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My First MillionThe great USA reset: why I'm getting out now
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At a glance
WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT
Scott Galloway exits U.S. markets, bets on distressed and Europe
- Scott Galloway explains why he believes distressed investing produces the best returns, using his FTX bankruptcy-claims trade as a detailed example of how he found, diligenced, and purchased claims at a discount.
- He recounts two major distressed-style case studies—NJOY and Dex Media/Yellow Pages—highlighting how regulatory outcomes, consolidation, and unsexy business fundamentals can drive outsized gains.
- He says that for almost everyone without special access or expertise, the right move is broad index investing—paired with geographic diversification, not just U.S.-heavy indices.
- He predicts a 10–15 year U.S. down cycle driven by multiple contraction and reversing capital flows, and describes his plan to move public-stock exposure toward Europe and other non-U.S. markets.
- He ties his biggest personal allocation to a worldview about rising inequality and “transnational oligarchs,” leading him to concentrate on high-end real estate in a small set of global destinations.
IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING
5 ideasDistressed claims can offer asymmetric upside if you do the unglamorous homework.
He describes reading the FTX bankruptcy filing, estimating the value of its assets (especially the Anthropic stake), then buying bankruptcy claims at a steep discount through a broker who sourced and verified claims and handled the legal transfer.
The sexier the asset class, the lower the returns—ugly markets can be best-priced.
He argues distressed investing is often avoided because it is complicated, uncomfortable, and “smells like piss,” but that discomfort is precisely why returns can be higher than in “sexy” categories like venture.
Big distressed wins can take years, be emotionally brutal, and hinge on regulation and timing.
He recounts investing $2.5M alongside Jason Mudrick to bring NJOY out of bankruptcy, enduring years of regulatory risk and reputational stress during the youth vaping backlash, then ultimately selling to Altria for a large outcome; he also notes he gave away $25M due to guilt.
Even declining legacy businesses can produce returns if costs and transition strategy are executed well.
He shares a Dex Media/Yellow Pages turnaround: buying “unsexy” cash-flowing assets, cutting costs faster than revenue declines through consolidation, then transitioning toward CRM software; he says he ultimately sold after achieving a strong multiple on his investment.
Indexing is the default—just don’t confuse U.S.-only indexing with diversification.
He says most people should use index funds unless they have unusual access or niche knowledge, and emphasizes that being “in an index” isn’t true diversification if it’s concentrated in U.S. markets.
WORDS WORTH SAVING
5 quotesI have found generally the sexier the asset class, the lower the returns.
— Scott Galloway
If you look at the head-up-your-ass, sclerotic, reckless, ridiculously fucking stupid decisions of this administration and how it's undermining our brand of rule of law and consistency, that is gonna result in massive multiple contraction.
— Scott Galloway
The person with good health has thousands of problems. The person with bad health has one problem.
— Scott Galloway
I always thought that money would give me the freedom I wanted... But what I have figured out as I've gotten older is that true freedom is releasing yourself from the conventions and expectations of a broader society.
— Scott Galloway
Nothing's ever as good or as bad as it seems, and that is a lot of your success and a lot of your failure isn't your fault.
— Scott Galloway
SPEAKERS
Scott Galloway
guestNYU Stern marketing professor, entrepreneur, and author/host known for business and macro commentary (including the “Office Hours” podcast).
Sam Parr
hostCo-host of My First Million and entrepreneur (founder of The Hustle), serving as interviewer and ad-read voice.
Shaan Puri
hostCo-host of My First Million and entrepreneur/investor who drives long-form interview questions and discussion.
High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.
