If Mark Cuban were a kid again, he’d do two simple things to set himself up for success as an adult, he says.

“When I talk to kids today and they ask me what I would do if I were 12 today, my answer is always the same, read books and learn how to use [artificial intelligence] in every way, shape and form you can,” the 66-year-old billionaire entrepreneur wrote on social media platform BlueSky last week. “It is a living library that gives you responses and can help no matter who you are or where you live.”

″[It] just takes a smartphone, curiosity to experiment and a mindset to learn,” Cuban wrote in a follow-up post.

The first part of Cuban’s advice isn’t new: He’s preached the value of voracious reading for years. “I read everything I can. I don’t care what the source is,” he told CNBC Make It in 2018, adding that he dedicates “four to five hours a day” to it. That habit is a commonality among many highly successful entrepreneurs, including fellow billionaires Bill Gates and Richard Branson.

As for the AI element, 70% of the skills used in most jobs could change due to the technology by 2030, according to LinkedIn’s 2025 Work Change report. But few young Americans use AI regularly right now — 11% of Americans ages 14 to 22 say they use generative AI once or twice per week, found a 2024 report from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Common Sense Media and Hopelab.

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Cuban has previously likened the technology to the early days of personal computers, particularly for future entrepreneurs. “You don’t necessarily have to be great at AI to start a company, but at some point, you’re going to have to understand it,” he told “The Colin Cowherd Podcast” in 2022. “It’s just like the early days of PCs. You didn’t have to be good at PCs, but it helped. Then networks, then the internet, then mobile.”

Notably, Cuban has a financial interest in popularizing the technology: He’s an investor in multiple AI companies, including search engines DIRT and Samaya AI. But he’s not blind to at least some of its flaws, telling Wired last year that a puppy would be a better problem-solver than current AI systems.

“A dog can sense issues,” said Cuban. “Nothing about a self-driving car understands what’s adversarial or not. If it hasn’t seen it, it has no idea. Whereas a dog is going to understand. I think smart puppies are smarter than AI is today or in the near future.”

Longer term, the future of AI in business is unclear. It could range from the creation of more AI-infused services to a simpler rise in the number of employees who use chatbots to write first drafts of their emails or presentations.

Kids can benefit from getting ahead of those developments, Cuban told CNBC Make It last year. If he were a teenager in need of extra cash, he’d start a side hustle around learning how to write AI prompts, he said.

“Then, I would go to businesses, particularly small- to medium-sized businesses that don’t understand AI yet,” said Cuban. “Doesn’t matter if I’m 16, I’d be teaching them as well.”

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

Want to up your AI skills and be more productive? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Use AI to Be More Successful at Work. Expert instructors will teach you how to get started, practical uses, tips for effective prompt-writing, and mistakes to avoid.

What’s in short supply for just about everyone these days? A sense of control and influence. 

Things might seem like they’re increasingly out of our hands, impossible to understand let alone alter. But the truth is that you can have more influence — at least in your immediate circles — with just a few words.

I’ve been studying how influence works for 30 years, and even wrote a popular book about it: “Leading from the Middle: A Playbook for Managers to Influence Up, Down, and Across the Organization.” 

Here are six phrases that will give you more influence over people — both at work and in life. 

Everyone likes praise. But it becomes influential when you give a special brand of praise I call “informed encouragement.” That is, encouragement that’s backed up with specific reasons and rationale.

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For example, you could just say “Great job!” to your child. Or you can say, “Great job! You worked hard studying for that test, tackling material that didn’t come easily. You persevered and learned a lesson about overcoming obstacles.” 

The specificity gives the praise credibility and power. When the recipient understands what they did well, sees why it matters, and knows that you notice and appreciate it, they’ll be more motivated to do it again.

One of the easiest ways to have more influence is to truly listen. Think of how drawn you are to someone who’s really attentive, and how frustrated you feel when you know they’re not. 

As a listener, you have two goals:

1. Understand what’s being said.
2. Show the other person you’re interested, engaged, and invested in them and what they’re telling you.

You accomplish all of this by asking questions and prompting them at the right moments to “tell you more” (or asking, “What happened next?” or, “How did you feel about that?”).

As you listen, use acknowledging rather than discounting language. For example, instead of saying, “Oh, it’ll be okay,” try something like, “I hear you, sounds like you’re frustrated with your husband’s behavior right now.” 

By using validating, empathetic language, you’ll make people feel heard rather than dismissed. You’ll build the trust it takes to earn respect and influence.

