Manhattan office leasing just posted its strongest quarter in six years, with 11.87 million square feet signed in Q4 (up 25% from the last quarter). Full-year leasing nearly matched pre-pandemic 2019 levels, fueled by finance, tech, legal, government, and AI-driven hiring. Companies are flocking to high-quality buildings, tightening supply and pushing rents higher. Office demand isn’t fully healed, but the comeback is real, and it’s accelerating. (CNBC)

If U.S. sanctions on Venezuela are lifted, roughly 1 million barrels per day of cheap heavy crude could flood U.S. Gulf Coast refineries, slashing fuel costs and boosting margins. The losers? Canadian oil producers, whose similar crude would lose pricing power, and Chinese “teapot” refiners forced to find pricier alternatives. U.S. refiners are built for this oil, markets are already reacting, and the global crude chessboard is shifting fast. (Reuters)

Amazon is leveling up Ring at CES 2026, adding fire alerts, air quality monitoring, leak detection, and an in-app app store. New Ring Sensors track everything from smoke and CO to glass breaks and temperature swings, while AI now flags “unusual” activity based on behavior and clothing. Ring is also partnering with Watch Duty for real-time fire alerts and launching a GPS-enabled car alarm. Looks like Ring is becoming a full-blown home monitoring platform. (TechCrunch)

Elon Musk’s 𝕏 is facing fresh global scrutiny after users began prompting Grok to generate non-consensual and explicit images, including content involving minors. India has ordered immediate corrective action, while regulators in the EU, UK, and Malaysia are demanding answers. Musk says illegal use will be punished, but watchdogs aren’t convinced. The bigger question isn’t intent, but boundaries: beyond clearly illegal content, how tightly should AI outputs be regulated as generative tools grow more powerful? (Social Media Today)

Meta is keeping its Ray-Ban smart glasses stateside for now. High U.S. demand and a tight supply mean the UK, France, Italy, and Canada will have to wait, as Meta scrambles to fill waitlists stretching into 2026. The AR shades, which let you snap pics, stream content, and talk to an AI assistant, are proving a hit. New features like a teleprompter and expanded navigation show Meta isn’t slowing down, just prioritizing its home turf before going global. (Reuters)

“Serial entrepreneur" is one of those phrases that makes me cringe, but it’s probably the first thing a LinkedIn ghostwriter would write about me. It’s a side effect of running multiple ventures, including Go Carpathian, my recruitment agency.

So, over the last 3+years I’ve become somewhat of an expert on all things recruitment.

And unsurprisingly, one of the top three roles we fill most often for our clients? Sales.

For obvious reasons: a great sales team can make you a lot of money

Because of that, we hear the same questions over and over again from founders. So today, I’m sharing the right questions clients are asking, and the ones you should be asking too if you’re planning to grow your sales team this year.

Answer: 2 Weeks ago…

If you’re asking this question, you’re probably already late.

Sales hiring has a 90-120 day lag. Even if you hire tomorrow, you're looking at 30+ days to find the right person, 30 days to onboard them properly, and another 30-60 days before they're actually closing deals independently.

If deals have started slipping through the cracks, leads are going cold, or your top closers are spending half their time on admin, that’s your cue.

The trick is to scale what’s already working. If your process is solid and your product sells consistently, adding the right SDR is the fastest way to accelerate growth and avoid overwhelming your existing team.

Answer: You definitely want a strong commission structure, but skipping the base pay is a mistake I've seen play out badly too many times.

I get the temptation to go ‘commission-only’. 

It feels like "zero risk" for you. But in reality, commission-only is almost always a lose-lose. If you don't offer a base, you’re making a huge gamble.

The best salespeople have options. So, when you don't provide a floor, you end up with a revolving door of low-quality reps who bail the second they have a slow month.

Instead, you want to build around OTE (On-Target Earnings). This gives them the security to actually focus on your product while keeping them hungry to hit that performance upside.

To give you an idea of the market right now:

Hiring internationally can save you up to 70% on payroll, but don’t get me started. I can talk about how amazing + affordable South African SDRs are for hours (not an exaggeration).

Good salespeople bet on themselves, but they need to know the house isn't rigged. Give them a fair base right off the bat, and they’ll reward you with the numbers you’re looking for.

Answer: Make them do the job.

So many people get caught up in fancy hiring processes. Psychographic tests, trick questions, and puzzles designed to sus out a candidate's “grit.” 

But the truth is, 80% of a good process is just putting candidates in situations that reflect the real-world job.

I actually learned this trick back when I was applying for an entry-level telemarketing job. I was told to memorize a script for a role-play. We did the role-play in the interview, but then there was a twist: The hiring manager pulled out his phone and made me dial real prospects right then and there.

It was brilliant. If you’re hiring cold callers, why waste time on questions that don’t tell you what you actually want to know?

When you audit your candidates, don't soften the blow:

The best candidates won't have perfect, scripted responses. 

They'll ask clarifying questions, adapt their approach, and stay composed. If you wouldn’t hire a developer without seeing code, don’t hire a salesperson without seeing them sell.

Don’t fumble your sales hires.

Hire for where you are, pay like you mean it, and make people prove they can actually sell.