Charles Coristine used to revel in working at Morgan Stanley. He loved the pace, even waking up in the middle of the night to trade in the Tokyo and London stock markets.

In 2011, after nearly two decades on Wall Street, Coristine burned out. He tried multiple remedies: switching to a vegetarian diet, meditating, enrolling in an MBA program. None of them worked.

At a barbeque, Coristine met an owner of snack company LesserEvil, who talked about wanting to sell his “flatlining” business. Coristine had no food industry experience, but was intrigued by the idea of a fresh start — and he liked that the company’s name was “synchronistic” with a healthy, mindful lifestyle, he says.

In November 2011, Coristine bought LesserEvil for $250,000 from his savings, plus a future payment of $100,000, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. The risk was impulsive and ill-researched, he says: LesserEvil, which aimed to offer consumers healthier popcorn and snack alternatives, was losing money and bringing in less than $1 million in annual revenue at the time, the company estimates.

“I didn’t know anyone in food … to ask whether I was crazy or not, but that’s probably good,” says Coristine, 52. “If I had done a lot of research and looked into it, I would have realized that the probability of success was pretty low.”

Yet the Danbury, Connecticut-based brand grew significantly under his watch: Its popcorns and air-popped Cheetos-like puffs and curls now appear in major retailers and corner stores across the U.S. LesserEvil grew to $103.3 million in annual gross sales by 2023, including $82.9 million in net sales and $14.4 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA.

On April 3, The Hershey Company announced a deal to acquire LesserEvil. The sale is worth a reported $750 million, plus more if LesserEvil hits some performance milestones, according to the Wall Street Journal. Coristine will remain its CEO, a LesserEvil spokesperson says.

Here’s how Coristine is making LesserEvil into a household name.

When he bought LesserEvil, Coristine was working at TD Bank and pursuing an MBA at Cornell University Graduate School.

In 2012, he got his MBA degree and started his new full-time job as LesserEvil’s CEO. Among his first moves: hiring his graduate school friend Andrew Strife as COO and CFO, and his wakeboard instructor as head of marketing.

Along with the previous regime’s accountant, the small team worked from an office in Wilton, Connecticut, to update LesserEvil’s branding and create their own production line. The old-fashioned branding wasn’t attracting customers, and the company was paying about 20% of its revenue from each sale to co-packers who helped make and ship out the snacks, Coristine says.

Coristine’s savings had largely run out, so the team raised an undisclosed amount of money from their friends and family, and secured more financing through a connection Coristine had at a bank, says Strife. They moved into a 5,000-square-foot factory in Danbury in 2012, and filled it with used equipment purchased at auctions.

The team made “friends with welders down the street,” who could weld wheels and popcorn shoots onto the machinery, Strife says. They painted factory’s exterior black and plastering a yellow “LesserEvil” logo to the side of the building themselves. As Coristine recalls, drivers started pulling off the road, entering the factory and asking, “Is this a strip club?”

“Everything was scrappy and needed to be reinvented as we went along,” says Strife.

In 2014, when a neighboring carpet factory moved out, LesserEvil knocked down the wall and added 2,000 square feet and a production line to its operations.

That year, Coristine’s personal nutritionist offered a health-focused suggestion: Use coconut oil to pop the popcorn. Coristine was skeptical that coconut oil would stay fresh in a snack bag, so he literally shelf-tested it, he says: “We put it on the top of a fridge, which gets really hot [and left it for] for three months.”

The oil stayed fresh, and Coristine liked the surprisingly buttery taste, so LesserEvil launched the reformulated product with a new laughing Buddha logo in 2014 — calling it the Buddha Bowl. It brought in roughly $2 million that year, accounting for a third of LesserEvil’s annual revenue, the company says.

Kroger, the first major retailer to sell LesserEvil, started stocking its products in 2015. That partnership helped fund another move for LesserEvil in 2017 — this time, to a 20,000-square-foot factory, says Strife.

A year later, the company got its first outside funding — about $3 million, the company says — from sustainable food and agriculture investment firm InvestEco. Coristine and his team used the funds to add production lines to the new factory and update LesserEvil’s packaging again: Each product now features its own “guru,” from the ancient Greek poet Homer to Henry David Thoreau.

The rebrand, and added products, helped push the brand into profitability. Coristine started paying himself a salary from LesserEvil that year, the company says.

