Richard

In the best-case scenario, a side hustle could turn into a multimillion-dollar business that generates a passive income stream — but at the very least, starting a side gig could help pay some bills.

A new survey from personal finance software company Quicken shows that almost half (43%) of Americans with a side hustle, or an extra source of income added to a primary income, make more money and clock in fewer hours overall than those without a side hustle.

The three most popular side hustles pursued by those who work less and make more money were personal assistance (20%), cooking and baking (16%), and caregiving (16%). One in five people with side hustles said they were business owners, too, selling products online or offering services like photography.

The majority of people with side hustles (82%) said starting a side gig helped them financially, and kept them from living paycheck to paycheck. Most with side hustles (57%) had savings equal to at least four months of living expenses.

Related: Side Hustles Are Soaring as Entrepreneurs Start Businesses Working Part- or Full-Time Elsewhere, According to a New Report

The survey also found that, for younger side hustlers, a way to an extra income doubles as a path to becoming more employable. 44% of Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012) choose to start a side hustle in order to obtain skills for long-term careers, much higher than the overall 18% of Americans who started a side hustle with the same motivation.

Quicken conducted the survey online, gathering responses from more than 1,000 Americans.

Additional research on side hustles, released in August by NEXT Insurance, showed that three out of five people bring in less than $1,000 monthly in side income, while 22% make $1,000 to $10,000 a month, and 15% make more than $10,000.

Related: Starting a Side Hustle Should Come With a Warning Label — Here’s What You Need to Know

Barbara Corcoran still thinks now is the “very best time” to buy a house. But you only have one month.

The real estate maven and “Shark Tank” star posted a warning to Instagram on Thursday for people waiting to jump into the real estate market.

Related: Barbara Corcoran Says This Is the One Question to Ask Before Selling Your Home

“I’m here to tell you, you have one month to buy a house,” Corcoran said in the video. “One month!”

Corcoran noted when the Fed cut interest rates, everyone expected mortgage rates to follow suit, but that has not happened yet. In fact, they’ve gone up, which has taken a lot of buyers out of the market.

“Everyone’s moved to the sideline,” she added, “taking a wait-and-see attitude.”

The “uncertainty in the market” is caused by a lack of inventory, persistent inflation, high interest rates, and the upcoming election, so many would-be buyers are pausing their home-buying dreams. However, she said, this is the time when you can “find the best deals” because there will be “someone out there who will take a bid because they are uncertain, too.”

Related: ‘Not a Big Deal’: Barbara Corcoran Says the NAR Ruling Hasn’t Had Much of an Impact So Far

“If you are planning on waiting a year and seeing where interest rates go, you are out of your mind,” she added. “There’s not enough houses.”

She also noted that, like this year, prices will go up another 5%.

For entrepreneur and investor Daymond John, deciding which projects he chooses to put his time, energy and money behind comes down to one thing: making a positive impact on the world.

In 2020, he created Black Entrepreneurs Day (BED), wanting to do something to uplift Americans who were aching in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder. “People were in the streets burning businesses when I said they should be building them,” John told Entrepreneur. “So I called friends in business and some great brands to see what we could do to empower people, and show them how we were able to overcome struggles and find success.

“What started as a virtual call from Daymond’s basement has now become an annual in-person event featuring some of the most accomplished people who live at the intersection of business and culture. The 5th Annual Black Entrepreneurs Day is taking place on Friday, November 22 at the Fox Theater in Atlanta, and will feature a slate of guests including Kelly Rowland, Flavor Flav, Charlamagne tha God, Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles and many others. In-person and streaming tickets are free and can be ordered at blackentrepreneursday.com.

Related: How Daymond John Went From Selling T-Shirts on the Street to Running a $350 Million Company

BED isn’t just in the business of inspiring entrepreneurs, it is also in the business of funding them. From October 24 to November 1, entrepreneurs can apply for a $25,000 Powershift Grant. (Apply here.) Along with partners JPMorgan Chase, Hilton, T-Mobile for Business and Constant Contact, a total of $100,000 in grants will be given to small business owners.

So what does it take to earn the trust and support of BED’s investors and win one of those grants? We asked and “The People’s Shark” himself.

