Show notes
Scaramucci’s 11-day tenure as the White House Communications Chief under President Donald Trump’s first term ended in a blaze of recrimination. Scaramucci was advised by a PR consultant to disappear for five years. He refused - and reinvented his career.
Now, he is the co-host of the US version of The Rest is Politics podcast alongside British journalist Katty Kay.
After Harvard Law School, he joined Goldman Sachs and built a career in finance, eventually founding the investment firm SkyBridge Capital.
In this revealing conversation we discuss what working on Wall Street in the 80s was like, getting fired from Goldman Sachs, his failed first marriage, not being there for his son’s birth, getting fired from The White House and rebuilding his current marriage.
His book, All the Wrong Moves, looks at how three catastrophic decisions and years of ‘sh*tshow politics’ led to Trump.
IN THIS EPISODE:
00:00 Introduction montage
03:22 Learning optimism and pronoia
05:02 Self forgiveness after failure
06:40 Growing up and getting to Tufts
11:58 Why he wrote the book
14:03 Fired then rehired at Goldman
25:23 Money mindset and marriage cracks
30:48 Work Taxes Burnout
31:26 Marriage Neglect Regrets
34:07 Conflict Avoidance Trap
34:55 Affair Self Forgiveness
37:46 Fatherhood After Divorce
40:44 Trump Ego Decision
45:00 Firing from The Whitehouse
57:03 Rebuilding and Looking Ahead
💬 QUOTES TO REMEMBER:
When bad things happen, take a step back, and get into a channel that is the adult channel. Act in a rational way.
I trained my brain to be optimistic.
If you’re not careful, wealth can make you very depressed and lonely.
Trump's bullying reminded me of my dad… but I was better prepared for it.
🔗 LINKS + MENTIONS:
Anthony’s book, All the Wrong Moves, is available to buy now: www.penguin.co.uk/books/476667/all-the-wrong-moves-by-scaramucci-anthony/9781847929235
Join the How To Fail community: www.howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content
Elizabeth’s Substack: www.theelizabethday.substack.com
📚 WANT MORE?
Bernie Sanders - swap.fm/l/pH8V6cBejDnhH47ega6D
Andy Burnham - swap.fm/l/IpwatiJ5cM1h0UfcyFiA
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Production & Post Production Coordinator: Eric Ryan
Engineer: Matias Torres
Assistant Producer: Shania Manderson
Senior Producer: Hannah Talbot
Executive Producer: Alex Lawless
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