The Future of Social Security and Medicare, When Is Graduate School a Good Idea? and How to Raise Resilient Kids

Summary

Podcast Summary: "The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway"
Episode: The Future of Social Security and Medicare, When Is Graduate School a Good Idea? and How to Raise Resilient Kids
Release Date: February 5, 2025

In this insightful episode of The Prof G Pod, Scott Galloway delves into three pivotal topics that resonate with a broad audience: the sustainability of Social Security and Medicare, the contemplation of graduate school for career advancement, and strategies for raising resilient children. Through thoughtful analysis and personal anecdotes, Galloway provides listeners with valuable perspectives and actionable advice.

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1. The Future of Social Security and Medicare

Listener Question by Ross [01:58]:
Ross, a 67-year-old from Windermere, Florida, inquires about the stability of Social Security and Medicare. Referencing Donald Trump's campaign promises, Ross is concerned about potential modifications to these critical programs and whether Congress possesses the will to implement necessary changes.

Scott Galloway's Response [02:43]:
Galloway reassures Ross, emphasizing the historical success of Social Security in reducing senior poverty rates from 20% to approximately 8%. However, he highlights the looming financial challenges:

• Budget Impact: Social Security and Medicare together consume about 40% of the federal budget, a significant increase from the previous 10-25%.

• Funding Projections: Reports indicate that Social Security funds may deplete by 2033 and Medicare by 2036.

Galloway articulates the inherent issue of intergenerational wealth transfer, noting, “Social Security is the government’s biggest budget item, and Medicare is the second largest. About 40% of our federal budget goes to programs for people over the age of 65.”

He critiques the current cap on Social Security taxes, pointing out that high earners like himself contribute disproportionately little relative to their income: “I make 16 million and I pay $9,000. Why on earth are the rich not paying their share to support our seniors?”

Key Takeaways:

• Sustainability Concerns: Without reforms, both programs face insolvency within the next decade.

• Proposed Solutions: Galloway advocates for lifting the Social Security tax cap and implementing means testing to ensure only those in genuine need receive benefits.

• Intergenerational Equity: The current system places a heavy tax burden on younger generations, raising questions about fairness and fiscal responsibility.

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2. When Is Graduate School a Good Idea?

Listener Question by Chase [06:35]:
Chase, a 24-year-old from Hawaii working for the Division of Forestry and Wildlife, expresses frustration with his $40,000 annual salary. Despite loving his job, he feels the financial strain of starting a family and desires to make more money. With a degree in psychology that he feels he won't utilize, Chase is overwhelmed by his career options and seeks guidance on balancing financial aspirations with meaningful work.

Scott Galloway's Response [07:36]:
Galloway offers a compassionate and strategic approach:

• Self-Forgiveness and Validation: He encourages Chase to recognize the value of his current role, stating, “You're doing something meaningful and you're getting good experience.”

• Building a Support Network: Galloway advises assembling a “kitchen cabinet” of trusted, knowledgeable individuals for advice and guidance.

• Graduate School Consideration:

  • Target Audience: Galloway identifies Chase as a prime candidate for graduate education, particularly noting that graduate school suits individuals seeking focused, specialized careers (e.g., a PhD in microbiology).

  • Caution Against Aimlessness: He warns that many pursue advanced degrees without a clear direction, leading to disappointment. “The majority, I would say 2/3 of the people that go to business school don't know what they want to do.”

  • Personal Reflection: Galloway encourages Chase to assess his passion for continued education and to engage deeply with his support network to determine the best path forward.

Key Takeaways:

• Purpose-Driven Education: Pursuing graduate school should align with specific career goals and personal interests.

• Networking and Mentorship: Leveraging relationships can provide clarity and direction in career decisions.

• Flexibility and Growth: At 24, Chase is at an optimal stage to explore and pivot his career path as needed.

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3. How to Raise Resilient Kids

Listener Question by Michael [13:49]:
Michael from Altadena, California, shares his challenging upbringing in Baltimore and seeks advice on instilling grit and resilience in his children. He aims to equip them with the self-awareness and durability to navigate life’s obstacles effectively.

Scott Galloway's Response [14:28]:
Drawing from personal experiences, Galloway outlines several strategies:

• Embrace Imperfection and Stress: He admits that initial parenthood was overwhelming, but emphasizes that love and purpose develop over time. “I just have purpose in my life. I've figured out finally in my life what my purpose is and that is to raise loving, patriotic men.”