The key here is the “er,” a subtle but powerful word change. I’ll explain. Influence is sometimes about appealing to people’s desired identity. For example:

• Don’t ask people to help, ask them to be a helper.
• Don’t ask them to lead, ask them to be a leader.
• Don’t ask them to listen, ask them to be a listener.

You’ll get a “yes” far more often. After all, who wouldn’t want to be thought of as a helper, leader, or listener? These are all identities we’d love to be associated with. 

This language swap also works to discourage undesirable actions. In one psychology study, participants were given the opportunity to claim money they weren’t entitled to. Some were instructed, “Please don’t cheat,” and others, “Please don’t be a cheater.”

Those who heard the latter — who were instructed with an appeal to their identity — showed no evidence of cheating because the experimenters had invoked “people’s desire to maintain a self-image as good and honest.”

The key here is “you have.” This is about helping people feel ownership of ideas, and motivating them to move forward. It’s a subtle form of influence, but it works. Think about it: Would you be more excited to work on someone else’s idea, or one you came up with? No contest. 

Let’s say a coworker shares an idea you were thinking about too, something you’d really like to implement. You know you’d need your peer’s help to make it happen. You could try to wrestle credit away from them and make them less inspired to help, or you can say, “That’s a good idea you have. Let’s run with it.”

Just like that, you’ve linked your agenda to their agenda. 

Notice I didn’t say, “Can I get your help?” Seeking advice is far more influential.

People often feel flattered that you value their opinion and expertise and because you’re asking for their advice, they’ll try to see things through your eyes. They’ll often become your supporters as a result, because now they’ve invested in you by sharing their wisdom. 

This is about supporting the people around you as you’d like to be supported, and understanding human nature to trigger good will and reciprocity. 

Offering to help someone with something that’s important to them — and, crucially, following through to make good on your offer — makes them more likely to want to help you with something that’s important to you down the line. 

Scott Mautz is a popular speaker, trainer, and LinkedIn Learning instructor. He’s a former senior executive of Procter & Gamble, where he ran several of the company’s largest multi-billion-dollar businesses. He is the author of ”The Mentally Strong Leader: Build the Habits to Productively Regulate Your Emotions, Thoughts, and Behaviors.” Follow him on LinkedIn.

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This story is part of CNBC Make It’s Six-Figure Side Hustle series, where people with lucrative side hustles break down the routines and habits they’ve used to make money on top of their full-time jobs. Got a story to tell? Let us know! Email us at AskMakeIt@cnbc.com.

Before Krista LeRay launched her side hustle, she spent six hours painting a single 4-inch by 4-inch cotton canvas with a fine-tipped paintbrush at her kitchen table.

“I would wake up and paint the entire day until 2 a.m.,” says LeRay, 33. “My pinky went numb from holding a fist [around the brush] all day long.”

The result: a canvas ready-made for needlepoint, a craft that’s essentially paint-by-numbers for embroidery. Needlepoint was LeRay’s college hobby, and after picking it back up during the Covid-19 pandemic, she decided to try selling her designs on the side.

LeRay spent $7,000 on supplies, using money she’d earned as a full-time lifestyle blogger, and launched a Shopify website for Penny Linn Designs in September 2020, she says. She was unintentionally early to a trend: As the pandemic raged, needlepoint aficionados searched for online canvas sellers, and LeRay was among the first. She announced Penny Linn’s existence on her blog and Instagram account, and her first 500 canvases sold in two hours, she says.

The business has steadily built momentum since then. Penny Linn brought in more than $4.4 million in canvas, thread and accessory sales last year, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. The company was profitable in 2024, with a 36% margin, says LeRay. She has 10 full-time and 24 part-time employees, and a soon-to-open 5,000-square-foot retail location in Rowayton, Connecticut.

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The company’s canvases, now made by a variety of designers, range from roughly $30 to over $100 for each “coastal preppy”-inspired pattern — blue and white chinoiserie vases, bowed sun hats and cursive prints of phrases like, “Your email did not find me well.”

Initially, LeRay worried that the side hustle wouldn’t be worth her time. Despite selling a lot of canvases, it was time- and labor-intensive, whereas she could “post a minute-long Instagram story and make a couple hundred dollars,” she says.

“I was making really good money from blogging. It was my retirement plan,” she adds.

But fashion and beauty posts felt insensitive to her at the pandemic’s peak, and after she had her son in 2022, she felt less comfortable posting her personal life on the internet. She took her side hustle full-time later that year, after it surpassed $416,000 in annual sales.

