Scott Galloway, a professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, is best known for his insights into and books about branding, marketing and tech — wisdom he has shared before on Masters in Business conversations. His latest book, “The Algebra of Happiness: Notes on the Pursuit of Success, Love, and Meaning,” is rather different.
The book is the distillation of the last class of each course he teaches, in which he gives his students a set of precepts for how to live life well: yes, money matters, but only up to a point; work may be hard but the more you apply yourself, the better you will be at your job, and we tend to like what we are good at; personal relationships — especially with your life partner — are one of the most significant positive determinants of future happiness (alcohol being the largest negative determinant). And so much more.
In our conversation, Galloway explained why it is so important for young people to get credentialed and then move to a city, where the concentration of intellectual capital offers lots of options and networking opportunities. Higher education, in Galloway’s words, is the best vehicle for upward mobility.
We also discuss the structural cost problems of Uber, which is wildly overpriced; why WeWorks, one of the most overvalued private companies, is the next great debacle in initial public offerings; and why Lyft may be doomed by a lack of network effects.
His favorite books are here; A transcript of our conversation is available here.
You can stream/download the full conversation, including the podcast extras on Apple iTunes, Bloomberg, Overcast, and Stitcher. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite host sites can be found here.
Next week we speak with Sharon French former Head of Beta Solutions at Oppenheimer, currently CEO & President – AIG Asset Management/Life & Retirement Funds.
