#QOTD: What is your immediate dream right now? The one right in front of you at this very moment. In six days or six months it will change but I want to know what it is right now.

#LINKS
Clouds & Dirt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4bAV...
How to ask a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

The best piece of advice i can give on delegating is very much up in the clouds, but you know me: I'm a clouds and dirt guy. ;) I'm pretty great at delegating, and I'll tell you the middle one rule to delegating well: recognize that 99.9% of things don't mean shit. If you actually think it's not that important, it becomes a hell of a lot easier to let someone else do it. If you recognize that someone else's 7.7 point skills are completely acceptable for a task in place of your 10 point skills, do it. It's all about humility. Ego is the issue with delegation. Even though I have a ton of ego, I have a boatload more of humility than you think.

#QOTD: What was the biggest miss of your career?

#LINKS
How to submit a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...
Explore Pinterest: https://ads.pinterest.com/

We haven't talked enough about Pinterest on this show. I am a huge believer in Pinterest's product. You might have noticed recently that they've created a term of service in which you can't do affiliate sales. I think that means that they are going to be running that for themselves. If you start thinking about the amount of commerce that goes on on Pinterest, even if thye make 5% of every transaction, it could easily be one of the 5 to 10 top companies in revenue in the digital space.

Like I said, I'm a big believer in the business. We've seen great results already in a company that my fund, VaynerRSE, is incubating: Faith Box. We ran some promoted pins to great success. We're also definitely seeing it in clients here at Vayner. Wine Library, same thing. I'm massively bullish. In fact, I think that Pinterest's ad product is going to be huge. 18 months from today, we will come back to this video and create a piece of content to talk about this video where I make this claim: Pinterest's ad product is a MAJOR competitor to Google AdWords for e-comm businesses. There. I said it.

I highly recommend you look into the service if you're selling something on a dot-com. Get serious about understanding the product. Now.

*Also, let it be noted that Stunwin ACTUALLY created an event invite for 18 months from today :)

#QOTD: What are you doing this weekend?

#LINKS

Submit a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-youll-need-to-get-garyvee-945936926.html

#QOTD: Are you so competitive that losing a meaningful basketball game in the morning completely alters the happiness in your day?

#LINKS

SUBMIT A QUESTION: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-youll-need-to-get-garyvee-945936926.html

In 2003, 2004, and 2005, it was very commonplace to use the internet to drive someone to your home. As in, "Come here to consume me." "Visit me here." Now what we are seeing more is "I'm over here. If you want to know what's up, you better learn how to speak to me here." 

What's happened is that the attention graph (my biggest priority right now) is shifting. People's willingness to jump somewhere to consume is certainly not down. The truth is, social networks, specifically Twitter and Facebook and Pinterest are really gateway drug pieces of content to drive to the aforementioned "home": a blog. An e-commerce site. Your download page for your app. 

What's changed is people understand that they need a great skill and a great storytelling tactic to share with their social networks. They understand that they need to be that first impression to catch people's attention.

#QOTD: What are your three favorite music acts of all time?

#LINKS
How to ask a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

QOTD (not really a question): Take a screenshot of the home screen on your phone right now and tweet it at me, @garyvee. I want to see the apps that dominate your day.

#LINKS
How to ask a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

How have I had two long format web shows in a world where things should be kept short? It's quite simple really. The thing is, when it comes to content, quality trumps everything. Back in the day, companies like Yahoo would fly me out to their headquarters to try and help then figure out their long format shows. Why was WineLibraryTV doing so well? The real answer was easy: quality is quality is quality. If I can put out a fifteen or thirty minute show and captive an audience, then it has a chance of doing well. If I can't, then it won't. It's not complicated. There are plenty of shit fourteen second videos. There are plenty of "never get off the ground" one minute shows. You'll watch a three hour movie cause it's good, but you will not watch a fifteen second commercial because it's crap.

The length is not the variable in determining the quality. Neither is the sound or lighting or production. It is the message, the message, the message. 

But of course having DRock around has made stuff much better. :)

#QOTD: How much would you pay to watch the #AskGaryVee Show?

#BONUSQUESTION
from Meerkat
14:20 - What does it take to work at VaynerMedia?

#LINKS
How to submit a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...
Meerkat: http://meerkatapp.co/
Periscope: https://twitter.com/periscopeco

Peer to peer live interactions are clearly here, and on the rise. Snapchat dabbled in it with their new chat function that launched about a year ago. Now Meerkat has been getting a lot of press around their new product.

However, if I were Meerkat, I would be very worried right now.

Twitter’s recent acquisition of the company Periscope (which is still just in beta testing) is not the best news for them. If it functions the same as Meerkat, which it is rumored to, they will have an advantage over Meerkat that will be very tough to overcome. The advantage? Native in feed. Because Periscope will be owned by Twitter, the seamless transition between the apps is inevitable, and we will probably see embedded images, and maybe even the ability to watch live streams in feed. As of right now, Meerkat pushes a tweet out on your behalf that is nothing but text and a short link. Not super eye catching in the feed, nor is it very user friendly.

Integration between platforms is key; it’s one reason Vine was able to take off so quickly. Users want an easy, friendly experience that allows them to interact with all platforms equally. But platforms don’t always play nice. You may notice that when you push an Instagram photo to Twitter, it appears merely as a link, no visual whatsoever. However, Vine transitions with no problem. This is the upper hand that Periscope will have.

So I would be concerned for Meerkat. Absolutely. But truly, we’ll have to wait and see how this pans out. If it’s a fast move by Twitter to integrate, it could be bad. But maybe not. When Facebook launched check-ins, everyone said Foursquare was dead. That didn’t happen. Both have survived and evolved.

But Meerkat is built on top of Twitter, from the sign in to the push outs. It relies on Twitter for all the aspects of its platform, except for the actual streaming part, which happens in app. So it is bound to be a different situation than Facebook and Foursquare, which were separate entities entirely to begin with. And I’ll be watching to see what happens. I absolutely plan on using Periscope so I can compare it to Meerkat. I see a scenario where this is detrimental to Meerkat, but I also see a scenario where Twitter tries to see if both can survive.

#QOTD: How many of you ACTUALLY watch television commercials? 

#QOTD: Will you when, when live streaming wearable technology comes, Truman show your life, or will you consume Truman shows? Give me a breakdown, putting out content vs. consuming content.

#LINKS
SUBMIT A QUESTION: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...
PODCAST: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

I think I love ads in the bathroom. People think I hate all traditional media, that I'm all about social. But don't forget I've spewed about how I think Super Bowl ads are underpriced. The truth is I just care about the attention graph. Show me where the eyes and ears are, and I'll show you something I believe in.

I believe that when I go pee-pee, and I see a sign right down there in front of me, there's a little bit of an issue: we are all taking out our phones now. I did a survey of my staff and everyone says they do it. So, the value of urinal signs and bathroom stall ads has certainly gone down. But do I think that there is still value because people will absolutely notice it. They are better than other outdoor mediums.

BUT the vulnerability to these types of ads, which I am fan of, is phone culture. I didn't look at my phone while I was peeing three years ago. But now I do.

#QOTD: I need your fantasy baseball sleeper. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, give me your technology app sleeper. Don't use Meerkat.

#LINKS
SUBMIT A QUESTION https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...
PODCAST: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

I have always had the ability to come home after a long day and leave it all behind for my family. My dad did not have that ability, and maybe that's why it affected me. I am so grateful and so thankful to my family members, especially my wife, who allow me the freedom to hustle the way I do. I feel like it's totally inappropriate to disrespect that love, to then carry over my headaches home.

There have been a good amount of people who have said to me how much they admire that I never take my headaches out on them. At the end of the day, there are really two people: people that need somebody else to dump their headaches on, and people that collect the headaches of others. I admire my mom tremendously for that. She collects everybody's headaches. I'm very thankful that I took that DNA from her. 

I'm thrilled to hear your headaches, but I have no interest in giving you mine. And so that foundation, that DNA trait, allows me to walk right into home and forget the problems. Lost a client. Can't ship to a state anymore on Wine Library.com. Didn't get that deal. Somebody's sick. All these things that are life and intense, the second I walk in that door I need to repay that amazing family that has given me the opportunity to do my thing by shutting that all off and turning on a different gear. 

