Speaking Up at Work, Scott’s Guide to Fundraising, and The Case for Atheism

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When you think of someone with ADHD, who comes to mind? Is it a woman in her 30s?

Just this constant feeling of being too much, you know, too kinetic, too loud, all of the two,

anything. And just really feeling like people got some kind of social rule book that I never got.

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Welcome to Office Hours with ProfG. This is the part of the show where we answer

questions about business, big tech entrepreneurship, and whatever else is on your mind.

If you'd like to submit a question for next time, you can send a voice recording to officehours

at proftjimedia.com. Again, that's officehours at proftjimedia.com. Or post your question on

Scott Galloway subreddit, and we just might feature it in our next episode.

First question. A profgy, profgy media team. I live in New York City. I currently work at

Salesforce. Rying today to seek your advice on a more conundrum that has come upon many tech

workers, including myself. I think you are uniquely positioned to comment given your outspoken

nature, your dedication to holding those in power accountable through economic power,

given your resist and absolute unsubscribed movement.

Right this year in confidence, and I'm not revealing anything that has not publicly been

reported on already. The company at all hands yesterday, Mark Benioff made a crude and

inappropriate joke about ice. Now in a vacuum, this may just seem like an insensitive comment,

but compounded with comments by Benioff on bringing the actual guard into outstaff.

And then the New York Times report on Salesforce pitching services to ice,

techs, but hiring shows a pattern and not a one-off incidence.

My question to you is outside of resisting and unsubscribing. What can we do as employees to

speak out while protecting ourselves from retribution? I want to speak up, but I want to do no way

that is respectful and cause the kettle black. I do have a blog and I've been toying

with posting something, but very recently a co-worker was five from Salesforce back in September

with posting on her social media about the Charlie Kirkkins vaccination. I feel the same for myself

if I post something. Things are fighting the good fight and I'm right there with you.

Yeah, it's a tough one. But thank you for the thoughtful question. So just to some background

on what happened to Salesforce. At an internal company kickoff event in Las Vegas, Salesforce

CEO Mark Benioff made a remark joking that ice agents were present to monitor international

employees. The comment many staff felt was deeply inappropriate. The joke triggered significant

internal backlash with more than 1400 Salesforce workers signing a letter urging leadership to

publicly denounce ice and and any business ties with the agency as some CNBC. So tech has been the

epicent of employee activism around defense contracts, immigration enforcement tech, surveillance

tools, climate exposure and fossil fuel relationships. So some employee tactics, open letters,

often with hundreds to thousands of signatures, walkouts and coordinated protests. I personally hate

those. I talk about entitled douchebags. Oh, I'm going to walk out over lunch. Okay. Wow, that'll

show them. Internal petitions and ethics complaints, media leaks to force transparency,

organized employee coalitions inside companies. So we've seen a renewed wave of tech worker

activism this year, particularly around immigration enforcement and government partnerships.

Most recently, 900 Google employees signed an open letter condemning recent actions by ice and

CBP officers urging the company to disclose its dealings with the agencies and divests from them.

In January, workers and executives representing Amazon's Spotify meta, among others,

wrote a similar letter demanding ice out of their cities. Oh, God. Okay. So I think it's easy

for a guy sitting in his cabin or hotel room during ski week to be generous with your

livelihood. I think your first priority is the economic security of you and your family.

And I think you should be focused on that. And I think you want to gain the traction,

credibility, the expertise such that you can, if you decide to, at some point or not,

go to a company that's more or less aligned with your values. But at the end of the day,

I just think you have an obligation yourself. And he don't want to be what I call an artist

or philanthropist. Carlo Chipola has this thing called stupid and it's a book and he has a matrix.

There's smart people who do good things for themselves and good things for other people.

