The Algebra of Happiness

The Book in 3 Sentences

In The Algebra of Happiness, Scott Galloway walks us through the variables that define the formula for happiness and how to approach it. He provides insights on how to invest time and attention to your career, relationships, and personal life to bring balance later in life. He also shows us what happiness is by giving examples from his life and those around him.

Impressions

I’ve been watching Scott Galloway since 2017. He is interesting to listen to because he is articulate and very well tuned into the flow of US economy and businesses. His predictions on businesses often become true as if he has insider knowledge.

Scott correctly predicted Netflix's rise before it was a popular investment. He also publicly predicted Amazon would buy Whole Foods, four days before it happened.

Besides being a highly informative business pundit, Scott also gives some much needed candid life advice from the standpoint of someone who has actually "made it". I had heard an abridged version of The Algebra of Happiness in one of his YouTube videos, and this book was like an expansion to that filled with deeper personal examples.

How I Discovered It

I discovered The Algebra of Happiness through Scott's YouTube channel, The Prof G Show.

He also has a podcast No Mercy / No Malice. I recommend listening to his yearly predictions because they are accurate: of his nine predictions for 2022, six of them came true including his prediction on the tech stock correction and Twitter being acquired.

Who Should Read It?

While this book is definitely geared towards young professionals, anybody from high school to their 50s could benefit from reading this book:

• The book can inform what major an adolescent may want to choose
• A 20 something year old wondering where he wants to take his professional and personal life can benefit
• Even 30-50 year olds can benefit from Scott’s advice on marriage and life lessons

How the Book Changed Me

Scott’s advice on investing early and often, pursuing experiences instead of things, and prioritizing finding the right partner resonated well with me. It also goes beyond and gives some new advice I had not thought of. Two unconventional insights that stood out to me:

• Give someone a good death: after his kids, Scott is most proud of giving his mom a good death after she was diagnosed with cancer. He stayed with her for 7 months, and took a couple days of the week off to care for himself (flying to go party).
• Achieving balance while establishing your career is a myth. Unless you are a genius you will need to try hard in order to cover more ground in less time than your peers, what Scott calls a “high slope”. Establishing your career is built on strategy and endurance, with some talent.
• If you’re young, get to a city: By going to a city you will compete and work with people who are better than you, which will in turn develop you into a more capable professional.

My Top 3 Quotes

Balance when establishing your career, in my view, is largely a myth. “Struggle porn” will tell you that you must be miserable before you can be successful. This isn’t true: you can experience a lot of reward along the way to success. But if balance is your priority in your youth, then you need to accept that, unless you are a genius, you may not reach the upper rungs of economic security.

But take notes on the things that give you joy and satisfaction, and start investing in those things. Pay special attention to things that bring you joy that don’t involve mind-altering substances or a lot of money. Whether it’s cooking, capoeira, the guitar, or mountain biking, interests and hobbies add texture to your personality. Being “in the zone” is happiness. You lose the sense of time, forget yourself, and feel part of something larger.

The ratio of time you spend sweating to watching others sweat is a forward looking indicator of your success.

Summary + Notes

Work + Relationships + Interests = Life

Work: Achieving perfect balance between your career and personal life is a myth. The more you work hard early on, the more you can relax and pursue other interests like raising your family in the future.

You want to cover more ground in less time than your peers. This is partially built on talent, but mostly on strategy and endurance

Relationships: Who you marry is the most important decision in your life. You should marry someone who first and foremost loves you back. It’s okay to chase women out of your league but the two of you should love each other. Your partner’s goals and approach to life should be in sync. This includes religion, number of kids to have and how to raise them, proximity to parents, and most importantly approach to money. Your partner is somebody you can unconditionally love (love without expecting something back), somebody you like having sex with, and is a good teammate.

Interests: Your hobbies add texture to your personality. Happiness is being able to find flow and losing yourself in whatever you are doing.

How much you sweat / Watching others sweat = Indicator of Success

The ratio of time you spend sweating to watching others sweat is a forward looking indicator of your success. Someone who spends every evening watching soccer instead of playing it is on  course for a life of anger and failed relationships. Someone who sweats everyday and spends more time playing than watching sports is on course for a happier life.

Money In - Money Out = Wealth

Being rich is making greater passive income than your burn. Scott’s father receives $48k/year from his pension and social security and spends $40k - enough to make him happy. Contrast this with Scott’s acquaintance who makes seven figures but spends most of it on his alimony, child support, expensive mortgage, and hobbies. He is dependent on his stressful career to maintain his unsustainable lifestyle.

Invest early and often. Compound interest can form the bedrock of your future financial stability if done diligently, preferably from your 20s. Compounding applies not just to finance but also to careers, hobbies, and relationships.

On Entrepreneurship

The truth about 90-plus percent of entrepreneurs is that we start companies not because we’re so skilled, but because we don’t have the skills to be an effective employee.

Excerpt:

The word ‘entrepreneur’ is a synonym for ‘salesperson’. Selling people to join your firm, selling them to stay at your firm, selling investors, and (oh yeah) selling customers. It doesn’t matter if you’re running the corner shop or a FTSE 100 business, you better be damn good at selling if you plan to start a business.

Selling is calling people who don’t want to hear from you, pretending to like them, getting treated poorly, and then calling them again.

Resilience / Failure = Success

Excerpt:

Everyone will experience failure and tragedy in their lives. You will get fired or lose people you love. The key to success is the ability to mourn and then move on.