When a child is upset, most parents reach for the same question instinctively: “What’s wrong?”

It’s well-intentioned and it comes from care. But after years of teaching conscious parenting and studying over 200 kids, I’ve seen how often that question does the opposite of what parents hope. Instead of opening children up, it can shut them down.

Emotional intelligence develops when children feel safe enough to reflect. Without that foundation, even the most caring questions can feel overwhelming in the moment.

Across my research, one sentence reliably helped children pause, reflect, and communicate more openly: “Tell me what feels hard right now.”

This magic phrase works because it matches how children actually experience emotions in real life. Rather than pushing for clarity or explanations, it creates the conditions where insight can emerge naturally.

During meltdowns, after-school emotional releases, or moments of sudden irritability, children are already on edge. The word “hard” feels human and non-threatening. It signals to your child that they aren’t in trouble and don’t need to justify their feelings, making it easier to stay engaged instead of shutting down or pushing back.

Children don’t need to label emotions precisely. They can describe a situation, a sensation, or a moment that felt overwhelming. Over time, this gently expands emotional language, allowing insight to develop naturally rather than being forced before a child has the words.

Before problem-solving, before advice, before correction, this phrase tells a child: “I can handle what you’re feeling.” Emotional intelligence grows in welcoming environments where emotions are met with steadiness instead of urgency.

Rather than demanding an explanation, this question invites reflection. The child decides how much to share and when, reinforcing a sense of agency over their emotional experience, which is an essential foundation for self-regulation and confidence.

When children feel emotionally safe, their stress response begins to settle. This phrase is especially effective when behavior feels disproportionate or confusing because it prioritizes regulation before reasoning.

By focusing on what feels hard, parents communicate that emotions can be noticed without being rushed or fixed. It teaches kids that feelings can be experienced and moved through rather than avoided or suppressed.

Children learn emotional intelligence through experience, not instruction. When parents respond with calm curiosity instead of control or urgency, they model how to approach emotions with steadiness and reflection. These are skills children eventually apply to themselves.

Our job as parents is to create an environment where our children feel safe sharing their inner worlds. When you adjust your language, you shape the emotional tone of your relationship. Over time, children learn that their feelings are important signals that deserve attention.

Reem Raouda is a leading voice in conscious parenting and the creator of the BOUND and FOUNDATIONS journals, now offered together as her Emotional Safety Bundle. She is widely recognized for her expertise in children’s emotional well-being and for redefining what it means to raise emotionally healthy kids. Connect with her on Instagram.

Want to give your kids the ultimate advantage? Sign up for CNBC’s new online course, How to Raise Financially Smart Kids. Learn how to build healthy financial habits today to set your children up for greater success in the future. 

Everyday living costs play a major role in how much money you need to retire.

A new state-by-state analysis from personal finance website GOBankingRates shows that the estimated total savings needed to retire at 65 can differ by as much as $1.46 million depending on where you live.

In Hawaii, retirees need about $2.2 million to stop working at 65 and cover essential living expenses for 25 years, including housing, groceries, transportation, utilities and health-care costs. That is the highest estimated minimum of any state. By comparison, Oklahoma has the lowest estimated total, at $735,284, to cover the same basic costs.

The analysis is based on the average living costs for retirees 65 or older in each state, drawn from the latest data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. From there, GOBankingRates subtracted average Social Security payments and estimated the savings needed to cover the remaining expenses using an annual 4% withdrawal rate.

The resulting figures represent a baseline for covering essential costs and don’t factor in discretionary spending such as travel, dining or entertainment. Additionally, the estimates don’t account for factors such as inflation, lifestyle changes or unexpected costs.

Housing is the biggest factor in annual retirement costs, as it varies by roughly $30,000 annually between states. Utilities and health-care costs can range by as much as $5,000 annually, the study finds.

Here’s a look the minimum amount of savings needed to retire at 65 in each state, in alphabetical order.

