The day Lisa Collum started her side hustle in 2011, she went to OfficeMax and bought five binders with the last $99 in her checking account, she says.

She filled them with copies of her fourth- and fifth-grade writing curricula, sliding pages reading “Top Score Writing by Lisa Collum” into the front plastic covers. As she sold them, the five binders became 10, then 20. Within five years, she was selling hundreds at a time from her living room’s makeshift assembly line, with her 8-year-old operating the three-hole-punch.

Today, Collum, 41, is the CEO of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida-based Top Score Writing, which sells K-12 writing curricula and consulting services to schools and teachers across all 50 U.S. states, she says. Her teaching approach comes from her experience helping fourth graders — many of whom spoke English as a second language — write highly structured essays, and watching their writing test scores rise, she says.

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The side hustle outpaced her $40,000 annual teaching salary within four years, she says, and became her full-time job in 2015. That same year, Collum used funds from her business to buy Coastal Middle and High School, a nonprofit private school in Lake Park, Florida.

Top Score Writing now has six full-time employees, 10 part-time staffers and nearly $1.9 million in annual profit last year, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.

It’s all a surprise to Collum, she says: When a school principal first asked to buy a writing curriculum from her, she laughed and responded, “There’s not an ounce of business in me. I can’t write this down and sell it.”

Collum started her teaching career while in her 20s at the Village Academy School in Delray Beach, Florida. She noticed that her fourth-grade students, many of whom spoke English as a second language, were intimidated by the essay portion of the state’s annual assessments — so she spent her first year teaching them how to plan and write introductory, body and conclusion paragraphs.

In her first semester, 95% of her students passed the state test, up from 38% the previous year, she says. Each of the next two years, every fourth grader at her school was deemed proficient at writing, says Collum.

The jump in scores was dramatic enough to raise flags at the Florida’s Department of Education, incurring two separate investigations at the school. Collum eventually became a writing specialist for her school district, and left that job for a virtual teaching position after she had her third child in 2011.

Three days later, principals from her old district asked if she’d sell them her curriculum, she says. She did, charging a mere $75 per binder. Her business grew through word-of-mouth, as local principals talked with their counterparts in other school districts, and then online once Collum digitized her curricula in 2016.

Top Score Writing’s curricula and teaching plans now cost between $125 and $625 apiece, depending on grade level and services offered.

Initially, Collum built Top Score Writing primarily for Title I schools, which receive extra federal funding to help students from low-income families.

Tina Volanti, a former fifth-grade teacher at Clovis Elementary — a Title I school in Clovis, California — found Top Score Writing on YouTube in 2022, and thought it could help her students’ Covid-disrupted writing skills. Her principal allowed her to pilot the program, and the kids became noticeably more confident as writers, says Volanti, who retired earlier this year.

Over the years, Top Score Writing found its way into schools with higher concentrations of “gifted” students, Collum says. There, its formulaic approach to writing received a more mixed reception: A regimented education that prioritizes structure over creativity helps kids learn how to take tests, but not actually write, critical parents and teachers say.

Collum has lost at least one major contract due to parent outcry, she says. Her typical response: All students need to learn fundamentals, even top students are struggling more with writing than math or reading right now and each Top Score Writing curriculum does touch on creative writing strategies toward the end of the school year.

She’ll work with any school willing to buy Top Score Writing’s curricula, she notes — and she’s learned, largely from experience, when to trust the business instincts she’s developed over the past 13 years.

“The first five years, it was really hard to have confidence in myself, even though I had data that what I was doing worked,” says Collum. “I still know bumps are coming, but now I know how to take the hit and see what I can learn from it. … I always go back to what I believe in and what I know students can do.”

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Former President Donald Trump has won the 2024 election, sweeping into office on a wave of support for Republican candidates.

NBC News reports that the previously Democrat-controlled Senate will have a Republican majority. It’s too early to determine which party will win the majority in the House of Representatives, but should Republicans retain control, the party will be in position to set forth the agenda that Trump laid out on the campaign trail.

For stock investors, the occupant of the Oval Office doesn’t matter much. After all, the S&P 500 has gone up during 17 of the last 20 four-year presidential terms.

But some investors may be eying the pending House races closely.

