The world has gotten so strange that perhaps the strangest thing is how normal it all feels.
Luke Gromen has a great way of putting it: “I feel like I’m aging in dog years.”
War in Europe. A rapidly changing geopolitical order. Enormous government debts. AI threatening to reshape white-collar work. China’s staggering industrial capacity. Western manufacturing struggling to keep up.
And yet most of us still get up in the morning, drink our coffee, go to work and carry on.
Jason called it “cruising at crazy.”
That became the starting point for our second conversation with Luke Gromen.
But this episode is not really about doom.
In fact, what surprised us most was how optimistic Luke remains.
We talked about what it would actually take for the West to reinvent itself: restoring meritocracy, rebuilding industrial capability, embracing abundant energy, training young people in useful skills, and creating an environment where entrepreneurs and small businesses can flourish again.
AI plays a fascinating role in that story.
It could eliminate enormous numbers of comfortable white-collar jobs. But it may also give a small, ambitious entrepreneur capabilities that previously belonged only to giant corporations.
As Luke put it, there has arguably never been a better time to start a small business.
And underneath all of the macro discussion was a much more personal question:
How do you build a life that remains resilient no matter what happens to the system around you?
Luke’s answer starts well before investing.
Your health. Your family. Your skills. Your ability to think. Your business. Productive assets. Low financial fragility. And the flexibility to adapt when circumstances change.
We also get deep into China, rare earths, manufacturing, energy, AI, apprenticeships, the future of work, and why rebuilding some of the capabilities the West outsourced over the last several decades will be much harder than simply throwing money at the problem.
It’s a wide-ranging conversation, but I think it ultimately lands somewhere hopeful:
The West has serious problems.
But there are still an enormous number of capable people who want to build things, own things, solve problems, and create a better future.
Maybe the path forward starts there.
Hope you enjoy this conversation,
Lovis & Jason
