Seven years ago, Tavis Malcolm and his wife went on a family camping trip and couldn’t find a sleeping bag suitable for their newborn son.

Instead, they layered pajamas, a snowsuit and a swaddle blanket to keep baby Morrison warm. It was an ‘aha’ moment for Malcolm, a New Mexico-native and former Eagle Scout who came from a family of business owners, he said on Friday’s episode of ABC’s “Shark Tank.”

In June 2018, Malcolm quit his marketing job. Six months later, he launched Morrison Outdoors, which sells sleeping bags for babies and toddlers, as well as a selection of products for adults. On the show, he asked the panel of investor judges for $300,000 in exchange for 10% equity in his business, which he and his wife launched in his garage.

“I told my wife, ‘Listen, I think that this could be something serious. I want to quit my job, I want to take our savings — which at the time was like $3,000 — and I want to commit myself to launching this product,’” Malcolm said.

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Between the company’s launch and the episode’s September 2024 filming, Morrison Outdoors generated $4.3 million in sales, said Malcolm. “Year-to-date this year, we’re at $850,000 [in revenue] and we’re looking at about $1.1 million [in projected 2024 revenue],” he added.

The company was barely profitable in 2023 due to Malcolm’s overconfidence with marketing, he explained: “I said, I’m going to blow out marketing on every channel at once. I’m going to go to these trade shows, I’m going to hire these people … I spent away our whole margin.”

His overspending was a valuable learning lesson for any business owner, said Mark Cuban.

“That is the best lesson to everybody watching. When you chase topline growth, you’re going to have to chase your profit margins because they’re leaving too,” Cuban said. “When your bottom line goes up, not only can you control your own destiny, but you can reinvest in your business and it makes you more attractive to investors like us.”

“So far, we’ve spent less than $15,000 on marketing this year to generate that $850,000 in sales,” Malcolm responded, adding that Morrison Outdoors was on track to end 2024 profitable. (The company didn’t immediately respond to CNBC Make It’s request for updated 2024 figures.)

The investors said they liked Malcolm’s dedication to his business, and appreciated Morrison Outdoors’ wide-ranging target audience — with some products meant for kids, and others meant for adults. Kevin O’Leary and Lori Greiner both said they liked the company’s adult sleeping bag, called the Mega Mo, which comes with pockets, sleeves and a bottom zipper to enable walking while wearing it.

“Mega Mo is a bigger market,” Kevin O’Leary said. “This would work.” “That’s so fabulous,” Lori Greiner added.

O’Leary, who “sleeps with a mint on my pillow every night,” said he wasn’t outdoorsy enough to make an offer. Greiner and Robert Herjavec also bowed out, leaving only Cuban and Barbara Corcoran — who partnered up to offer a total of $300,000 for a combined 20% equity stake in Morrison Outdoors. Malcolm quickly accepted their offer.

The deal fell apart after the show’s taping, Malcolm told KOAT Action 7 News on Friday.

“There’s a lot more that goes into an investment than just what you see on TV,” he said. “After the show aired, we worked with the Sharks, we did our due diligence for months and in the end. The deal didn’t go through, which was unfortunate, but we’re still incredibly grateful for this opportunity.”

Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank.”

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Warren Buffett’s retirement announcement got most of the attention at Berkshire Hathaway’s 2025 annual meeting, but the billionaire investor also used the event to share a “fascinating” movie recommendation.

“Check out ‘Becoming Katharine Graham’ and you’ll see a remarkable story of American history,” Buffett told attendees at the meeting, which took place on May 4. The documentary, which started streaming on Amazon Prime in February, covers the life of the longtime publisher of The Washington Post who led the newspaper through pivotal historical moments, including its reporting on the Pentagon Papers and Watergate.

“There are a good many portions in there that I, who lived through that period, didn’t know about at that time. And I think every American citizen ought to watch it,” said Buffett, 94, who also announced his impending retirement as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway during the annual meeting.

Buffett has “no financial interest” in the film, he said, but he does appear in it as a longtime friend of Graham’s who used to own a significant stake in the Post. Graham died in 2001, at age 84.

Buffett’s relationship with the newspaper goes back more than eight decades. When he was young, his family moved to Washington, D.C. upon his father’s election to U.S. Congress. At age 13, Buffett woke up at 4:30 every morning to earn money delivering The Washington Post to his neighbors.