The truth is, it's just easy for me. I have different parts of myself, different gears, and I can switch between them. I gear it up.

#QOTD: How many siblings do you have? What are their names?

#REQUEST OF THE DAY: If you are listening to the Podcast, please leave a review on iTunes! :)

#LINKS
Meerkat - http://meerkatapp.co/garyvee/7c8b6399...
Nicole Lapin's Rich Bitch - http://www.amazon.com/Rich-Bitch-12-S...
Clouds & Dirt - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4bAV...
Submit a question! - https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

There have been businesses that I sit on for such a long time, it's insane. Some times years even pass before they get executed on. I let them marinate, I let them refine. 

And then there's the other side of things: me and Jerome Jarre have dinner, and literally the next day there's a talent agency for Vine stars, Grape Story. 

It really depends on the business and both options have merit. AJ and I thought for ten or eleven months before starting VaynerMedia. Little known fact: before starting VM, we were probably on third base in starting a fantasy sports site. True story. But in the end, VM won out. We marinated and VaynerMedia happened in lieu of everything else. 

Really it comes down to the idea, and it comes down to the timing. I've got ideas that are running through my head right now but I know the timing is bad because I have so much other stuff going on. In fact, timing might be the more important factor. Are you ready? Do you have the time? The biggest failures in my business career have been when I bit off more than I could chew. Think about that. Remember it. Choose your battles.

#QOTD: Where are your parents from? 

#LINKS: 
https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

The robots are not taking over the world in five years. Not even close. Maybe in fifty-five years, but that's so far away that I can't even wrap my head around it.

BUT, if the robots take over, I've gotta be really dead honest with you: I'm not worried about the productivity, because I'm scared shitless than the robots took over. 

#QOTD: What are you focusing on the MOST right now?
#SIDE QOTD: What do you want from me, AGV wise? :)

#LINKS
Submit a question! https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

Is there a risk in giving away your best work for free? Of course. Giving away awesome work for free has been my gateway drug to so many great opportunities. But best work needs to be defined for the category you're in. I'm blown away by the amount of people who don't realize that their best advice is exactly what you should give away for free. But if you're a painter, and your best work is the most amazing painting you ever made, and you give it away for free, that's maybe a different game. But maybe you strategically gave it away. Like to an important museum, maybe. Or to a billionaire that puts in a prime spot in that home, could that then become the gateway to more?

The problem with this debate is that when you are doing something for free, it needs to be strategic. Because what you are looking to do by giving away something for free is create leverage to then do something that is not for free, right? Right. DRock could have made that first video for someone who is not me, and it might not have panned out the same. He might not have received that ROI that he got for doing a video for free for me. 

I think that people look at this too much as a blanket statement. For me, everything I give away for free has strategic purpose. I understand WHY I'm doing it, and that's why it becomes so much easier to do, even though I don't always expect an outcome from that action. That becomes the big part of this. Way too many people do stuff for free and that expect this windfall behind it. Then when it's not delivered, they become disappointed; and in that disappointment, they don't follow up, they don't try it again. They don't repeat that action over and over, which actually has more upside than anything else. 
Three out of five times it will bring you some kind of value. Don't focus on the two out of five.

#QOTD, CASEY: What is your greatest fear, and why?
#QOTD, GARY: Are you a YES person or a NO person?

#LINKS
https://www.youtube.com/user/caseynei...

#QOTD: What's YOUR spirit animal?

#TIMESTAMPS

0:49 - If you’re not from an English speaking country, should you produce content in English to reach a higher number of people, or should you produce content in the native language of your country?

1:42 - Trader Joe’s has a cult like following with no social media presences. What are your thoughts?

2:34 - My little sister has Insta and Snapchat but has no interest in FB. What do you think the future holds for FB?

4:03 - Morale in public education is at an all time low right now. How do we create a Thank You Economy Culture despite government mandates, curriculum that isn't effective today, no funding and, most of all, high stress and pressure on teachers? 

5:17 - Sprint is taking over the Radio Shack stores, but what is the relevance of Sprint? Is Sprint the new Radio Shack?

6:12 - Would love to hear more on HOW to hustle faster!

6:39 - Last year you nailed it when you recommended we use Medium. What are your recommendations for 2015?

7:19 - How would you market an industry that has negative connotations surrounding it, or one that people only use in emergencies? Like the towing industry for example.

8:23 - Girl Scouts cookies are onsale now. If you were a Girl Scout, how would you maximize your sales?

9:33 - How do you decide what to trust when it comes to news media bias vs fact reporting? 

11:04 - How can a small, local non-medical in-home senior care agency incorporate the Thank You Economy into our business with our clients and their families?

12:13 - How do you see the world in 2018ish once the Apple Watch has probably become a vital part in everybody's lives?

13:31 - I use my GoPro for my Instagram on pics. Any tips on differentiating my content from other GoPro accounts?

13:49 - But seriously, though - why are you scared of cows?

14:06 - Some companies' timelines are nothing but apologies (i.e. Comcast). Should they take a break from Twitter to fix their product?

14:24 - Blackberry use to be socially hip. Could a new social media approach make a difference or is it too late?

14:36 - My family has always believed so much in me. Back in the days, were you more afraid of letting yourself down or your family?

15:32 - You get very personal when building your brand with the public. How personal is too personal? Where do you draw the line?

16:26 - I am wondering what you think of Direct Message on Instagram. Is it an untapped resource?

17:35 - How can I engage with an audience who has private interests, i.e., the hair loss replacement industry? They don’t tweet about it and they don’t post on Facebook about it!

20:12 - How would you respond if your wife decided to open up a business as direct competition to VaynerMedia or Wine Library? 

20:55 - Why do you put so much emphasis into/on sports/the Jets?

21:49 - I spend 10-15 hours on image posts I make for my company on social media. They are hand drawn as well as computer drawn. I am getting way more 'likes' on my hand drawn lettering posts compared to these non-hand drawn ones. Lettering takes a long time to do, and I don't think I can create that many for daily social media content. What should I do? 

23:29 - What's your spirit animal?

#LINKS

http://cordproject.co/

#QOTD: What is your Snapchat username? - Follow me @GaryVee

#LINKS

Buy JJJRH on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Jab-Right-Hook-Story-Social/dp/006227306X

PleaseRobMe Foursquare Reference: http://mashable.com/2010/02/17/pleaserobme/

#TIMESTAMPS

01:31- Looking for a job out of college is tough, specially in marketing finding one that is not sketchy. How do you find a job that is the right fit? 

04:29-How would you advise a young woman to brand herself on YouTube if she's worried about privacy and security for her family?

07:34- Any tips on giving a great right hook? Been serving and giving for months, it's time for a right hook!

09:56 - How to leverage social media when your up'n coming actor? I want to jab, give content & also be able to do more roles

14:22- Hey Gary, everyone has been doing an amazing job creating the #askgaryvee Show. So good that it makes me wonder: Are we having an special "Behind the Scenes" episode?

How do you throw a great right hook? You sweep the leg. Straight up. Just sweep the leg. That’s literally how I think about this. The fact of the matter is you have to go right in the for the kill. It’s all Karate Kid. Go in for it.

What else makes it a great. Honesty. Just be real with what your goal is. If I was the CEO of Toyota, my Super Bowl ad would sound like this: “Hey. I’m Gary Vaynerchuk and I’m the CEO of Toyota. I want you to buy my cars. What do I have to do to make that happen? Let us know.” That is a good Super Bowl commercial. Forget the pony. Forget the eagle and the cute dog.

I’m turning this episode into a test case right now. Currently, Jab Jab Jab Right Hooks’ Amazon ranking is #2,051. I am now asking everyone to buy one copy. ONE. It would mean a lot to me. It would prove my point about solid right hooks. You’ve watched thirty or so episode for free, and now I’m asking you for this one thing. Buy one.

And so, that is a right hook my friends. You just honestly ask. You try to create a little guilt around it. And you ask.

Don’t hold back and be honest.

#QOTD: What question would you really like to ask me based on Steve's last question that you've never asked me? Meaning: can you come up with an interesting question for me?