• Fostering Responsibility:

  • Chores and Routine: Assigning chores helps children develop a sense of responsibility and understand the connection between effort and reward.

  • Financial Literacy: Surprisingly, his children understand the value of money, suggesting early financial education is beneficial.

• Physical Challenges and Limits:

  • Sports and Athletics: Engaging children in sports teaches them about pushing physical limits and breaking through perceived barriers. “When you feel like you can’t take anymore physically, that means you're about a third of the way to your actual limit.”

• Allowing Failure:

  • Building Resilience: Galloway criticizes “bulldozer” or “concierge” parenting that shields children from failures, arguing it leads to fragile adults. “Your daughter is going to face injustice and unfair assholes the rest of her life and she needs to learn how to deal with it.”

  • Practical Examples: He shares anecdotes, such as allowing his son to navigate getting to the correct mall location without immediate parental intervention, thereby building confidence and problem-solving skills.

Key Takeaways:

• Balanced Protection: While it’s essential to protect children from overt dangers, allowing them to face manageable challenges fosters resilience.

• Encouraging Independence: Teaching children to handle setbacks and solve problems independently prepares them for future adversities.

• Holistic Development: Combining chores, physical activities, and experiential learning cultivates a well-rounded character equipped to handle life's challenges.

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Conclusion

In this episode, Scott Galloway adeptly addresses pressing societal issues and personal development topics. From the fragility of major social programs like Social Security and Medicare to the nuanced decision-making involved in pursuing further education, and the foundational principles of parenting resilient children, Galloway offers a blend of data-driven insights and personal wisdom. Listeners gain a comprehensive understanding of these multifaceted topics, empowering them to make informed decisions in their personal and professional lives.

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Notable Quotes:

• On Social Security as a Tax on the Young:
  “It’s a regressive tax on the young. Why? Because my generation has decided that the new gestalt is, quite frankly, let me think, to fuck young people.” [02:43]

• On the Purpose of Graduate School:
  “Graduates school is for people who are very focused and need a PhD in microbiology so they can go do work on, you know, coming up with the cure for cancer.” [07:36]

• On Parenting Resilience:
  “Sports, working out, also letting them fail... Figure it out, right? He’s panicked and he did figure it out. He actually found that the subway was the fastest way to get to the right mall.” [14:28]

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For more episodes and insights, follow The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway on your preferred podcast platform or visit the Vox Media Podcast Network.

Transcript

[Scott Galloway]

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[Scott Galloway]

Welcome to Office Hours with Prof. G. This is the part of the show where we answer your questions about business, big tech, entrepreneurship, and whatever else is on your mind. If you'd like to submit a question, please email a voice recording to office hoursprovgmedia.com Again, that's office hoursprovgmedia.com so with that first question.

[Ross]

Hello Prof. G. This is Ross from Windermere, Florida, a loyal fan of your various podcasts. In fact, I told my younger brother about it and he will not miss a single episode. Anyway, I am 67, about to turn 68, and therefore keenly interested in the continued availability of Social Security and Medicare. During the campaign, Donald Trump said he wouldn't fuck with either of those, but will he? What's your best guess on whether Social Security and Medicare are up for some kind of a modification? And do you think that Congress has the will to go along with it. Anyway, thanks again for all that you do.

[Scott Galloway]