• Annual cost of living: $53,999
• Savings you need to retire: $789,037

• Annual cost of living: $78,449
• Savings you need to retire: $1,400,286

• Annual cost of living: $66,838
• Savings you need to retire: $1,110,019

• Annual cost of living: $54,859
• Savings you need to retire: $810,538

• Annual cost of living: $83,978
• Savings you need to retire: $1,538,508

• Annual cost of living: $63,091
• Savings you need to retire: $1,016,336

• Annual cost of living: $70,094
• Savings you need to retire: $1,191,417

• Annual cost of living: $63,152
• Savings you need to retire: $1,017,871

• Annual cost of living: $61,125
• Savings you need to retire: $967,190

• Annual cost of living: $56,395
• Savings you need to retire: $848,933

• Annual cost of living: $110,393
• Savings you need to retire: $2,198,902

• Annual cost of living: $60,818
• Savings you need to retire: $959,511

• Annual cost of living: $58,913
• Savings you need to retire: $911,901

• Annual cost of living: $55,657
• Savings you need to retire: $830,504

• Annual cost of living: $55,473
• Savings you need to retire: $825,896

• Annual cost of living: $54,613
• Savings you need to retire: $804,395

• Annual cost of living: $56,456
• Savings you need to retire: $850,469

• Annual cost of living: $56,947
• Savings you need to retire: $862,756

• Annual cost of living: $70,155
• Savings you need to retire: $1,192,953

• Annual cost of living: $73,043
• Savings you need to retire: $1,265,135

• Annual cost of living: $92,639
• Savings you need to retire: $1,755,055

• Annual cost of living: $58,176
• Savings you need to retire: $893,472

• Annual cost of living: $57,869
• Savings you need to retire: $885,793

• Annual cost of living: $52,524
• Savings you need to retire: $752,178

• Annual cost of living: $54,674
• Savings you need to retire: $805,931

• Annual cost of living: $67,452
• Savings you need to retire: $1,125,377

• Annual cost of living: $56,272
• Savings you need to retire: $845,862

• Annual cost of living: $60,572
• Savings you need to retire: $953,368

• Annual cost of living: $67,084
• Savings you need to retire: $1,116,163

• Annual cost of living: $70,401
• Savings you need to retire: $1,199,096

• Annual cost of living: $56,825
• Savings you need to retire: $859,684

• Annual cost of living: $77,773
• Savings you need to retire: $1,383,392

• Annual cost of living: $59,835
• Savings you need to retire: $934,938

• Annual cost of living: $56,087
• Savings you need to retire: $841,254

• Annual cost of living: $57,009
• Savings you need to retire: $864,291

• Annual cost of living: $51,849
• Savings you need to retire: $735,284

• Annual cost of living: $68,681
• Savings you need to retire: $1,156,093

• Annual cost of living: $59,650
• Savings you need to retire: $930,331

• Annual cost of living: $69,664
• Savings you need to retire: $1,180,666

• Annual cost of living: $56,825
• Savings you need to retire: $859,684

• Annual cost of living: $56,395
• Savings you need to retire: $848,933

• Annual cost of living: $55,473
• Savings you need to retire: $825,896

• Annual cost of living: $55,780
• Savings you need to retire: $833,575

• Annual cost of living: $60,879
• Savings you need to retire: $961,047

• Annual cost of living: $69,848
• Savings you need to retire: $1,185,274

• Annual cost of living: $61,493
• Savings you need to retire: $976,405

• Annual cost of living: $69,971
• Savings you need to retire: $1,188,345

• Annual cost of living: $54,122
• Savings you need to retire: $792,109

• Annual cost of living: $60,019
• Savings you need to retire: $939,546

• Annual cost of living: $58,545
• Savings you need to retire: $902,686

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At just 15, Tuan Le made a bold promise: He told his parents he would help them retire in 10 years.

The family had just immigrated to Canada from Vietnam, and Le’s parents worked tirelessly to provide for him and his sister.