Those are the smart people. There's bandits who do good things for themselves and bad things for

other people. Big tech executives. There's people. There's the stupid who do bad things for

themselves and bad things for other people. And then there's artists slash philanthropists that do

good things for others but bad things for themselves. I don't think this is the story you want to

jump on. If you're doing well at Salesforce, I would say stick it out, continue to do well,

and then decide over time as you have the currency to go somewhere else that offers the same

upside psychic returns and economic security, then you can make that decision. But I wouldn't

storm out in a blaze of virtue signaling glory. I think your first obligation is to, again,

your and your family's economic security. Now let's talk a bit about Salesforce. I have a bias

here because I've known Mark Benioff for about a decade. And I think that the narrative around

Mark is unfair. And one of the things I hate about progressives and I don't know Mark's politics,

but based on what I've seen, I would argue that Mark is a quote unquote center left progressive.

And good to his employees built an amazing company. And has also been a huge benefactor or

donor for San Francisco causes. So I think you have to take a full, I think you have to look at all

35 frames of the movie, if you will, about 35 millimeter film if that's or is it a 35 millimeter

camera? Shit, I don't know. You get what I'm saying. And one of the things I don't like about

progressives is that we are playing into JD Vance's and Peter Teal's hands. What do I mean by that?

There are bots. If I, if I'm asked to comment on the Epstein files and I say that we need

criminal indictments against the people here who engaged in sex with underage women,

the majority of the comments I will get on social media will be they're not underage women,

they're girls. And that's right. But we seem to on the left be more concerned with redistributing

virtue as opposed to redistributing income or opportunity or fighting fascism. We're in a trench

literally is a fascist army is about to run us over. And we're sitting here accusing each other

of holding the rifle incorrectly. And there is more because progressives care if someone says,

oh, you're using the wrong language and oh, you're in a post date. You're not, you're not really

one of us. And there's definitely a vein of any rich billionaire white guy in his 50s or 60s.

It's just wrong with whatever he says. I think the Democrats are absolutely guilty of massive

identity politics here. I think there's a certain vein or an undercurrent of young men are the problem

billionaires are evil and all white people are racist. And as long as that vein or the ideology

continues to get traction and likes online, then those three cohorts are going to say fuck you

to the Democratic Party. And we're going to have JD Vance as president. So a long-winded way of

saying, I think Mark Benningoff is one of the good guys. And if he fucks up and says something

inappropriate, which I do a lot, I don't think that's reason to leave the company. Now, I think you

in a thoughtful, measured way, making it clear to your boss that I am uncomfortable with

Salesforce's support or working with the government specifically around issues related to ice

and immigration enforcement. I think it's gone way too far. I think making your thoughts heard

in a thoughtful, respectful way to your boss or to whoever you report to, I think that's fine.

I think you have to be careful though, because being the person who's decided to be the

ringleader internally and speak up, everyone will nod and call you a hero. And then someone you

don't even know will put your name on a list when they have the next layoff, you're on that list.

And that's just the cruel truth of capitalism. Companies don't need to be paying people who are

shit-posting the CEO or hurting the company. That's the reality of a capitalist society. A place

like Salesforce, I think management does listen to its employees and I think in a respectful,

measured way saying why you're uncomfortable with it. I'd be very careful with social. A lot of

people reach out to me and say, I love your social. How can I be more outspoken or provocative?

And my advice is don't. Unless you're in the media, it's your job or unless you already have

economic security, be very careful when you post on social media, because it's one thing,

you know, I'm not saying sense to yourself. I'm saying be measured and recognize that that's

shit is forever. And when you start cashing other people's checks at a company, if you embarrass

the company publicly, that is grounds for dismissal. In some, be smart, be thoughtful, be respectful,

and the key is to be a fucking gangster yourself. Be just so good at what you do that you have the

option to go to a place that pays you as well and perhaps has values that better align with the

years. I appreciate the question. Question number two comes from Moustache Gracius.

On Instagram, they say, how would you approach fundraising if you're not connected to family

offices, funds, etc. Oh, fuck. I assume you're in the hedge fund business. The hedge fund business

has essentially been consolidated. Boss, it's like how do you eat an elephant one bite at a time? I

think you have to be in the mix. I think you have to be in New York or San Francisco or London.

