the author of “Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams.” Follow her on Instagram @margotbisnow.

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Jessica Jackson always dreamed of working outdoors — now, she spends most of her days 300 feet in the air, atop wind turbines. 

Jackson, 37, is a wind turbine service technician at Vestas, a wind turbine manufacturer, in Bee County, Texas, and earns $73,000 per year. 

Her job requires technical expertise in hydraulics, electrical systems, and mechanical repairs — plus the stamina to haul 50 pounds of gear up narrow ladders in all kinds of weather.

Climbing the turbine tower “isn’t as scary as you’d think,” she tells CNBC Make It. The tallest turbine on the wind farm Jackson works on is about 350 feet above the ground. It takes her less than 10 minutes to get to the top.

“Once you’re up there, you get to see the best views: You’re watching birds fly, eagles, hawks,” she says. “You get to see planes fly by. You get to see as far as you can see. It’s beautiful.”

It isn’t a career for the faint of heart. Wind turbine technicians face one of the highest rates of work-related injuries, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Yet it’s also the fastest-growing job in the U.S., with employment in the sector expected to almost double over the next decade.

“Working in this field is hard, but it’s rewarding,” says Jackson. 

Despite the high demand for wind turbine service technicians, the profession remains “underrated and overlooked,” she adds, offering untapped potential for job-seekers who crave adventure and a competitive salary.

It’s “pretty standard” for employers not to require a bachelor’s degree for technician-level positions, according to Vanessa Benedetti, Vestas’ senior director of training operations and workforce development.

“What’s more important is that you have a willingness to learn, love to tinker and can get your hands dirty,” she adds. 

While you don’t need a bachelor’s degree to become a wind turbine service technician, some jobs might require you to complete a 2-year technical program or apprenticeship. Others, like Blattner Energy and Vestas, will provide on-the-job training for new hires.

Vestas’ training covers best practices for the turbine’s electrical equipment, technical procedures like bolt torque and tensioning, as well as first aid and safety protocols.

Before becoming a wind technician, Jackson, who has four children, spent a decade as a stay-at-home mom.

After she and her husband separated in 2019, Jackson decided to return to the workforce but was worried her opportunities would be limited without a bachelor’s degree.

Her ex-husband recommended her for a job at Blattner Energy, a renewable energy contractor in northern Texas, installing tower wiring. That job introduced Jackson to Vestas, where she started working in February 2020.

Jackson enrolled in college online part-time while working as a wind tech and finished her bachelor’s degree in environmental science from the University of Arizona in 2022.

Her long-term goal is to become a lead technician at Vestas, a role that pays about $100,000 a year.

The median annual salary for wind turbine service technicians is $61,770; however, many earn over $90,000 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“It’s one of those rare fields where you feel like you are your own boss,” says Jackson. “You get to decide how quickly you move up the career ladder and how much you earn.” 

Jackson gets to work at 7 a.m. and ends her shift by 5:30 p.m. She works five days a week. 

The hardest part of her job is the climb. Jackson has to scale a narrow, metal ladder inside the turbine and pull herself through a hatch at the top to access the turbine’s nacelle, which sits atop the tower and contains the machine’s main parts. It’s a vertical climb up nearly 30 stories.

“Cutting any corners with safety could be the reason why I don’t go home that day,” says Jackson, who wears gloves, glasses, a helmet, harness and other protective equipment on the job. “Once you’re up there, you’re in your office and ready to work. Everything else is easier.”

The job might be physically demanding, but Jackson says spending so much time outside on the farm — and climbing the towers — has helped her feel “stronger and healthier.”

Benedetti has seen hiring for technicians in the U.S. “ebb and flow” over the past decade depending on demand, production tax credits and supply chain issues. 

Right now, “we’re seeing a huge investment in wind energy technologies,” she says. Global offshore wind investment hit an all-time high in 2023, reaching a record $76.7 billion, according to BloombergNEF’s Renewable Energy Investment Tracker.

At Vestas, the average contract for a technician is about 13 years. “It’s a career that has longevity and gives people the opportunity to learn and grow within their careers, and also to stay and feel settled within their community, which is really wonderful,” Benedetti adds.

At least 2,100 technicians are expected to be hired every year over the next decade, per the Labor Department’s latest estimates, an increase driven by both new projects and the need to maintain existing turbines.

Jackson plans to work as a technician until she retires in her 70s, if not sooner.

As she climbs the career ladder — both literally and figuratively — Jackson hopes to inspire others, particularly women and those without college degrees, to consider becoming wind techs.