“I remember my old man coming home at, like, 7 a.m., and my mom told me that he lost like five pounds after one week,” the 25-year-old tells CNBC Make It. “That was an awakening moment for me. That’s when I told my parents, ‘Give me 10 years, I’m gonna retire you guys.’”

His parents wanted better opportunities for Le and his sister, he says. While their family was “extremely comfortable in Vietnam,” he says, the opportunities for college graduates weren’t as abundant as they are in the U.S. Although Le says his parents “sold everything” to move the family to Canada, the move caused a lot of depression and anger for Le, who didn’t speak much English when he immigrated.

But in 2025, Le made good on his promise of helping his parents retire. The success of the video production company he founded, Toronto-based ShortsCut, allowed Le to start sending his parents $5,000 CAD — around $3,652 USD — per month. It’s enough to cover their rent and expenses living about an hour outside of Toronto. 

“My parents are still working because they told me they wanted to do something with their time, but they don’t have to work,” he says. His parents work two days a week at a farmers market stall his mom runs.

Le founded ShortsCut, which creates short-form videos for brands, in 2023. The company mainly produces videos for TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. He started small, filming food for restaurants around Toronto, and says he eventually leveled up to making high-quality videos designed to go viral on social media. 

In 2025, ShortsCut brought in $1.08 million with a net profit of just over $488,000, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. The company generally has 10 to 12 clients on its roster, including pet food and tech companies, Le says. 

While struggling to acclimate to life in Canada, teenage Le played a lot of video games, he says, and eventually started cutting together video montages of his gameplay. 

“That’s how I got into video editing,” he says. From there, “I started editing videos for League of Legends YouTubers and then finance YouTubers [and] some dropship YouTubers.”

Back then, he charged $20 CAD for roughly 20-minute videos, he says. He enjoyed the video editing process so much, he decided to pursue it professionally, enrolling at Toronto Film School a year after he graduated from high school in 2018.

One of his first assignments was to make a video on a subject that was meaningful to him, and he made a short film about his parents. The film landed in the school’s hall of fame, Le says, and at that point, just four months into his time there, he decided to drop out.

“To me it was like, ‘Wow, that’s sick,’ but at the same time, I heard this quote that goes like, ‘If you’re the best in the room, then you’re in the wrong room,’” he says.

After dropping out of film school, Le tried to land “any job” that would let him make videos for a living by cold emailing “every single CEO, production company, marketing agency in Toronto,” he says. But he lacked professional experience and didn’t receive any offers. 

Eventually, Le offered to work for a Toronto-based content production company for free for three months in exchange for training in running a business, such as writing emails and negotiating deals.

During that time, Le started shooting his own videos on the side. He messaged “every single restaurant” in Toronto asking if he could make a video for them in exchange for a meal, he says.

“I was shooting videos for a restaurant in exchange for free food, and I was living out of a suitcase with my laptop on my friend’s couch,” Le says.

He started out making videos for small food stalls and mom-and-pop shops on his phone before upgrading to nicer cameras he got off of Facebook Marketplace. Still, Le noticed the videos weren’t garnering a ton of views or engagement when the restaurants posted them on Instagram.

TikTok was beginning to really take off at the time, and Le saw that as an opportunity. He asked his clients for $2,000 to make 10 TikToks.

“If it doesn’t work, if it doesn’t get any views, I will give you your money back,” he says he told them.

The first video Le made for a client racked up 700,000 views, he says. And the next got 300,000. His strategy was simply to identify trending video formats and make similar videos promoting the restaurants. His viral videos helped one client gain 9,000 followers overnight, he says.

“After that I was like, ‘Wow, I think I got something here,’” he says. “I just took that case study [to other clients] and was like, ‘Hey, I can help you go viral.’”

After his three months of working for free were up, Le left to start ShortsCut at the end of 2022. The company officially launched in January 2023.

Le soon branched out to work with brands outside of the restaurant world, including Buldak ramen noodles and AI software company Replit.

