Values-Abilities-Skills Hiring Order
Select for values and abilities before evaluating current skills
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 6
- Confidence
- 98%
Dalio reverses the order in which many employers evaluate talent. Instead of starting with résumé skills, he begins with values because they shape trust, working relationships, and what a person will pursue. He evaluates abilities next: intelligence, curiosity, discovery, and the capacity to adapt. Current skills come last because they can be learned and may lose relevance as technology changes. The sequence does not make skills irrelevant; it prevents a temporary toolset from obscuring the more durable characteristics that determine whether someone can keep learning and contribute to a shared mission. The method is especially useful in changing fields, where selecting only for today's technical checklist can produce a workforce optimized for work that is already being automated or redefined.
Origin
Dalio introduces the order while explaining why he hired a curious former door-to-door Bible salesman despite the man's limited background in research or finance.
Core principles
- 01Values determine the quality of the relationship
- 02Abilities determine capacity to adapt and discover
- 03Skills are trainable and can become obsolete
- 04Talent matters more than the money funding it
- 05Curiosity predicts discovery better than memorized rules
How to run it
- 1
Define required values
State the behavioral values necessary for trust and productive work in the role.
Pro tip Use specific behaviors rather than attractive abstract words.
- 2
Gather values evidence
Ask for examples that reveal how the candidate behaved when values carried a cost.
Watch out Self-description alone is weak evidence.
- 3
Assess abilities
Evaluate reasoning, curiosity, learning speed, and capacity to discover what is not already known.
Pro tip Use unfamiliar problems to observe how the candidate learns.
- 4
Test adaptability
Examine whether the person can change methods as technology and circumstances change.
Watch out Past success with one tool may conceal rigid thinking.
- 5
Review skills
Confirm which current skills are already present and which can realistically be taught.
Pro tip Separate truly mandatory day-one competence from trainable gaps.
Watch out Do not ignore regulated or safety-critical skill requirements.
- 6
Make the whole-person decision
Choose based on the combined evidence, weighted in the order of values, abilities, and skills.
Watch out Do not let a polished résumé override serious values concerns.
In the wild
A research firm interviews a candidate without conventional finance experience. It first verifies honesty and alignment with the firm's working values, then tests curiosity and ability to reason from unfamiliar data. Only afterward does it map the technical skills that require training.
→ The firm can identify adaptable talent that a résumé-first screen would reject.
Common mistakes
Starting and ending with the résumé
Current skills reveal little about values or the ability to adapt when the work changes.
Treating likability as values alignment
Shared values require behavioral evidence, not merely rapport.
Ignoring essential credentials
Putting skills last does not remove mandatory day-one or legal competence requirements.
Is it for you?
Best for
Roles where tools and required skills change quickly but values and underlying abilities remain important.
Not ideal for
Safety-critical work where verified current credentials and technical proficiency are immediate legal requirements.
From the transcript
“First, values. What are the person's values like? Then what are their abilities?”
“Because if you have abilities, you can change what your skills are.”
“The future is in the discovery.”
From the episode
Ray Dalio: The principles that made me a billionaire
Ray Dalio