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☆ Barbara Corcoran: I wish I'd been 'easier on myself' in my 20s—especially about money
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

But I wish I had been a little bit easier on myself," Corcoran said. One way to deal with it, executive coach Christina Helena wrote for CNBC Make It last year: Use the people around you for support. "Sometimes people see potential in us that we ourselves are not yet able to recognize," wrote Helena. Twenty-eight years after launching her business, Corcoran sold it for $66 million. Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to "Shark Tank," which features Barbara Corcoran as a panelist.

Persons: Barbara Corcoran, Corcoran, Christina Helena, Helena, Esther Kaplan Organizations: CNBC, The Corcoran Locations: New Jersey

☆ Avoid these 3 common phrases—they make you look weak and insecure, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

It's important to choose your words carefully and use assertive language, say authors and communication experts Kathy and Ross Petras. "The key is to be assertive without being overly aggressive," the Petrases wrote for CNBC Make It last year. No, if you have something important to say, then say it." If you're nervous or insecure during a meeting or conversation, changing a few words won't change the way you feel. 'I don't know'"I don't know" is a common filler phrase, or crutch word, to fill space until people can complete their thoughts.

Persons: Kathy, Ross Petras, Danny Rubin, …, Rubin, Simon Taylor, Eric Yaverbaum, Yaverbaum Organizations: CNBC, Ericho Communications

☆ 2 simple ways to get people to listen when you speak, according to a Stanford communication expert
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Many professionals believe that they're highly attentive, but 70% of them actually exhibit poor listening habits in the workplace, according to a 2020 University of Southern California report. So you've got to be clever if you want to grasp someone's attention, says Matt Abrahams, a communication consultant and organizational behavior lecturer at Stanford University. Polite requests for his students' attention fell on deaf ears, drowned out by their "chit-chatting," he tells CNBC Make It. It only takes four seconds for silence to become awkward, according to a Dutch psychology study published in 2011. "It's very hard to stand in silence, but that can be very helpful," he adds.

Persons: you've, Matt Abrahams, It's, Abrahams Organizations: University of Southern, Stanford University, CNBC Locations: University of Southern California

☆ Beyoncé's first country music foray drew harsh criticism—here's how she used it to craft a No. 1 single
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

It was born out of an experience I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn't," Beyoncé wrote in a recent Instagram post. She was likely referring to a 2016 performance of her first country song, "Daddy Lessons," at the annual Country Music Awards. !," one user on social media platform X posted. Instead of letting those opinions deter her, Beyoncé spent five years crafting her country album, she wrote. "Because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of country music and studied our rich musical archive," she wrote.

Persons: Cowboy Carter, wasn't, Beyoncé, @DixieChicks Organizations: The Chicks, Dixie Locations: Texas

☆ Wharton psychologist Adam Grant: 'Hustling' and taking care of yourself aren't mutually exclusive—here's why
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Adam Grant and Robin Arzón want to reclaim the phrase "hustle culture." But there's a healthier way to approach the concept of "hustling," according to Grant, a Wharton organizational psychologist, and Arzón, vice president of fitness programming at Peloton. In other words, working hard and taking care of yourself don't have to be mutually exclusive. What "so many people get wrong" is that "they contrast hustle culture with self-care," Grant added, noting that "there's a difference between intensity and volume." That's the kind of hustle Arzón supports and implements in her own life, she said.

Persons: Adam Grant, Robin Arzón, Grant Locations: Wharton

☆ These 3 phrases make you sound smarter and more emotionally intelligent, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Sounding smart and emotionally intelligent isn't just about the idea you're trying to convey. People often resort to using complex words and phrases to sound more insightful. And if you're trying to make things common, you really have to put them in a way that people can understand," Abrahams told CNBC Make It in January. Next time you talk with someone, try using these three simple expert-endorsed phrases:'Could you tell me more about that?' But emotionally intelligent people are interested in how others feel and what they have to say," the Petrases wrote for Make It last year.

