Chabely Rodriguez takes money seriously. She strategically chose an affordable college and lucrative career path that has set her up to live comfortably at 30 years old. 

Rodriguez is a certified anesthesiologist assistant, and in 2024, she switched from a salaried role to working as a traveling CAA in contract positions. As a result, she brings in over $300,000 a year. She has a master’s degree in anesthesiology, which allowed her to then get her CAA credentials — without needing to attend medical school.

She still cleared $200,000 a year in her previous position, often picking up overtime hours and 24-hour shifts on top of her full-time schedule — the product of of a “scarcity mindset” she says she carried with her since childhood. 

“I always want to prepare for [the worst],” she told CNBC Make It in 2023. “I’ve worked a lot of overtime hours just to make sure that I always have something extra.”

Now, she sticks mostly to 40-hour workweeks with extra shifts here and there when her staff needs coverage. She could be making closer to $500,000 a year if she worked similar overtime hours to what she previously took on, but she doesn’t feel pressured to, she says.

“I want to make more money, but I don’t want to burn myself out along the way.” Rodriguez says. “So now I’ve hit above the $300,000 mark, I feel good about that.”

As her income has grown, Rodriguez’s aspirations have evolved. She started her career while living in Florida and thought she would one day buy a house there. But she moved to Georgia in 2023 and switched to a six-month contract position there in 2024.

Realizing she wanted to spend more time traveling and that she could make more money as a contractor, her priorities shifted away from homeownership.

“I’m still not to the point of wanting to settle anywhere,” she says. “I still want to continue to explore and switch things around and potentially be outside of the country for two months or something out of the year.”

When her contract finished in Georgia, Rodriguez moved to New Mexico, where she lives now. She invests aggressively, aiming to put 40% of her pre-tax income into her brokerage and retirement accounts. Her total investments hit $500,000 in January 2025.

She’s been able to invest consistently in part because she paid off her student loans — nearly $124,000 — quickly in 2023.

“Because I was aggressive with paying off my loans, I could then shift towards investing,” Rodriguez says. “I would say, I exceeded my expectations along the way. So that’s been nice, and I feel like that’s made me just a happier, calmer person — more secure, more confident.”

Her main goals now are to avoid burnout from work, save for the future and enjoy her life in the present.

She previously set a goal of investing $2 million and retiring early, but she’s become less tied to a number and more focused on sustainable growth so she has the option to slow down by the time she’s 50 — if she wants to.

Rodriguez’s money mindset has also begun to shift away from the scarcity she previously felt. She still aims to live within her means, sharing rent with her partner and driving a standard Toyota Corolla. But she’s willing to splurge on travel, balancing bigger international trips with backpacking and camping.

Rodriguez is now willing to acknowledge her own accomplishments and no longer pressures herself to pick up every extra shift. “That’s something that I feel like I couldn’t have done until I got to this point,” she says.

“I feel so much more comfortable, and I can remove myself from situations if I’m uncomfortable,” she adds. “I can treat my partner to something, or treat myself to something … I am now saying, ‘Hey, I make enough. I don’t need to push it past my limit to pay for this.’ Now, I can just breathe.”

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Could you build a house that’s the size of a closet? That’s the question I wanted to answer when I set out to build what might be one of the smallest livable homes around — just 19.4 by 4 feet — in my front yard in southern Ohio.

I’ve always been obsessed with tiny living. I love seeing people get creative with small spaces. Over the past six years, I’ve traveled the U.S. documenting more than 300 unique Airbnbs, from treehouses to caves to luxury villas.

One day, after seeing someone attempt to live in a 22-square-foot home, I thought: I can build something even smaller … and better.

It all started with an old utility trailer sitting on my property. It had rust and electrical issues, but there was potential and it was the perfect foundation for a creative challenge.

The build took a month. Thankfully, we barely had any rain and wife helped me with a lot of it. I spent a total of about $5,000, which is less than it would typically cost since I already had a lot of the material. The majority of expenses went into lumber, insulation, solar, and electrical.

The most expensive part of this home was the battery system. These can run up to $2,800, but luckily I already had one. The second priciest item was the AC and heating unit. I bought a refurbished one for about $600. It was a big investment, but worth every penny because it’s part of what gives this tiny house a luxury feel.

A house this small needs to be incredibly efficient. I installed shed windows for natural light and framed a structure tall enough to allow standing room. For the exterior, I got a great deal on cedar wood, stained it black, and sealed it — giving the home a sleek, finished look.