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Decades later, Buffett invested $11 million in The Washington Post Company, the holding company that owned the newspaper. He made the investment in 1973, just a year after Graham took the reins to become the first female CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

Buffett wrote a letter to Graham at the time, informing her that he was buying significant shares in her public company, which he believed was “dramatically undervalued.” In the letter, which Graham included in her 1997 autobiography, “Personal History,” Buffett also included his endorsement of Graham as a CEO.

After buying those shares, Buffett served on the company’s board of directors for nearly four decades, until 2011 — often sharing his investment advice with Graham. In the documentary, Graham noted about Buffett: “He used to come to board meetings with about 20 annual reports, and he would take me through these annual reports. I mean, it was like going to business school with Warren Buffet.”

At Berkshire Hathaway’s 2013 meeting, Buffett lauded the number of large U.S. companies run by women: “It’s moving in the right direction … But, you know, I hope it keeps moving and moving faster.” There were 20 female CEOs in the Fortune 500 at the time. Last year, there were 52, according to Fortune.

Buffett’s bet on Graham and the newspaper proved fruitful. The company’s “stock went up 40-for-1 when she was CEO,” he noted during the 2013 meeting.

By 2014, Buffett held a 23.4% stake in the company, now called Graham Holdings, which owns an assortment of properties in the media, health care and automotive industries. (The company sold The Washington Post to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos for $250 million in 2013.)

When Buffett sold his shares in Graham Holdings in 2014, his stake was valued at nearly $1.1 billion, The Washington Post reported at the time.

At the 2025 Berkshire meeting, Buffett said documentary viewers would likely learn a lot from Graham’s life and career: “People don’t remember enough about Katharine Graham, [her] story shaped America in many ways.”

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Earning more than $110,000 in household income doesn’t make you rich — but in most states, it means you’re upper-middle class.

Nationwide, upper-middle class households earn a median income between $117,000 and $150,000, according to a new GOBankingRates analysis of 2023 Census Bureau data.

The analysis is based on Pew Research’s definition of middle class: households earning between two-thirds and twice their state’s median income. Using the most recent Census data from 2023, GOBankingRates calculated the middle class range for each state, then used the top third to determine what was upper-middle class.

At the state level, the income range for upper-middle class varies widely. In Maryland — where many high-earning government workers live in affluent suburbs near Washington, D.C. — households earning between $158,125 and $203,304 fall into the upper-middle class.

In contrast, the mostly rural state of Mississippi has the lowest range of all states, starting at $85,423 and capping at $109,830.

Below, see how much your household would need to earn to be considered upper-middle class in your state — and how that compares to the state’s median income.

• Low end of upper-middle class: $96,486
• High end of upper-middle class: $124,054
• Median household income: $62,027

• Low end of upper-middle class: $138,967
• High end of upper-middle class: $178,672
• Median household income: $89,336  

• Low end of upper-middle class: $119,579 
• High end of upper-middle class: $153,744
• Median household income: $76,872 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $91,425
• High end of upper-middle class: $117,546
• Median household income: $58,773 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $149,853
• High end of upper-middle class: $192,668
• Median household income: $96,334 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $143,842
• High end of upper-middle class: $184,940
• Median household income: $92,470  

• Low end of upper-middle class: $145,849
• High end of upper-middle class: $187,520
• Median household income: $93,760  

• Low end of upper-middle class: $128,886
• High end of upper-middle class: $165,710
• Median household income: $82,855

• Low end of upper-middle class: $111,550
• High end of upper-middle class: $143,422
• Median household income: $71,711  

• Low end of upper-middle class: $116,144 
• High end of upper-middle class: $149,328
• Median household income: $74,664 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $152,938
• High end of upper-middle class: $196,634
• Median household income: $98,317 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $116,100
• High end of upper-middle class: $149,272
• Median household income: $74,636 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $127,092
• High end of upper-middle class: $163,404
• Median household income: $81,702 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $108,968
• High end of upper-middle class: $140,102
• Median household income: $70,051 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $113,784
• High end of upper-middle class: $146,294
• Median household income: $73,147 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $112,994
• High end of upper-middle class: $145,278
• Median household income: $72,639 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $97,093
• High end of upper-middle class: $124,834
• Median household income: $62,417 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $93,369
• High end of upper-middle class: $120,046
•  Median household income: $60,023 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $111,647
• High end of upper-middle class: $143,546
• Median household income: $71,773