“What tends to do better for investors is not so much who is in the White House. It’s the makeup of Congress,” says Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at the Carson Group.

Specifically, stocks tend to do better with a divided government. From 1951 through 2023, the S&P 500 has returned an annual average of 8% under single-party rule, compared with a 9.9% average gain when different parties control the presidency and at least one chamber of Congress, according to data provided by the Carson Group.

A divided Congress in particular tends to bode well for investors, with average yearly gains of 15.7% under Democratic presidents and 13.7% under Republican presidents.

Should the S&P 500 finish out 2024 up from the previous year (it’s currently up about 25%), it will mark 14 consecutive years of positive returns under split Congresses.

It’s impossible to say exactly why stocks tend to outperform under divided governments, but it may have to do with the idea that gridlock keeps legislators from pulling levers that will have drastic effects on the economy, says Detrick.

“There’s not too much power one way or the other, not too much spending one way or the other,” he says. “There are checks and balances, the way our forefathers wanted things.”

Still, historical returns are no guarantee of future results. What’s more, the outcome of the recent election has far less bearing on stock prices than the economic fundamentals that drive them. And the government that comes into power under Trump is set to inherit a favorable economic picture, says Detrick.

“Initial [jobless] claims have come back to the lowest levels since May, so we still have a solid labor market,” he says. “We still have a pretty solid economy being led by record earnings.”

Things can change quickly, of course. A unified Congress could potentially take power and pass sweeping legislation that would “upset the apple cart,” Detrick says. But even then, you’re likely better off paying attention to the things that have direct impact on the economy, like central banking policy.

“Right now, the Fed is cutting rates,” Detrick says. “That matters much more to us as investors versus something that Congress is up to.” Lower interest rates directly impact the economy by making it easy for consumers and businesses to get access to credit. They’re also, in this case, a response to an assessment on the part of the Fed that inflation is cooling.

In other words, if you’re stressing today about the election’s potential impact on your finances, it’s worth remembering that, while policy can have an effect on your portfolio, it’s far from the deciding factor for how things play out in the markets.

“The reality is that the economy matters more,” says Detrick.

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Starting a business takes dedication. Making it successful requires you to “multiply that by infinity,” says billionaire Raising Cane’s co-founder and CEO Todd Graves.

Graves would know: He worked 90-hour weeks at a California oil refinery and fished for salmon in Alaska just to get his Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based chicken finger restaurant chain off the ground in 1996. Nearly three decades later, Raising Cane’s has more than 800 locations worldwide and could finish this year with nearly $5 billion in sales, a spokesperson says.

“I can’t tell you how many 15, 16-hour days I’ve worked in a row,” Graves, 52, tells CNBC Make It. “I had to miss a lot of stuff.”

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At times, Graves worked so much that his wife would bring their two kids to his office for dinner and playtime — after which he’d go back to work, he says. Today, he runs a company reportedly worth billions: Much of his estimated $9.5 billion in net worth is due to his 90% ownership stake in Raising Cane’s, according to Forbes.

As such, he’s still busy — but he’s configured his workload to make time for family and friends anyway, he says. During vacations, for example, he’s occasionally woken up at 4:30 a.m. to work so he could join his family by 11 a.m. and spend the rest of the day with them, he notes.

“I’m as busy as anybody I know, I travel as much as anybody I know, but I can work my schedule where I can make most of the things I need to be at with kids, family or important friends,” says Graves.

Few entrepreneurs expect to have a healthy work-life balance in a business’ early days. That’s not necessarily bad: Trying to balance your work and life can add extra stress to an already-busy schedule, according to Jackie Bowie, a managing partner at financial risk management firm Chatham Financial.

“If you’re doing something that’s really worthwhile to you, and you enjoy it, you just accept that sometimes it’s going to be really hard work and you have to make sacrifices,” Bowie told CNBC’s “My Biggest Lessons” last year.

When Graves opened the restaurant’s first location, he rented an apartment behind the storefront and had a coordinated nap schedule with co-founder Craig Silvey to maintain their long workdays: 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next day, he told the “How I Built This” podcast in 2022.

You need that level of commitment as long as you’re trying to grow your business, Graves says. If you ever become comfortable with your company’s level of success, you can hire people to take some work off your plate, he adds.