I think you have to be doing lunches and coffees every goddamn day with family offices. What I

have found, I've raised a lot of money. What I have found is you don't raise money on the first

second or third meeting. You raise it on the fifth or sixth and they start with a little bit of

money. I think if you're a good person and you equate yourself well, even when you lose money,

just communicating a lot slowly but surely you can start to build a book. And then again,

a lot of it comes down to performance. But even so, I'm seeing a lot of mid level,

$100,500, $3 billion funds just can't raise money right now. So what is it? It's a ton of hard

work and getting out of spoon and eating shit and doing a ton of meetings. I think that if there's

a hack here, it's content marketing. And that is figuring out a viewpoint or figuring out the

the most articulate, compelling person in your organization and having them put out content

either newsletters or videos or thought pieces, getting appearances on podcast where

you get to explain the markets and give people the sense that this guy or gal understands

or can see the matrix and then maybe they should do a meeting with them.

I'm actually working with right now, we're advising 150 billion AUM fund and nobody knows

about them.

It's great, but if you want to get to 500 billion, you're going to have to have some awareness

and retail presence, which means you're going to need to start putting out thought leadership.

Thorsten, I think his name is Thorsten Slack, Thorsten, forget his name anyways, he puts

out this great email newsletter on the markets from Apollo and Apollo's just in my head all

the time.

Yeah, so no easy, no easy route here, market dynamics, Trump individual performance, a lot

of great managers out there just can't raise money right now.

So too, if you have the opportunity to go be a portfolio manager for a bigger fund, I would

seriously consider that too.

If you're committed to raising your own fund, just a shit ton of meetings day after day, hand

to hand combat and then think about what kind of content marketing you can post on platforms,

YouTube, podcasts, social, newsletters that raises your awareness across the potential

funding base, appreciate the question.

We'll be right back after a quick break.

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Welcome back.

Our final question comes from Pareto Optimal 5,000 on LinkedIn.

Hey, big dog.

Love the show.

I never missed an episode of Office Hours.

Would love to hear your opinion and thoughts on religion.

How did you talk about it with your sons?

Do you think the world is better with or without religion?

That's an awfully, we're going to need a bigger boat.

By the way, have you seen that meme of Roy Scheider scooping trade for that shit, whatever

chum?

I'm sorry, not trade chum into the water and then the shark comes out and in this instance

say, I'm bombed, I'm bombed, he coming out saying, the Dow is over $50,000.

By the way, it's not dollars.

You fucking idiot.

It's an index of the Dow's biggest 100 companies meant to represent a balanced index or scorecard

on their market caps.

Anyways, I love that.

I love that.

Where are we?

Oh, religion.

How did I get here?

So what have I done with my sons around religion?

Almost nothing.

I am an atheist and I think I grew up somewhat judgmental religion and think of myself as

a scientist and a cynic and get to call yourself a cynic.

Oh, God, that's awful.

I probably am.

But, you know, you need optimists, you need pessimists.

Optimists get the plane to fly, pessimists invent seatbelts, you need both.

Anyways, but I've always thought religion, to me, just made no fucking sense.

I don't have an invisible friend, there's 5,000 gods out there.

I believe in one less than most people.

And as Ricky Gervais said, if we burned all of the religious books and then burned all

of the science books, the science books in 100, 500,000 years would probably look the

same, whereas the, I don't know, the religious books, who knows.

Now, having said that, as I've gotten older, I've become much less judgmental.

And that is, I recognize, I think it's, I think some of the beliefs of religion or some

of the theories just make no fucking sense to me.

But my belief as a quote unquote scientist is that there was nothing and then it exploded

into all this.

That kind of makes no fucking sense, either.

So if people want to believe some sort of divine intervention that built all of this and

can help them understand or appreciate, you know, how beautiful nature is and how good

they feel when they, you know, hug their kids, like I get it.