Here, LeRay discusses whether her business is replicable, how to monetize a hobby and the thick skin you need to run an online business.

CNBC Make It: Do you think your needlepoint side hustle — or any sort of successful crafting business — is replicable?

LeRay: I would say yes to both. I’m definitely a more-is-more type of person. I think there’s room for everyone and everything, especially in needlepoint, because there are way fewer physical stores than there used to be.

There are a lot of critiques online recently about monetizing your hobby. You don’t have to, of course, but if you’re really passionate about it and you have a unique perspective, why not?

Before Penny Linn, you were a successful blogger. What kinds of skills help you monetize your hobbies?

I’m very personable. I know how to connect with our customers online, partially because I am our customer. I know what products to create and how to promote them on social media.

I also have the kind of thick skin you need to run a business. I was picked apart as a blogger, so now I’m able to differentiate between constructive criticism and hurtful criticism.

I give myself 24 hours to be upset. In those 24 hours, I can cry and sulk and eat cookie dough. I can be upset and sad and angry and disgusted and hurt as I want. I talk to my husband, to my mom, to my therapist, to my best friend.

Then, the next morning, after I get a good night’s sleep, I say to myself: That’s behind us. We gave it the attention it needed. Time to move on.

Crafting trends can ebb and flow. Do you think it’s risky to commit yourself to a product that could lose popularity?

Needlepoint’s popularity always goes in waves. I think millennials caught on during the pandemic — we were all looking to get off our phones, away from the news cycle and do something peaceful for our minds. The result of that was a ton of new needlepoint designers.

The great thing about needlepoint is once you get somebody involved — someone who is doing it as a hobby, not because it looks cool on TikTok — they find it hard to put down. That’s why people stitch into their 90s. You can create gifts for your friends, your spouse, your children and grandchildren.

It’s something you can put down and always come back to. Right now, we have a 60% returning customer rate.

Given that embroidery has existed for so long, how do you stand out from your competition?

I remember going to a needlepoint shop before Penny Linn was even a twinkle in my eye. It was heavily marketed to a specific, older generation. When I created my shop, I focused on canvases I would want.

I made some with pop culture themes. I made them younger, fresh and more affordable than when you go into these shops, and they have massive tapestries that cost $1,000 and take forever to make.

I just wanted more accessible projects, like an “Ew, David” sweater, and something to represent my love for New York coffee.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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When life gets complicated, our instincts often lead us down the wrong path. We isolate ourselves when community could heal us, or we dream of endless free time when a new challenge could fulfill us.

I’ve spent 15 years studying happiness, and I’ve had the opportunity to speak with thousands of people across all walks of life, spanning all income levels — from executives in corner offices to frontline workers. 

I’ve learned that no matter what their background or circumstances are, the happiest people have figured out how to actively train their brains to seek joy and contentment.

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1. Prioritize friendships: The happiest people treat their close relationships as a non-negotiable rather than a “nice-to-have.” And when they schedule friend time, they try to focus on doing activities together instead of just a quick catch-up.

2. Rest strategically: Mentally exhausted? Go for a jog. Brain fried from analytical work? Do something creative with your hands. The most content people know how to intentionally match what depleted them to their mode of recovery. 

3. Engage in creative work: People who spend time on creative activities, whether it’s cooking, writing, gardening or painting, report significantly higher levels of happiness. When you create something new, even if it’s a hilariously bad watercolor, your brain lights up in ways that scrolling on your phone never triggers.

4. Cultivate community: The next time you feel stressed or overwhelmed, reach out instead of pulling in. Help someone else or find a cause that fills you with a sense of purpose. Your brain might protest at first, but your happiness will soar.

5. Don’t be afraid to geek out: The happiest people don’t play it cool. They actively seek out the things, people and activities that light them up. You know the enthusiasm you feel when you talk about an activity you love? That’s actually the secret ingredient to daily happiness.

6. Set firm boundaries: Research says we need two to five hours of free time every day for peak happiness. Happy people protect their “me time,” and they know that those work emails can wait until later.

7. Manage your energy: Happy people recognize their personal peaks and valleys, scheduling demanding tasks when they’re naturally most alert and recovery periods when they typically slump. They create days that flow with their biology, rather than fight against it.

8. Embrace micro-connections: Research shows that random conversations with people you don’t know consistently improve your mood, so that chat with your barista might just be the happiness booster you never knew you were missing. 

