In today’s post I’m going to share my top 32 Gary Vaynerchuk quotes from his book Crush It!
Let me start by telling you that I am a big fan of Gary Vaynerchuk and his book Crush It! Why Now Is the Time to Cash in On Your Passion.
For those of you who don’t know Gary, he is a wine enthusiast and successful entrepreneur. He is the creator of Wine Library TV, a successful video blog about wine.
He’s also a very successful business coach, speaker and consultant specializing in branding and social media. I’ve been following Gary for a few years now and have really learned a lot from him.
I consider his book Crush It! Why Now Is the Time to Cash in On Your Passion a must read for any entrepreneur or aspiring entrepreneur, especially someone trying to build a strong brand or build an online business.
I bought the book when it first came out and have read it four or five times now. It was published in 2009 by Harper Collins. It features 142 pages and focuses on how to build your own successful brand and how to take your passion and turn it into a business or profit center.
Here are the chapters in the book:
- Passion is Everything
- Success is in Your DNA
- Build Your Personal Brand
- A Whole New World
- Create Great Content
- Choose Your Platform
- Keep it Real… Very Real
- Create Community: Digging your Internet Trench
- The Best Marketing Strategy Ever
- Make the World Listen
- Start Monetizing
- Roll with It
- Legacy is Greater Than Currency
Gary Vaynerchuk’s writing style is very entertaining, to the point and fun to read. It’s also very informative.
What I would like to do in the paragraphs below is share some of my favorite Gary Vaynerchuk quotes from his book Crush It! These quotes are listed by where I found them in the book. Each quote is in bold. I also provide my insight on the quote immediately after it. Enjoy.
# 1 Live your passion. Life is too short to do something you don’t enjoy. Find something you love and then find a way to make a living from your passion. When you love what you do you will never work a day in your life. Instead of making excuses as to why you can’t do what you love for a living, come up with ways to make it happen.
# 2 Money goes where people go. If you want to know the next big trend, look at where people spend their time and money. The more people you serve the more money you make.
# 3 It’s never a bad time to start a business unless you are starting a mediocre business. Even in a bad economy there is lots of opportunity to build a successful business, assuming it is a great business idea. If anything, bad economic times are the best time to start a business because you have less competition.
# 4 Everyone needs to start thinking of themselves as a brand. You are a brand, whether you realize it or not. Everyone is a brand. You are the business. Learn how to brand yourself. Whether you are an employee or business owner you are responsible for managing your own brand. What do you want to be known for? How do people currently think of you when they hear your name?
# 5 Business is not just about making money, and if you think it is, you’re broken. Business is about providing a product or service that people want or need. It’s about providing value. Your job is to give customers what they want. Business is also about self-satisfaction and creating something you can be proud of. Yes, profits are important, but they aren’t the only thing that matters.
# 6 There is no excuse for anyone living in the United States or anywhere else right now to slog through his or her entire life working at jobs they hate, or even jobs they simply don’t love, in the name of a paycheck or a sense of responsibility. America is still the land of opportunity. Look around, there is opportunity everywhere. You just have to seize it. If you don’t have what you want or aren’t doing what you want, it’s time to look yourself in the mirror and “man up” or “woman up.” Stop making excuses and start living your dreams. You can either find a reason to make it happen or come up with an excuse to justify your inaction.
# 7 The Internet makes it possible for anyone to be 100 percent true to themselves and make serious cash by turning what they love most into their personal brand. The internet is a game changer. Anyone can leverage the internet to build their own successful business, right from the comfort of their own home. The internet has created a level playing field. Whether you are handicapped, a stay at home mom, unemployed, or already successful, you can create a successful business of your own online.
# 8 Storytelling is by far the most underrated skill in business. People who can tell good stories will do very well in business. Everyone loves a good story. Facts tell but stories sell. Whatever it is that you sell, make sure you have a strong story you can share with others. This is what will captivate their attention and get them to buy.
