Work Visa Challenges, When (and How) to Take Creative Risks, and Managing Workplace Diversity

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0:01:29 Welcome to Office Hours with Prof G.
0:01:31 This is the part of the show where we answer questions about business,
0:01:33 big tech, entrepreneurship, and whatever else is on your mind.
0:01:40 If you’d like to submit a question for next time, you can send a voice recording to officehours@profgmedia.com.
0:01:43 Again, that’s officehours@profgmedia.com.
0:01:48 Or, post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit and we just might feature it in our next episode.
0:01:50 What a thrill.
0:01:51 First question.
0:01:57 Our first question comes from NoSound6866 on Reddit.
0:01:59 They say,
0:02:02 “I’m a senior majoring in software engineering graduating from a good school, Iowa State.
0:02:07 I’m also an international student and stressed out about finding a job that sponsors my work visa that I’m really good at.
0:02:10 I have a great strength in sales and have a solid technical background.
0:02:19 While my parents are growing older back in Lebanon and they see me working with them, I’m anxious about that due to the war and due to any potential long-term family business issues.
0:02:22 What would you do if you were me?”
0:02:25 Oh, God, NoSound6866.
0:02:27 There’s no easy answer here.
0:02:36 We talk about immigration, but we don’t, I don’t know, we don’t really think about it or break it down in economic terms.
0:02:42 And essentially, what is an organization or what is an organization supposed to do, a for-profit organization of which
0:02:46 the American experience has produced the most impressive for-profit organizations in the world?
0:02:51 The American corporation is the greatest wealth generator in history, and it’s a key part of our democracy.
0:02:56 You need this sort of full-body contact innovation such that it can create shareholder value.
0:02:59 You can tax it, and you can pay for our Navy and food stamps.
0:03:01 So, I’m a big fan of the private corporation.
0:03:09 And also, America’s success has largely been based on, or somewhat based on, that we are at the cutting edge of regulation.
0:03:15 We’d rather, when I say cutting edge, we would rather have it be a little bit more wild west and over-regulated,
0:03:17 such as it is or people feel in Europe.
0:03:19 Now, having said that, what does an organization do?
0:03:23 It tries to take in inputs and then figure out a way through culture, intellectual property,
0:03:28 innovation, create a hole that’s greater than the inputs, and then sell it.
0:03:38 I get a bunch of metal, or I get a bunch of plastic, glass, movements, and leather, and then I figure out a way to run ads showing Italian submariners.
0:03:45 And I get a bunch of famous masculine people wearing my watch, and boom, I can sell $2,000 worth of these materials for $11,000.
0:03:46 That’s called Panerai.
0:03:50 And there’s a million examples of this across every organization.
0:03:55 They create something that they can command a greater price for than the cost of the inputs.
0:04:04 The most important input in terms of your ability to charge a greater price than the cost of those inputs is a culture that attracts the best human capital.
0:04:16 And if you look at the sector that has done the best job of creating exceptional shareholder value by selling shit for a lot more than it costs them to produce it is the tech community.
0:04:18 And what does the tech community have in common?
0:04:26 Risk aggressiveness, access to universities, research, a government that has funded big, expensive things, whether it’s GPS or DARPA.
0:04:37 But what it also has is an environment where they attract entrepreneurs, founders that are often from other countries, and then attracts a lot of very smart people who, in fact, are immigrants.
0:04:39 This has been key.
0:04:48 About 20% of the NASDAQ by market capitalization is not only run by immigrants, it’s run by immigrants from one country, India.
0:05:02 So the fact that we are taking this input or making it harder or constraining or hamstringing this input, specifically amazing human capital from other nations, it’s just really stupid.
0:05:07 And part of that is our ability to hold on to great students who want to stay here.
0:05:09 It has gotten harder and harder.
0:05:15 One of my most talented analysts at L2 came into my office and said, I have to go home.
0:05:16 I can’t seem to get my visa.
0:05:17 She was from Canada.
0:05:18 She was very upset.
0:05:19 And I said, don’t worry about it.
0:05:21 Money fixes most problems.
0:05:24 I hired an immigration attorney, and we were able to figure it out and sponsor her.
0:05:28 So traditionally, the route for you would be to find a sponsor, a company that would sponsor you.