• Low end of upper-middle class: $158,125
• High end of upper-middle class: $203,304
• Median household income: $101,652 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $157,642
• High end of upper-middle class: $202,682
• Median household income: $101,341 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $110,676
• High end of upper-middle class: $142,298
• Median household income: $71,149

• Low end of upper-middle class: $136,198
• High end of upper-middle class: $175,112
• Median household income: $87,556 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $85,423
• High end of upper-middle class: $109,830
• Median household income: $54,915 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $107,209
• High end of upper-middle class: $137,840
• Median household income: $68,920 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $108,768
• High end of upper-middle class: $139,844
• Median household income: $69,922 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $116,643
• High end of upper-middle class: $149,970
• Median household income: $74,985 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $117,539
• High end of upper-middle class: $151,122
• Median household income: $75,561 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $148,755
• High end of upper-middle class: $191,256
• Median household income: $95,628 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $157,189
• High end of upper-middle class: $202,100
• Median household income: $101,050 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $96,639
• High end of upper-middle class: $124,250
• Median household income: $62,268 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $131,566
• High end of upper-middle class: $169,156
• Median household income: $84,578 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $108,740
• High end of upper-middle class: $139,808
• Median household income: $69,904 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $118,143
• High end of upper-middle class: $151,898
• Median household income: $75,949 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $108,391
• High end of upper-middle class: $139,360
• Median household income: $69,680 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $98,938
• High end of upper-middle class: $127,206
• Median household income: $63,603 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $125,107
• High end of upper-middle class: $160,852
• Median household income: $80,426 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $118,348
• High end of upper-middle class: $152,162
• Median household income: $76,081 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $134,356
• High end of upper-middle class: $172,744
• Median household income: $86,372 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $103,939
• High end of upper-middle class: $133,636
• Median household income: $66,818 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $112,655
• High end of upper-middle class: $144,842
• Median household income: $72,421 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $104,373
• High end of upper-middle class: $134,194
• Median household income: $67,097 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $118,676
• High end of upper-middle class: $152,584
• Median household income: $76,292 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $142,722
• High end of upper-middle class: $183,500
• Median household income: $91,750 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $121,371
• High end of upper-middle class: $156,048
• Median household income: $78,024 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $141,515
• High end of upper-middle class: $181,948
• Median household income: $90,974 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $147,703
• High end of upper-middle class: $189,904
• Median household income: $94,952 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $90,093
• High end of upper-middle class: $115,834
• Median household income: $57,917 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $117,709
• High end of upper-middle class: $151,340
• Median household income: $75,670 

• Low end of upper-middle class: $116,379
• High end of upper-middle class: $149,630
• Median household income: $74,815 

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Have you ever been in a work meeting or social gathering where one person just won’t stop talking? It’s really frustrating, especially when you have something to say.

As a global communication expert, I work with a lot of smart, polite people who feel like it’s rude to interrupt. However, in my book, “Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons,” I talk about how important it is for you to speak up, especially if you have something important to add to the conversation. 

Here are three things you need to do:

The first step is to not think of interrupting as a bad thing. Instead, you’re part of the conversation and your thoughts are just as valued as everyone else’s.

Now, with the right mindset, how do you actually get a word in? 

When you find that opportune time to chime in, the first thing you’ll want to say is the person’s name. Research shows our brain lights up when we hear our name being called. It signals to us the flow of the conversation has changed, and we intuitively pause to see what’s going on. 

So say the person’s name firmly and politely. This combination showcases both confidence and presence without coming across as confrontational. 

Next, reroute the conversation to what you want to talk about. Be strategic by showing that you’re collaborative and trying to expand on their thoughts. People love to feel like their ideas were acknowledged and it also creates a seamless conversational flow.

For example, you might say: 

• “Jennifer, I heard what you said about the client’s concern, and it made me think about the approach we used with another client a few years ago…” 
• “Ben, that’s a good point on the project timeline, but Lisa, what’s your take on this from a marketing perspective?”
• “Maya, I agree with you. What you’re saying makes me think of this book I just read…” 
• “Carter, I was silently nodding when you said that because it reminded me of what I experienced last week…” 

When someone feels listened to and heard, they’re more likely to back down and make way for others to speak. Now, you can drive the conversation to what you really want to talk about. 

If you’re not sure exactly how to phrase your interjection, try this sentence — whether you’re in a work brainstorm or a book club meeting: 

″[Person’s name], can I jump in real quick here? I’d love to open up the conversation…”

For example: 

• “Leo, can I jump in real quick here? I’d love to open up the conversation to a slightly different angle.”
• “Jenn, can I jump in real quick here? I’d love to open up the conversation and see what everyone else thinks, too.” 