That’s easier said than done: The act of delegation can be difficult for anyone used to working long hours or covering a wide range of responsibilities, from CEOs down to first-time managers. Trust the people around you to do their jobs, especially if you hired them — and remember that other people can effectively complete tasks in ways that differ from your approach, career experts recommend.

“It can certainly be tempting to get lost in the details of your team’s work, especially if you enjoy that discipline and genuinely find it interesting,” career expert Amanda Augustine told CNBC Make It in 2017. “However, don’t get so wrapped up in the little details that you neglect your management duties, such as setting the strategy and developing your people, and delay a project because you just can’t let go.”

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In 2017, Detroit-native Vincent Orr was working as a production supervisor at Chrysler, when he kept seeing and hearing advertisements for The Detroit Land Bank Authority.

The organization, founded in 2008, offers residents of Detroit, Michigan the opportunity to buy vacant, abandoned, or deteriorated houses and land at auction.

Orr submitted a bid and won a three-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bath house for $2,100. The property had been abandoned for about a decade.

“I wanted to invest my money, so I got up one day and decided to look on the website and saw they had something in my neighborhood for sale,” Orr tells CNBC Make It. “I drove by and decided to bid on it. I never saw the inside, and by 4 p.m. that day, I was the property owner.”

But Orr was in for a rude awakening. When he finally got access to the inside of the house, it had a giant hole in the roof, water damage, and the electrical and plumbing needed replacing. Despite all the repair work that lay ahead, Orr was still excited about purchasing his first home in the neighborhood where he went to high school.

“I thought it had great bones. I liked the architecture, and I was familiar with the neighborhood. I knew the potential of the area and the property,” Orr says. “I was also excited to have a piece of history because the house was built in the 1920s.”

One condition of the winning the auction was that Orr had to renovate the home and make it livable in nine months. He estimates he has spent $40,000 fixing up the house so far and says there is still more to do.

At the end of those nine months, Orr’s mother moved into the home and lived there rent-free.

“Since I was a child, I had been telling her that I was going to buy her a house,” he says. “For her to actually see me carry through was amazing for both of us.”

For Orr, who was 27 at the time, becoming a first-time homeowner and successfully turning the abandoned house into a home was a major accomplishment.

“To be able to own a home that was paid off with no loans, no mortgage and then be able to let my mom live there was a great feeling,” he says.

Just two years after buying the first property, Orr bought the property right next to his mother’s for $1,200 — it had also been abandoned for about a decade.

“I just couldn’t see myself putting all this money in next door and not having it look nice on the other side,” he says.

Orr admits that the condition of this second house was much worse than the first one he bought, but “I really liked the architecture of that one. It reminded me of a gingerbread house,” he says.

“I was excited to get my hands on it and bring it back to life. A lot of people didn’t want to bid on it because it had been in a fire.”

There was no living room floor, and the house had even been on the city’s demolition list before Orr bought it.

After securing the deed from the Detroit Land Bank Authority, Orr got to work. He estimates he’s spent $60,000 renovating it so far.

Orr lived in the house while working on it, which he says was a challenge, especially because it was during the pandemic. He moved out in 2021 and leased it to a family friend. He is also letting them live there rent-free until the renovations are complete.

And as if two properties weren’t enough, Orr bought a third on the north side of his original abandoned home for just $100.

“There was a house on the lot, but it had caught fire, and the city of Detroit ended up tearing it down,” Orr says.

At the time of writing, Orr says he plans to build a new house on the lot and do most of the work himself. He is in the process of becoming a licensed builder, having left his job at Chrysler in 2022 and General Motors in September. In October, he launched his own hardwood and epoxy flooring business.

Orr says he has no plan in place for when he’ll start building the house. He estimates he’ll need $100,000 to $150,000 and does not want to take out a loan.

“I’m just waiting to get the funds in order,” he says.

Orr says his biggest regret is not having bought more properties from the Detroit Land Bank Authority. He estimates the value of his houses has increased since he bought the first one seven years ago.

“I don’t know if it would be possible in today’s climate because Detroit has gained popularity. You have a lot of people moving in and I’m happy to see it, but on the other side, small developers like myself can’t get my hands on anything,” he says.