#LINKS

Submit a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-youll-need-to-get-garyvee-945936926.html

All of my strategy is completely intuition. Why? Because if you look at my twenty year career, most of it has been guessing, and, I'd like to think, projecting where the market is going to go. There was no data on what e-commerce would do in 1996. There was no data on email marketing when you were one of the first hundred people using it. There was no data on what Instagram was going to bring us in value when AJ sold Brisk Iced Tea an Instagram campaign thirteen days after Instagram launched. And...there was no data around Vine celebrities when I launched my Vine talent agency 110 days after Vine launched. 

So from a strategy standpoint, I get the accolades and have the luxury of doing a show that people actually watch completely on intuition because that's what I have that other people don't have. It's no different than being great at basketball or being attractive or all the other good things that can happen in life. It was just there. 

But, I do think data still plays a role. I make these predictions, but then to actually run the business you need to know what's going on. My practicality comes into play. VaynerMedia grew very quickly, and you don't do that if you can't make payroll, right? You obviously need that practicality to run a business. 

I used to think I was a super 50/50 guy on this. My personality and communication style gets people's attention and put me in one place, but I take enormous pride in being able to shut up some times too. The first ten years of my career I kept my mouth shut. I built something and then I started talking.

So it's both. I built the data early in my career. I got into business and entrepreneurship early. But now I'm making calls on intuition. I need both. 

#QOTD: What animal scares the crap out of you?

#LINKS
One Is Greater Than Zero: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fsYW...
GaryVee Loves Twitter Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUy45...
Ask a question: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...
http://instagram.com/joshguilar/

Hashtag culture is very important, especially to Instagram and Twitter. Those are really the two places that it massively over-indexes. It's an incredible way to get discovered.

If you're asking "How do I get my hashtag going", you might be in for a surprise with my reply. I have the #AskGaryVee hashtag, but it's really a way for me to gather questions, as well as create a community that people can talk to each other on. For a campaign, it's different. You need to understand two things. One, hashtags are not ownable. Maybe some of you didn't get it, so I'll say it again: hashtags are not ownable. It is insane to me that people in 2015 still think you can own a hashtag. I walk into a lot of brand meetings where people will say things like "Let's own the #GetEm hashtag." My usual response is: what the hell are you talking about?

First and foremost, any hashtag you create could be taken tomorrow by someone else and used differently. If you can remember all the way back to 2009, Skittles put out a hashtag and ended up with a lot of really crude things on their hashtag. Even worse, Skittles made their homepage a feed of that hashtag, where everything that was posted using it showed up. Yikes. It still happens today.

So, how do you optimize hashtags for a campaign?

Flip it. Instead of trying to own or establish a hashtag for a campaign, look at hashtags that are trending and very popular on the two main platforms already and try to figure out how to reverse into them by putting out your piece of content, storytelling. Ride the wave. Be creative.

#QOTD: Give me your 2 cents on the "One is Greater Than Zero" Film - http://youtu.be/4fsYWXrGGcE

#LINKS
ONE IS GREATER THAN ZERO: http://youtu.be/4fsYWXrGGcE
ASK GARY A QUESTION: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...

I've talked about not being crippled by hiring anybody, because if they aren't good you can just fire them. But for the first 15 years of my career I was not good with this. I hated it, there is nothing positive to firing anyone, I would always justify an excuse for them. I've learned that in the long run, letting someone go is better for both parties. 

One thing that I'm very proud of here at Vaynermedia and Winelibrary is that when an employee is let go, people aren't surprised because they could already feel it coming. A question to ask yourself is do you have the emotional EQ? and the people skills to do the firing? 

If not, find someone who does and hire them to take that position. As I always say, work on your strengths. 

It baffles me to see how many people think they are bigger than they actually are.

People will ask me questions like "How do I get into the New York Times?" or "How do I get a meeting with that CEO?"

My reply? One is better than zero.

You need to be thinking about the steps it takes to actually get to the biggest places in the world. Before you get that meeting with Zuckerberg or Mark Cuban, or whoever you want to meet with, you need to have a lot of little meetings. You have to build up your cadence.

I've been on Conan. Ellen. The Today Show.

But I also did a thousand interviews that got one or nineteen or 137 views on YouTube. Max. Why did I do blog posts for so long that only had six readers? Why do I guest on shows with a smaller audience base than my own? Because I'm all about depth over width. I want to go deeper with my community. I want to give back to people who support me.

Even today, when I have more leverage than I did three years ago, I still live under the motto of one is greater than zero. To me, doing these interviews or guest posts is about the process of the work. Too many people are impatient and not willing to do that work. When you're still making the climb, when you haven't made your name known yet, you need to put in that work. I did those 119 and 137 view videos day in and day out. And I continue to.

You might make a video with 89 views. But one of those viewers could be a producer at CNN. Undervaluing just that one view is a huge mistake.

It's about having the humility. It's about not saying no. Even when you've made it. You're never too big. One is bigger than zero.

#QOTD: Where Are You Consuming The AskGaryVee Show? iPhone? IPad? Tv? or Computer? Where? 

If you're looking to try and sell ads on your Instagram account, first up you need the followers - the scale - to support bringing in real money. You need to spend the next 6-12 months actively acquiring new users. Then the answer is YES. It's totally fine to be making an ad once every 7 Instagram videos (remember, Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook). But you need to make the stuff entertaining. Think like 1950's advertorial-style commercial starring you using the product. Like when they used to bring dogs onto Jonny Carson to eat Alpo dog food. All of that is clearly coming back into vogue. 

Now here is what I would do if it were me: You need to basically google all of the news and media relating to your specific niche, and you need to reach out to every single person in the first 80 pages of results to let them know what you're doing and see if they can get you exposure. You need to absolutely be pounding all 879 influencers who matter in your niche to make sure they know who you are. You need to be the one to reach out and say "yo". 

Guys. Most of you aren't TAKING it. You have to understand that with Wine Library TV, I reached out and TOOK it. I emailed EVERYBODY who had a wine blog in 2006, and said "hey, I'm doing this!"

And I get that not everybody is comfortable with self promoting. I love when my european friends are like "oh that's such an American thing." But I'm telling you that if you're smart and you position it the right way, which is not to be straight up like "YOU SHOULD WRITE ABOUT ME!" (Right Hook), but instead saying "Hey I love our community, if there is anything I can ever do you for, let me know." (Jab), you're going to see results. You just are.

So get out there and take it. 

#QOTD: Rank these four platforms in order of YOUR preference: Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram.

Last night, I started using Twitter's new video reply feature. That platform is playing a lot more with video. When I first started putting out content in 2006, it was video because that felt most natural to me. The best way I could communicate. But it was hard for me to execute on it. In 2007 and 2009, I would carry a Flip Cam around with me and use that as my main medium. The fact that I can now do that straight through the Twitter app is awesome. 

So video does seem most natural to me. But I don't over think my content. Way too many people over think the stuff they are putting out there. We're living in a culture where kids are growing up scrutinizing every selfie they take. It takes them forty-seven minutes to post because they have to make sure the lighting is right. Then when it doesn't get enough likes in the first four minutes, they pull it down. I have the reverse of that rigor. I would take the most unflattering selfies, not caring about the lighting (this is actually the first year I've started to understand lighting...).

Bottom line: I really don't care about the angles. The look. The feel. I care about the substance.

P.S. Twitter Video is available now for verified users, so if you're verified, check it out. :)

#QOTD: Which historic figure would you like to have dinner with? ;)

#TIMESTAMPS
01:23 - In episode 63, you say you watch and can tell if people are hustling. How do you tell? Engagement, frequency, or gut? 
07:00 - What are your thoughts on the marketing opportunities in the new app Yik Yak? 
09:33 - We spend all of our time pouring our creativity into projects for our clients so that when it’s time to shift gears and focus on our brand, we’re fucking exhausted. How do you keep it burning for both? 
11:55 - What have your children taught you about life and business? 
14:14 - Who is the historical figure you would have lunch with if you could? And why? 

#LINKS
https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/what-y...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4bAV...
http://instagram.com/lexvalishvili/

How do you work 100% for clients and another 100% for your own brand? The answer is simple: you need to work harder. And faster. There's really nothing else to it. I'm exhausted every day, but I'm making all sorts of things happen in my eighteen hours. Not only am I working eighteen hours, I'm working fast as hell in this eighteen hours. And, I'm prioritizing what's important and what's not.

