Sugar Relationships, Is It Still Worth Learning a Second Language? and Sharing Wealth After a Big Exit

Thumbtack presents Project Paralysis.

I was cornered.

Sweat gathered above my furrowed brow, and my mind was racing.

I wondered who would be left standing when the droplets fell, me or the clawed sink.

Drain cleaner and pipe snake clenched in my weary fist.

I stepped toward the sink and then-Wait, why am I stressing?

I have thumbtack.

I can easily search for a top-rated plumber in the Bay Area, read reviews, and compare prices, all on the app.

Thumbtack knows homes.

Download the app today.

With a Spark Cash Plus card from Capital One, you earn unlimited 2% cash back on every purchase.

And you get big purchasing power.

So your business can spend more and earn more.

Capital One, what's in your wallet?

Find out more at capital1.com/slash sparkcash plus.

Terms apply.

Avoiding your unfinished home projects because you're not sure where to start?

Thumbtack knows homes, so you don't have to.

Don't know the difference between matte paint finish and satin, or what that clunking sound from your dryer is?

With Thumbtack, you don't have to be a home pro.

You just have to hire one.

You can hire top-rated pros, see price estimates, and read reviews all on the app.

Download today.

Welcome to Office Hours with PropG.

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 for next time, you can send a voice recording to officehours at propgmedia.com.

Again, that's officehours at propgmedia.com.

Or post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit, and we just might feature it in our next episode.

First question.

Our first question comes from a matter of fap

on Reddit.

They ask,

Prop G, what are your thoughts on sugar relationships?

Aren't all healthy relationships mutually beneficial?

What are your thoughts on its social acceptability and portrayals like in the latest white lotus season?

Please pardon my username, but had to ask the question on my alt, but feel free to identify me as such.

Ha ha.

Look, I think every relationship is a transaction to a certain extent.

And

I don't, the bottom line is I don't have a problem with it.

I think as long as there's consenting adults, I think there's a real problem with trafficking young women around the world where they're forced into relationships where they are preyed upon because of their economic desperation.

I think that should be illegal.

And,

you know, when certain members of the manosphere are accused of trafficking young women, I think that should basically convince everyone that we just don't need to listen to these people around trying to help young men.

But if you're a young person and you enter into a relationship with someone and you're giving up your time and you have more time than money and they have more money than time,

Yeah,

you're consenting adults.

I don't see anything wrong with that.

I think that traditionally the male-female dynamic in the United States was I get emotional support and nurturing from the woman and the man provides financial support.

And over the course of the last 30 or 40 years, women have been able to step up and provide more financial support.

And there's a decent argument that men haven't stepped up in terms of emotional or domestic or logistical support, creating an imbalance where a lot more men are a lot less attractive to women.

Now, I think there's other things involved there.

I think online dating creates unreasonable expectations on both sides.

I don't think young men have venues to demonstrate excellence.

Young people aren't getting together.

There's a zeitgeist of the moment you see not even a reg flag, but a magenta flag, you should exit the relationship immediately.

Like, oh, he didn't open your door.

You're out of there.

Well, okay, folks, not all of us are perfect.

Anyways, I have no problem with it is the bottom line.

I have absolutely no problem with it.

I think at some point, relationships are a transaction.

It's just a matter of...

cadence and currency.

And as long as you're both consenting adults, also, let's be honest, the relationship is usually an older man giving a younger woman money.

And if a younger woman whose fertility window is much shorter, who's in a city that values women of a certain age and devalues women of a certain age, if she's giving up her time, she should at least ensure she's going to get something out of it.

And if the man has more money, I don't see any reason.

So

I have absolutely no problem with sugar relationships if, in fact, they're both consenting adults and it works for both of them.

I think every relationship involves some sort of transaction.

And as long as you're both sides are transparent, as long as both sides are honest with each other,

yeah, have at it.

I think there's absolutely

no problem with it.

So, sugar away.

Our second question comes from Paul.

Not from Reddit.

Paul asks.

Hey, Scott, this is Paul, longtime fan of the pot.

I actually got to shake your hand this past Junior in Houston after one of your speeches.

We shared a brief memory flashback to Petro Hill in the 90s and Goat Hill Pizza.

Following up to a recent comment about second language learning being less valuable in today's AI era, one of my sons studied Mandarin through college and a formal language training program, including some immersion in Taipei and Beijing.

I get your point.

AI tools like real-time translation make the transactional need for another language less critical.

But do you think that overlooks the relational side?

Trust, nuance, mutual respect.