LesserEvil’s goal has always been to differentiate itself from competitors with non-standard ingredients like extra-virgin coconut oil and avocado oil, says Coristine.

Sometimes, using atypical ingredients can have consequences: A Consumer Reports investigation from June found “concerning amounts of lead” in two of LesserEvil’s cassava-based Lil’ Puffs snacks for kids. The company issued an apology, and has since relaunched the puffs with sorghum flour instead of cassava flour.

The company still brought in $62 million in net sales during the first half of 2024. It used another round of funding — $19 million, in a round led by investment firm Aria Growth Partners, LesserEvil says — to buy out prior investors and open a new factory in New Milford, roughly 15 miles from its Danbury facility.

Today, the company has 350 employees. Before the acquisition by Hershey, which also owns popcorn brand SkinnyPop, Coristine’s short-term goals involved growing LesserEvil further and launching new products. Longer-term, he simply wants the company to “be a brand that could be around for along time,” he says.

LesserEvil has already succeeded in helping Coristine solve a more personal problem, he adds — he works less, from about 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and feels happier since leaving Wall Street.

“It feels joyous, so it doesn’t feel like work,” says Coristine.

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There are two words that slip out so easily when your child experiences an emotional event. Maybe they tripped and fell or had a fight with a friend. Their face crumples, and before they’ve even had a chance to speak, you say: “You’re okay.”

It sounds comforting. Reassuring, even. But it’s not. As a conscious parenting coach and advocate for children’s emotional health, I’ve studied over 200 kids — and I’ve seen this well-intentioned and overused phrase cause long-term damage in ways that most parents never realize.

In fact, because it seems so harmless at first, it’s the most dangerous phrase in parenting. Here’s why, and what to say instead:

1. It teaches kids to doubt their own emotions.

When a child is visibly upset and hears “you’re okay,” it sends a confusing message: What I’m feeling must not be real. Over time, this disconnects them from their inner emotional world and teaches them to distrust their own instincts.

2. It invalidates their experience when they need you most.

You may say it with love, but a child hears: “Your feelings don’t matter.” Dismissal — however subtle — teaches them that comfort and connection are only available when they’re calm and convenient. This is where emotional suppression begins.

3. It short-circuits emotional processing.

Emotions are meant to move through the body. When we interrupt that natural process with premature reassurance, we rob children of the ability to identify, name and regulate their emotions. Instead of building resilience, we’re building avoidance.

4. It teaches that love is conditional.

Without realizing it, phrases like “you’re okay,” “stop crying,” or “don’t be scared” condition children to believe they must suppress their emotions to remain accepted. And when love feels conditional, emotional safety — the very foundation of mental health — starts to unravel.

5. It can rewire a child’s stress response.

The nervous system develops through repeated experiences. When a child is upset and met with dismissal instead of support, their body learns that it’s not safe to express emotion. Over time, this can reshape their nervous system to expect disconnection, making it harder to trust, regulate and feel safe being fully themselves.

Children don’t need a fix — they need to feel. And more importantly, they need to know it’s safe to feel, especially with you.

Here are powerful alternatives that validate their inner world and build emotional strength:

• “I believe you.”
• “Your feelings make sense.”
• “I’m right here with you.”
• “You don’t have to be okay right now.”
• “I saw what happened. How are you feeling?”

These phrases do more than soothe. They strengthen. They teach your child: My emotions matter. I can trust myself. I’m not alone.

These responses take practice. You’ll still say “you’re okay” sometimes. And that’s okay, too. The goal is to practice conscious parenting: noticing our patterns and choosing, moment by moment, to respond in ways that build emotional safety rather than undermine it.

These moments may seem small, but they actually help to build a child’s emotional foundation. And in a world where anxiety, depression and disconnection are on the rise, this is how we protect our children’s mental health — one moment of emotional safety at a time.

Reem Raouda is a leading voice in conscious parenting and the creator of FOUNDATIONS — the transformative healing journal for parents ready to break cycles, do the inner work, and become the emotionally safe parent their child needs. She is widely recognized for her groundbreaking work in children’s emotional safety and strengthening the parent-child bond. FFollow her on Instagram.

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While going to college tends to mean better pay, not all degrees guarantee high salaries — especially if you study liberal arts.