Persons: Matt Abrahams, Abrahams, shouldn't, Kathy, Ross Petras, you've, John Bowe, Bowe Organizations: Stanford, CNBC Locations: People

☆ Mark Cuban says this common leadership style is a toxic trait: 'Trust the process or fix what's broken'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-22 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The 65-year-old billionaire entrepreneur weighed in on the common leadership style in a recent post on social media network X. If you find yourself constantly micromanaging the people around you, something's wrong, Cuban noted. Trust the process or fix what's broken if you always have to micromanage," Cuban wrote in his March 11 post. Cuban's post was a response to a thread about counterintuitive leadership principles written by Ofek Lavian, CEO of financial tech company Forage. In that thread, Lavian referenced a 20VC podcast episode from last year featuring Shopify CEO and co-founder Tobi Lütke, who embraced micromanaging.

Persons: Mark Cuban, Cuban, Ofek Lavian, Tobi Lütke, Lütke, It's, they'd Organizations: Trust Locations: Cuban

☆ Couple spent $400 to start a bakery—now it's a 'Shark Tank' success story worth $1.6 million
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-19 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

If you ask Saphira and Maurizio Rasti, the way to a "Shark Tank" star's heart is through their stomach. The Costa Mesa, California-based husband-and-wife duo brought investors treats from their business, Nowhere Bakery, on Friday's episode of the ABC television show. It might not have happened if the cookies and brownies didn't taste so good, much to the investors' surprise. "They're free from dairy, eggs, gluten, soy, refined sugar, sugar alcohols and are paleo-friendly," Saphira said on the show, noting that the idea originated as a solution for her own dietary restrictions. It brought in $770,000 in 2022 revenue — including a $32,000 profit — and was projected to finish 2023 with $1 million, Saphira said.

Persons: Saphira, Maurizio Rasti, Barbara Corcoran, Kevin O'Leary, We've Organizations: Nowhere, ABC Locations: Costa Mesa , California

☆ Outdoor Voices' layoffs via Slack ‘lack basic empathy,’ says expert: 'May only exacerbate the anxiety'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Athletic apparel brand Outdoor Voices is just the latest in a long line of companies to conduct mass layoffs — and "totally mishandle" them, says a leadership expert. Two employees told the publication that they were blindsided by the news. San Francisco-based executive coach Rohan Verma says that while this an unfortunate economic reality, Outdoor Voices could have handled the situation with more care. "These approaches, especially laying off folks over Slack, lack basic empathy for the employees' contributions and may only exacerbate the anxiety and shock people are feeling," Verma told CNBC Make It via email. Outdoor Voices also joins retailers like Dollar Tree, Bath and Body Works and CVS in closing a significant number of their physical stores.

Persons: Rohan Verma, Slack, Verma, curt Organizations: The New York Times, CNBC, Amazon, Twitter, Body, CVS Locations: Francisco

☆ This CEO had to drop her 'self-centered' habit to become highly successful: Ditching it was 'a complete game changer’
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

But, if you can ditch that habit, you're likely to become much more successful, says Talia Fox. I call it self-centered fear," Fox tells CNBC Make It. "Anytime I'm about to take an action, the thing that stops me from taking the action is worrying about what someone might think about me." Two decades ago, self-centered fear put Fox on the brink of an emotional breakdown as a Master's student at Howard University. She went on to become CEO at her coaching firm, a role she's held for over 20 years, according to LinkedIn.

Persons: Talia Fox, Fox Organizations: Kusi, D.C, Harvard School of Public Health, Fox, CNBC, Howard University, LinkedIn Locations: Washington

☆ The No. 1 trait bosses look for when promoting employees, says ex-CEO and Harvard expert
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

But often, bosses look for something more subtle, says Harvard Business School executive fellow Bill George. In other words, CEOs and other leaders may want to see you guiding and inspiring the rest of your team. Great employees — the ones managers tend to see as worth promoting — don't just boss their co-workers around. They excel at building trust with the people around them, which requires a certain amount of self-awareness to achieve, George says. "Many people do not know who they are," George wrote in his book, "True North: Emerging Leader Edition," which published in 2022.

