The guy is chock-full-o-passion.
He bleeds a deep love for business, opinions, the Jets, his family (not in any particular order) and he isn’t afraid to show us.
If you don’t know who Gary Vaynerchuk is watch this all of his videos (but come back so you can learn stuff: https://www.youtube.com/user/GaryVaynerchuk
So why am I writing an article about Gary Vaynerchuk? Well quite simple, but I’ll have to tell you with a story.
It all started back in 2007. I had just finished up a stint in Boston working as an intern for Mike Boyle Strength and Conditioning. MBSC was a high level athletic performance facility that saw it’s fair share of NHL, NFL and elite college athletes walking in and out of its door. I was offered an assistant strength and conditioning position down in the South (of Upstate New York) – Richmond, VA.
Training athletes in Richmond was phenomenal experience. I had the opportunity to train MLB, NBA, PGA, NFL and UFC fighters along with college and high school athletes – it was the best human performance education I had ever gotten. But soon after I arrived I got the itch to branch-off and begin building my own brand. So once I got bitten by the entrepreneurial bug I decided to launch my own personal training company. I worked out of 3 different locations, had great arrangements with all of them and got to meet some very high level executives and politicians in the process. Now if you want to know what it’s like to be the personal trainer of a CEO or congressman – then watch Lloyd from the show Entourage.
(WARNING EXPLICIT)
Ok so maybe it’s not quite that bad, but my point is that their schedules are so tight that you need to be ready to jump when they say “Hey John, I’m in town for the weekend and I need to fit a couple a training sessions in -cool?” And I did. I trained them on Sunday at 6am and Thursdays at 9pm. In addition to my 10-14 hour days, I fit them in somewhere in there.
Well, this got pretty old pretty quick for me and my personal life so I came up with a solution:
“I’m going to build a website where I can train my clients no matter where in the world they were.”
In fact, I could train anyone, anywhere in the world. So why not build an amazing product and open it up to the public?
Score, my first big business idea. So I went ahead and built the thing – all $13,000 of it. It had some serious custom backend work done so the price tag kept climbing. And then all of a sudden, viola, I had a fully functional online fitness training website…and about 3 members. So I dug deep, and dove into internet marketing.
Enter Gary Vaynerchuk
One of the first videos that I came across was an episode of WineLibrary TV featuring Gary Vaynerchuk. I don’t even remember how I found it, but it changed my outlook on business.
When watching or reading anything by Gary Vee, you can’t help but get blown away by his personality. It’s bold; with heavy cherry and smoke notes (that’s a wine reference for all you wino’s out there). Seriously, the man oozes intensity, and he wears it well because it’s genuine. Whether he’s barking about not enough businesses understanding that we live in a social world, or cursing out the Jets for a poorly-played game – he gets the message across. But what does this have to do with you and your success?
Well, let’s dive into it:
THE LIST
#1) He’s stoked about being ‘Real’
Ok before you write this article off as “being a piece of fluff” that tells you that the key to your success is being ‘real’ – I do have a point.
My point is that he knows he is over-the-top and in-your-face but he doesn’t care because he knows that his personality is what sells his shit. Period. He realizes that copying everyone else is the best way to get lost in the crowd. So he drives home the message that I’m different, I’m badass and in-your-face, and I’m confident that I’m valuable to your day. So the moral of the story is be real to yourself and stop following everyone else, because it’s the best way to get lost in the crowd. (Note: This is a valuable lesson for entrepreneurs to take to heart – one that I learned the hard way. There is no faster way to get attention on your business than to be unique and valuable at the same time.)
Personally I have been filming “How-To” videos for the agency, teaching businesses how to the world of digital engagement and inbound marketing works. This allows me to brand my personality while providing value to my viewers.
#2) He was born with hustle, but it’s teachable
If you listen to any of his speaking appearances, you will hear him talk about how he has been hustling since popping out of the womb – from baseball cards to wine. But we can learn a thing or two from his stories. For instance you need to think about what your competition is doing right now to get better, then out-work them into submission. What are they not doing that would charm the pants off your customers? Out-work, out-hustle and outgrow your competition.
(Note: I am obviously not a proponent of working your entire life away, but the takeaway for me is using the time that you do have, to hustle your ass off.)
#3) He puts himself out there
Gary knows that the more he acquires eyeballs on his own personal brand, the more his businesses will benefit. And as he builds his brands, it just keeps fueling the fire. You can literally search every social media network out there and find some GaryVee content floating around. He understands that the best way to earn the trust of potential business partners, clients and tons of fans, is to establish authority and engage people. If you plan on becoming an entrepreneur or growing your business, you need to build your personal brand. You need to go back to the 1950’s and become the owner/butcher of the corner deli that would chat your ear off when you came in. He told you jokes while pulling a quarter form your kids ear. That dude had personality, and you need to let yours build you an empire.
One more for the road-
Has Gary Vaynerchuk given your business a kick in the ass? Tell me how in the comments!