When someone is pitching you, what do you want to hear that makes you say, “I want to give my money to this person”?
You want to hear them ask and answer the three questions: 1. Why me? 2. Why now? 3. And why this? You’re going to talk about who you are, what you’ve been through and why you decided to do this business. You saw a pain in the market or you want to bring somebody joy. And then we want to know that you know your numbers. We want to hear how obsessed you are with your customers. We want to know that you’re moving and shaking, you’re agile and you’re changing with the times. You’re working with AI. You’re making sure you’re employing people from your community. If you have a real passion for it, it’s infectious. It’s kind of like, “Man, I want to know this person. I want to root for them because they are somebody who’s going add value to people’s lives.”

What advice would you give to a young Daymond John?
I would say to a younger me that you already know the branding. You’re obsessed with your culture. You’re obsessed with the product. You want to make the best clothes ever. But you won’t be able to run this business and keep it sustainable if you don’t learn your numbers. What are the costs of goods? Who do you sell to? How many people do you need to employ? What number do you need to get to to be at your margins? Do you have the business structure for someone to be able to invest or are all your receipts in a shoe box? That’s what I would have told my younger self.

If you were starting today and had just $1,000 in your bank account to work with, what would you do?
I would start with the homework of asking “What am I trying to solve?” And then I start with the OPMs. That stands for Other People’s Mindpower, Manpower, Manufacturing, Marketing, Money. I don’t spend my thousand dollars, I’m going to borrow their OPM. And then I’m going to study for six months or a year to figure out how I can get into this market and help solve the problem. And then DM 50 people a day looking for funding, mentorship and collaboration. I’m not going to use my thousand dollars. I’m going to try to use everything else.

Applications for BED’s Powershift Grant are being accepted from October 24 to November 1.

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has been highly critical of Microsoft’s AI efforts this month, even going on a podcast to call Copilot “disappointing.” Now the drama continues as Benioff criticizes Microsoft’s AI for businesses.

On Monday, Microsoft announced new AI agents that can act on a company’s behalf for sales, finance, and customer service tasks. But based on Benioff’s tweet the next day, he still thinks Salesforce can beat Microsoft at AI.

Salesforce’s CEO wrote in a Tuesday post on X that Microsoft pitching its Copilot AI as “agents” signaled “panic mode.”

“Let’s be real—Copilot’s a flop because Microsoft lacks the data, metadata, and enterprise security models to create real corporate intelligence,” Benioff wrote. “That is why Copilot is inaccurate, spills corporate data, and forces customers to build their own LLMs. Clippy 2.0, anyone?” Clippy was the office assistant that Microsoft pulled in 2007.

Benioff then pushed Salesforce’s Agentforce, a set of AI agents customized for sales, marketing, and customer service tasks, as an example of “what AI was meant to be.”

Microsoft rebranding Copilot as ‘agents’? That’s panic mode. Let’s be real—Copilot’s a flop because Microsoft lacks the data, metadata, and enterprise security models to create real corporate intelligence. That is why Copilot is inaccurate, spills corporate data, and forces… pic.twitter.com/fBRFoVhWOG

— Marc Benioff (@Benioff) October 22, 2024

Related: Microsoft Strikes Back at Salesforce, Announces New AI Agents That Can Take Over Finance, Sales, and Service Tasks

Has Copilot revealed private information or been inaccurate?

In August, Microsoft fixed a bug in Copilot that could have spilled confidential information. Users have commented on inaccuracies with Copilot, but that isn’t a problem isolated to Microsoft’s AI — large language models across the board struggle with accuracy.

Benioff’s comments attempt to distinguish Salesforce’s business AI offerings from Microsoft’s by restating what he’s said before. Earlier this month, on an episode of the Masters of Scale Rapid Response podcast, Benioff said that Microsoft has done a “tremendous disservice” to the AI industry by providing AI that “doesn’t work.”

Benioff drew a comparison then between Copilot and Clippy and said that Copilot didn’t have staying power.

Microsoft, meanwhile, says that clients like McKinsey & Company and Thomson Reuters are creating AI agents with its technology.

Related: Can Anyone Beat Microsoft at AI? The CEO of Salesforce Thinks His Company Can.

Nvidia’s Blackwell AI chip, the same one that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said had “insane” demand, is now free of a design error that caused a production delay.

According to a Wednesday Reuters report, Huang said that the design mistake “was 100% Nvidia’s fault.”

“We had a design flaw in Blackwell,” he stated. “It was functional, but the design flaw caused the yield to be low.”

