Kunal Kapoor faced a choice early in his career: accept a higher-paid job in banking or join a little-known investment research firm called Morningstar.

Despite encouragement from those closest to him to take the more secure option, Kapoor trusted his instincts and chose Morningstar. Nearly three decades later, he's still there — having risen through the ranks to become CEO.

In the latest episode of Executive Decisions, Kapoor tells CNBC's Steve Sedgwick why he believes it's important to find opportunities for personal growth, how his approach to leadership has evolved and what he learned from hiring mistakes earlier in his career.

He also discusses Morningstar's expansion into private markets, the challenges of leading through technological change and why AI is forcing businesses to rethink how they operate.

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Tarang Amin wasn't looking to run a cosmetics company when the opportunity to invest in e.l.f. Beauty came his way. He thought the category was crowded, fragmented and lacked differentiation. But Amin followed a rule that had served him throughout his career: “It never hurts to have a conversation.”

That conversation changed his mind. After looking more closely at e.l.f., Amin saw a digitally native brand with a strong value proposition, an unusually close relationship with its consumers and exceptional performance at retail. He decided to invest his own family's money and become CEO.

In this episode of Executive Decisions, Amin tells Steve Sedgwick how his family's immigrant experience and motel business shaped him, why curiosity remains central to his leadership style and how listening to e.l.f.'s community drives the company's product innovation. He also explains why he believes diverse teams are a competitive advantage — and the leadership philosophy behind his approach: “When people are looking at opportunities, I'm looking at strengths.”

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Ron O’Hanley was on track for a successful career at McKinsey when Mellon Bank offered him the chance to leave consulting and run a business. He initially turned it down — only to reconsider the decision three months later.

In this episode of Executive Decisions, the State Street CEO tells Steve Sedgwick why changing his mind turned out to be “the best thing I ever did” and shaped a career lesson he still shares with others: opportunities can be engineered, but their timing often cannot.

O’Hanley also discusses the curiosity that has guided his career, navigating the global financial crisis, leaving Fidelity without another job lined up and why an unexpected move to State Street eventually led to the biggest role of his career.

He also reflects on mistakes, leadership, responsibility and why even the most experienced CEOs should never believe they have everything figured out.

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