But the now 34-year-old says he doesn’t ever plan on selling them.

“I believe in ownership, and those homes are part of my retirement plan,” he says. “When I’m too old to work or just want to relax in the later years, I have those properties to rent out and gain income from because I don’t know if we can depend on Social Security.”

And for anyone looking to take advantage of an auction process like the one the Detroit Land Bank Authority offers, Orr’s advice is to not overthink it.

“Don’t waste your time. You’d be surprised if you just get out and try; you can accomplish anything. A lot of people doubt themselves, but if you build it, they will come,” he says.

“I plan on buying more and building more. I want to build apartment buildings and affordable housing.”

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I didn’t think about leaving the U.S. to live somewhere else until very recently. 

My father is from Jamaica, so I have always felt a connection to the island, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I finally visited for the first time. 

I was struck by the joy I felt surrounded by the culture, the food, and so many family members and new friends. This spring, I made the leap and moved with my two youngest kids to Negril, Jamaica.

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Back in the States, I was often ill and had very high blood pressure. Over the last several months, to my surprise and delight, following the example of the vibrant older folks in my community, my stress has lifted and I am so much healthier. 

Overall, I feel like I have a better chance of longevity here. 

Here are the biggest lessons I have learned from the senior citizens in my community:

One of my neighbors, in his mid-to-late 60s, can do a backflip and often climbs trees to pick fruit. He is just one example of the vibrant senior citizens in my area. 

Many people wash their clothes by hand, as I have started to, and hang them on the line. People devote a lot of time to tending their gardens.  

I spend almost all day outside working. I’ve tried doing that in the States, but as soon as the season changes, I go back in and may or may not come out again.

But thanks to the temperate year-round weather here, my veranda “office” is always open.

In hindsight, I feel like the dependence on cars in the U.S. made it harder for me to enjoy nature and the company of other people. 

In North Carolina, so many things are drive-thru, from pharmacies to fast food. By virtue of how my town was designed, everyone was reliant on a vehicle. In the U.S., I drove everywhere, including to take my daughter to daycare, even though it was just up the street.

In my community in Negril, most people walk and use public transportation, especially seniors, to get around and do their errands.

I walk much more since I got here, and I’ll stroll to the store most days. Jamaica is also very hilly and mountainous, so you regularly have to go up inclines. It’s been so positive for my health.

The food here is fantastic, especially the produce. Fruit trees are everywhere, and there is such a variety of fresh vegetables. 

To me, the food in Jamaica tastes different from the food in the U.S. It is not super processed, or overly salty or sweet. I don’t eat traditional fast food here, although there are restaurants that serve it. I prefer to go to a skilled local vendor and try some of their wares. 

You don’t have to go far to find someone selling delicious, healthy and inexpensive food, whether it is freshly caught fish, porridge, lovely cold coconuts, or some of my favorite dishes like jerk chicken, brown stew, bully beef and beef patties.

You will frequently see people, especially older folks, talking, playing dominoes or Ludi, and laughing together. When people aren’t feeling well, neighbors will share their favorite herbal remedies. 

We are often invited to neighborhood gatherings, even as newcomers. On a Sunday, for example, people might go to church, relax, go to the river, do some “bush cooking” — preparing and serving delicious meals outside. It’s a very laid-back atmosphere, and I felt welcome right away. 

I rarely saw anyone in my neighborhood in the States. I knew only about four of my neighbors on the street and I lived in that house for seven years. I would see people in passing and wave, but then we would just go back to our lives. 

It’s odd not to know or talk to your neighbors here. Every time I see a neighbor in Jamaica, we sit and chat. 

I didn’t realize how high-stress and individualistic the culture could be in the United States until we left. I was on autopilot all day, every day.

The pace of island life forced me to slow down, start paying attention to how I felt, and challenged my beliefs of what life should be. Moving shook up my routine, removed me from daily stressors, and allowed me to create a new reality. 

Small changes definitely add up, and getting out of my comfort zone helped me make these new habits stick, for the better.

Tiffany Grant is a financial educator, writer, podcaster and coach. Before she was an entrepreneur, Tiffany was an HR professional. She is the founder and host of ″Money Talk with Tiff,” an Accredited Financial Counselor and holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

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