Executive Summary
Scott Galloway’s first job out of college was in investment banking at Morgan Stanley, which he says he hated and was bad at—but he also credits the experience with imparting crucial life lessons in detail, pressure, self-awareness, and the limits of ‘passion’ over ‘talent’ [1][4]. Through subsequent careers and his writings, he emphasizes that early experiences of failure and dissatisfaction can guide long-term growth, encourage starting within structured environments, and teach what to avoid as much as what to pursue [2][4].
Analysis
1. Early Career & Disillusionment: Galloway joined investment banking right after college—despite having no clear idea what the role entailed—and found that he “hated investment banking” and realized he was “terrible at it”. The job was more than just challenging: it was a clash between his personality and corporate culture [1][2][4].
2. Valuable Skill Acquisition: While he disliked the work, he acknowledges that investment banking taught him attention to detail, ability to endure stress, rigorous professional rigor, and how to operate inside large organizational structures—skills which he regards as foundational for his later success [3][4].
3. Passion vs Talent: Galloway demurs from the narrative of ‘follow your passion’. He believes identifying your talents, even by discovering what you dislike, is more reliable. He sees much of early work as testing grounds—finding what one isn’t suited for is as clarifying as finding what one is [1][2][6].
4. Corporate Jobs as Stepping Stones: Although he later pivoted to entrepreneurship and academia, Galloway considers a job in a strong corporate environment early in one’s career valuable. These roles give credibility, structure, and learning—even if one ultimately leaves them [1][3][7].
5. Psychological & Personal Growth: Experiencing failure—or discomfort—early forces maturity: Galloway spoke candidly about feeling insecure, resenting those above him, struggling with confidence. These struggles led to insights about his limitations and areas of strength, helping him find what type of work suited him better [4][6].
Strategic implications: For individuals, embracing early discomfort may fast-track self-knowledge and better career fit. For employers, investing in onboarding and managing early-career disillusionment may improve retention and talent calibration. Organizations should recognize that not all talent thrives inside investment banking–style high stress environments, and design pathways to alternate strengths (analytics, storytelling, strategy).
Open questions: Does Galloway’s experience generalize across different socioeconomic backgrounds, or is there a bias due to his access to privilege and opportunity? How do different sectors compare in the value of this type of early discomfort? What supports could mitigate the negative mental health risks for those who find themselves in roles they hate but cannot exit easily?
Supporting Evidence
- Galloway’s first post-college job was investment banking at Morgan Stanley, a role he entered “having no idea what investment banking was.” He “hated it” and believed he was “terrible at it.” [1][4]
- Despite struggling, he lists skills learned: attention to detail; ability to work long, stress-filled hours; understanding of corporate structure; presenting proposals and credit market basics. [3][4]
- He says “you can’t hate it. I hated investment banking and I was no good at it. So, that was a sign to get out.” Yet this early phase was instrumental in shaping later direction. [1][2]
- Galloway contrasts passion and talent: many graduates expect immediate passion, but he advises that work is hard and early dissatisfaction is common; this is how people also discover their talents. [1][4]
- He frames corporate roles as valuable not only for income or status but as training grounds – giving credibility, platform, exposure to rigorous disciplines. [3][4]
- Psychological impact: he reports insecurity, resentment toward senior staff, discomfort in large company settings; experiences that taught him what environment fit him—and which didn’t. [4][6]
Sources
- [1] www.jordanharbinger.com (Jordan Harbinger) — year approx 2024
- [2] www.iheart.com (iHeart) — 2025
- [3] cafe.com (CAFE) — 2021
- [4] ritholtz.com (Ritholtz) — 2019
- [6] lilys.ai (Lilys.ai (on transcript)) — 2025
- [7] podscripts.co (Prof G Pod Scripts) — 2025