9. Savor the good: Truly content people don’t rush. They slow down to fully absorb positive moments — the beauty of the sunset, the taste of good food, the feeling of accomplishment. By lingering in these experiences, they train their brains to experience joy more deeply.

10. Pursue meaningful progress: Content people are always celebrating the small wins along their journey. They understand that the sense of forward momentum itself generates more joy than reaching the final destination ever will.

The people I’ve met who have true joy in their lives don’t view happiness in terms of a spotlight moment — the standing ovation, the milestone achievement or the perfect day. They consider it more like a string of lights. Each small bulb might seem insignificant on its own, but together they create something magical. 

Start with just one of these small, intentional happiness habits today, and watch as your capacity for flourishing, satisfaction and contentment grows over time.

Jessica Weiss is a keynote speaker and executive coach who teaches people and businesses how to find more happiness, fulfillment and satisfaction at work. With a background in positive psychology, she’s spent 15 years working with global brands like Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson and American Express. She is the author of the upcoming book, “Happiness Works: The Science of Thriving at Work.” She earned her BA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Want to earn some extra money on the side? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Start a Side Hustle to learn tips to get started and strategies for success from top side hustle experts. Sign up today and use coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 30% off $97 (+taxes and fees) through April 1, 2025.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has some advice, and he says that nearly everyone would benefit by following it: Get an AI tutor.

“I have a personal [artificial intelligence] tutor with me all of the time. And I think that feeling should be universal,” Huang told journalist Cleo Abram’s YouTube interview show “Huge Conversations,” in an episode that aired last month.

That’s a virtual tutor powered by AI, not a human who can teach you how to use AI more effectively. “If there’s one thing I would encourage everybody to do, [it’s] to go get yourself an AI tutor right away,” said Huang, whose company makes computer chips that have helped power recent AI tech advances.

Huang’s preferred tutor is Perplexity’s AI-powered search engine, which he called a “really helpful” tool in an interview with the Bipartisan Policy Center last year. He uses it daily to learn about a multitude of subjects, including digital biology, he added. The search engine, like many other generative AI tools, offers users both free and paid subscription options.

Other AI platforms are designed to act more specifically as tutors, like free tutoring service Sizzle and Khan Academy’s Khanmigo AI tutor, which costs $4 per month.

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″[AI programs can] teach you things — anything you like — help you program, help you write, help you analyze, help you think, help you reason,” Huang told Abram. “All of those things [are] going to really make you feel empowered and I think that’s going to be our future.”

AI tools come with caveats. They still frequently make factual errors, and experts say you should only use them to help your work — not to do your work for you. Huang uses his favorite AI tools to write the first drafts of his own work, he said at a Wired event last year.

He’s hopeful, however, that within the next 10 years, the technology will help most people learn more easily and quickly in nearly every kind of daily setting, he told Abram.

“I think that [in] the next decade, intelligence — not for everything, but for some things — would basically become superhuman,” said Huang, adding: “We’re going to become superhumans — not because we have super[powers]. We’re going to become superhumans because we have super AIs.”

Huang does have a vested interest in preaching AI’s value, and the technology’s growing popularity could be a double-edged sword. Roughly 75% of Americans worry that the tech will eventually result in fewer jobs for humans, according to an August 2024 Gallup survey. AI could automate roughly half of all human “work activities” by 2030 at the earliest, according to a 2023 study from consulting group McKinsey.

AI will indeed help employees do their jobs more efficiently, but it’ll be a temporary boon, current Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman wrote in his 2023 book “The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-first Century’s Greatest Dilemma.”

“They will make us smarter and more efficient for a time, and will unlock enormous amounts of economic growth, but they are fundamentally labor replacing,” he wrote, adding that AI’s spread “will be hugely destabilizing for hundreds of millions who will, at the very least, need to re-skill and transition to new types of work.”

Perhaps predictably, Huang disagrees. As Nvidia’s CEO, he’s surrounded by thousands of smart employees, “and yet it never one day caused me to think, all of a sudden, ‘I’m no longer necessary,’” he said. It “actually empowers me and gives me the confidence to go tackle more and more ambitious things.”

The same logic applies to AI, he said: “Suppose now everybody is surrounded by these super AIs that are very good at specific things … What would that make you feel? Well, it’s going to empower you. It’s going to make you feel confident.”

Want to up your AI skills and be more productive? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Use AI to Be More Successful at Work. Expert instructors will teach you how to get started, practical uses, tips for effective prompt-writing, and mistakes to avoid.

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