Persons: Bill George, George, — Organizations: Harvard Business School

☆ Ex-Amazon engineers lose 6-figure 'Shark Tank' deal off 1 blunder: 'That's the biggest mistake startups make'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

They still couldn't land a deal on Friday's episode of ABC's "Shark Tank" due to making what billionaire investor Mark Cuban referred to as "the biggest mistake startups make": trying to grow their brand too quickly. Skaloud and Feiereisen co-founded Boona, a Seattle-based company that makes a $249 showerhead called the "Tandem." "We want to build a brand," Feiereisen said. "Some of the greatest deals in 'Shark Tank' history [are] when the entrepreneur focused on that one application and maxed it out." And if we do create new products, it's to support Tandem," Feiereisen said, trying to reel investors back in.

Persons: Brett Skaloud, Jeff Feiereisen, Mark Cuban, Feiereisen, Kevin O'Leary, Skaloud, I'm, O'Leary Organizations: Amazon Locations: Seattle, Cuban

☆ Trump may have defamed E. Jean Carroll again, one day after posting a $91.6 million bond for last case
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-10 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump reacts to supporters as he arrives on stage during a Get Out the Vote Rally March 2, 2024 in Richmond, Virginia. Former President Donald Trump on Saturday stood by his 2019 statement that writer E. Jean Carroll made a "totally false accusation" against him, despite similar claims resulting in him losing a defamation case in January. On top of the $83.3 million in damages is a $5 million sexual abuse and defamation verdict that Carroll won against Trump last year. Trump also shared his concerns about Lewis Kaplan, the federal judge who denied his request to delay the defamation judgment, calling him a "Trump-deranged, angry man." Both Carroll's legal team and the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.

Persons: Donald Trump, E, Jean Carroll, Trump, Carroll, defaming, he'd, didn't, Lisa Rubin, Lewis Kaplan Organizations: Trump Locations: Richmond , Virginia, Rome , Georgia, New York

☆ Ex-BET CEO shares her best advice for young workers—it's about using self-doubt to your advantage
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Don't let that keep you from making a big, risky career decision, says ex-BET Networks CEO Debra Lee. Success and self-doubt aren't mutually exclusive," Lee, 69, recently told LinkedIn video series The Path. She worked to attend Ivy League universities and get a law degree because her father told her to, she said. Their hesitancy further fueled her sense of self-doubt, which had grown with each previous career decision, Lee added. Her self-doubt became an asset at BET, pushing her to work harder and think outside the box in her new role, she said.

Persons: Debra Lee, Lee, I've, Mary Jane ", —, Steptoe, Johnson, that's Organizations: BET, Black Entertainment Television, Brown University, Harvard Law School, Washington , D.C, Ivy League, Securities and Exchange, Steptoe Locations: Washington ,

☆ 37-year-old built a $50 million bionic hand company—and landed a $1 million 'Shark Tank' offer
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Three decades later, he's making bionic prosthetic hands — and his invention drew a $1 million investment offer on a recent episode of ABC's "Shark Tank." The device is manufactured by San Francisco-based startup Psyonic, which Akhtar founded in 2015, according to his LinkedIn profile. "You can control [the bionic hand] with your muscles," said Akhtar, the company's CEO. Organizations like Meta and NASA have used the Ability Hand on robots to help them mimic body movements, Psyonic noted in 2022. Each bionic hand cost $15,000 to make, making it difficult to create inventory at scale, he said.

