Indeed CEO Chris Hyams takes a creative approach to interviewing job candidates, he says.

Typically, when an interviewee comes to him, their skills and experience have already been vetted by other leaders within the company, says Hyams, who’s been Indeed’s CEO since 2019. So he gets to ask more unconventional, personality-driven questions.

“It’s funny, the more I do this, the less I’m looking for specific knowledge or experience,” he says. “The most important thing is curiosity and adaptability, not necessarily what you’ve done.”

Hyams investigates those two soft skills by asking these questions in every interview he conducts, he says:

1. “What are you insanely curious about?” Or, alternatively, “What do you care deeply about?”
2. “Tell me a story about when you were really, really sure about something and found out you were completely wrong.”

Your answers don’t necessarily need to be work-related. “I’m actually more interested if it’s not a work related thing,” says Hyams. “If you can spend 45 minutes talking about baking sourdough, and the 57 different recipes that you’ve tried, the experimentation with temperature and hydration …. When people have that intense curiosity … it’s just a question of, what else can you fall in love with?”

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Similarly, Hyams seeks employees who can switch gears when their plan or idea fails, and own up to their failure afterward. Other business leaders, ranging from billionaire serial entrepreneur Mark Cuban to Rent The Runway CEO Jennifer Hyman, also identify adaptability as an in-demand job skill — especially as artificial intelligence increasingly finds its way into workplaces.

“Anyone who’s never wrong, or anyone who will never admit they’re wrong, is going to be tough to work with. Because everyone’s wrong [at some point],” says Hyams.

The Indeed CEO approaches interviews in at least one more creative way: He typically doesn’t look at candidates’ resumes before speaking with them, he says. Instead, he wants to come to his conclusion about someone based on what they show him, without being influenced by what he read on a piece of paper.

“It’s really important for me to try to eliminate as many preconceived notions [beforehand] and just assess a person …. As much as I’d like to think that I am rational and open minded, I have biases. Everyone has biases,” Hyams says. “I have biases for and against certain schools, certain degrees and certain companies that, no matter how much I work at it, you know, these are just old patterns that I recognize.”

If you interview two people for the same role, knowing that one of them already has a comparable title might accidentally make you favor that candidate, he says. These kinds of biases are what make it difficult for certain groups, like “women, people of color and people with disabilities,” to climb the corporate ladder, Hyams adds.

“One of our core principles at Indeed is this idea that talent is universal, but opportunity is not,” he says.

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As a leadership consultant who studies workplace psychology, I’ve spent more than 30 years helping thousands of individuals and CEOs at multimillion-dollar organizations navigate tough relationships and achieve success.

Out of all the different personalities I’ve worked with, ambiverts stood out the most. Because they have tendencies of both introversion and extroversion, they can leverage inward reflection and outward interaction in a strategic and balanced way.

Ambiverts are also ambitious and goal-oriented. Their sharp observational skills help them see both the bigger picture and potential pitfalls — all while building a community around them to help them achieve their vision.

If you identify with any of the traits below, you might be an ambivert. Here’s what makes this personality type so underrated and more successful than their extroverted and introverted peers.

1. You are very selective when it comes to social engagements.

You don’t seek interaction just for the sake of it. You carefully evaluate which opportunities align with your goals, values and energy levels. This allows you to be fully present and able to contribute in every interaction.

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2. You turn solitude into a superpower.

Time alone isn’t just relaxing — it’s productive. You use alone time to process, reflect and plan, rather than as an escape. After a long day, you step back to recharge in a way that makes you emerge with fresh insights and ideas.

3. You are fluent in speaking introvert and extrovert.

You are highly adaptable and skilled at adjusting your approach to match the other person’s energy or preferences. You’re equally at ease diving into deep conversations with quieter individuals and engaging in dynamic, intense discussions with people who are more outgoing.

4. You can take the lead, but you also know when to step back.

You excel at commanding attention but know when to let others shine. You pivot effortlessly between leading and listening during group discussions.

5. You speak to make progress, not noise.

Extroverts often speak when they shouldn’t, and introverts often don’t speak when they should. But as ambivert, you know when to talk and when to listen.

6. You act with intention and perfect timing.

You have an extraordinary ability to read situations and people: Who holds influence? Who is disengaged? Where are the real opportunities where you can contribute? You are constantly analyzing all the details of a given interaction, and you know exactly when to step in.

7. You can turn boring interactions into opportunities.

When faced with boring or irrelevant meetings or conversations, you don’t just zone out. Instead, you scan the room to identify interesting people — those you could benefit from engaging with to reach your goals. This way, you turn what others might view as “wasted time” into valuable connections.

8. You are a versatile problem-solver.

Because of your deep self-awareness skills, you understand both the rational aspects of a problem and the emotional sensitivities for the people involved. This gives you a unique ability to devise a solution that works for everyone.   