I don't think you have anything to worry about, boss. Social Security is kind of theoretically or not theoretically is largely considered a very successful social program. Before its invention, about one in five seniors lived in poverty. Now it's, I think, one in 12. It has been very successful. People depend upon, provides people with a lot of comfort. And in addition, it's kind of up America's new alley of transferring wealth from the young to the poor. So you can kind of see where I'm going with this. I'll come back to that. But Social Security is the government's biggest budget item, and Medicare is the second largest. As a matter of fact, about 40% of our federal budget goes to programs for people over the age of 65. It used to be 10%. Then it went to 25 to within probably 10 years. Over half of the majority of our federal budget is going to go to programs for people over the age of 65. In 2024, Social Security accounted for over 1.4 trillion of federal spending, and the program covered over 71 million workers. Last year, the U.S. spent over 800 billion on Medicare. Over 25% of American adults are enrolled in the program now. The future Are the future of these benefits uncertain? Recent reports project that the Social Security and Medicare funds would be depleted by 2033 and 2036, respectively. Before his first term, Trump promised that he would preserv of both Medicare and Social Security. However, things changed. Each of his yearly budget proposals included cuts to both Social Security and Medicare, although they were never enacted. Still, Trump has maintained that he will not make cuts to the program, nor will he change the retirement age. I don't see any path other than either deficits, which are taxes on the young, or some sort of means testing for Social Security. And by the way, I do believe there is no reason that I should have Social Security. And people say, well, you paid into it. Well, they call it Social Security tax. There's a lot of taxes I pay where I don't register the benefits. It's not called Social Security pension fund. Now, to be clear, it's not adding to the deficit, if you will, because in fact, it's an offline budget item. But at the same time, it still is the biggest item in our budget. It used to be one. It used to be 12 workers for every one retired person. Now, because people are living longer, it's now 3 to 1. And it is a real tax on the young. At a minimum. At a minimum, we should lift the cap. I believe it's either 6 or 8%, but basically the cap is at 160 grand. So I have analysts working here at Prof. G who make 160 grand. So they make or they pay $9,000 in Social Security tax. I make 16 million and I pay $9,000. Why on earth are the rich not paying their share to support our seniors? So if you're going to continue to transfer this much money to seniors and you think it's a good idea, fine. But why on earth would it be a regressive tax on the young? Why? Because my generation has decided that the new gestalt is, quite frankly, let me think, to fuck young people. I also think we should means test it. I think if you have over a million dollars in assets or 100,000 in passive income, you don't need Social Security or you shouldn't get it and all this bullshit I paid into it. Actually, the majority of people who collect Social Security for a number of years take out two to times what they put into it. So this notion that I'm entitled to it. No, you're not. It's a tax. People who need it are entitled to it. So I think you got a means. Test it. Also, when we invented or implemented Social Security, the majority of people weren't living to 65. Guess what? Now the majority, the vast majority of people are living past 65 and or working past the age of 65. So we need to means test it and we need to lift the age. What should Social Security be? It should be a safety net for seniors who are no longer working of a certain age where it doesn't make sense for them to work who need the money. That would be fiscal sanity. Thanks so much for the question. Question number two.

[Chase]

Hey Scott, this is Chase calling from Hawaii. I started listening to you after your podcast with Giovann. Really appreciate what you do. I'm 24 years old. I work for the Division of Forestry and Wildlife. I love it, but the pay is horrendous. I make about $40,000 a year. For a while I was complacent. Told myself I don't need to make money. I like what I do. But I realized that I absolutely do need to make money. I want to start a family. I want to buy a house, buy nice things. I find myself extremely motivated to put my all into something. Go all in. But at the same time, I'm completely overwhelmed by the number of ways there are to make money nowadays. I feel stuck. I have my degree in psychology, not Going to use it. If I could go back, I definitely would have gotten my degree in something else. What would you do if you were in my shoes? And how do you navigate finding a balance between making money and doing something meaningful?

[Scott Galloway]