Persons: Aadeel Akhtar, —, Akhtar, Psyonic Organizations: Meta, NASA Locations: Pakistan, San Francisco

☆ Mark Cuban offered a fellow 'geek' $75,000 on 'Shark Tank': 'I want you to myself'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Mark Cuban and Justin Huang have a mutual love for education — and a mutual hate for killing bugs. The two hit it off on Friday's episode of ABC's "Shark Tank," where Huang pitched his product, Cup-a-Bug, to the show's investor judges. A self-proclaimed "bug sympathizer," Huang created the contraption for a simple reason: "I'm just terrified of bugs, even from [childhood]. The investors encouraged him to take a minute to gather his thoughts and keep going, with Cuban yelling, "You're good!" Mark Cuban checking out the Cup-a-Bug on ABC's "Shark Tank."

Persons: Mark Cuban, Justin Huang, —, Huang, We've, Lori Greiner chimed, Cuban, Huang's, Chapman, Daymond John, Mark, Christopher Willard Organizations: University of California, Irvine, LinkedIn, Disney Locations: Irvine , California, Cuban, U.S

☆ Bridgit Mendler went from Disney star to space startup CEO with $6.3M in funding—it started with an accidental college major
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Bridgit Mendler's path from Disney Channel star to space startup CEO started with — quite literally — an accident. The 31-year-old is the CEO and co-founder of Northwood Space, a company based in El Segundo, California that aims to mass-produce ground stations — otherwise known as the antennae that communicate with space satellites. "While everybody else was making their sourdough starters [during the Covid-19 pandemic], we were building antennas out of random crap we could find at Home Depot ... and receiving data from [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration] satellites," Mendler told CNBC on Monday while announcing her startup. "I'm studying anthropology," Mendler told ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in 2015. While at Harvard, she served as co-president of the Harvard Space Law Society, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Persons: —, Charlie, Mendler, ABC's, Jimmy Kimmel, Griffin, Andreessen Horowitz, Peter Thiel's Organizations: Disney Channel, Northwood, National Oceanic, Administration, CNBC, University of Southern, USC, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Media Lab, Harvard Law School, Harvard, Harvard Space Law Society, Founders, Humba Ventures, Elon, SpaceX, Technologies, Northrop Grumman Locations: El Segundo , California, University of Southern California, Northwood

☆ CEO quit his 6-figure job at Microsoft—and landed a $300,000 'Shark Tank' offer for his new startup
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A self-proclaimed "serial plant killer" went on ABC's "Shark Tank" — and came away with a $300,000 offer for his houseplant health company Flora. Flora was founded in 2022 by Aabesh De, a former Microsoft employee who quit his "cushy" six-figure job to build a soil meter and accompanying app that alerts people about the health of their houseplants. "My dear mother gave me her prized rose bush plant that she had for years," De, 29, said on the show. "I would never go for a subscription model after buying [the soil meter]," she said. "I think you're smart as hell, and I like to invest in people who are smart as hell," Greiner said.

Persons: Aabesh De, De, we've, weren't, Robert Herjavec, Mark Cuban, Kevin O'Leary, O'Leary, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Greiner, You've Organizations: Microsoft, CNBC Locations: Flora

☆ Why a CEO says bosses should embrace 'coffee badging': 'I don't hire people to watch them work'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A lot of workplaces these days have in-office mandates, with bosses who get upset if employees don't physically show up. Frank Weishaupt, CEO of Boston-based video conferencing equipment maker Owl Labs, isn't one of those bosses. He actively encourages his employees to create schedules that work for them, in locations that make sense, he says — even if what makes sense is "coffee badging." I don't hire people to watch them work," Weishaupt says. Coffee badging may seem like an inefficient use of time, but flexible schedules like this can boost efficiency and morale.

Persons: Frank Weishaupt, it's, Weishaupt Organizations: Boston, Owl Labs, Yahoo, Gartner, Disney

☆ A shopping trip taught Barbara Corcoran a valuable career lesson: '7 simple words made me a much nicer person'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-17 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Barbara Corcoran turned an unpleasant retail experience into a business lesson she still uses today. Corcoran grew "furious," she said, wanting to give the woman a piece of her mind, until her brother stepped in. Consider: She's doing the best that she can,'" said Corcoran. Today, Corcoran thinks about those words often, she said: "She's doing the best that she can." "[Those] seven simple words made me a much nicer person," Corcoran said.