He specified the nature of the problem, stating that “in order to make a Blackwell computer work, seven different types of chips were designed from scratch and had to be ramped into production at the same time.” After fixing the design flaw, Nvidia has been producing Blackwell “at an incredible pace,” Huang said.

Related: Here’s Why Nvidia Just Broke Another Record and Could Take Apple’s Crown as the Most Valuable Company in the World

The chips were supposed to ship in the second quarter of this year, but are now shipping in the fourth quarter.

^{Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang displays a Blackwell chip. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images}

Reports that Blackwell could be delayed ramped up in August, causing Nvidia shares to drop. Since then, the stock has climbed back up, growing over 188% year-to-date at the time of writing.

Related: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Says Nuclear Energy ‘Is a Wonderful Way Forward’ to Keep AI Data Centers Running

Huang has previously said that intense demand was the one thing that kept him up at night and that everyone wanted to be the first to use the Blackwell chip.

“We have a lot of people on our shoulders, and everybody is counting on us,” he said last month.

Snags in Blackwell production affect some of the world’s biggest tech companies, which are Nvidia’s biggest customers. Over 40% of Nvidia’s revenue comes from just four clients: Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft.

Related: Here’s How the CEOs of Salesforce and Nvidia Use ChatGPT in Their Daily Lives

3 Benefits of owning a ComForCare franchise:

1. Join a mission-driven business focused on enhancing quality of life for the elderly and disabled.
2. Access to exclusive programs like DementiaWise, offering specialized care and competitive advantages.
3. Benefit from a proven business model in the stable and growing $75 billion home care industry.

ComForCare is a franchise provider of non-medical in-home care services, designed to aid individuals in living their best lives possible through personal and professional care solutions. Founded in 1996, ComForCare has become a reputable partner for entrepreneurs seeking to make a positive impact on the lives of seniors and people living with disabilities.

Key Facts:

• Minimum Initial Investment: $72,975
• Initial Franchise Fee: $29,500 – $57,000
• Liquid Capital Required: $50,000
• Net Worth Required: $350,000
• Veteran Incentives: 20% off franchise fee

Small businesses that adopt bulk purchasing strategies for office supplies, food, and cleaning materials can cut costs by 15% to 30% annually, a recent report from CNBC says. For an entrepreneur or home-based business, this can mean thousands of dollars in savings each year.

Especially with the holiday season just around the corner, now is the perfect time to secure your Sam’s Club 1-year membership for just $20 (reg. $50). Whether you’re preparing for family feasts, gift shopping, or simply stocking up on extra snacks and supplies for the office, a Sam’s Club membership puts everything you need to get prepared for the holiday rush in easy reach.

From bulk purchases of quality ingredients for holiday meals to discounted electronics and toys for gifts, Sam’s Club Members can find incredible value when they need it most. Plus, members have access to other great perks like members-only fuel prices, ensuring your road trips to visit loved ones are as inexpensive as possible.

As holiday shopping ramps up, the savings from your Sam’s Club membership will quickly add up. Imagine snagging your holiday groceries at a discount, grabbing last-minute gifts, and stocking up on decorations—all without the stress of inflated holiday prices.

And since bulk buying can help reduce costs, especially when hosting or enjoying multiple gatherings, you’ll be more than ready for festive events, business parties, or yummy office treats.

With a Sam’s Club membership, you also get a complimentary household membership, making it easier to split the shopping duties or share the benefits with a family member. This can be a lifesaver on a busy day with back-to-back meetings.

Whether you’re outfitting your home office, stocking up for a business event, or buying supplies for your team, you can be sure you always get the best deals possible. And with auto-renewal enabled, you’ll never have to worry about missing out on these fantastic savings year after year.

Don’t miss the chance to score a Sam’s Club savings for what it would cost for a single lunch out.

A Sam’s Club 1-year membership is just $20 (reg. $50) for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

The former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, Mike Jeffries, 80, was arrested Tuesday with two other associates. Jeffries is accused of one count of sex trafficking plus 15 counts of interstate prostitution.

“As alleged in the indictment, former CEO of Abercrombie Michael Jeffries, his partner Matthew Smith and their recruiter James Jacobson used their money and influence to prey on vulnerable men for their own sexual gratification,” stated United States Attorney Breon Peace. “Today’s arrests show that my Office and our law enforcement partners will not rest until anyone who engages in sex trafficking or interstate prostitution, regardless of their wealth or power, is brought to justice.”