0:05:32 Now it has gotten so difficult and so expensive that most companies aren’t willing to do that.
0:05:36 So I don’t want to pretend this is going to be an easy road for you.
0:05:44 I think that you do your best to just try and find an organization that will sponsor you or find other means of getting the ability to stay here.
0:05:56 But the current vibe in America is, okay, let’s shoot ourselves in the foot and try and pretend that our problems are being started by immigrants and have what is a mendacious and stupid immigration policy.
0:06:01 I apologize that I don’t have better ideas here.
0:06:10 But again, research every means of trying to figure out the right visa status or find, if you can, a company that is willing to sponsor you.
0:06:13 But I don’t have – I’m not here with a message of hope.
0:06:22 I think probably when you came to Iowa State, the promise to you was different than it is now.
0:06:29 I think we’ve invited a lot of international students under the auspices of you have a chance to make a life in America and then have pulled out the rug from under them.
0:06:30 It is wrong.
0:06:32 There’s no excuse for it.
0:06:33 And I hope that it gets better.
0:06:35 I appreciate the question.
0:06:38 Our second question comes from Glenn from South Africa.
0:06:39 He asks,
0:06:41 Hi, Professor Galloway.
0:06:43 My name is Glenn Sayers.
0:06:46 I’m currently living in Johannesburg in South Africa.
0:06:51 I’m 23 years old and I studied supply chain management.
0:06:53 My question is one around risk.
0:07:06 I worked unnecessarily hard during my time at Varsity where I was balancing my degree on top of trying to put together a rough draft for a novel, which I’ve managed to finish.
0:07:10 I’m currently employed with an international company.
0:07:11 It’s a career company.
0:07:12 They’re based all over the world.
0:07:14 It’s an incredibly fortunate position.
0:07:16 I work with some really good people.
0:07:17 So my question is this.
0:07:28 Given my unique position in terms of having a rough draft that needs to be polished and then can be handed to an editor, what time frame should I be looking at?
0:07:33 And how aggressive should I be trying to accomplish this project?
0:07:35 But it’s too soon.
0:07:35 23.
0:07:36 I’ve only just been employed.
0:07:40 And I’d like to save up some capital for a little while first.
0:07:44 And then if the book is moderately successful, I’ll hand it over to a publisher.
0:07:51 And the royalties from that would likely go towards a down payment on a home, a wedding, things like that.
0:07:56 I’m not currently in a romantic relationship, but I would very much like to be in one soon.
0:07:58 So thank you and have a wonderful day.
0:08:02 Glenn, so first off, you’re clearly an impressive young man.
0:08:03 Let’s review.
0:08:05 You graduated from university.
0:08:10 In that time, you managed to write a novel and secure a job at a good company.
0:08:12 So you’re doing really well.
0:08:13 And I hope you take time to pause.
0:08:16 And you said you worked unnecessarily hard.
0:08:20 Okay, it sounds like you did well at university or well enough to get a good job.
0:08:21 And you managed to write a novel.
0:08:27 So that hard work and some of the sacrifice that came along with that hard work has paid off so far.
0:08:38 And even if that novel never gets published, the fact that you can walk into any job application or if you decide to go to grad school, you can say, well, they’ll say, well, what do you enjoy doing?
0:08:41 Well, by the age of 23, I’d written my first novel.
0:08:42 Do you want it?
0:08:44 I mean, that’s just that’s just impressive.
0:08:51 One of the things I’ve noticed about going on when I go on TV, when I after I’ve written a book, they’re very inclined.
0:08:56 Almost every TV station, when you have a published book, lets you come on.
0:08:59 And one, I have some credibility and I’ve written some books that have sold well.
0:09:09 But two, there’s a general recognition that writing a book, it’s just really fucking hard and that you probably know a decent amount about that specific domain and they’re willing to let you come on and talk about it.
0:09:15 And I think some of it is just pure goodwill because from an economic standpoint, is it the lowest ROI thing I do?
0:09:15 I don’t know.
0:09:17 It’s the hardest thing I do.
0:09:18 I put out a newsletter.
0:09:19 I do podcasts.
0:09:19 I go on TV.
0:09:21 I speak all over the world.