Thanks, Chase. First off, I really appreciate the question and the first thing I want you to do because I hear some like sadness or disappointed or anger at yourself and your voice is, I want you to forgive yourself. You're 24, boss. You're doing something important. You're working for the Division of Forestry and Wildlife. That's like, you know, a million species and trees would like to say thank you, but they can't. And when my kids are roaming around the redwoods and get to see a bear and Aspen. That sounded douchey. A bear in Aspen. You get my point? You're doing something meaningful and you're getting good experience and you're workshopping. That's what you're supposed to do in your 20s and you're still so ridiculously young. You could have been doing nothing and you'd still be fine. Because you can start your life at 40, much less you're an infant professionally at 24. So this is what you're going to do. You're going to forgive yourself and realize you did something. You've got a couple years under your belt. You've done something important. Now, I don't know enough about you, but I have a gut for what you may want to explore. The first thing is a no brainer. I need you to put together a kitchen cabinet of some people you trust that are smart, that know you, that you can call and get advice from and say, I'm thinking about this, I'm thinking about this. Or find people who maybe left the service and are doing other things. Start to talk to people and find a group of people that you can call and get advice. It is very hard to read the label from inside of the bottle. 2. And this is where my gut kicks in. You sound to me like someone who is a perfect candidate for graduate school. And I would need to ask some more questions. Do you like school? Because here's the thing about graduate school. It's for two people. It's for people who are very focused and need a PhD in microbiology so they can go do work on, you know, coming up with the cur cure for cancer. Right? But the vast majority of people at least go back to get an MBA are what I call the elite and the aimless. I was one of those people. I had decent certification, I was smart, I was hardworking, but I had no idea what I wanted to do. I'd spent two years at Morgan Stanley and Fixed Income and all I knew was I didn't want to do Fixed Income at Morgan Stanley anymore, but I didn't know what I wanted to do. And the majority, I would say 2/3 of the people that go to business school don't know what they want to do their first essay. They lie, they pretend they're really focused. They don't know what they want to do. That's why they're going back to graduate school. That's where you are. You're elite, right? You obviously went to a school. You got a psychology degree, you got a good job servicing our nation in public service. You're elite. You're a little bit aimless right now, which spells to me, graduate school. So this is what I want you to do. I want you to start talking to a bunch of people, including people who've left the service. Find out what they're doing. I want you to put together a kitchen cabinet of people to bounce ideas off of and I want you to think about graduate school and see if it's a fit for you. Anyways, I really appreciate your service. And Chase from Hawaii, you're exactly where you should be. You're ahead of the game. You had a good job serving the public, serving the public good. You're 24, you live in Hawaii. It is good to be Chase. We have one quick break before our final question. Stay with us. Support for Profig comes from LinkedIn. It's 2025 and if your B2B marketing strategy for the new year doesn't include improve your ad targeting, then your ads could just get lost in the noise. LinkedIn ads can help by ensuring your message makes it to the right audience. With LinkedIn ads, you can precisely reach the professionals who are more likely to find your ads relevant. With LinkedIn's targeting capabilities, you can reach them by job title, industry, company and more. LinkedIn ads let you build the right relationship, drive results and reach your customers in a respectful environment. You'll have direct access to and build relationships with decision makers. That's a billion members, 130 million decision makers and 10 million C level executives. You'll be able to drive results with targeting and measurement tools built specifically for B2B. 79% of B2B content marketers say LinkedIn produces the best results for paid media. Start converting your B2B audience into high quality leads today. We'll even give you a hundred dollar credit on your next campaign, go to LinkedIn.com Scott to claim your credit. That's LinkedIn.com Scott terms and conditions apply. LinkedIn the place to be, to be support for PropHG comes from Masterclass. No matter how accomplished you are in your career or how many degrees you have, there are always new things to discover. And if you're a lifelong learner, I may have something for you. Masterclass Masterclass is the online learning platform where you can get valuable insights from more than 200 of the world's greatest minds. Where else can you learn to think like a boss with Martha Stewart or how to frame a shot with Martin Scorsese? You can even learn skateboarding tips with Tony Hawk. Masterclass is highly accessible. You can access it from your phone, computer, smart TV, or even in audio mode. What's more is that 88% of Masterclass users claim that it's made a positive impact on their daily lives. All this for just $10 a month with an annual subscription. I've checked out Masterclass. I watched the aforementioned class with Martha Stewart. I also enjoyed the one with Bob Iger. Right now, our listeners get an additional 15% off any annual [e-mail] Prop G that's 15% [e-mail] ProfG masterclass.com ProfG support for the show comes from Betterment. Do you want your money to be motivated? Do you want your money to rise and grind? Do you think your money should get up and work? Don't worry, Betterment is here to help. Betterment is the automated investing and savings app that makes your money hustle. Their automated technology is built to help maximize returns, meaning when you invest. With Betterment, your money can auto adjust as you get closer to your goal rebalance. If your portfolio gets too far out of line and your dividends are automatically reinvested, that can increase the potential for compound returns. In other words, your money is working like a dog while you can be sleeping like one and snoring like one too. You'll never picture your money the same way again. Betterment, the automated investing and savings app that makes your money hustle. Visit betterment.com to get started. Investing involves risk. Performance is not guaranteed. Welcome back. Question number three Hi Prof. G. My name is Michael.

[Michael]

I live in Altadena, California. I'm originally from Baltimore, Maryland. It was a tough city. When I reflect on my childhood, I think about times when I caught the public bus to school. I would be on there with crackheads, dope dealers, people just going to work, trying to survive. I had conversations with these folks. I learned a lot and it instilled a level of grit inside of me. My question for you is, as I become a new father, how do I instill that level of grit inside of my children? So when life gets hard and throws them curveballs, they have the self awareness and the durability to overcome any obstacles. My wife and I will remain in Southern California for the foreseeable future. Thank you.