# 9 Developing your personal brand is key to monetizing your passion online. If you want to turn your passion into a profitable online business, you need to think of yourself as a brand and find a way to establish your brand. The key to success is to identify what makes you unique and focus on that. Don’t try to be like someone else. Be yourself. For example, my brand is “The No B.S. Network Marketer.”
# 10 The thing that most people don’t realize is that in today’s world your business and your personal brand need to be one and the same, whether you’re selling organic fish food or financial advice or just your opinion. Your business is a direct reflection of you. Don’t act like someone different in your business and then be someone else outside of your business.
# 11 Consumers want you to tell them the truth. Be honest to people. Never lie just to get a customer or make a sale. Don’t tell people what you think they want to hear. Do the right thing and everything will work itself out. That’s how I see it anyway.
# 12 Great content is what you’re going to pump into your social media networks to draw eyeballs to your blog. Content is king on the internet. The internet is the information highway. Your job is to create lots of high quality, unique content about whatever it is you are passionate about. Use your content to build a loyal following and then focus on what you will sell.
# 13 Great content is all about telling stories, and that’s true even if you’re in retail or B2B or consumer services. Once again, people love stories. Learn how to tell good stories and watch your cash register ring.
# 14 Even the dullest introvert has pizzazz when talking about something he is passionate about. Everyone is passionate about something. Whether it’s squirrels, marbles, hot rods, or exotic vacations. Whatever it is you are passionate about, you can rest assured that there are plenty of other people in the world who like the same things. In many cases, this passion would be a viable business.
# 15 If you are in commerce, if you are reading this book, you have to have a Facebook fan page. Facebook is a game changer. Whether you sell cars or breed llamas you need to put your business on Facebook. There are more than one BILLION users on Facebook. Use Facebook to build your following.
# 16 Twitter is perhaps the most powerful brand-building tool in your tool box. Learn how to leverage Twitter for your business. Synchronize your YouTube, Twitter and Facebook accounts. Social media is a very effective way to promote your brand.
# 17 If your blog is your home, platforms like Twitter and Facebook are your vacation homes. Make sure you integrate your blog with Facebook and Twitter. They work best when used together. Your goal is to use social media to draw people to your blog and then to engage with your following on Twitter and Facebook regularly.
# 18 It’s not about how many views you have, it’s about how passionate they are. Don’t get so obsessed with your social media and blog statistics. Focus on building a strong community. One loyal, obsessed fan is 100 times better than having 100 random people visit your website.
# 19 If you want to dominate the social media game, all of your effort has to come from the heart. Be passionate. Be yourself. Speak from the heart. Don’t try to be someone you aren’t. Be the best you.
# 20 Too many people don’t want to swallow the pill of working every day, every chance they get. Succeeding in business is hard work. That’s why most people give up or never get started. You should work seven days a week, especially in the beginning. You have to invest a lot of time and energy to get your business going. Personally, I spent 12 to 16 hours a day, seven days a week, for five years to get my online business established. I was all in.
# 21 No one makes a million dollars with minimal effort unless they win the lottery. To make it to the top of the mountain you really have to bust your tail. The most successful people in business busted their tails for YEARS before they made it big. I like to call this the story behind the story: the one you rarely hear about. My definition of an overnight success is someone who worked their ass off for ten to twenty years before they had their big breakthrough.
# 22 If you’re serious about building your personal brand, there will be no time for Wii. Turn off your stupid video games. The only thing you should do is FOCUS on your business and build up your brand. There will be time for video games five to ten years from now when your business is successful.
# 23 If you’re living your passion you’re going to want to be consumed by your work. When you love what you do you won’t work an hour in your life. For example, I think about my business all the time and work on it most of the time I am awake.
# 24 As hard as you’re going to push yourself, don’t plan on seeing results right away. Most businesses take a few YEARS to get up and running. In the beginning of your business you won’t be compensated fairly for the amount of time you invest, but if you stick with it and succeed you will be paid much more than the hours you ever put it.