We're all different. We work in different ways. If you're Type A, maybe you just need to schedule non-negotiable time for your personal brand if it's that important to you. But really, there is no magic answer here. The answer is just more time, and faster within that time.

Now, the faster part might confuse some people. I always tell people to start working harder, stop watching Lost, but there's another variable: be much faster in the hours you'er already in. There is not a second that's down for me. Some people say they work ten minutes day, but then when I audit them, there's fifteen minutes here and there where they watched a YouTube video. We fight for minutes on my team. Even seconds.

I used to think I was the biggest workaholic that lived. From twenty-two to thirty, I really thought I was all in. But I had enough time to bullshit about baseball with friends. I had time. Now, I'm dramatically faster. And I'm working more hours. That's how it's happening.

So that's the answer. More hours. Faster. Better. Stronger.

#QOTD: New York is about to get CRUSHED by a blizzard, so I want to hear about your favorite memory from a snow day.

Social Media is the plumbing to the word of mouth in our society. If you make a great product and you can get people to taste it, both literally and metaphorically, then there's a tremendous opportunity for your name to spread on its own. There are tons of brands that don't spend on marketing and win simply by making a great product that people can't help but talk about. 

In this day and age, you may not have the budget to put towards marketing your product or service, but that shouldn't stop you. If you're putting out a strong product and service then your name may very well spread through the eyes and ears of those that are able to experience your offerings firsthand. 

Social Media has put us in a very interesting space. If you can leverage the social "influence" of one individual who's had a great experience with what your business offers, you can be well on your way to surpassing the attention that any paid budget would get you. BUT, you need to make sure you actually have a good product. For instance, if you're a small time restaurant that happens to have great food, all you need is that one person on Instagram or Twitter to talk you up because they love what you have to offer. 

The brands and the products that will break out in the next decade with zero dollars may end up being anomalies in the grand scheme of things, but that's all predicated on them having tremendous products. You can have all the money in the world but if your product sucks, you'll end up losing the long game. HOWEVER, you may very well be piss poor and not in the position to spend money on marketing, but if your product is good enough to entice people to talk about it, then in this day and age, you can most certainly win.

#QOTD
Part 1: Give me your feedback, are you excited about instagram bringing a visual element to the show? 
Part 2: Are you going to submit a question via instagram? 


If you are building a consumer facing business, like a restaurant for example, then a franchise is a great thing to do. But, something to ask is—are you trying to franchise your name? A lot of people have tried to franchise me. Yeah. Me. As in Garyvee. I got so many pitches when “Crush It” came out in 2010. People wanted to build courses that they would teach, but it would syphon up to me. That was something I wasn't comfortable with because I don’t feel like it represented me. I wouldn't want to franchise that route.

So if you're asking me about franchising yourself, I'm going to say no. Having other people represent "you", to scale your "brand" as a franchise, just doesn't make sense any more. With YouTube and all the other forms of social media available, you just don't need it. 

BUT let's say you're franchising your restaurant or retail business. If that is the case, I am comfortable saying: go for it. You can make suer your brand is ensured with lots of rules, lots of legal jargon and intense training. Whatever you need to do to scale that, do it. It might be tough, but it will be worth it to keep the core values of your business intact. 

#QOTD: What is your favorite morning beverage? 

I think that "hustle" is something that you're born with. Let me explain.

Work ethic is definitely a trait people are born with but ultimately I think that the hustle meter is fundamentally affected by who the work you're doing is for. Sure, if you work for yourself, it's really easy to give yourself that high grade hustle. However, if you work for someone else, I think your attitude and effort are solely based on how inspired you are and how protected you are by that leader. I truly believe that because I instill trust and protection (as well as some high standards) for those that work for me, they're able to go all-in and deliver and work as hard as they do due to the culture and the context that comes from within the workplace. 

At the ground level, everyone is motivated by their own selfishness and there's nothing wrong with that. But then there's a side of it where if the leader presents a workplace based on meritocracy they're going to do whatever they can to not let that leader down but they'll also work hard enough to take advantage of the opportunity to grow and rise through the ranks. It's super fascinating to me see the levels of motivation that are on display among those that work for me as opposed to those that work for themselves. 

There are so many variables that dictate one's work ethic, but there's no question that a lot of our motivation stems from our life's circumstances, be it traumatic or triumphant. So for me, it's most definitely a nature vs. nurture thing. A lot of our drive comes from our DNA but it's the circumstances of our years that shape the level at which we perform.

#STATEMENTOFTHEDAY: I want you guys to reach out to one person that you haven't spoken to in over a year. I'm serious. And for you over-achievers, try and think of somebody you haven't spoken to in more than 5 years and give them a call. I want you to comment and let me know who that person is and what happened when you hit them up. You'll thank me later :)

The brilliance of this show (#humblebrag) is that when people look back and realize what I've done (and what I'm doing), they'll notice I'm creating the base, the foundation, for all the other pieces of content that I'm able to create. If you pay attention you'll realize that all the content we're putting out is (for the most part) based on the seed that is the #AskGaryVee show. 

Just take a look at the last 6-8 weeks and you'll see the substantial increase in output we've been able to tackle because we're taking advantage of what this show provides -- whether that's Medium posts, GaryVaynerchuk.com articles, animated GIFs, etc. In essence, the #AskGaryVee is just one giant jab that allows for the further awareness that I'm trying to create with the other pieces of content we're putting out there. People gravitate to different mediums and different messaging and this show allows us to capitalize on all those needs.

Think about it. We're putting out this show that is supplied by the questions and thoughts of the fantastic community that is #VaynerNation. This show is the foundation to what has become the latest stage of my personal brand. Not only can I create this show that provides a lot value to a number of people but it also provides me the leverage to create other pieces of content consumed by people that may not otherwise hear my messaging.

#QOTD: Can I get your wine business? YES? NO?
#QOTD2: What are you looking forward to in 2015?

The best way to push employees above their own means is to guilt them into it. 

Everybody is driven by things, so first and foremost, you need to use your ears and listen. You need to sit down with your employees and understand where they want to take their careers. What’s their ambition? By sitting down with people and actually listening, you’ll be able to set up your employees for success in order to achieve the beneficially mutual goals at hand. 

Don’t think for a second that money drives all motivation. It’s simply not true. People are in the game for multiple reasons and the only way for you to understand that is to listen. Once you understand then you can set them up to be in a place for them to deliver. 

The only way someone will over deliver FOR YOU, is to attack THEIR OWN selfishness. You may be selfish in asking for people to over-deliver for you, but the only way for that to be executed on is for you to over-deliver for them. The single best way to win is to provide for 51% of the relationship forcing them to be good enough to deliver on the other 49%. 

Listen, deliver, and guilt them. 

Period.

Hustle: The Most Important Word Ever

Video can be watched here: http://youtu.be/PIJElPStJpg?list=UUctXZhXmG-kf3tlIXgVZUlw

#QOTD: How much do you hate DRock?

The middle is the commoditized work that everybody does. What I mean by this is that everybody winds up doing what the market calls for. They're focusing on what's popular in the moment and not focusing on where the market's going. I can't tell you how many times I get pitched by startups doing the same thing everyone else is doing and singing the same old song. What I want to hear about are those that are in the trenches doing the hard work - the nitty gritty; Those that are going above and beyond and breaking traditional thinking.

"The middle" is what we're surrounded by 99.9% of the time. It's the sh*t everybody focuses their energy on all the while ignoring what really matters - the clouds and dirt, as I like to call it. You've got to dive into the trenches and get into the weeds. BE A PRACTITIONER. At the rawest of levels you need to be executing. You need to be focusing on the stuff that nobody wants to bother with. Why? Because that's the hard part. And that's what matters. 

So if there's anything you can walk away with from me to wrap up this year, it's this. DO THE WORK THAT NOBODY ELSE IS DOING. Don't be afraid to break things, and hustle your face off 'til it hurts. Trust me. You'll be a better person for it. 

Hustle. The most important word ever.

Love you all. Have a Happy New Year.

#QOTD: What's your Instagram handle?

Look, when VaynerMedia was in its earlier days, our website was garbage. It almost looked as if we were going out of business and I know that. That's on me. At that point in time I didn't think we needed to showcase the work we were doing, or the clients we working on, or any accolades we could have showed off. We just needed to focus. 