[Scott Galloway]

Thanks, Michael. And I hope and trust you were not affected by the fires in Altadena. Just be clear the first couple years. Let me break it down as a dad and not everyone has the same experience. I'll give you my experience. I pretended to like it. I thought it sucked. I was stressed out. I was stressed about money. I was just trying to keep this little science experiment away from a body of water and just keep it alive. And then slowly but surely. One of my favorite shows growing up was a show called Frasier. And Frasier said about his son, you know, you fall in love with your kids and that is. I didn't. A switch didn't turn on when my sons were born and I'm like, oh, I'm madly in love with this thing. I was more scared and nauseous than anything. By the way, childbirth is so disgusting. Try not to be in the room. I'm gonna get you for that Anyways, you do fall in love or. I found that over time it just got better and better. It went from awful to less awful to tolerable to good to now. I just, quite frankly, I just have purpose in my life. I've figured out finally in my life what my purpose is and that is to raise loving, patriotic men. And in terms of establishing grit for kids, I mean, there's a couple things. One, we have a tendency to overprotect, offline and under protect online and it should be reversed. Fortunately, all this bullshit around smartphones is probably going to be solved or at least addressed by the time your kids are old enough. But some of the mistakes I've made, I didn't instill enough about doing chores with my kids such that they developed routine and saw connected reward with effort. They're actually pretty good with money for some reason. I don't know where they got that, but they understand the value of money, sports and athletics. I started working out with my kids at a very young age and pushing them in such that they could understand their limits. The gift I got from rowing crew was that when you feel like you can't take anymore physically, that means you're About a third of the way to your actual limit. And crew teaches you that. It teaches you to break limits, that you just or, you know, exceed limits you never thought were possible. And you can carry that to the rest of your life. So how do you do that with kids? Sports, working out, also letting them fail. There's something called bulldozer or concierge parenting that is supposedly making a generation of fragile kids. What does that mean? I had someone call me and say, well, you're an academic. Our daughter, who straight A's is getting a B and the teacher clearly does not like her. So we're thinking about calling the principal, you give us and as being unfair to her, can you give us some words? I'm like, that is absolutely the worst thing you could do for your daughter. Your daughter's going to face injustice and unfair assholes the rest of her life and she needs to learn how to deal with it and maybe cope with disappointment. And so we have developed this so much bulldozer in concierge parenting where we clear out all the obstacles for our kids that they develop this princess and the peace syndrome where they show up to college, get their heartbroken, get their first D and they freak out. You don't want to use so many sanitary wipes on your kids lives that they don't develop their own immunity. So what I do, and this is hard, I'll give you an example. My youngest is going to meet his friends at the Westfield mall, which is a very nice mall in London. I order him an Uber, which I probably shouldn't do. He has a goddamn Uber app. Why am I doing it? I typed in the wrong Westfield and he ended up on the wrong side of town of London, freaking out, calling me, calling his mom, his mom calling me. And I decided, I put my foot down, I'm like, you got a smartphone, you got an Uber account? Figure it out. Figure it out, right? He's panicked and he did figure it out. He actually found that the subway was the fastest way to get to the right mall. He went in, he has his Oyster card and he got there. That builds confidence, that builds resilience. Summer jobs. My oldest, who is 17, is now thinking about what makes his resume look good for college. And he's doing these things that are kind of, I don't know, he's thinking about biology or something in the sciences. So he's going to intern at the medical clinic. And I said to him, this is what you do? We vacation on an island or we spend summers on an island. I'm like, I want you to get a job washing dishes or being a busboy services Jobs build grit. It's where I got a lot of mind. And not only that, it builds empathy. So what do we have? We have chores, we have jobs, we have sports, and we have a lack of concierge or bulldozer parenting. And occasionally we let the kids fail and then tell them, I don't know. That's a tough one. You need to figure it out. This I hope for you that having children does what it did for me, and that is giving me a sense of purpose and a sense of peace. Thanks so much for the question. That's all for this episode. If you'd like to submit a question, please email a voice recording to officehoursoftymedia.com Again, that's Office [e-mail] this episode was produced by Jennifer Sanchez. Our intern is Dan Shalon. Drew Burrows is our Technical director. Thank you for listening to Prabhupji Pod from the Vox Media Podcast Network. We will catch you on Saturday for no Mercy, no Malice as read by George Hahn. And please follow our Profgen Markets pod wherever you get your pods for new episodes every Monday and Thursday.