As Le’s portfolio grew, so did his prices. Initially, ShortsCut charged $2,000 a month per client. It uses a retainer model, so the number of videos produced per month varies by client. Now, the company charges between $10,000 and $16,000 a month.

In the company’s early days, Le guaranteed virality or he’d refund the client’s money — and only had to issue one refund, he says.

“Now that I have a track record of making things go viral and have the credential to myself, I don’t have to make that promise anymore,” he says.

Le made his first hire for the company in February 2023 and as of the end of 2025, the staff had grown to 15 content creators, script writers, project managers and other personnel around the world. 

Le says he’s proud of the company he’s built and his ability to accomplish his goal of helping his parents retire, but he’s not done yet.

“I want [ShortsCut] to be doing $100 million [in revenue] in about five years,” Le says. “It’s a bit delusional, but … you’ve got to be a little bit delusional to play this game.”

Conversions from Canadian dollars to USD were done using the OANDA conversion rate of 0.73 CAD to $1 USD on Dec. 31, 2025. All amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar.

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The word “burnout” isn’t in the dictionary of Jack Zhang, co-founder and CEO of fintech company Airwallex.

“I never understand that terminology to be honest. I’ve worked 100 hours a week from [the] age of 16 for 20 plus years,” Zhang told CNBC Make It.

For Zhang, hard work meant survival. At age 15, he moved away from his hometown of Qingdao, China to Melbourne, Australia alone, to pursue better opportunities. He barely spoke English and stayed with an Australian host family.

Shortly after arriving, he learned that his parents had found themselves in financial hot water back in China, and that he would have to support himself through university.

“I [had] two choices: either I just return to China and try to go back to the education system there, or I continue to stay in Australia and figure out how to pay [for my] tuition and living [expenses] on my own,” said Zhang. He decided to stick with the latter and took whatever work he could find to make ends meet.

To pay for his computer science degree at the University of Melbourne, Zhang juggled four blue-collar jobs: washing dishes at a restaurant during the day, bartending in the evening, working the overnight shift at a petrol station and packing lemons in a factory over the summer.

Some weeks, he says, he clocked 80 to 100 hours of work on top of his coursework.

“When you’re … in that tough situation [where] you need to survive, you’re not really [thinking] about burnout. I mean, either you survive or not, right?” he said.

Not much has changed since then. Now in his 40s, Zhang still clocks 80 hours a week “easily,” he said, at his own fintech firm. As of December 2025, the company is valued at $8 billion.

After graduating from university in 2007, Zhang went into the corporate world. His first job was at an insurance company called Aviva, before he entered the banking industry.

At the same time, he also built a few side businesses, from a shipping company where he exported olive oils and red wines from Australia to parts of Asia, to a real estate development firm.

His side hustles proved lucrative. By the time he reached his 20s, money was no longer an issue. However, although he had accumulated millions through his businesses and banking career, Zhang said he had yet to find his true passion.

Everything changed when he had his daughter at age 30.

“I remember I just looked at her, I [felt] like, I hadn’t done anything [to] make her feel proud. And I think that’s the moment I [decided] I need to stop just doing these side hustles, and I need to retire from my full time job and do something big, properly,” said Zhang.

“I realized that while I always wanted money, money alone doesn’t bring [me] the highest level of happiness,” he added. Instead, he said he wanted to build something that he was extremely passionate about.

“I always wanted to find something [where] no one needs to ever wake me up and … every day I feel extremely passionate, obligated, and willing to devote my entire survival towards,” said Zhang. So, in December 2015, he quit his banking job and started the next chapter of his life.

The idea for Airwallex stemmed from one of Zhang’s side hustles, a Melbourne-based coffee shop that he ran alongside his co-founder and university friend, Max Li.

As part of running that business, the two would often import coffee beans and supplies from places like China and Brazil, which required them to wire money overseas. Through this process, they realized how expensive and inefficient cross-border payments and transfers were through the traditional SWIFT system.

“We thought, why can’t we build a … payment system in parallel to SWIFT and fundamentally change how money moves around the world?” said Zhang. They wanted to create a solution to streamline cross-border payments, and thus, the original idea for Airwallex was born.