That can only be built through two people communicating directly, especially in something as geopolitically important as the U.S.-China relationship.

Thanks to you, your team, for the content and the occasional good jokes.

Occasional.

Come on, Paul.

I thought it was good to see you in Houston.

Look, I agree with everything you said.

I think

I've just finished writing a book on masculinity or masculinity called Notes on Being a Man.

And

the thing about when you write a book,

you can get on almost any media outlet, or at least I've been blessed enough that if I write a book, I can get on almost a media outlet.

And I think a lot of it is because people in media realize how hard it is to write a book.

And they're like, okay, you did the work and they have some goodwill towards you.

I would imagine that I remember going to China with my friend Doug Guthrie, who was the head of Apple University in China and was the dean of the George Washington Business School and a colleague of mine at NYU and a big China scholar.

And he got up on stage and started speaking perfect Mandarin.

And the whole audience just kind of stopped and listened very attentively because here was a white dude from the U.S.

speaking perfect Mandarin.

And there's just no doubt about it.

That's like people go, that's hard.

So we have more goodwill for you.

Also, I think my understanding is learning a language is like learning an instrument.

And that is, even if you never end up making a dollar from playing the tuba

or

get any additional advantage from understanding Mandarin or French,

it opens a part of your brain when you're young that helps you absorb other knowledge more easily.

That it's a great training.

It's like when you damage a muscle and it grows back stronger.

Essentially, I think learning the languages and music damages that muscle, your brain, and it grows back stronger across a variety of activities.

So

I'm not saying that we should get rid of language classes.

I learned Spanish and it introduced me to

Gabriela Garcia Marquez, 100 years un siento años de soledada, and 100 years of solitude.

And I remember reading it in Spanish, and there's the most beautiful scene in this book where this young woman is so beautiful that she literally...

She literally floats away.

And I remember telling my mother, my children at one point, I was like a little drunk and feeling pretty good, that she was so beautiful that I thought at some point that she might, you know, that it was a realistic or there was a non-zero probability that the winds were going to kick up and she was literally going to just fly away or float away.

And that romance and understanding it through the lens of Spanish, and I think Spanish is such a beautiful language.

I took five years of Spanish.

I'm a lot of fun in Mexican restaurant.

I actually still can't speak it.

Mrs.

Witten at Emerson Junior High School, no, university high school, always gave me a B, even though I probably should have got a C.

I was terrible, terrible in languages, but I liked her and she liked me and she always gave me a B, which was comforting to get a B in Spanish.

Anyways, I'm a fan.

I just, what I don't like or I think is stupid is all of these,

you know, tiger moms trying to get their kids to learn Mandarin by the time they're, you know, in 11th grade so they can go to China, which is going to economically conquer the U.S.

For the most part, when I started going to Europe in the 90s with my consulting firm profit, you'd walk into a meeting in France and they would speak French and be pissed off that they needed to translate for you.

And now, what I find is that lingua franca, even in Germany, when I go to meetings in Audi, they conduct the meetings in English.

And I find, generally speaking, the corporate world in Europe now is now conducting meetings

in English.

And with AirPods and iPhone and AI, you're going to basically be able to speak any language, or at least understand it.

Having said that, you don't take language or music for economic prosperity or utility.

I think you take it to learn, to appreciate the art, everything you've said.

I think it's wonderful.

So I think we're pretty much in agreement here.

But the notion that you need to learn Mandarin to be economically viable,

I just don't buy it.

But yeah, it's something I wish I was better at.

I took Spanish for a long time and I was just never very good at it.

I clearly don't have an ear for languages.

But, anyways, muchas gracias.

Si

Miamo Scott, don't escala biblioteca.

We'll be right back after after a quick break.

Support for this show is brought to you by CVS Caremark.

CVS Caremark plays an important role in the healthcare ecosystem and provides unmatched value to those they serve.

They do this by effectively managing costs and providing the right access and personalized support.

The care, empathy, and knowledge that CVS CareMark provides its customers is proven time and time again with their 94% customer satisfaction rating.

Go to cmk.co slash stories to learn how we help you provide the affordability, support, and access your members need.

You might already use AI tools to refine your emails and streamline your workflows.

Why not see if it can optimize your investing too?

It's time to check out Public.com.

With Public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, and more.

You can also access industry-leading yields, like the 4.1% APY you can earn on your cash with no fees or minimum.

But what sets Public apart?

AI isn't just a feature.

It's woven into the entire experience.

From portfolio insights to earnings calls recaps, Public gives you smarter context at every touch point.