The point here is that everything I do, and everything that you do, needs to have strategy behind it. The strategy at the time for us was to stay low and be quiet, and focus on what we were doing internally and focus on the energy that we needed to create to build an incredible business. So that's what we did -- BUT, that doesn't mean that's what you need to do. It all boils down to strategy and the mission at hand, so that's what you should be focusing your energy on.

Look, we were put in a peculiar position. I had my own personal brand and people knew me as this "social media guy." To be honest, I had plenty of doubters who thought I was just going to snake my way into getting clients without have a substantial business to back it. Well -- THEY WERE WRONG. I've proved my worth through and through and a lot of that had to do with the strategy I employed, the team I built around me, and the ways we've executed our excellence in this space. 

The actions that you put out to the world need to replicate the mission you've set out to capitalize on. This isn't a one-size-fits-all game. You need to understand what you're looking to do and do whatever it takes to get that done. Period. 

#QOTD: Where do you watch or listen to the #AskGaryVee Show?

I think that Instagram and Twitter are tremendously different. Look, Twitter is the town hall, the cocktail party of the social world. When things happen in the world and there’s breaking news, we’re running to Twitter not Instagram – we want the chatter, not the images. However, I do believe that Instagram has found a way (at least up til now) to gain the most attention from the consumer where we've found ourselves looking at those pictures pretty consistently. 

Attention wins and that’s what Instagram has been able to capture. People are actually consuming content on Instagram, whereas on Twitter, those days are over. Back in the day I used to be able to send out a tweet and although I had a substantially lower reach I was still able to garner that attention. Instagram, due to its image-focused nature, is naturally able to capture our attention more easily. And let’s face it, we’re lazy, and it’s much easier to consume an image than to take the time to read a few lines or click through to a long form piece of content. It’s just the nature of our tendencies, our attention spans, and the mediums where we’re consuming this content, which happens to stem from the palms of our hands.

OH! And did I mention? I have an Instagram account. You should follow me :) @GaryVee

#QOTD: How old are you?

Check out my new video channel on 5by!
http://5by.com/garyvee

There is zero doubt in my mind that I can run ANY company. I'm a reverse engineer, through and through. Heck, I don't know anything about 99% of the businesses out there, but I believe that it would take me only about 6 months to absorb the information - the data, the numbers, the culture, etc. - and reverse engineer the business to get it to a point where I can run with it. I'd take a look at the marketplace, understand the consumer that the business is selling to, whether B2B or B2C, and start making my chess moves. Frankly, as an operator, there is no business out there that I'd ever be intimidated by. That's just who I am. Fearless.

Look, this comes down to people and process. You need to have the chops to build teams around you while having the strategy and tact to sell the product at hand. I'm certainly not the only one, but it's few and far in between that you have natural born operators that can take a look at things, assess the situation, and really operate the business without ever having any real experience in that field. 

As I alluded to earlier, this all boils down to sales and HR. People and process. That's why I think I've been so successful. My salesmanship and ability to build strong infrastructures with the people around me is why I have won. Period. If you're lucky enough to have those two traits where you can both sell and build teams around you, then you're sure to win. No question. 

**Listen Up: Ashton Kutcher's on this one!!**

Enjoy :)

#QOTD: Which social network are you hottest on RIGHT now?

Agencies in the market for awards is nonsense. I've been talking about this for a while in the halls of this world and within our industry. At the end of the day, these agencies are being hired to do work for THEIR CLIENTS, not for themselves. They're being hired to tell a story on behalf of the brand they're working for which in turn is supposed to sell sh*t. 

Agencies are using their work and these awards to recruit more talent and to gain more clients. I get that. It's smart in one way, but it's not intended for the long game and it's not sustainable. I'm not trying to begrudge the agencies that do it because I get the business rationale behind it but it's just not a healthy culture. It takes the eyes off the actual prize of doing what's best for the client and I just don't subscribe to it. 

Luckily for us at VaynerMedia, our proof is in the pudding. Our work is the word of mouth of our business and quite frankly, so is my personal brand, but if you've been watching this show, you can see that it's quite apparent as to why this is the place to be. And so, we're not here to win awards, we're here to win our clients over. We let our work and the results of our efforts speak for themselves. THAT'S IT.

**WARNING: DO NOT end this episode early. Stay tuned 'til the last second. You won't regret it.** Hint for you podcast listeners: ASHTON KUTCHER

#QOTD: Give me some feedback on the new settings of the show. How do you like us filming on the 15th floor? -- Since you all can't see what's going on, check out the YouTube episode and let me know what you think!!

THINGS I VALUE: I'm a humungous fan of patience. Lack of patience has caused so many people to not achieve the upside that they deserve and that just kills me. Another thing I value so greatly is an old school handshake. That really matters to me. Word is bond. Having people in your life that you can trust based on their word goes a long way -- you know, someone that you just know is going to deliver on whatever it is they say they're going to do. 

On the other hand, when someone doesn't deliver on something, I have the understanding to realize that unexpected things can come up and change the course of action. So I completely buy into being nimble and empathetic because you need to be able to understand that things don't always go according to plan, and it's not always the person on the other end that's to blame.

I also think that people that are grateful are extremely attractive as well. NOTHING is more ugly to me than somebody who's spoiled and I also think at some level, hypocrisy is the thing that I hate the most, which I guess touches on my previous point. 

So for me, there's nothing more important than having perspective on things and understanding that although people may have the best intentions in mind, not everything is going to work to plan. You need to be patient and empathetic and realize that when someone says they're going to do something, you'd hope they'll do whatever's in their power to deliver, but while also having the perspective in understanding that things don't always run their intended course -- And that's okay.

#QOTD: Give me some stories from your experiences with company holiday parties. I need gossip, people :) Also, why are you not visiting me this weekend at Wine Library? :(

Google+ is most definitely a failure (in my eyes) for Google. While Google is my pick for the best tech company in the world, they made the wrong decision in doing something outside of their DNA. They tried to copy something, and I think that was ill-fated.

I use Google+ because there's an audience of mine there and it ties in greatly with the YouTube society. There's a small niche group of people that I massively respect that have developed some great communities there. However, much like every social network besides Twitter, it isn't in fact a social network. Most of these "social networks" have become content portals. And so, I still have a great sized audience on Google+ and therefore they will not be forgotten and I will continue to distribute my content there because it's native, and that's what you need to do. Understand the nuances of the platform and deliver based on how it's used. 

So all in all, Google+ is a loss, but it's still something that needs to be paid attention to. Nothing is ever dead. I talk about email open rates being down, but it's still at the top of my current marketing strategy. 
It's about what's happening in that moment. So where is Google+ now? It still merits the time it takes to utilize the platform and therefore I will continue to engage with my community within it. Remember people - follow the eyes and ears. 

#QOTD: What's the greatest holiday gift you've every received? - India K. :)

With an organization of the size of VaynerMedia, of course you need a balance of employees that are highly skilled in particular focuses as well as those that are considered to be 'jacks of all trades.' So for me, of course both work, but truthfully, I'm a firm believer in the importance of being a 'jack of all trades.' So, for the purposes of drawing some lines in the sand, I don't agree that everyone should focus on one particular skill.

Many people would argue that if you try to know a little bit of everything, you'll never get to the point of mastering anything. My argument? Bullsh*t. I don't buy it. I think I'm perfectly capable and skilled at 19 different things and that's just the way I roll. Look, you need to be able to adapt and you need to be able to evolve your skill-sets depending on the particular situation. In my world, there's NO room for excuses. So when I hear people make the excuse that they can't do other things because they've gone so deep in one focus, it bothers me. 

There's always room to get better in as many things as possible. You need to expand your arsenal because you'll never know when you'll need to tap into more than one skill. It's speaks to your agility and your ability to offer a number of benefits to a certain situation when the time calls for it. You can always get better. Start moving :)

#QOTD: Are you coming this Saturday? Yes or No? Also, I need your recap of the first 50 episodes of the #AGV show. What's the best thing that it's done for you?

When people bring up my competitors I tend to respond in a condescending way. Quite honestly, I dislike my competitors (in the context of the game/business). When people bring them up I try and tear them down as quickly as possible. My competitors? Oh, you mean those people who are trying to win awards while I'm over here trying to actually sell sh*t? 