For extroverts, this is all about developing the skills to thrive in quieter, more introspective moments. Here are three simple things you can try:

1. Pause and think before speaking: In conversations, count to three before responding. This gives others space to contribute and ensures your input is thoughtful.
2. Practice silent observation: In meetings or group settings, observe dynamics without speaking. Pay attention to who talks, who listens and how decisions are made.
3. Schedule alone time: Block out 30 minutes each day for journaling. Use this time to review your day and plan your next steps, or to just process your thoughts. Think about recent interactions or decisions. What insights can you take away?

For introverts, this is all about expanding your range. Here are three simple things you can try:

1. Prepare what you want to share: Write down one or two points you’d like to share before attending a meeting. Commit to proactively contributing something meaningful. This will make speaking up less intimidating.
2. Follow up: Send a quick email or message after meeting someone. Reference something specific you discussed and thank them for their time.
3. Recharge with purpose daily: Set aside some alone time every day to process your thoughts. Analyze your interactions. Plan how to apply what you’ve learned. Draft ideas for what to share in the meetings and conversations planned for tomorrow.

Stefan Falk is an internationally-recognized executive coach, workplace psychology expert, and author of “Intrinsic Motivation: Learn to Love Your Work and Succeed as Never Before.” A McKinsey & Company alumnus, he has trained over 4,000 leaders across more than 60 organizations and helped drive transformations valued in excess of $2 billion. Follow him on LinkedIn.

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In millions of homes around the world, we’re having the same fights about money. One partner feels anxious, the other buries their head in the sand to avoid talking about it. One agonizes over the budget, the other spends on whatever they want.

We avoid discussing finances, and in the process, we allow money to drive a wedge between us. But in my new book, “Money for Couples,” I offer a 10-step program for building a shared vision around money, even if you and your partner see money completely differently.

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One core component of this involves combing through you and your couple’s spending habits. And for 90% of the people I talk to, food — whether eating out or ordering in — is the biggest category where there’s money to free up and redirect into something that matters more.

There are lots of reasons that restaurant spending seems to slip through our fingers. Food is emotional — buying dinner is about a lot more than just hunger. It’s about convenience, impulsivity, reward and more.

Tracking restaurant and takeout spending as a couple can be fairly complicated: One of you might buy lunch at work. The other might have a monthly dinner with friends. You pick up a pizza for the kids and pay with the $20 you have in your coat pocket. You grab something on your way home and don’t have the right credit card with you. Maybe you’ve got bigger kids, and you’re Venmo-ing money to them so they can get food with some friends.

It’s a mishmash, and it can easily get away from you.

For tracking, be vigilant about using the same shared credit card for anything that counts as eating out. That will help. Second, be kind and supportive of each other — changing habits around food can be tricky.

Here are some ways people I’ve worked with slashed funds on eating or ordering in — and redirected their money:

“During the pandemic we found a butcher that started delivering to homes, and we’ve continued to place a monthly order. We freeze it, so we always have delicious cuts of meat ready to cook every weeknight. Because we now do weeknights at home, we don’t worry about eating out on weekends.” -Mary

“I think the hardest part of not eating out is missing out on the vibe. I’m still figuring out how to get the energy of being in a crowded restaurant — that’s what I love most about dining out. One of my goals is to start a themed potluck dinner party with friends where everyone brings something — still economically efficient, food is fresher, and you get all the social vibes.” -Lauren

“We were eating out at least five to six days a week; the only meal we were making at home was breakfast! Now, we cook every Wednesday and Sunday and we eat leftovers at least one night, which saves us a ton of money. I allocate my part to credit card debt. It’s hard after a long day to cook and clean up afterward, but watching that debt go down is rewarding.” -Rosana

The goal is to get honest about your invisible spending and overspending. Start by having a candid talk with your partner: What are you spending too much on? Where can you cut back?

The more you have open, honest conversations about these things, the easier it will be to spend meaningfully.

Ramit Sethi is the host of Netflix’s “I Will Teach You to Be Rich” and bestselling author of “I Will Teach You to Be Rich.” For more than 20 years, he’s shared a unique blend of money and psychology with an audience of millions. His new book, “Money for Couples,” is out now.

Want to earn some extra money on the side? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Start a Side Hustle to learn tips to get started and strategies for success from top side hustle experts. Pre-register now and use coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 30% off $97 (+taxes and fees) through April 1, 2025.

Excerpted from “Money for Couples by Ramit Sethi,” copyright ©2024 by Ramit Sethi.  Used with permission of Workman Publishing Co., Inc., a subsidiary of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Here’s some advice from the CEO of a $61 billion company: Raise your hand for opportunities you might not be ready for yet.

Volunteering for a task — or applying to a job — without proper preparation or qualifications may feel like a mistake waiting to happen. But it’s a great strategy for your career growth and personal development, according to Sridhar Ramaswamy, CEO of cloud storage company Snowflake.