“My best advice would be to go for it,” she says. “I never imagined myself in this field, but I’m extremely grateful for my job and I love what I do. … You’ll never know unless you try.”

Ready to boost your income and career? Don’t miss our special Black Friday offer: 55% off all Smarter by CNBC Make It online courses. Learn how to earn passive income online, master your money, ace your job interview and salary negotiations, and become an effective communicator. Use coupon code THANKS24 to get the best deal of the season—offer valid 11/25/24 through 12/2/24.

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Alexandra Rutkay was on a movie set when her side hustle went viral in June.

Rutkay, a full-time makeup artist, was working a 16-hour day on the set of “A Complete Unknown,” an upcoming Bob Dylan biopic, when her phone started buzzing. She clocked out that night and saw that she’d struck a social media jackpot.

After two years of inconsistent sales at her New York-based side hustle Citymouse, which makes fashion-forward mini-diaper bags, two glowing reviews of her bags simultaneously gained views on TikTok and Instagram. Within three days, Citymouse sold out its inventory of more than 500 bags, bringing in roughly $53,000 in sales, says Rutkay, 41.

She promptly bought another 1,000 bags from her China-based manufacturer, and the orders kept coming. Citymouse has brought in more than $635,000 in sales so far this year — $53,000 per month, on average — primarily from its Shopify website, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.

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Rutkay, her husband — who recently left his job to work at Citymouse full-time — and a part-time assistant are the company’s only employees, and the couple will pay themselves a combined $150,000 from the side hustle this year, she estimates. Rutkay also works up to 40 hours per week on Citymouse, which remains a side hustle because she still devotes more time to her makeup artist job.

She’s had side hustles since dropping out of college and moving to New York in 2004 to pursue a makeup career, she says. But turbulence in her life upped her sense of urgency: Between February 2020 and February 2021, Rutkay gave birth to her son, her grandmother died and she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in her right thigh.

She’s now cancer-free, she says. Still, the thought of her son growing up without a mother motivated her to change her financial goals. No longer satisfied by a decent paycheck, she wanted to build generational wealth she could pass down — and entrepreneurship was her first thought.

“It was a fear that chilled me to the pit of my stomach,” Rutkay says. “Not to be morbid, but if I had died before [my son] even got to know me, what would I have left him?”

The specific idea for Citymouse was born from personal frustration. As Rutkay readied herself to leave for dinner with her son and husband in Manhattan one night, she realized that her beloved Saint Laurent crossbody bag was too small for her son’s snacks, wipes and emergency pull-up.

Her diaper bag, meanwhile, was big and clunky — not ideal for a dinner date.

Walking home, she decided to design a smaller, more fashionable diaper bag specifically designed to fit a toddler’s necessities. She found a manufacturer through Alibaba, an online marketplace, and paid $8,000 — drawing $3,000 from her checking account and putting $5,000 on a credit card — to order samples.

It took Rutkay more than six months to sell her first 500 crossbody bags, made from shiny regenerated nylon. Sales slowly ticked upward as she added interchangeable straps, and hot pink bags ahead of the “Barbie” movie’s premiere last summer.

Then came her lucky viral day. Since then, Rutkay has tried to maintain Citymouse’s momentum on social media, spending $25,000 on Facebook ads so far this year, she says.

The brand now has roughly 32,600 followers on TikTok and 16,000 on Instagram, and roughly 90% of her business comes from social media referrals, she estimates.

This year’s volume of sales pushed the business into profitability, Rutkay adds.

Citymouse sells crossbody bags for $78.99 each and mini backpacks for $179.99 each. Rutkay hopes that end-of-year holiday sales could push Citymouse’s annual sales past $1 million this year.

Even achieving that goal wouldn’t push the company past many of its competitors — the global diaper bag market is worth an estimated $747.1 million, according to Grand View Research. Rutkay isn’t particularly focused on climbing to the top of the industry, though, she says.

Instead, her goals are personal: She wants to grow Citymouse enough to pay herself and her husband a combined $600,000 per year, or sell the company for at least $10 million and start a new business from scratch, she says.

Quadrupling Citymouse’s profits is a tall task for any small business, one that could take years of those 90-hour workweeks to come to fruition. But $600,000 per year is what Rutkay would need to quit her makeup career.

At that point, “I [could] literally be sleeping and making money,” says Rutkay.

Want to make extra money outside of your day job? Sign up for CNBC’s online course How to Earn Passive Income Online to learn about common passive income streams, tips to get started and real-life success stories.

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