Raising a child in today’s fast-paced, achievement-driven world is no small feat. While many parents focus on grades and extracurriculars, one of the most overlooked skills is emotional intelligence.

This doesn’t just help kids excel socially; it helps them grow into resilient, empathetic, and successful adults who can navigate challenges with confidence, foster meaningful relationships, and lead fulfilling lives.

So, what do parents who raise emotionally intelligent kids do differently? After years of studying over 200 parent-child relationships — and from practicing healthy habits with my own child — I’ve uncovered seven powerful strategies that these parents embraced early on.

They gave their child space to process their feelings and trust their inner voice. When their child was upset, they sat quietly beside them, offering comfort without words. Embracing silence can help children better navigate and reflect on their emotions.

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By verbally sharing feelings — like “I’m frustrated” or “I’m happy” — they taught their children emotional awareness and gave them words to express themselves. This helped their children see emotions as normal and share them openly rather than suppressing them.

They showed their child that mistakes are part of life and taking responsibility is a strength. Apologizing built trust and showed respect, making their child feel valued. It also modeled empathy and taught them how to repair relationships.

This might sound unconventional, but they knew kindness and respect can’t be forced. Instead, they modeled these behaviors, trusting their child to learn by example. If their child forgot to say thank you, the parent said it for them, confident the lesson would stick over time.

This takes a lot of bravery! But as a parenting coach, I’ve never told my 6-year-old to say please or thank you. Now he says it all the time on his own — because he hears me say it.

They took their child’s concerns seriously, whether it was a lost toy or trouble with a friend. By validating their feelings, they showed their child that emotions matter. This fostered self-worth, emotional safety, and respect for their experiences.

The best way to teach decision-making is to encourage children to make their own decisions. Instead of fixing problems, they asked, “What do you think we should do?” This helped boost critical thinking, confidence, and independence.

They let their child get bored, which helped them become comfortable with stillness. This built creativity, self-regulation and problem-solving skills. Their child learned to enjoy their own company and find joy in simple moments, like staring out the car window instead of needing a screen.

• Modeling the behaviors you want to see: Express your emotions openly, apologize when you make mistakes, and show kindness and empathy in your interactions.
• Validate your child’s feelings, no matter how small they may seem, and give them the space to process those emotions without rushing to fix or dismiss them. 
• Encourage problem-solving by asking open-ended questions instead of providing all the answers.
• Let them experience moments of stillness or boredom to build creativity and self-regulation.

Most importantly, focus on building a relationship rooted in respect and trust — because emotional intelligence starts with feeling safe, valued, and understood.

Reem Raouda is a certified conscious parenting coach, mother, and creator of BOUND — the first and only parent-child connection journal designed to nurture emotional intelligence and self-worth in children. She has transformed hundreds of families through her courses, coaching and tools. Follow her on Instagram. 

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You need to be a millionaire just to cover basic retirement costs in 15 U.S. states, according to a new analysis by GOBankingRates.

The states with the highest retirement expenses tend to also have the highest housing costs, whether it’s big-city hubs like New York and California, or Hawaii, where the natural beauty and mild climate attracts numerous retirees.

In fact, Hawaii is the most expensive state to retire in. The cost of essentials — housing, groceries, transportation, utilities and health care — for 25 years adds up to about $2.21 million. That’s significantly more than Massachusetts and California, where retirees need around $1.6 million each to get by.

The estimates come from the latest average cost of living data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. After subtracting average Social Security income from the annual expenditures, GOBankingRates divided the remaining amount by 4%, following a common rule of thumb for safely drawing down retirement savings.

The totals represent the bare minimum needed to retire without accounting for other factors like rising inflation, discretionary spending or unexpected expenses.