Deep down, I'm just not a fan of my competition. Anything I think that'll make somebody realize the value in working with us is something that I will push and fight for throughout the discussion, no matter what. Look, I'm a salesman, a talker, with great tact and enormous empathy. Hence why I win as often as I do. I can read a room and I know in real-time how to navigate the conversation and find my way to the top and win that discussion. Others? They just can't. They may just not be good enough to communicate their value without sounding awkward or inappropriate. Some just don't have it. 

Look, I can play the game and I know when to turn it on and off, but others just don't have what it takes to communicate their worth and their value. I care SO MUCH about my clients that I'll do whatever it takes to make them realize how worthwhile it is to work with me (VaynerMedia) as opposed to anybody else. It just is what it is. Other people just need to apply different routes and tactics. But quite honestly, any other route besides the one that I roll with, is sh*t. Period. End of story.

#QOTD: Do you think that your culture (wherever you're located) has gotten soft? Do you think we should we have 7th place trophies?

High-end wine is as much of a hoax as the art world is and as much of a hoax as a high-end restaurant charging $10K for a a once in a lifetime meal. It's as simple as supply and demand. Is a stock price a hoax? My answer? Yes and No. 

I used to think that the amount I was being paid for my speaking engagements was a hoax, but then I realized that I was getting compensated for what I was doing for that event. Is an actor quietly getting $8 Million for a movie a hoax, as opposed to an athlete who constantly gets ridiculed for being over-paid? It's all an arbitrage. That same actor is putting people in the seats and ad budgets are being leveraged against the appeal of that actor/actress.

So, can I taste the difference between a $10 wine and a $100 wine? ABSOLUTELY. I live it. It's what I do. The beauty of wine is that everyone has their own palette -- similar to how people have different taste perceptions of art and music. It's simple branding. It's supply and demand. My advice? DON'T. DRINK.GOOD.WINE. It's all supply and demand. If you start to taste the good things (first class plane tickets, front row seats, etc.), you'll put yourself in the position to realize it's not a hoax. It's all perspective. It's context baby! Don't complain about it unless you're prepared to never taste it.

#QOTD: How was your Thanksgiving? AND, what's your Jets vs. Dolphins prediction for tonight's game?

I literally spend ZERO time focusing on my competition. I don't look to the right of me or the left of me -- It's all forward moving for this guy. I focus ALL of my time on people, the teams around me, and our focus for the future.

Do I know what the competition is doing? Sure, to some level - but I never go deep as my understanding typically goes as far as reading headlines and hearing some of the buzz of the industry. The biggest mistake I see entrepreneurs making is paying too much attention to those around them. Sure, take a look back once and while to see who's on your tail, but at the end of the day your focus needs to be on your own domain. If you can focus all of your attention to accomplishing what you set out to do, full-steam ahead, you'll win. 

Not only will you win but you'll be able to razz the competition a bit while you ignore them :) I find that not paying attention to your competitors is actually a tactic to be used and a competitive advantage which allows you to focus your energy on the work you've set out to do in the ways in which you've set out to do it.

#QOTD: What weaknesses of yours are you giving thanks for? And be honest. This will help you.

Someone by the name of Tommy Mottola (look him up) once told me that he wouldn't try and sell anything until the artist he was working with and the product they were creating (in this case music) were ready. And I agree with that to some extent because if you're going to sell something you need to make sure that those ready to buy it can actually do so, but it also needs to make sense for the context involved. So let me explain. 

If you're able to achieve and execute on business objectives by building out content and pushing your product or business without the need of a fully built website, then by all means, go for it. By creating content you're beginning the journey of how your story will unfold. The reception of this content will also allow you to test and learn and understand the best approach to creating future content once your business and website are ready for the masses. That process you simply don't want to miss out on. 

And so, a big issue I've been seeing is that people are too reluctant to sell against the communities and the impressions they've established on social. Too many people are caught up on only leveraging their website for banner ads but selling against social audiences is essentially the same thing. If you're creating valuable content that's living on social then you might as well take advantage of that opportunity. Don't get caught up in only monetizing on the platform that you fully own when there's a world of opportunity that exists through the channels you're deciding to put your content on. 

So in short - If the opportunity to create content presents itself and makes sense for the objectives of the business you're trying to build, then my suggestion is to go ALL IN and get moving. NOW.

#QOTD: What wine are you pairing with your Thanksgiving dinner?

The biggest decision of my life? Deciding to finally focus on what felt right to me. 

At an early age I received an "F" on one of my Science tests. From that moment in time I understood that no matter how many people tried to tell me the importance of school, I knew deep down inside that it wasn't for me. And although I knew it would bring me nights upon nights of punishment, I decided that school couldn't be the one thing I focused all of my energy on. 

From my "flower business," to the lemonade stands, to the baseball card collection, I knew early on that I was a businessman. Although I had felt it inside, it wasn't until I made the conscious decision to focus on these skills that things began to change for me and my outlook on the rest of my life would be forever different.

The moment I made the decision I knew that I would be looked at by society as different, and I understood that, but I made the mental decision to accept that and focus on what felt right for me. I made a deal with myself that I was ready and willing to eat the pain in order to capitalize on my early self-awareness. I decided to focus on my skills and learn as much as possible about whatever venture I was focused on at the time. So rather than succumbing to society's pre-determined life plan for me, I fought it, and delivered on what I felt and knew I was -- a businessman. 

I suggest you do the same.

#QOTD: Watch this on video and guess how many almonds are in the jar next to me. Whoever guesses it right will be flown out to NYC to join me on a taping of the #AskGaryVee show!!

It's funny to hear that people are referring to cellphones and other mobile devices as the "second screen." As far as I'm concerned, in this DVR'd world we live in,  most of us are on our phones, scrolling through our feeds as commercials, and sometimes the actual TV shows, are being ignored. I'm pretty certain we're at a moment in time where our mobile devices are indeed our 'first' screen of choice. 

When it comes to retail though, it makes sense that we refer to our phones as the "second screen" because it certainly holds true that our eyeballs serve as the 'first screen' when we're walking around. What's really resonated with me recently with retail  is how people are behaving when they're out and about and shopping around. People are literally IGNORING the promotional end-caps that brands spend tons of money on, simply because they're too distracted by their phones. Although this may sound like a wasted opportunity, I see it as the future of in-store marketing. 

This has been a hot topic of discussion over the last few years -- how phones and other devices will play a role in our shopping experiences -- and is something I'm very interested in. Brands need to start being more conscious of how we're using our devices in our everyday interactions. With the advent of ApplePay and the beginning phases of beacon sensors, there's no question that our in-store purchasing behaviors will be highly influenced by those shiny little devices we seem to never be at an arms-length distance from. 

#QOTD: What's the last app you downloaded?

The humanization of business. Manners of Marketing. Thank You Economy. They're all same. Now that the Internet has allowed consumers to have more control, businesses are expected to behave differently and interact with their communities in a way that humanizes their messaging. Unfortunately however, brands haven't fully embraced the mindset that I thought would have been exhausted by now. 

My prediction with the Thank You Economy was that by 2015 everybody would be on board. Unfortunately, that is not the case. People just haven't adopted it at scale and therefore how can it really be over? Nobody's ruined it. This might actually take forever or never happen at all although I know that those practicing it are getting real results. I see those emails every day. 

And so, my prediction was incredibly off. It just may never happen at scale because companies can be heartless. Heck, even I'm heartless when it comes to money. I know that business is all about the wallet and I get that, but there's a real financial benefit with TYE mentality. I see the dividends with it each and every day. People are STILL flabbergasted when a company reaches out to them with a half-assed approach, and so I know that the potential is still there, but I'm utterly confused as to how it hasn't been fully adopted yet. It's 2015, people!

#QOTD: Just show me some love!!

Everything trickles from the top. For a long time I used to talk about the "rich-kid syndrome" and how they didn't have it in them to hustle their way to building a sustainable business. What I've learned, however, is that this doesn't apply to everybody. 

When it comes to business, like anything else in life, it all stems from the top. Just like a business' culture stems from its leaders, the way a child sees the world and their approach to life all comes from how they were brought up. When I meet with these "rich kids" I spend almost all my time trying to figure out what their past was like. How did their parents raise them? Did they spoil them or did they make them work for what they wanted? And so, this really has nothing to do with the kids themselves but more so about who their parents were and how they decided to pass on the family legacy. 