And the best part?

You can earn up to $10,000 when you transfer your existing portfolio over to Public.

public.

Go to public.com slash podcast to fund your account in five minutes.

That's public.com slash podcast.

Paid for by Public Investing, all investing involves the risk of loss, including loss of principal.

Brokerage services for U.S.-listed registered securities options and bonds in a self-directed account are offered by Public Investing Inc., member FINRA and SIPC.

Complete disclosures available at public.com slash disclosures.

Hey, everybody, it's Andy Roddick, host of Serve Podcast for your fix on all things tennis.

The U.S.

Open's coming up, and we're covering it on our show.

Can someone knock off Alcarazzan Center?

Can Coco Goff win her second U.S.

Open title?

Can Shviatek win her second Grand Slam title in a row?

Can Sabalenka break through and win her Grand Slam in 2025?

You can watch our coverage of the U.S.

Open on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcast, brought to you in part by Amazon Prime.

Welcome back.

Our final question comes from Ruddit.

Mother Ratio 9806 asks,

hey, Scott, I'm at a crossroads with my wealth creation.

I'm about to have an exit.

I don't have much family, but I'd love to financially help out those I care deeply about post-exit.

Is there a rule of thumb for family donations?

And is it ongoing or one-off?

So I never really gave away a dollar to anyone or anything until I was 40.

And now that I have some economic security, I like to give money away.

It makes me feel masculine.

It makes me feel civic.

And I pay or I give some money away to my family.

I pay for education for some of my

nieces and nephews.

And I like it.

I think it's a great investment.

It's easy for me.

And it's a big source of relief for their parents because education can be so expensive.

So it's sort of a win-win-win all around.

In terms of best practices, one, A, do it.

If you have the money, do it.

I don't believe in hoarding wealth.

I got to my number in 2017 and I'm giving everything above it now.

I either spend it or give it away.

And what I would say is the best practice is don't expect anything in return.

Decide if you're giving it.

If you're giving it, you don't expect anything in return.

You don't expect your brother to be nicer to you.

You don't expect...

your nephew to send you pictures of his or her graduation.

You don't, I mean, if they do that, great.

But if you're expecting anything, one, I think you're setting yourself up to be disappointed.

Two, they're going to feel some sort of pressure that you're sort of controlling them through money.

What I try and do when I give money to family members is I try to make it as

seamless as possible.

Hey, I was thinking about paying tuition for

Jimmy, and I'd really like to do that.

I have a fund that does that, da, da, da.

How much is he paying?

And then there's some backup.

Just how much is it?

Are you down with it?

Get the wiring information, send it, and don't bring it up again.

Don't bring it up again.

Giving money is a weird thing.

It can make them feel less,

I don't know, less adult or less successful.

You don't want them to feel bad.

You don't want them to feel like there's any reciprocal expectation.

You don't want to feel like you're exerting control.

You're not trying to flex and make them feel bad.

So just, one, don't expect anything back.

Make it as seamless, easy.

Don't bring it up again.

If they say, thank you, great.

Oh, it's no problem.

Don't dwell on it.

Don't bring it up.

That you want this to be giving, right?

You don't expect anything in return.

You don't even need them to acknowledge it.

You're giving it to them.

It's out of your mind.

You've given it to them.

It's done.

It's over.

So one, do it, especially if you're in a position to do it.

And you're going to find as you scratch the surface, even if you have cousins who look economically prosperous, they're stressed out about money.

So it's an easy way to relieve stress.

Money is nothing but the transfer of time and work to other people.

So if you can give someone back a Sunday because they don't have to spend as much time working or they are not as stressed, you take tension out of the relationship, it's a wonderful thing to do.

So yes, do it.

Two,

don't expect anything back.

And three, make it as clean and easy and covert

and ninja-like as possible.

Don't turn it into a big thing.

Just do it.

It's done.

Never think about it again.

And also just be really grateful and enjoy time thinking about how fortunate you you are that you get to do that for other people.

It feels, it really does feel wonderful.

That's all for this episode.

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

That's officehours at propagandmedia.com.

Or if you'd prefer to ask on Reddit, just 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.

Drew Burroughs is our technical director.

Thanks for listening to the Prop GPod from from the Box Media Podcast Network.

With a Spark Cash Plus card from Capital One, you earn unlimited 2% cash back on every purchase.

And you get big purchasing power so your business can spend more and earn more.

Capital One, what's in your wallet?

Find out more at capital1.com/slash spark cash plus.

Terms apply.