That’s according to a new analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which shows that graduates who major in education, social work or the arts tend to earn the lowest median incomes within five years of finishing school. The analysis includes only full-time workers with a bachelor’s degree and excludes those still enrolled in school.

The salary figures are based on 2023 data, the most recent available, and show early-career pay in these fields falls below the U.S. median wage of $48,060 for that year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

While engineering majors can make upward of $80,000 early in their careers, many liberal arts and education majors earn closer to $40,000. The median salary of all majors examined was $50,000.

Here’s a look at the 10 majors linked to the lowest median salaries for full-time workers ages 22 to 27.

While learning a foreign language is a valuable skill, a degree in the subject doesn’t always lead to high-paying roles. That’s likely because language can be learned outside a formal education and many graduates tend to go into relatively low-paying fields, like education, translation or public service.

Liberal arts majors also tend to earn less than graduates in technical fields like engineering or math, largely because there’s less demand for their skills in higher-paying industries like technology and finance.

Unfortunately, many liberal arts majors don’t fare much better as they get older, especially those in education. Here’s a look at the 10 lowest-paying majors for full-time workers between ages 35 and 45.

Early childhood education majors earn the least of all mid-career graduates, with a median income of $49,000 — just $8,000 more than what they earned five years after graduation.

By contrast, engineering majors typically break into six figures by mid-career.

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For over 25 years, I’ve studied the gut’s profound impact on overall health — first as a cardiac surgeon, then as a researcher in restorative medicine. What I’ve learned is simple: Your gut is the foundation of everything, from immunity to brain function to longevity.

One of the most powerful ways to support it? Eating the right vegetables. But not all vegetables are created equal. The most nutritional ones share two key traits: high polyphenol content and bitterness (yes, bitterness!). These compounds feed your gut microbiome, reduce inflammation and even sharpen cognition.

Here are the five healthiest vegetables I eat every day, no matter what:

Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, arugula, rapini — these are gut superheroes in the vegetable family.

Cruciferous vegetables promote postbiotic production, which are byproducts of bacterial fermentation that regulate immunity. They are also good for mitochondrial function, which is what helps convert the energy stored in food molecules into usable energy for cells.

These vegetables are rich in sulfur compounds. These compounds support vascular health by boosting postbiotic hydrogen sulfide, a critical signaling molecule that tells cells what to do to promote health.

I always chop them before cooking to activate myrosinase, an enzyme that enhances their cancer-fighting properties.

A staple of the Mediterranean diet, artichokes are packed with inulin, a prebiotic fiber that feeds beneficial gut bacteria. In addition to being low in calories and fat, they contain plenty of potassium, vitamin C, magnesium and folate.

Don’t discard the stems — they’re the most fiber-rich part! Just peel the tough outer part. I eat them steamed, sautéed or raw for maximum benefits.

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Not all root vegetables have the same nutritional benefits. Radishes, onions, garlic, fennel bulbs and jicama are especially low-sugar options. And they’re loaded with prebiotics that nourish gut microbes. Other healthy options include rutabagas, turnips, purple sweet potatoes and yams.

Avoid eating too many cooked carrots and beets — they release excess sugars. Instead, try raw beet carpaccio with olive oil and mint.

Popular in Italy and France, radicchio, Belgian endive, frisée and puntarelle are rich in inulin, which balances the gut microbiome. Their bitterness signals high polyphenol content, making them a longevity powerhouse.

Red chicory is an especially good source of antioxidants, which help protect the body from damage caused by free radicals.

I love to eat them raw! And I use Belgian Endive as a dipping chip for guacamole.

Shiitakes contain beta-glucan, a polysaccharide that lowers cholesterol and supports gut health. You can find them at most grocery stores. I like to add them to stir-fries or soups for an immune boost. Be careful about eating any mushroom raw, due to the toxins that some of them may carry.

Here’s a quick and easy shiitake mushrooms recipe that takes just a few minutes to make. All you need are mushrooms, an onion, green onions and some oil, salt and pepper!

You have so much control over your health, and it starts with what you decide to put in your body. Before making any drastic changes to your diet, I recommend consulting with your healthcare provider to discuss your specific wellness needs.