I know that my kids are going to be "rich kids" but that doesn't mean I'm going to spoil them. I'm not going to let them become soft and I will most certainly let them know what it means to work and sweat for something that they want, because I know that it's up to me to instill those qualities within them from the onset. 

As a teacher and any professional looking to expand their personal brand, my advice remains the same -- Cut out the crap, stop wasting time on non-important things, and hustle to build your brand. 

If you want to build a more scalable brand you need to put out content. Utilize the technology around you like SlideShare, Spreecast, and Google Hangouts which allow you to further establish your credibility, and where you can also charge people for participating if they're willing to do so. 

Use your content as a gateway to drug to allow you to further establish yourself and your brand. What I really see here is that people are just loaded with excuses. Do you really want to build your brand or do you want to watch 'Homeland?' Do you really need to take that hour long lunch? LUNCH? C'mon!! There's better ways to use our time. I'm not saying you shouldn't eat, but do you really need that much time for lunch?!?

As with anything in life, you just need to figure out your cadence. What do you really want? Are you wasting your time by doing things that aren't allowing you to achieve the levels you want? If you really want to expand your brand, start putting out content, engage with people that may be interested in what you have to offer, cold call, and do whatever else it takes, even if that means having two hours less of sleep. 

#QOTD: How long have you been following my work?

Wanting to be an entrepreneur and being an entrepreneur are two very different things. If I were a young and aspiring entrepreneur I would go out an hustle my face off in any which way possible. The best way to become something is to first act like something. Sell, sell, sell. Understand what it takes to provide value to somebody. Learn how to communicate your value proposition enough so that it registers with your 'customer' allowing for you to accomplish what you've set out to do. 

Go out and find mentors. Go work for free and under people that can show you the ropes and serve as that point of contact when you need it. Learn the hustle and taste the game. Put yourself in the position to win. You can read as many books as you'd like, but they're not going to make you an entrepreneur. The only way to become something is through doing. 

And so, start hustling. Start doing whatever it takes. Even if that means selling the very shirt off your back.

#QOTD: Want to win a dinner with me? I need you to predict how many episodes of the #AGV show we'll wind up producing once this is all said and done. Those that guess right will be selected to have dinner with me. Deal?

They way I prioritize my time is by making the best judgment call possible in that particular moment in time. I frame my process by selecting two sides of the spectrum: What's the most on fire and needs to be tended to immediately, and what are the more high-level ideas that I can work on and flesh out?

I'll take care of things like employee issues or client concerns (the biggest and most time-sensitive problems) and balance it by going on the offense on the things with the biggest upside, like company culture, visions for the future, buying the Jets ;), etc. 

I never focus on anything in the middle. VaynerNation, I warn you, the MIDDLE is DANGEROUS. Stay away. 

#QOTD: Let me know what the next 3-5 years look like for your business. What do you have planned? What are you looking to accomplish?

Micro-Content is the idea of making content specific to the context of a platform. It's the idea of utilizing videos and pictures, quotes, and written words that work specifically for the multitude of platforms that exist (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Vine, Pinterest, Snapchat, etc) -- which if I might add, was the context behind my latest book, Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook ;)

So, how do you make good micro-content? First of all, content is subjective. It depends on the viewer and why they're in particular place at a particular point in time. I understand that a 40 year old woman will have a different mindset when she's on Pinterest vs. Facebook. Does she have intent to shop (Pinterest) or is she just catching up with her world (Facebook)? That's how you need to focus on your story-telling strategy. You need to be mindful of the psychology behind the user's intent and the nuances of the platform. 

When creating micro-content, or content in general, you also need to respect the user and their tendencies. Of course you want to sell your products, but you need to portray them in way that's more compelling to the viewer. You need to shape it their interests and lifestyle. There are plenty of targeting strategies out there, and there's no one way to execute. The only things you can hone in on while forming your strategy are: 

1. Respecting the audience  

2. Respecting the platform  

3. Making your agenda fall third to #1 & #2

#QOTD: No question for this one! I need more banter!! I'm looking at you, VaynerNation ;)

I absolutely hate when people send auto-messages after they've gained a new follower. I have actively un-followed most of you when you do this because it speaks to your intent on the platform. You're looking to scale social media on a platform like Twitter that's simply not scalable. 

Twitter is the only true social network because it functions like a town square. A place where you can jump into conversations without sounding/looking creepy. The other networks are pushing content where Twitter is still the place for actual conversation. 

When you go and auto-reply in a "town square," you're the same as the guy walking around just dishing out their business card at a conference or networking event. YOU'RE THE GUY THAT PEOPLE HATE. It's the wrong move. You're not putting any effort into engaging with people. You're auto-replying in the town square and providing no depth, no value.

What do you honestly think is going to happen when I receive that message? I'll tell you what's going to happen. I may sign up for your newsletter and you're going to email me and it's going to go to spam and I'm not going to engage. Why? Because there's no context established. That first taste, that first impression, all of a sudden is sh*t, and you've lost. 

#QOTD - Are you a chugger, or did you have a turning-point moment, and if so, what was it?

If I were a realtor, the thing I would do more than anything else would be to review the establishments in my area. If I'm selling homes in Millburn, NJ, I'm putting out a daily piece of content featuring the the school, then I'm interviewing the individual teachers. I'm reviewing every single local shop: The wine store, the sandwich shop. I'm interviewing people who have lived in the neighborhood for 50 years. I'm putting out content to make you romantic about the area. 

People pick where they want to buy a home for a lot of reasons. Some of them are practical: Public transportation, distance to schools. But how about making it a little warmer and interviewing Mrs. Robinson the 3rd grade teacher? I remember a realtor telling me that someone moved to Short Hills because of Wine Library (That was such a cool feeling, by the way).

So I'm doing daily content about the 20-mile radius around the area where you're selling homes. I'm finding the stories tucked away around the neighborhood, and all the iconic things that make your area what it is. Those stories are what will create the emotion that could be the tipping point in selling someone their next home.

#QOTD: What do you think of GaryVaynerchuk.com? Questions, comments, concerns? What’s your $.02?

Email is definitely not dead. As most you may know by now, I’m a big fan of marketing in the year that we live in. And so, email remains to be a very killer opportunity. 

Email is a channel that you can control without being at the mercy of all these other platforms that are out there. But, we also can’t be naive to the changes have been made, such as the promotions tabs that GMail implemented recently. Sure, email is falling off and these changes have caused us to lose touch with some email lists that we may have been paying attention to prior, but it’s still very much in play so long as we leverage it wisely.

Are open rates at 90% like I had in 1997? Absolutely not. But, I still believe email is very much something to be considered. There’s no question that email will certainly be less valuable in 3-5 years. Heard me say marketers ruin everything? That’s where this fits in perfectly. That’s what this is all about. Platforms come along. They present value. And marketings pounce on the opportunity to arbitrage against their audiences. 

But, while us marketers are working to exploit and potentially ruin email marketing, we’re still in a time where it should most definitely be considered as part of any business’s strategy. 

#QOTD: Are you a Vayniac or part of the VaynerNation? What's the difference?

If I were to go back in time and start all over again, I would change NOTHING. From 22 to 32, for the first ten years of my hustle, I remained quiet and I put in the work. I did the work that allowed me to have the audacity to go out and build the Gary Vaynerchuk brand. 

The notion that there's people out there that are growth hacking, and getting exposure through other people's podcasts, and leveraging the brands of others to build themselves as "experts," is LUDICROUS. What are these people actually experts in? What have they accomplished to be deemed an expert?

Here's what I did and why I think you should listen to me when it comes to business. I am in the midst of building my second $50M plus business in a 5 year window. Is it $50 Billion? No - but it's a very substantial business. I was ahead of the market and I executed. I put in the work, I built up the business at a speed many can't comprehend, and I did the things that allowed me to be worthy enough to have a shot at putting out a $15-20 book and amass the following that I have.