Let’s say you’ve used this simple strategy to firmly and politely interrupt a person dominating the conversation. But this person just won’t back down. What do you do? 

Being direct is key. If someone keeps going, it’s okay to assert yourself even more firmly and call out exactly what you’re doing. It’s also powerful to pose it as a question.

You might say:

• “Sam, I appreciate your thoughts, but I’d like to make sure others have a chance to weigh in as well right now. Do you mind if we open it up?”
• “Taylor, we know you feel strongly about this, but let’s give Eric a chance to speak too. Is that okay with you?”

At the end of the day, you want to create a respectful environment where everybody feels like they have a chance to talk. Speaking up doesn’t have to be loud or combative. It just has to be intentional. 

If you feel like someone is dominating the conversation and making it difficult for anyone else to get a word in, chances are other people feel the same. With this approach, you can speak up tactfully and politely, but firmly. And I guarantee others will appreciate you for doing it.  

Jessica Chen is a global communications expert, keynote speaker, and a former Emmy-award winning TV journalist. Her book “Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons” teaches smart professionals how to develop workplace confidence and build a career they love using strategic communications skills to stand out. Connect with Jessica on LinkedIn and Instagram. 

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.

I’ve always looked forward to Mother’s Day. I embrace it as a useful reminder to pause in the tumult of everyday life, to reflect lovingly and thankfully about my mother — and the mother figures in my life — and to tell them how important they are to me.

I’m fortunate enough to be both a mother and a daughter. In the past year, however, my relationships with my two daughters have changed. Now they’re both out of the house, and I’ve entered what many people call the “empty-nest stage.”

But I’ve decided to rename this transition as the “open-door stage.” An empty nest suggests abandonment and loss; an open door suggests new possibilities and the freedom to come and go — for my daughters, and also for my husband and me.

As we entered this family open-door phase, I wanted to impart some of the tried-and-true lessons that time and experience had taught me — usually the hard way.

It took me a while, but over time I eventually realized how useless it was to tell my daughters, “Look on the bright side!” “It’s not so bad!” “You’re not afraid of clowns!” I was trying to cheer them up, but they didn’t feel better — they felt worse.

Instead, they were comforted when I said things like, “It sounds like you got really rattled during the exam,” “That comment really hurt your feelings,” or “It’s hard to memorize the multiplication tables.”

After a while, I figured it out: We make people happier by acknowledging that they’re not feeling happy.

One parenting conundrum puzzled me for a long time. I love my daughters with all my heart, I don’t want them to change a bit — so why was I constantly pushing and prodding them to improve?

Finally, I understood: Love is unconditional, and love is demanding. Love accepts you just as you are, and love expects the best from you.

One frustrating aspect of happiness is that we can’t make people change. As a parent, however, I discovered that when I changed myself — when I got more sleep so I was less irritable, when I gave myself more time so I wasn’t rushing around, when I kept my sense of humor — my daughters became calmer and more cheerful.

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I was changing myself, and my daughters responded, and it became clear: We can’t make people change. But when we change, our relationships change — and so others may also change.

I learned one of my most important parenting lessons of all a few years ago, when my daughters were very young.

I remember struggling to articulate a strange paradox that I kept experiencing as a parent: One busy Saturday or a difficult week would stretch out endlessly, but second grade would pass in a flash.

I would lie in bed in the morning, overwhelmed by everything that had to happen before I got back into bed for the night — but Labor Day would come, then almost immediately it was Thanksgiving, then Fourth of July, then Labor Day again.

After many attempts, I managed to put into words how we, as parents, exist in two timelines: The days are long, but the years are short.

These are the lessons that have meant the most to me, as a parent.

Using Mother’s Day as a catalyst for reflection has given me a fresh perspective on the “Secrets of Adulthood” that I’ve learned from being a parent. I’m glad I found this new way to observe this annual holiday.

It’s helpful to have this precise reminder to reflect. After all, what can be done at any time is often done at no time.

Gretchen Rubin is one of today’s most influential observers of happiness and human nature. She’s the author of many books, including the bestseller ”The Happiness Project.” Her books have sold more than 3.5 million copies worldwide, in more than 30 languages. She hosts the award-winning podcast Happier with Gretchen Rubin, where she explores practical solutions for living a happier life. Her new book, ”Secrets of Adulthood,” is out now.

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.