Zhang and Li went on to bring together other friends from their university network to help work on the idea: Lucy Liu, Jacob Dai and Ki-lok Wong. Liu played a key role early on and invested the first $1 million into the startup.

By late 2015, the group officially founded Airwallex. After about a decade of more 80-hour work weeks, as of end last year, the company crossed $1 billion in annualized run rate revenue (ARR), which estimates a company’s future yearly earnings based on a shorter period of financial data.

“I’m still very excited about what’s ahead of us,” said Zhang. “I think there’s tons of opportunities ahead of us … we think we can generate [at least] $10 billion [in] revenue by 2030 so that is our next goal post.”

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One thing many workers are keen to leave behind heading into 2026? The 9-to-5 schedule. In its place, many are interested in adopting a practice called “microshifting.”

In Owl Labs’ 2025 State of Hybrid Work report, 65% of workers reported being interested in microshifting, defined as working in “short, non-linear blocks based on personal energy, responsibilities, or productivity patterns.”

“Microshifting appeals to employees not just as a scheduling preference, but as a way to reclaim control over their increasingly fragmented work lives,” Owl Labs CEO Frank Weishaupt tells CNBC Make It. “Employees are improvising solutions to reconcile the demands of their jobs with the realities of their lives.”

During the pandemic remote work boom, many workers had greater control over their time during their workdays. The interest in microshifting could represent interest in keeping that flexibility, particularly among those with some degree of remote or self-directed work, as it may be more difficult for office workers in traditional 9-to-5 jobs.

But microshifting isn’t an entirely new practice. Doug Gregory of Grand Rapids, Michigan, says he’s been doing it as a remote worker for decades, before it had that name, and even more so since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We kind of got used to the idea of being present or available for loved ones,” he says of broader sentiment in the workforce stemming from the pandemic remote work era. “We got used to taking better care of our health.”

While Gregory acknowledges that “not everybody has control over their calendar,” he finds “the day is more fluid” when he’s microshifting.

“If I need to take an hour off during the day to go do something with the grandkid or to go see a doctor or whatever, it’s okay, I make up for it in the evening, I make up for it early in the morning,” he says. “It really comes back to what am I responsible for getting done, how do I do it, and how do I organize my life to do it.”

Gregory previously held sales roles but today is self-employed working in audiovisual integration.

“I earn a living based on outcomes,” he says. “Nobody sends me a check for how many hours I work in a week.”

Microshifting could be particularly useful for parents and caregivers; Owl Labs’ report found caregivers were roughly three times as likely to try microshifting as non-caregivers.

Theresa Robertson of Elkridge, Maryland, is one of them. Robertson says she juggled her work, including a former role as a project manager, with caregiving for her late husband, who had chronic health issues, for 25 years.

“To me, it was just making sure I didn’t lose my job,” she says. “I had to take care of my husband, and I had to work, so I had to figure it out.”

That meant scheduling meetings around his doctors’ appointments and starting some days early or ending others late to take him to those appointments, manage his medications and handle other caregiving responsibilities.

“We had a routine; after I got him settled, made sure he was dressed and he had his medicine and he had his food, then I could relax and focus on work,” she says. “I had more control over my day where I could stop and decide, okay I need to check his blood pressure and then go back to work.”

Some of her jobs during this period, like in project management, were more outcome-based so she was trusted to manage her time as long as she handled her work, she notes.

“As long as I got the job done on time and on budget, they weren’t really looking at did I punch a clock to see was I in the building at 7 a.m.” she says. “I’ve had so many Zoom meetings in hospital rooms because wherever I go I take my laptop and when I can work, I can work.”

Today, Robertson runs a virtual assistant agency, which she says helps her continue to microshift. She sets her hours such that she’s mostly free on Friday afternoons, for example, to tend to personal matters.

“I microshift all the time,” she says. “That’s the only way I’m able to have a life and produce an income.”

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