An investigation by the FBI and federal prosecutors in Brooklyn alleges that Jeffries, who was CEO of the clothing brand from 1992 to 2014, used his position at the company to bring aspiring male models to events in New York and around the world for sex. The indictment alleges the crimes occurred between December 2008 and March 2015 and that the men believed participating “could yield modeling opportunities with Abercrombie or otherwise benefit their careers.”

The indictment alleges that while Jeffries was CEO a “network of employees, contractors, and security professionals” helped run a business “that was dedicated to fulfilling their sexual desires” and making sure the whole thing was kept quiet.

Jeffries previously “vehemently denied” the allegations to the BBC. Abercrombie told the outlet last year that it was investigating and was “appalled and disgusted”.

Related: Abercrombie’s Polarizing CEO Abruptly Retires

The company declined to comment on Jeffries’ arrest to USA Today.

NYU Stern professor and serial entrepreneur Scott Galloway says “AI is not going to take your job” — but people who know how to use it might.

In an episode of the Masters of Scale podcast, which aired earlier this month, Galloway advised anyone who thinks their job might be at risk of automation to start using AI.

Related: This One Talent Is ‘the Greatest Skill You Can Develop’ for Entrepreneurship, Says Professor Scott Galloway

“I would say try to take 15, 30, 60 minutes a day, even if it’s spending time with your kids to try and time sneaker drops — which I’m doing with my 14-year-old — using AI,” he said. “Just get competent with it.”

Galloway, who sold his media business L2 for $134 million in 2017, initially experimented with the tech by having AI write for him based on prompts. He quickly realized how much AI wrote “like a computer” or in a bland way.

“I’ve used AI for every component of my job, and I find it can’t replace anything,” he said.

Related: Worried About AI Stealing Your Job? A New Report Calls These 10 Careers ‘AI-Proof’

Galloway says he now uses AI more as a “thought partner” than a writer. He consults AI for information, asks it to create a pitch deck, and prompts it to ask him questions like an investor based on the pitch deck. AI doesn’t replace the tasks Galloway has to do; it augments them.

“What I would say is just start using [AI], and your own mind will start figuring out ways you can incorporate it,” Galloway said. “You’re the warrior. This is a weapon, but you’re the warrior.”

^{Scott Galloway. Photo by Tobias Hase/Picture Alliance via Getty Images}

Galloway’s recommendations come as tasks like writing and coding have increasingly become automated. In August, Amazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman predicted a future where AI does most of the coding for software engineers. In April, Goldman Sachs CIO Marco Argenti encouraged computer science majors in college to study philosophy as well in order to develop the reasoning skills to interact with AI.

As for writing, one expert estimates that 90% of all online content will be AI-generated by the end of next year.

Related: How Close Is AI to Actually Stealing Your Dream Job?

The Ernst & Young (EY) Ignite Learning Week in May offered employees at the consulting and strategy firm a chance to upskill by taking online courses like “Conversing with AI, one prompt at a time” and “How strong is your digital brand in the marketplace?”

However, a report from The Financial Times revealed an unexpected consequence of the week: getting fired for “cheating.” EY staff who virtually attended more than one course at the same time were let go.

Related: Meta Fires Employee Making $400,000 Per Year Over a $25 Meal Voucher Issue

EY requires staff to complete 40 education credits per year, and the classes went towards that total. The firm said that dozens of employees were caught taking multiple courses simultaneously.

To the employees, being fired reportedly came as a shock, considering the overall culture at EY.

Some told FT that they’ve seen other employees do things like take two client calls at once. To them, the company has “a culture of multitasking,” complete with three monitors per person.

According to Glassdoor, the average base salary at EY in New York City is $105,000 yearly, with an average annual bonus of $10,000.

Cheating is a sensitive issue for EY. In 2022, the firm had to pay a $100 million penalty, the largest ever fine leveled against a company of its type, after the Securities and Exchange Commission found that its employees cheated on professional exams and education courses.

Related: U.S. Recession Fears Are ‘Overstated,’ According to EY’s Chief Economist. Here’s Why.

EY joins Meta in firing employees who misuse perks. Last week Meta reportedly let go of close to two dozen employees who used a $25 dinner voucher for items other than dinner over an extended period of time.

EY has almost 400,000 employees globally.