Despite its size, the house has the necessary essentials: a compact AC and heating unit, a tilting bed in the vaulted loft space (I’m 5′9, but if you’re 5′10 or taller, it might be a little bit tight), a storage bench with space for the massive battery unit, a portable toilet, and an outdoor shower system.

The kitchen area has a mini fridge, a folding faucet, and a sink beneath the walnut countertop. When not in use, a cutting board covers the sink to create a seamless prep surface. The space isn’t ideal for cooking lavish meals, but with a hot plate or camping stove, you could prepare some simple dishes.

Everything, including the mini fridge and outdoor shower, is powered by the solar panels on the roof. You can also charge the battery by plugging it into an outlet somewhere (this is faster, since solar powering requires the sun).

My wife, kids, and I live in our 2,500-square-feet home, but I’ve stayed in the tiny home a few times, including once during a massive snowstorm. I wanted to test the structure against nature, and it held up better than expected. I had heat, electricity, and a fire outside.

Another time, I camped in it with my 3-year-old son. He slept on a small mattress on the floor beneath my bunk. We made s’mores and watched a movie on a laptop. It was tight but cozy, and we had a lot of fun.

Would I live in it full-time? Probably not, but someone could. Sure, it’s really small, but it’s also proof that you can create a livable space with almost no square footage if you think creatively. With a truck, I could haul it off-grid or to a campground with no problem.

For anyone wanting to build their own tiny home, my advice would be to decide on your priorities first. My goal was to build the smallest, most functional tiny house possible. If your goal is comfort over minimalism, go slightly bigger — maybe 30 to 50 square feet. Even a few extra inches in width or ceiling height makes a huge difference.

Can you build a smaller livable home than mine? Let’s see who takes me up on it.

Levi Kelly is a tiny homes expert and builder. His YouTube channel is dedicated to showcasing unique, short-term stays, including treehouses, container homes, and luxury accommodations. He lives in Ohio with his wife and two kids. Follow him on Instagram @levimkelly.

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When a child is struggling, a parent’s instinct is often to try to talk them through it.

But when children are overwhelmed, their stress response kicks in. In those moments, they can’t focus on your words. What they need most is your calm, steady presence.

As a dual-certified child life specialist and therapist, I’ve supported more than 1,000 kids and teens through some of life’s most difficult moments. And as a parent myself, I’ve seen how kids’ “thinking brain” goes offline and their “feeling brain” takes over.

A child can borrow calm from a trusted adult — a process child development professionals call “co-regulation.” Research shows that co-regulation is one of the most powerful ways kids learn to manage stress. 

When kids are upset, they aren’t being difficult or ignoring you. Their brains simply aren’t in a place to process explanations, compromises, or corrections. What they need is to feel safe again. Your presence brings that safety back, making them more ready to work through things.

By sitting nearby, offering touch, modeling calm, providing tools, or playing alongside them, you send the message: “You’re not alone. I’m right here with you.” You validate their feelings and build resilience — without saying a word.

Over time, these quiet, supportive gestures teach your child how to manage emotions and recover from stress, even when you’re not by their side.

Here are five ways to silently connect with your child in a difficult moment:

Sitting quietly next to your child, or even outside their bedroom door, silently communicates: “I’m here if and when you need me.”

For kids who say they want space, you can respect their request while staying available. As long as they know where to find you, they’ll feel a sense of predictability and security.

Not every child wants to be touched in a difficult moment, and that’s okay. But if they’re open to it, putting your hand on their back, holding their hand, or even stretching out your palm toward them can offer calm and connection.

Let them decide whether to take your hand. Sometimes just knowing it’s there is enough. 

Respecting their boundaries shows them you’ll meet their needs on their terms, which makes it easier for them to reach out when they’re ready.

Rather than instructing your child to “calm down” or “take a deep breath,” show them. Take slow, visible, audible breaths yourself. Kids often start to match your rhythm without even realizing it.

No one responds well to being told to calm down, but being in the presence of calm makes it easier for their body to settle into the state they need.

Children usually have comfort items that help them feel grounded. Gently offering one or placing it nearby gives them the choice to pick it up when they’re ready.

Beyond stuffed animals, consider introducing simple coping tools during calm times, like pinwheels for practicing deep breaths or stress balls for squeezing and fidgeting. Then, in stressful moments, they’ll already know how to use these tools and why they help.

When words feel too heavy or inaccessible, quiet play or connection can bridge the gap. 

Try coloring, building with blocks, or doodling beside a younger child. Perhaps even use stuffed animals or figurines to play out the situation indirectly. For older kids and teens, this might look like working on a puzzle, reading out loud, or even co-watching a show or video game. 