# 25 Before you invest in yourself, you have to invest in your long-term future. That means your profits should funnel right back into your research, your content, and your staff should you have any. For the first two to three years in business, invest 100% of your profits and revenue back into your business. Feed the beast. Nurture it. Grow it. Once it is finally established, then you can start drawing an income from it.
# 26 If you’re entering a niche because you’re following the dollars you won’t keep it up. Follow your passion, not the dollar signs. If you aren’t passionate about what you do for a living, you won’t follow through UNTIL you succeed. If you love what you do, your passion for your niche will keep you going through the difficult times.
# 27 Any topic can be turned into a profitable, sustainable social media driven business. Anything can be a business if you are passionate about it. Enough said.
# 28 The longer you hold out to monetize your blog the better. Don’t be in a rush to make money right away. Focus on getting your name out there and building your brand. The money will follow. Until you build up a loyal following you won’t make much money anyway.
# 29 You shouldn’t put anything on your blog that you don’t believe in. Never recommend a product or service that you haven’t personally tried yourself. The last thing you want to do is ruin your reputation by recommending a crappy product.
# 30 Good blogging can lead to book deals. If you are a good blogger, the publishers will eventually find you. Even if they don’t you can eventually write and launch your own book and sell thousands of copies because you’ve taken the time to build up a following.
# 31 Nothing in life every goes exactly the way you think it will. Success is never a straight line. You will go through a series of zig-zags; ups and downs. You will take two steps forward and then three steps back. Be prepared for it. Just get up one more time than you are knocked down and you will eventually succeed.
# 32 How you build your business is so much more important than how much you make while doing it. Be true to yourself. Have integrity. You might make millions. You might not. But remember that your business is a reflection of you. Have fun in the process.
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About Gary Vaynerchuk
Gary Vaynerchuk is a highly respected author, investor, coach, speaker and trainer. He travels around the world teaching social media strategies and sharing his passion about building your own brand and taking the world by storm. He is well know for his to the point, no fluff speaking style, telling you like it is. He also provides courses and books on social media, building a brand and building a successful business.
Final Thoughts
In summary, these are my top 32 quotes and lessons from Gary Vaynerchuk from his book Crush It! Why Now is the Time to Cash in On Your Passion. I consider this book a must read for any business owner and give it a 9 of 10. If you haven’t read it, do yourself a favor and order a copy today. You will be glad that you did.
In addition, I’d love to hear from you. What is your favorite quote that I mentioned above? Why? Also, if you’ve read the book yourself, did you like it? Leave a comment and let us know what you think.
Chuck Holmes
20+ Year Network Marketing Professional
Top Earner & Top Recruiter
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
P.S. Learn how to grow a successful network marketing business. Secret tips, training, and practical ideas. Free training delivered by email.
I especially love quote #20 and 21. They resonate with my situation or what I’m trying to do right now.
You have to remind yourself that you have to work hard and put yourself out every day, especially at the beginning.
Also, if you’re doing what you love, things will be a lot easier for you because working will never feel like work.
Thanks for sharing.
Go and crush it man!
Great quotes Chuck.
I especially like how Gary says to stay true to your DNA.
I’m a fan of the Ask Gary Vee Show.
Thanks for the comment, Luke.
I one hundred percent agree that consumers are looking for someone to be honest with them. Of course you want to sell your product or service, but not at the expense of honesty. There’s no faster way to build a bad name for yourself as a business than to lie to consumers. A business person they cannot trust is a person they will no longer do business with. A fundamental of business for sure.
When you say and do the right thing you have nothing to worry about.
In seeing how big of a success Gary has been in the business world, it only makes good sense to read his book and learn some of his secrets.
Gary speaks a lot about blogging and social media. One common theme in all of it is great content. I see some bloggers just throw in a picture and about 100 words that have no substance. They think that will gain them sales or followers, and it does the opposite. It is through those channels that we “brand” ourselves, and word gets around quickly.
The good content gets the followers, and ultimately the sales.
Thank you for sharing your review of this book.
This is really a great book. I learned a lot about personal branding from Gary. Everyone in business needs to have their own personal brand.