Here’s a look the 15 most expensive states to retire in, ranked by total savings needed:

• Annual cost of living: $110,921
• Savings you need to retire: $2,212,084

• Annual cost of living: $88,268
• Savings you need to retire: $1,645,764

• Annual cost of living: $86,946
• Savings you need to retire: $1,612,716

• Annual cost of living: $74,147
• Savings you need to retire: $1,292,753

• Annual cost of living: $74,147
• Savings you need to retire: $1,292,753

• Annual cost of living: $68,980
• Savings you need to retire: $1,163,566

• Annual cost of living: $68,559
• Savings you need to retire: $1,153,051

• Annual cost of living: $68,259
• Savings you need to retire: $1,145,540

• Annual cost of living: $68,199
• Savings you need to retire: $1,144,038

• Annual cost of living: $67,778
• Savings you need to retire: $1,133,522

• Annual cost of living: $67,538
• Savings you need to retire: $1,127,514

• Annual cost of living: $67,117
• Savings you need to retire: $1,116,998

• Annual cost of living: $66,997
• Savings you need to retire: $1,113,994

• Annual cost of living: $66,096
• Savings you need to retire: $1,091,462

• Annual cost of living: $65,795
• Savings you need to retire: $1,083,951

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A parent’s job isn’t to shield their child from life’s challenges, but to guide them through — offering support and tools to help them thrive in tough times. 

As a child life specialist and therapist, I’ve worked with thousands of children and families facing illness, trauma, grief, and loss. I’ve observed the words and actions that reveal a child is learning to cope effectively with life’s inevitable difficulties.

It isn’t about staying calm or avoiding tears. It’s about using strategies and skills to manage, tolerate, and reduce stress when it arises. That’s why children who cope well tend to have high emotional intelligence. They’re good at identifying their feelings and using positive strategies to manage their emotions.

Listen up for these six things you might hear kids with high emotional intelligence say:

Children with high emotional intelligence likely have trusted adults who’ve taught them that it’s okay to cry and that all feelings are okay. 

They know it’s natural to feel sad, angry, frustrated, or concerned in response to tough situations. By the same token, they’ve learned that it’s okay to have happy, joyful, or playful moments even during hard times. 

Children with healthy coping skills can recognize and manage their emotions. They know the warning signs — rapid thoughts, a fast heartbeat, tense muscles, or a knot in their stomach — and feel comfortable asking for what they need.

They might head to their “coping corner” to give themselves the time and space to use their pre-planned tools. For example, they might pick up a pinwheel or blow bubbles to help them with deep breathing. 

They likely learned these skills by watching their parents model self-regulation and open communication.

Emotionally intelligent children can recognize emotions in others, too. They understand that both adults and kids can have big feelings during difficult times, and that everyone copes differently. 

They might be the first to recognize that when their friend is upset, they may need space or a hug and that either is okay.

Empathy toward others comes naturally for them and they demonstrate ease and comfort listening to another’s perspective, respecting their needs, and working together. 

They understand that even when their parent is emotional, they can still be loved, cared for, and safe.

Children who’ve practiced setting boundaries for how they’d like to be treated tend to have high emotional intelligence. They can effectively communicate their needs, wants, and feelings while being sensitive to the other person. 

They might say, “I don’t like when you use my things without asking,” or, “I don’t like not knowing what to expect.” Or you might hear other statements that start with:

• “I’m not okay with…”
• “I don’t want to talk about…”
• “I don’t think it’s nice/funny when…” 

They’re also thoughtful about respecting their peers’ and siblings’ needs.

This phrase indicates that a child is self-reflective and free from shame. Instead of being fearful of making or admitting to mistakes, they’re able to talk about it and problem-solve to improve the situation or circumstance. 

They also recognize what they could have done better or differently because they know that mistakes are how we grow, learn, and develop through challenges.

Confidence and creativity in problem-solving are signs of emotional intelligence and healthy coping. Kids who’ve faced difficult situations have learned to work together with their peers and trusted adults to find reasonable solutions or paths forward.

They feel confident expressing their opinions, ideas, and qualities, while also listening and learning from others.

When kids navigate obstacles and consequences in a safe environment, they can develop decision-making skills and flexibility while also cultivating emotional awareness and self-esteem.