Shared activities create connection without pressure and can make zoning out together feel intentional.

At the end of the day, your child won’t remember your exact words. But they will remember how you made them feel: safe, seen, and supported.

Kelsey Mora is Certified Child Life Specialist and Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor who provides custom support, guidance, and resources to parents, families, and communities impacted by medical conditions, trauma, grief, and everyday life stress. She is a private practice owner, mom of two, the creator and author of The Method Workbooks, and the Chief Clinical Officer of the nonprofit organization Pickles Group.

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Lucy Guo might be a billionaire, but instead of a life of luxury and comfort, she swears by a relentless work ethic and strict daily routine.

At just 30 years old, the California-born-and-raised entrepreneur has achieved what many will spend their lifetimes chasing. In April, Guo’s net worth soared to $1.3 billion after her first business, Scale AI, wrapped up a deal with tech giant Meta that valued the company at $25 billion. She was named the youngest self-made woman billionaire, a title previously held by pop star Taylor Swift.

“Honestly, I still feel the same as that little girl, like my life pre-money and post-money, it hasn’t really changed that much,” Guo told CNBC Make It in an interview.

Guo co-founded Scale AI, an AI data labeling company, alongside Alexander Wang in 2016. Guo, who headed up the operations and product design teams at the Silicon Valley startup, left the company in 2018.

“We had disagreements around products and sales,” Guo explained. “Where Alex was very sales-driven on bringing in more customers, I was very focused on like ’hey, we need to prioritize the products or helping make sure that scalers [employees] get paid on time, their hours are being counted correctly, but that wasn’t where the resources were being poured in.”

However, Guo held on to her stake, which is worth just under 5%. When Meta agreed to acquire 49% of Scale AI, the deal pushed Guo’s stake to a skyrocketing $1.25 billion.

A serial entrepreneur and a graduate of the Thiel Fellowship program, Guo wasn’t out of the game for long and founded Backend Capital, a venture capital firm investing in early-stage tech startups in 2019. Her most recent company, Passes, a content creator monetization platform founded in 2022, has raised over $65 million in funding.  

Since becoming a billionaire, Guo hasn’t taken her foot off the work pedal. “I am still working very long work days,” she said.

Guo belongs to a category of founders who optimize their days to be as productive as possible, and her newfound billionaire status isn’t an excuse to slow down.

An average day for Guo includes waking up at 5:30 a.m. and going to Barry’s Bootcamp for two workout sessions back-to-back. Lunches are a luxury for the startup founder, and she often eats during meetings as her schedule doesn’t always allow for a break, she said.

“I think most people could have work-life balance if they cut out what most people waste their time on when they get back home, which is, a lot of people doom scroll on TikTok, a lot of people just sit and watch TV mindlessly,” she said.

In the interest of work-life balance, Guo gives herself one day off on the weekends, where from noon to 6 p.m., she’s totally focused on spending time with her friends, and then it’s back to work straight after.

“I think I have more hours in a day because I’m gonna be honest, I’m totally blessed. I don’t need that much sleep…even though I’m working these long hours, I feel like I have work-life balance.

“I could theoretically work until midnight, and then I could go out to the club until 2 a.m., and then I could go to sleep, and then wake up at like 6 a.m. and do Barry’s.”

The young founder embodies the Silicon Valley mantra of working 24 hours a day, seven days a week, similar to China’s infamous 996 work culture, which includes working from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week.

“9 a.m. to 9 p.m., to me that’s still work-life balance,” Guo commented. “At 9 p.m., you can go to dinner with your friends. You can invite them to a potluck. You don’t need to sleep from nine to nine. That’s a ridiculous amount of sleep.”

“If anyone thinks that’s not work-life balance, I don’t know what to say because you literally have 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. to hang out with your friends, and then you sleep from 2 a.m. to nine. That’s seven hours of sleep, which is more than enough.”

But not everyone agrees with the pursuit of a 996 work schedule. Some founders previously pushed back against the trend, telling CNBC that the views are outdated and unnecessary to achieve success.

An always-on culture decreases retention and creates a revolving door of talent, Sarah Wernér, co-founder of Husmus, told CNBC.”

Suranga Chandratillake, general partner at Balderton Capital, added that 996 is about “a fetishization of overwork rather than smart work…it’s a myth.”

Startup founders’ working hours are a much-contested issue. Recently, some venture capitalists were even pushing European founders to step up the work pace to keep up with their counterparts in the U.S. and China.

“In general, when you’re first starting your company, it’s near impossible to do it without doing that [996], like you’re going to need to work like 90-hour work weeks to get things off the ground,” Guo said.