And the fact that religion is used as the connective tissue to get people together on a regular

basis to appreciate each other and maybe they invest in their community and maybe, you

know, wash the feet of others.

I think the majority of religion, at least I've come to believe, is probably a net positive.

And a lot of people would argue, have good points that, no, it's been the catalyst for

most, most death and wars.

I get the counter argument here, but I find that the majority of people, I know who have

religious, some sort of religious upbringing or religious values or beliefs are generally,

it's a great guidepost for them or it's a net positive in their lives.

It not only provides them with comfort, but it helps them develop a code around being

more graceful and generous with others.

I remember, my dad's been married in divorce four times.

I've been to every religious establishment.

I remember going to Sunday school with his third wife or his third wife dropping me

off at Sunday school and then Sunday school teacher would constantly ask, what would Jesus

do?

So he had to learn about Jesus and, you know, Jesus probably wouldn't hit Johnny and

ask for his lunch money.

I think at a very basic level, it is probably been a net positive.

The extremists in any religion that go bad, shit crazy and start believing, if you're

not on my team, you deserve to die or you're less human.

That's obviously where things kind of come off the tracks.

And I'm a huge believer in a separation of church and state.

So what have I done with my kids?

Nothing.

And I sort of regret it.

I did give them a book called The History of Religion, just so they could be knowledgeable

on it.

I think it's hard to be a well-read, thoughtful person without at least understanding

the basics of religion.

But I don't claim to have an answer here.

I think this is a very personal question.

I think it's a conversation if you're thinking about entering into a long-term

relationship with someone that you have alignment around what you plan to do

around religion with your children.

But my atheism is also a real source of strength for me.

And that is I'm 99.9% convinced.

I think it's dangerous to be 100% certain of anything that at some point I will look into

my son's eyes and know our relationship is coming to an end.

And then I'm never going to see them again and they're never going to see me again.

And that's okay because it has provided me with a lot of courage and given me the ability

to forgive myself.

And that is when I say or do something stupid, which I do every fucking day, I try to forgive

myself, recognizing that the shame or the embarrassment I feel doesn't matter because

the people I'm worried about, what they think of me are going to be dead soon and so am

I.

And so try to be a good person, try to enjoy yourself, try to love others, but recognize

take risks, tell people you love them, be willing to make mistakes, risk public failure,

live life, dance on tables, dance as if no one is watching you because guess what?

You're going to be dead soon and so are they.

I believe that and I don't believe I'm going to meet up with people and skirt along clouds

and judge other people.

I just don't buy that personally.

And I find that is liberating for me.

Knowing that the end is coming makes me feel more bold with my emotions and my actions.

And that's been a real unlock for me.

I'd like to somehow communicate that to my kids, but I don't want to tell them it's all

going to be over soon.

You're going to be dead.

And I don't know.

That just doesn't sound like a very inspiring talk before we head to the Arsenal Liverpool

game.

But I have failed, I think, as a father to at least give them enough knowledge around

religion such that their verse or well versed in something that has played such a huge role

in society and also maybe to give them the chance to make up their own minds about

what, how much if and how much religion they want in their lives.

In some, I have not figured this out other than to say, I believe that atheism is a form

of religious belief.

And one of the key tenants of atheism that I've come to embrace is that you respect and

accept other people's rights or right to believe in a super bank.

That's a key component.

People think of it of atheists as people who discriminate against people of faith.

Now, a key component of atheism is that you, just as you believe you have the right to

be a non-believer, you also respect the rights of people to be believers.

Appreciate the question.

That's all for this episode.

If you'd like to submit a question, please email a voice recording to officehoursapropetimedia.com.

That's officehoursapropetimedia.com.

Or, if you prefer to ask on Reddit, post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit,

and we just might feature it in an upcoming episode.

This episode was produced by Jennifer Sanchez and Laura Jenner.

Camille Riekas, our social producer, Brad Williams, our editor, and Drew Burroughs, our

technical director.

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