I sat down with Ian Rowe, an education entrepreneur and senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, to unpack why raising kids with a sense of agency is the key to lifelong success. Ian defines agency as free will guided by moral discernment, closely related to the concept of “ordered liberty.” Today, low expectations and racial victimhood narratives are trapping kids in cycles they could otherwise escape. We dig into why the “success sequence” of education, work, marriage, and then children is so effective at preventing poverty. In a culture where good advice is smeared as “victim blaming,” Ian offers a more productive and hopeful vision for the most disadvantaged Americans.

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Follow Ian Rowe on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/IanVRowe?s=20

Purchase a copy of Ian’s book, “Agency”: https://a.co/d/0cWhn8dy

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Outline:

[0:00] Ian and I have a lot in common

[2:58] What is agency and why does it matter?

[6:04] How religion breaks the cycle of disfunction

[14:52] Entrepreneurship is a problem-solving mindset

[18:07] Is the mental health crisis a self-fulfilling prophecy?

[25:08] How do kids transition into adulthood?

[35:37] Why is the “success sequence” controversial?

[39:21] We need to bring back shame

[43:48] The problems facing black Americans

[59:22] Are black voters shifting politically?

[1:05:59] How racial guilt gets in the way of teaching

[1:11:45] Teachers have forgotten how to teach

[1:17:04] Identity obsession vs universal virtues

[1:25:58] Truth, nihilism, and the black market of ideas

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The 97% Success Formula They Won't Teach in Schools - Ian Rowe