Persons: Barbara Corcoran, Corcoran, Barbara

☆ This is the No. 1 myth holding most people back from happiness and success, says psychologist
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

If you're waiting for everything in your life to fall into place so you can be happy, you've got it all wrong. "Don't wait for that one thing to be happy," Goldman tells CNBC Make It. When I get married, when I get that job, when I lose X amount of weight, I'll be happy." Some days, you'll feel happier and more successful than others. Those peaks and dips make it additionally important to find ways to "create your own happiness," notes Goldman.

Persons: you've, Rachel Goldman, Goldman Organizations: Oracle, New York University, CNBC

☆ Nintendo CEO once cut his salary in half to prevent layoffs—here's why that's so uncommon today
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

As sweeping rounds of layoffs rock the tech, media and finance industries in 2024, some video game fans are thinking about former Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata. Iwata ran the Kyoto, Japan-based video game company from 2002 until his death in 2015. To avoid layoffs, Iwata took a 50% pay cut to help pay for employee salaries, saying a fully-staffed Nintendo would have a better chance of rebounding. Iwata had faith in his talentFor Iwata, taking a pay cut over layoffs centered around his employees' ability to bounce back, Verma says. "Nintendo [needed] to see through the changes that necessitated launching the Nintendo Switch, which has been massively profitable for the company," says Verma.

Persons: Satoru Iwata, Iwata, Rohan Verma, —, it's, Verma, could've, Sandra Sucher, Sucher Organizations: Nintendo, Riot Games, Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, Stanford University, Harvard Business, CNBC Locations: Kyoto, Japan, —, U.S

☆ 3 crucial ways to make yourself happier, according to a psychologist from Finland—the happiest country in the world
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Here's why they're so "crucial," and how to incorporate them into your daily life, according to Martela. "It would be more accurate to say that Finland is the country that has the least unhappy people in the world," Martela tells CNBC Make It. For six years and counting, Finland has been the happiest country in the world . "When you help someone, when you [have a] positive impact on others, your own happiness and sense of meaningfulness increases," says Martela. "[A] strong sense of purpose also makes it easier to tolerate bad conditions," Martela says.

Persons: Frank Martela, Martela, Suneel Gupta Organizations: CNBC, Ohio State University, Harvard University Locations: Finnish, Finland

☆ 34-year-old singer was told it was 'too early' in her career to be ambitious—5 months later, she won 3 Grammys
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The 34-year-old R&B singer followed up a series of frustrating career setbacks with one of the most successful nights of her life, taking home three Grammy awards on Feb. 4. She won best new artist, best R&B album and best non-classical engineered album for her debut record "Jaguar II." I was an independent artist with no team and I just thought, maybe my music would stand for itself," she said, tearing up. The song resonated with listeners, some of whom launched a social media campaign for her to perform it at the then-upcoming MTV Video Music Awards in September. "My team was told it is 'too early in my story' for that opportunity so we will keep working!"

Persons: Victoria Monét, who's, Monét, MTV didn't Organizations: MTV, CNBC

☆ Mark Cuban didn't want to invest in this $2.5 million 'Shark Tank' company—here's what changed his mind
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Mark Cuban didn't want to invest in Genius Litter — until a bidding war between his "Shark Tank" co-stars annoyed him into changing his mind. If it's a high pH or a low pH, it will tell you if there's a potential health issue," said van Meer. That allowed him to put $1 million of his own cash, plus another $1 million already raised from other investors, into launching Genius Litter. "I want to build and scale this business and then sell it [strategically]," said van Meer. van Meer asked, countering with 10% split evenly among the three investors.

Persons: Mark Cuban, Ramon van Meer, van Meer, Van Meer, Robert Hervajec, Emma Grede, Herjavec, Lori Greiner, Kevin O'Leary, Lori, O'Leary, Van Meer wasn't, Greiner Organizations: ABC Locations: Austin , Texas

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