If your kids aren’t saying these things yet, don’t worry. Emotional intelligence and coping skills take time to develop and often begin with parenting.

Simply start by saying these things yourself. Kids learn best from what’s modeled for them.

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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Though his name has been synonymous with Nike for more than 20 years, LeBron James almost never signed with the company that helped make him a billionaire.

In an appearance on Travis and Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast this week, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer explained he was almost wooed by an eye-popping sum offered by one of Nike’s rivals.

During his senior year of high school, before forgoing college and going straight to the NBA where he would be drafted by his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers, James was choosing between Nike, Reebok and Adidas for his shoe deal.

Reebok flew James and his mother out to a meeting with their CEO where they drove a hard bargain with the teenager.

“The guy slides over a check to me and he says ‘If you don’t go talk to any other companies, this is yours,’” James said. “And I look at it. $10 million f—ing dollars. I was a high school senior!”

James didn’t know what to do. He had “never seen that many zeroes in [my] life,” but he also didn’t want to skip his meetings with Nike and Adidas. He asked the executives for a moment to think and they left him alone with his mom.

“Me and my mom were living in an apartment. Section 8 housing. I’m going back [after the meeting], I don’t have s—t,” he said. “My mom looked at me. She said ‘Son, trust your gut. If they’re offering you this, who knows what the other companies may offer you?’”

When the executives came back in the room, James handed back the eight-figure check and informed them he’d like to explore all his options before making a decision.

“I may have cried on the way home,” he told the Kelce brothers. “I was like ‘I could’ve bought the building that me and my mom was living in with that money!’”

 Though they had no way of knowing it at the time, it was a billion-dollar piece of advice – literally. James would eventually decide to sign with Nike, and years later would ink a reported billion-dollar lifetime contract with the company in 2015.

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It’s a tough job market out there.

The number of applicants per job on LinkedIn jumped from 1.5 in 2022 to 2.5 in 2024, according to the site, signaling steeper competition. Nearly half, 49% of Americans say the job search has gotten harder in the last year and 68% of HR professionals say the same.

Which might be why freelance marketplace Upwork has seen an uptick in demand for career coaches. The site recently released its 2025’s Most In-Demand Skills report, including a list of fast-growing skills. When it comes to their work trajectory, “people are realizing that they can get better results faster by enlisting an expert than they can alone,” says career coach Phoebe Gavin.

If you’re interested in exploring the fast-growing gig, here’s what it takes to become a career coach and how much you could make.

When it comes to being a successful career coach, there are two critical components.

You have to understand the hiring process, says Julie Bauke, founder of career planning company The Bauke Group. And when it comes to your clients, you “have to have a good dose of empathy and ability to relate to people.”

Bauke recommends getting a certification through an organization like the International Coaching Federation to learn the ropes, “something that teaches you how to interact and pull things out of people,” she says.

Plus, “you have to have had some experience in the workforce, preferably in hiring and managing people,” she says. This can come from working in human resources or recruitment specifically, but can also come from having served in a leadership position.

“You really have to be able to combine those two things to have credibility,” she says.

Once you’ve gained the experience, you can list your services on sites like Upwork, Fiverr and LinkedIn, where you can also find openings for various gigs. You can also turn to local gatherings to find clients.

Sometimes “communities have groups of people who are unemployed who meet on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to share tips and ideas,” says Bauke. “Maybe you go offer yourself as a speaker, as a resource,” and find some clients there. Sites like Facebook and Nextdoor could offer insight into these types of gatherings.

Pay varies depending on factors like type of clients (CEOs versus lower level employees) and framework (private sector or universities) in which you’re offering your services, says Gorick Ng, Harvard career advisor and creator of the “How To Say It” flashcard series for professional communication.

Career coaches on Upwork charge as much as $179 per hour.

Want to up your AI skills and be more productive? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Use AI to Be More Successful at Work. Expert instructors will teach you how to get started, practical uses, tips for effective prompt-writing, and mistakes to avoid. Sign up now and use coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 30% off $67 (+ taxes and fees) through February 11, 2025.

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