″All of my success in my life has come from people giving me jobs that I didn’t think I deserved or qualified for,” Ramaswamy, 57, recently told LinkedIn’s “This Is Working” video series. “The more you take responsibility and the more you’re broad about what defines ‘team’ and ‘success,’ the more likely it is that somebody is going to say, ‘You know, this is the person I want leading the next rung of the organization.’”

Ramaswamy got a PhD in computer science from Brown University in 1994, according to his LinkedIn profile, and worked in the tech industry for nearly a decade before joining Google as a software engineer in 2003. He worked his way up to a senior vice president role within eight years, and left the company to co-found a startup called Neeva — an AI-powered search engine meant to compete with Google — in 2019.

Over that time, Ramaswamy repeatedly took on roles and assumed job responsibilities he’d never had before. Neeva was acquired by Snowflake in 2023, Ramaswamy became their SVP of AI that same year, and was promoted to CEO in 2024, another role he had no prior experience in.

“Sometimes you can say: ‘Think ridiculously ambitious,’” he said, adding: “It doesn’t work everywhere, and sometimes you fall flat on your face. You’ve got to play the game of averages. If you try enough ambitious things, a bunch of them work out.”

To show he was ready to take on the role of CEO, Ramaswamy gave Snowflake’s founder an in-depth spreadsheet detailing how AI will be incorporated into Snowflake’s mission and offerings. He also spent months conducting weekly “war room” meetings with employees, from marketing reps to engineers, to help demystify AI for them, he said.

The Bozeman, Montana-based company currently has a $61.22 billion market cap, as of Friday morning, up from about $50 billion the year before he took over.

Ridiculous ambition requires emotional intelligence, Ramaswamy said. You need to be highly aware of your own strengths and weaknesses when tackling something new, have the self-management skills to adapt to new environments, and be resilient enough to pick yourself up after a failure.

Billionaire LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman agrees: A CEO’s ambition is the No. 1 trait he looks for when deciding to invest in a company, he said in a recent podcast episode of “The Diary Of A CEO.” The No. 2 trait, he added, is a combination of awareness and emotional intelligence.

You can sharpen your emotional intelligence with practice, Christine Cruzvergara, chief education strategy officer at careers platform Handshake, said earlier this month.

One strategy she recommends: In meetings, take notes about how the other participants comport themselves. Then ask yourself questions like: What’s their body language showing? What cues made you think they were comfortable or uncomfortable? Who appeared to have the most influence in the room, and why?

Your observations can help you “gather a fuller picture of the discussion” and train yourself on the types of cues that help people interact well with each other, said Cruzvergara.

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Most couples think they know each other well, but real intimacy is a lot more than just being able to name your partner’s favorite food or TV shows.

As a psychologist, I’ve found that people in the happiest, most successful relationships see in their partner what others can’t or would normally overlook.

If you can answer these five questions below about your partner, your relationship is built on a highly coveted level of understanding and connection. (And if you don’t know the answers? It’s the perfect excuse to start asking.)

We all have those moments that stick with us for life — something a high school teacher said in passing, a compliment from a stranger or a minor rejection that still stings years later.

These events might seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but they can radically alter the way we see ourselves, and they rarely come up in casual conversation.

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If you know about one of these small core memories in your partner’s life, it means you’ve had the kind of deep conversations that reveal the invisible threads of their personhood.

When life gets hectic, everyone has their own way of mentally checking out. Some fantasize about quitting their job and moving to a remote island. Others scroll real estate listings for cities they’ll never move to, or envision alternate versions of their life.

This is so much more than just a quirky habit; it’s a window into how your partner copes with stress. If you know the answer, it means you understand their inner workings, and that’s a rare kind of closeness.

We all have social scenarios that make us feel uneasy. Maybe your partner dreads small talk at parties, or they hate ordering at a restaurant in a group setting.

Knowing what makes your partner uncomfortable means you can be a source of support in situations where they might otherwise just grin and bear it. This is a sign that you’re truly attuned to their subtle mood changes — something that the untrained eye wouldn’t notice.

Whether we like it or not, we inherit certain habits from our upbringing — some good, some bad. For example, maybe your partner has a hard time accepting compliments because they never got any growing up.

If you know what habit your partner struggles with, it means you’ve had the vulnerable conversations about the family dynamics that shaped them into who they are today. These are the kinds of details most people don’t get the chance to learn, or simply don’t care to.

Everyone has accomplishments that they’re secretly proud of, but refrain from announcing to the world.

Maybe your partner once helped a stranger in a way that changed their life, or they pushed through a health, family or finance-related struggle that no one knows about. 

If you know about any of their unsung victories, it means your partner feels safe enough to share their most humble, meaningful moments with you. That kind of trust is invaluable in a relationship.

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 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.