0:09:27 I make investments and a lot of it is difficult, but nothing is as hard as trying to write a book.
0:09:32 So you have done something incredibly hard at a very young age.
0:09:36 I wrote my first book at 49 and I’m being generous.
0:09:37 That’s when I started writing it.
0:09:39 I don’t think it when I got published till 51.
0:09:46 And I’m jealous of you because I wish I had started much earlier because the written word, let’s assume it doesn’t get published.
0:09:47 One, it’s super impressive.
0:09:49 Two, it gives you incredible insight into something.
0:09:52 Learning and writing about something gives you insight into something.
0:09:57 And also, it’s going to make you better at everything you do, specifically communicating.
0:10:10 I think the key, the one skill I think has the greatest likelihood of surviving and always being a point of differentiation is your communication skills, your ability to tell a story and compel people to action.
0:10:13 And for me, storytelling all begins with writing.
0:10:21 And that is, if you can have the discipline to string together your thoughts in written form, you’re probably going to be a decent communicator.
0:10:25 And I would bet less than 1%, maybe generously 2% of the public can write well.
0:10:33 One of the first things I did as a consultant was I started writing the speeches and doing the board decks and memos for CEOs who would hire me as a consultant.
0:10:35 I would say, do you want me to take a stab at it?
0:10:39 And they say, please, because at that point, maybe it’s changed.
0:10:44 In the 90s, I would say a good 80% of CEOs couldn’t write their way out of a paper bag.
0:10:46 This is a big accomplishment.
0:10:55 Now, in terms of when, if, and when, it sounds like you’re thinking of when I should focus more on my writing, if even contemplate leaving your corporation.
0:10:57 I would not do that.
0:10:58 I don’t see any reason.
0:11:09 If you’re able to produce a book while you’re at university, you should be able to continue to edit, draft a second one, write a book proposal, call on agents while you have a job.
0:11:15 And it’s very easy for people to tell others to chase their dreams when they don’t have to pay your rent.
0:11:19 And I have said often that people telling you to follow your passion are already rich.
0:11:23 So I would continue to try and make progress with your corporation.
0:11:31 And on evenings and weekends, to the extent you can, try and find a book agent and see if you can get published.
0:11:38 Now, there is some light in between having a draft and getting published by a major author or a major publishing house.
0:11:45 And that is taking excerpts of your book and publishing it on Substack, pushing out a newsletter, taking bits of it.
0:11:50 I don’t know if it’s B2B or if it’s a novel, fiction or nonfiction, putting it on LinkedIn.
0:11:55 But by the time I write a book, I have just leveraged the shit out of that.
0:12:10 That big block of salami, I chop it up into slices that are worth more in aggregate than the whole block of salami by posting it on LinkedIn, talking about excerpts on my podcast, having a newsletter.
0:12:13 But don’t let your manuscript just sit in a drawer somewhere.
0:12:17 Get the digital copy of it and start slicing and dicing and putting it out there.
0:12:29 And be aggressive around, get a list of the top 1,000 book agents in the world, write, as you should be able to do, a compelling cover letter, and then start sending that bitch out everywhere.
0:12:31 When I say bitch, I mean your manuscript.
0:12:33 Very much appreciate the question.
0:12:36 And again, you are clearly a very impressive young man.
0:12:39 We’ll be right back after a quick break.
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0:16:08 Welcome back.
0:16:11 On to our final question from Prism on Reddit.
0:16:12 Hi, Scott.
0:16:14 I recently saw your segment on hiring and interviewing.
0:16:18 Your biggest point was that you need your employees to get along or all to get along.
0:16:23 Given that diversity is the golden word in corporate America these days, how do you balance diversity and everyone getting along?
0:16:30 As it is common for cultural differences to cause conflict within teams, and it has been shown people prefer to hire like-minded candidates.
0:16:37 I’ve always more accidentally had pretty diverse teams.
0:16:40 Some of that was because I was building companies in San Francisco.
0:16:43 I can take some credit for in the 90s.
0:16:51 I recognized that if you gave women with young kids at home some flexibility, you had access to this incredible untapped talent pool.
0:16:52 This wasn’t the 90s.