Dr. Steven Gundry is a regenerative medicine expert and cardiac surgeon. He is the author of many bestselling books, including ”The Gut-Brain Paradox″ and ”The Plant Paradox.” For over two decades, his research has focused on the microbiome’s role in chronic disease and longevity. He received his degrees from Yale University and the Medical College of Georgia, and completed his surgical residency at the University of Michigan. Follow him on Instagram @drstevengundry.

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Social discomfort is so universal that social psychologists like me have made careers out of studying it. We can find it almost anywhere, like in salary negotiations or small talk conversations that have one too many awkward pauses.

Almost everyone will at some point find themselves in an interaction that makes them feel uncomfortable. And at work, these situations come up daily. We give and take feedback, manage team dynamics, and navigate status differences. 

Most of us take a simple approach to quelling the discomfort: We smile as hard as we can, laugh (even when nothing is funny), and bend over backwards to convince people: There’s nothing to worry about here. This interaction will be a positive one. I am nice. 

Maybe too nice?     

There is a sad irony here: The harder we try to use niceness to cover up our discomfort, the more people can see right through us.

Humans are good at picking up on emotions, which leak out through our nonverbal behaviors, like tone of voice. We think we’re doing a good job of masking anxiety by layering on the compliments, but when those compliments are delivered through artificial smiles, no one is buying it.

DON’T MISS: How to successfully change careers and be happier at work

Often, we regulate our discomfort by giving feedback that is so generic, it’s not useful. Think of your classic, “Great job!” In many cases, it’s also unearned. 

Overly positive feedback signals that you’re not paying attention — and you probably aren’t, if you’re too busy trying to regulate yourself. Over time, the person on the receiving end becomes distrustful of you. They need specific information that would actually help them improve their work. 

Many people work in environments where being overly nice is the norm. Here are three things you can do to shift that culture to one in which honest, useful feedback is valued instead. 

1. Question the ‘niceness culture’

Ask yourself: Does everyone around me enjoy this overly nice culture, or are they doing it because everyone else is doing it? 

Social norms are a big driver of behaviors, and the quicker newcomers adopt those norms, the sooner they’ll be perceived as “fitting in.” If a newcomer observes everyone laying on compliments after a subpar presentation, they’ll do the same.

If no one explicitly questions this behavior, the result is what social psychologists call “pluralistic ignorance”: Everybody assumes that everyone else is engaging in overly nice feedback because they want to. But secretly, nobody likes it.

Start a conversation around change. Get a sense of what people really feel about the nice culture. One way to do this is by proposing alternatives. 

Before the next presentation, for example, you might ask people: “How would you feel if we each wrote down three specific things that you could improve and three specific things that you should definitely keep at the end of the presentation?” 

2. Be precise and particular

It’s natural for us to extrapolate from behaviors to form impressions and make assumptions. For example, we might decide that someone who is chronically late is lazy. But impressions are often too general to be useful, even if they’re positive. 

Strive for specific, behavior-based feedback instead. The more precisely you can pinpoint the issue — that a presentation that had too much jargon, for example, rather than “it was boring” — the more useful the feedback will be.

The same goes for praise. If you tell someone exactly what they did well or why their work was excellent, you’ll come off as more genuine and your feedback will be more meaningful.  

Removing broad generalizations from the equation has the added benefit of reducing threat for the person on the receiving end, especially if that feedback is critical. 

3. If you’re new at this, start small and neutral

It can feel like jumping off a cliff, moving from an overly nice feedback culture to an honest one. 

Start small. Pick issues that are mundane, but that people still care about, like what to stock in the office kitchen. Nothing that will get anyone’s blood boiling. The goal is to build the feedback muscle. That way, once you jump into the tougher stuff, the norms around honesty have already started to change.  

As you work on shifting the culture around you, be patient. Norms take a long time to form, and a long time to change.

Tessa West is a social psychologist and professor at New York University. She has spent years leveraging science to help people solve interpersonal conflicts in the workplace. She’s the author of ”Jerks at Work: Toxic Coworkers and What to Do About Them″ and ”Job Therapy: Finding Work That Works for You.” She is an instructor in CNBC’s online course How to Change Careers and Be Happier at Work.

Want a new career that’s higher-paying, more flexible or fulfilling? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Change Careers and Be Happier at Work. Expert instructors will teach you strategies to network successfully, revamp your resume and confidently transition into your dream career. Start today and use coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 30% off $67 (+taxes and fees) through May 13, 2025.