As a company grows, hires more talent, and finds stability, Guo says it is possible to work less later on.

She noted that becoming a billionaire isn’t about intense working hours. If you consistently invest hundreds of thousands into the S&P 500, it could grow to billions by the end of your lifetime, according to Guo.

“I don’t think you need to work those hours to become a billionaire, per se. It’s how you opt to do it. If you opt to start a tech company, you’re gonna be working those hours in the beginning. If you’re like, main method is doing it via investing, you’re not gonna be working those hours,” she said.

Guo’s latest startup, Passes, became embroiled in controversy in February after a class action lawsuit was filed against her and the company, alleging that she distributed child sexual abuse material on the platform to paying subscribers.

“I think it’s a total shakedown. I never met this person, never talked to this person,” Guo said about the lawsuit.

A spokesperson from Passes told CNBC Make It via email: “As explained in the motion to dismiss filed on April 28, Ms. Guo and Passes categorically reject the baseless allegations made against them in the lawsuit, which was only filed against them after they rejected a $15 million payment demand.”

Clark Smith Villazor, the New York-based litigation firm that brought the lawsuit against Passes, has yet to respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

One of the most common myths about long-term relationships is that couples eventually run out of things to say. It’s easy to believe: Life gets busy, routines take over and conversations become more about logistics than connection.

As a psychologist who studies couples, and based on my own experience being happily married, I know how tricky communication can become if you’re convinced there’s nothing left to say. But couples in healthy relationships make a habit of talking about things that matter, every single day.

Their conversations stay fresh, connected and meaningful because they never stop learning about each other. Here are five things people in the happiest relationships talk to each other about every day — that most people neglect.

Couples in thriving relationships always make a point to check in and make sure the other partner is happy.

On some days, that means asking: “Do you feel loved? Supported? Connected?” Other days, it’s about expressing appreciation, sharing a laugh over a favorite memory or talking about something they’re looking forward to doing together.

Having these daily check-ins help prevent small misunderstandings from growing into larger issues.

In the strongest relationships, both partners stay curious about what excites the other. It could be a song they can’t stop listening to, a book they’ve been devouring, a hobby they’re exploring or even a TikTok that made them laugh.

Regardless of whether their interests overlap, they stay curious about each other’s passions. This is what keeps the spark alive.

Over their years together, these little updates remind one another of perhaps the most important thing to remember in a relationship: “We’re constantly growing and evolving, and we’re doing it together.”

Happy couples are never stuck in the present or past. They often have conversations about long-term goals: owning a home, traveling more, starting a business or raising kids.

They also don’t shy away from less practical, more whimsical topics, like what they’d do with a year off, how they’d renovate their dream kitchen or where they’d go if money wasn’t a concern.

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Discussing dreams, no matter how realistic or farfetched, keeps the relationship future-oriented by instilling a joint sense of purpose and possibility. Even if a dream can’t be acted on right away, talking it over allows them to keep track of each other’s values.

Happy couples aren’t uncomfortable bringing up what’s bothering them. A healthy relationship should feel like a safe space where couples can work through their troubles together as a team.

Whether it’s a tough day at work, a lingering insecurity or even a fear about the relationship itself, they trust their partner to respond with empathy.

Over time, this daily practice of being emotionally honest builds a rock-solid sense of safety. Both partners will never feel like they have to carry their baggage alone.

Even a half-formed musing can be a fun way to connect. Happy couples never think twice about sharing their random ideas: their shower thoughts, their “what-ifs,” their “this just popped into my head” theories.

And these don’t always have to be deep or profound. In fact, they’re usually pretty silly, weird or seemingly irrelevant. Adding a little bit of playfulness and spontaneity into every conversation also makes space for laughter and even intimacy.

I always remind couples that a big part of building a successful relationship is about being intentional with the conversations you choose to have. Couples who stay connected day after day create a shared space for curiosity, growth and joy.

Mark Travers, PhD, is a psychologist who specializes in relationships. He holds degrees from Cornell University and the University of Colorado Boulder. He is the lead psychologist at Awake Therapy, a telehealth company that provides online psychotherapy, counseling, and coaching. He is also the curator of the popular mental health and wellness website, Therapytips.org.

Want to stand out, grow your network, and get more job opportunities? Sign up for Smarter by CNBC Make It’s new online course, How to Build a Standout Personal Brand: Online, In Person, and At Work. Learn from three expert instructors how to showcase your skills, build a stellar reputation, and create a digital presence that AI can’t replicate.

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