0:16:58 They weren’t giving people six months off for maternity leave and then figuring out there wasn’t, you know, there wasn’t remote work.
0:17:06 As far as diversity around ethnic backgrounds, living in cities, you just get a lot of applicants from different backgrounds.
0:17:17 But I never had affirmative action in the sense that I never thought, oh, we need to hire a Latino or we need more gay people or more people from low-income backgrounds.
0:17:27 We ended up with, in some ways, a fairly non-diverse workforce, and that is almost everyone who works for me is young and went to an elite college.
0:17:36 So I would argue that to a certain extent, that represents a lack of diversity that’s more dangerous than a lack of diversity across ethnic groups.
0:17:40 I think that the problems have not been solved, but they’ve gotten a lot better.
0:17:44 There are now more women in full-time employment in the U.S., which is a wonderful thing.
0:17:51 But if you really want to advance society, you would hire kids who come from low-income backgrounds.
0:17:56 You would much rather, in today’s America, be born non-white or gay than poor.
0:17:58 Anyways, back to your question.
0:18:01 That’s never really been an issue.
0:18:05 We try to let everybody or almost everybody interview the candidate.
0:18:15 We’ve been pretty good at screening out, which is Latin for firing assholes, or people who other people are starting to resent.
0:18:23 I’ve had people that are outstanding, that I’ve worked with for a long time at other companies, and they come in, and they’re just not a cultural fit, and we move them on.
0:18:32 We’ve had other people who are very good with senior management, but it’s clear the team doesn’t like them, and they feel that they’re not working as hard, and we screen those people out.
0:18:42 What we do to help people get along is that I spend a lot of money and time and effort, especially in a world of remote work, thinking about fun things for them to do together.
0:18:52 My first company, Profit, I used to take the entire firm to Cabo, the entire firm, no spouses, a bunch of young people in Cabo San Lucas.
0:18:57 They have my credit card, do whatever they want, and no spouses.
0:19:00 And also, I used to tell senior management, at 11 p.m., we go home.
0:19:09 That way, they can just go fucking crazy and have a great time, and they did go crazy, including what I found out later were some late-night jail visits.
0:19:14 Anyways, we take the kids out at Prop G Media.
0:19:16 We have about 20 people now, on a regular basis.
0:19:22 And not only that, we encourage them, without Catherine and I, kind of the old folks who run the company,
0:19:27 we encourage them to take vacations together and do things together, which we sponsor and pay for.
0:19:33 And it creates a certain level of camaraderie and an esprit de corps that I think is really bonding.
0:19:35 And it’s the right thing to do.
0:19:36 It’s nice.
0:19:37 It’s compensation.
0:19:45 If you give somebody a trip worth $5,000, that is psychologically much more creative than paying them another $5,000.
0:19:46 They just love it.
0:19:48 They brag about it to their friends.
0:19:52 It also is a smart thing to do from a retention standpoint.
0:20:01 And that is the number one source of retention in a company isn’t compensation, although that’s very important, or the culture.
0:20:05 It’s whether or not the person has a good friend at that job.
0:20:10 When you walk into your work and you have a good friend, you know, those hormones are released and you just feel really good.
0:20:13 And you go grab coffee with that friend or you catch up with them.
0:20:17 So trying to get an environment where people can establish friendships at work I think is really important.
0:20:26 And we send the kids at Prov G on vacation at least twice a year, maybe three times a year, or I’ll take them with me to a great conference.
0:20:29 And they love going away together.
0:20:33 And even though they may not have a ton in common in terms of their backgrounds, is that true?
0:20:37 It’s the above all kids from elite colleges.
0:20:39 But it creates a certain camaraderie.
0:20:44 I also, in a world of remote work, pay for a fairly nice co-working space.
0:20:47 And what’s interesting is that the young people are the ones that show up to the co-working space.
0:20:50 It’s me and Catherine that engage in remote work.
0:20:57 Anyway, sorry for the ramble here, but create an environment that makes it easy for people to establish friendships.
0:21:05 And in terms of diversity moving forward, I think anyone who has hiring responsibility has an obligation to try and reach into communities that aren’t as economically blessed,
0:21:10 which is now the primary arbiter of opportunity or lack thereof in the United States.
0:21:11 Appreciate your question.