So my question is, what did these self-proclaimed experts do to claim that title? If you want to be an "expert" in your craft you need to be in the trenches, day in and day out. You can't just rely on modern day technology to build up your brand. The notion that people are leveraging these technologies and the brand equity of others to build their name is LAUGHABLE. You need to actually execute. You need to earn the opportunity to be a personal brand. You need to show them the proof. If you're an actual expert the proof should be in your forethought, your wins, and your execution. 

#QOTD: What is your favorite candy?

First of all, if you want to increase engagement with your content, you need to make sure you're putting out quality product. Once you know that you're hitting the right notes with the material you'e putting out, you need to put your efforts into business development. 

When an opportunity presents itself, pounce on it. Hustle. Be mindful of the environments and conversations you want to get involved in and be sure that you're offering them value in exchange for what you want from them -- exposure. 

When I didn't have the base that I have now, I was out on the streets hustling for Wine Library, formerly named Shopper's Discount Liquors. I was walking into any business that might be relevant to my community and passing out flyers and coupons one-by-one to gain more exposure. Nobody gave a crap or knew who we were but I knocked on doors and made sure we got the exposure we needed. 

So, can you biz dev? Are you willing to hustle to make it happen? Are you willing to work 15+ hours a day to make it happen? In today's world, there's so much room and opportunity to bring value to somebody, but it's never going to happen if all you care about is yourself . 

#LINKS

iTunes! - https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/id928159684?mt=2

I am one of those people who used to think that tons of companies were overvalued. However, I was eventually proven EXTREMELY wrong. As I learned throughout the early Internet days, inflation happens, the world changes, adapts, and now I'm starting to wrap my head around the notion that things aren't actually as over-valued as they may seem at first sight. 

But, this notion of over-under-valuation is definitely a doubled-edged sword. There will be plenty of businesses overvalued due to early-stage hype, but if something has proven to have won and you think is the future of infrastructure, such as an Uber, then we need to start paying close attention.  

And of course, there's plenty of people that have lost money buying into "over-valued" companies, but then again, many have won. When we need to start looking close is when things hit scale. In the early Internet days, many people thought Amazon and EBay were over-valued, until of course, the world began to catch up with them. They were just a step ahead of everybody. When the world begins to catch up, and normal people start to interact and utilize these platforms, that's when you're going to see a shift in scale. 

The underlying difference in all of this is whether these shifts in value are temporary or long-term. If the signs point to a long-term, strong valuation, then it's likely that they're just working in the future, ahead of the game, while others are caught trailing from behind. 

#QOTD: Are you going to subscribe to my podcast? YES or NO?

#QOTD2: What can I do to make my podcast a TREMENDOUS experience for you?

An interesting question was raised here about taking a course/class in order to become a social media marketer. The truth is, I'm self-taught. I didn't take any courses in social media, but in general I was never a real good student and never took any substantial classes in business or marketing -- But, that's seemed to work out for me just fine :)

I think all this really just boils down to being self-aware and knowing yourself.  I honestly think that 99% are you are clowns, and are just reading headlines, rather than being actual practitioners and going deep within each platform. I'm even scared of you taking a course because most of the courses I've been exposed to during speaking engagements were jokes -- either the course itself or the teachers involved came off as clowns. 

My honest opinion is that Social Media right now is in a very awkward and early stage. If you look back at the early internet marketers of 1995, they were spewing out a ton of garbage as well. So the timing is difficult now, but I can say confidently that I would feel a lot better about you taking a "course" 5 years from now rather than today. 

So, in this whole circus type of environment, it all scares me. The most important thing you can do is be surgical, knowledgeable, and become an actual practitioner. However, for this particular instance, there's too many variables to consider. Are the courses good? Can you actually learn in those environments? Because I can't - hence why my advice is to become a practitioner as best you can, because that's what I've done, and that's certainly worked for me :)

#QOTD: What's your favorite thing about San Francisco?

To me, a name is made. I have some friends that sit around and spend wayyyyy too much time trying to figure out the name for their startup. What did "Google" or "Facebook" mean to anybody outside of their inner communities when they weren't the household names we know today? None of these words mean ANYTHING until they're SOMETHING. 

Some people email me saying they don't like their own last name. My response? You're emailing Gary VAYNERCHUK. Let's call it what it is, Vaynerchuk SUCKS. And yea, they'll be those that tell me it's unique and kinda cool, and I get that - BUT, it's only good because I made something out of it. 

And so, what does a name actually mean? To me? NOTHING. 

I actually think a new trend in this short-form world we live in will be that most business names will start getting abbreviated. People used to call me "V-Chuk" because they didn't want to call me by "Vaynerchuk," and that became my slang last name. We will evolve our name to our convenience so long as it brings VALUE. And so, stop worrying about the name and start worrying about the product. 

#ProTip: If your full name is available for a dot-com, go ahead and purchase it. I highly recommend it. 

#QOTD: What do you think of the 3-question episode vs. the 5-question? Let me know!

General statements like "you should move your budget to digital video" scare me. Typically when people think about online video they think about spending 5/10% on the overall production and then 90/95% on the distribution. Of that 95% of allocated budget, they just end up pounding the users with right hooks and wind up pissing them off.

So what does online video mean to most people? It's the pre-rolls on YouTube where people end up tabbing out and don't end up consuming the content. OR, they're going to sites like ESPN.com and getting pounded by 30 second videos that waste OUR time, which I'm sure pisses most of us off. 

What I'm most worried about when I hear about these allocations is that I actually like live TV commercials better than the online videos that end up blocking the users from what they actually want to do or see. As I've stressed a million times before, this comes down to providing VALUE. 

So when I hear these notions versus what I know the practitioners are actually doing, it bothers me because I know that they're spending their budgeted dollars on video that is annoying customers. They end up putting these videos in places where the consumer doesn't want it, versus putting a larger percentage of the money on making better quality content and putting it in places where people actually want to consume it -- such as in native Facebook dark posts, where the user has the option to view or not.

In theory, it's great that traditional dollars are moving to digital but unfortunately people continue to misplay it because they're not focusing on providing actual VALUE. 

#QOTD: Who is the biggest influence in your life right now?

As an entrepreneur, I default into assuming it's always going to be competitive. It doesn't matter if "nobody is in your space" because if you're any good, and you've figured something new out, EVERYBODY is going to be in your space eventually. 

To me, competition between startups is the same old game: Better product, better service, better execution. Those are the things that will drive your business. 

When you're David, you shouldn't play Goliath's game. When you're Goliath, you should CRUSH David.

Here's an example: Did anybody think it was weird that, for three years, I NEVER mentioned VaynerMedia. The truth there was that my size (or my lack thereof) was my advantage, and I couldn't let these other big guys know how huge we were getting! I was learning the landscape. Now that we've got the money and the scale to compete, you'll see that I'm talking about it more. 

The important thing is to NEVER PLAY THE OTHER PERSON'S GAME.

 #QOTD: Would you pay $10 a month for Ello?

Look the bottom line is that Ello raised venture capital. The investors are looking for a return on their investment, so they're going to have to figure out a business model. So the question becomes, if they're not going to sell your info to advertisers, are they going to charge a fee to use the service? Now look they may come up with something totally new and innovative, and God bless Ello if they do. I'm rooting for everybody all the time.

My big thing is that **people don't care if you're selling their data**. We actually want targeted ads. When I'm in the market for another pair of Nikes, I WANT to see ads for them. Now there are those of you who disagree, but the data shows it. We'll take them when they go from ads to content. 

So here's the thing:

1. I think the way Ello is financially structured has vulnerabilities.

2. This has happened before with things like Diaspora. It didn't work.

3. I'm not in love with the actual product, but I'm glad they're moving and innovating.

I'm not Nostradamus. I like to make my call when I actually see something happening, and so I think it's too early to say that, but my intuition says they're going to eventually charge, which is going to turn a lot of users off. 

 #QOTD: Who is the person that you are SO afraid of letting down, it's keeping you from starting something big?

It was so incredible to participate in Dave Ramsey's event. Thanks to everybody who came out, and a HUGE special thanks to the lovely people who stayed after to help me make this episode.

To me there is no such thing as "an entrepreneur with a JOB." If you're a true entrepreneur, you can't breathe when you have a JOB. If you're not out there making it happen and running a business, you're not an entrepreneur, you're a person with entrepreneurial tendencies. Now that's fine. As long as you're HAPPY that's what matters. 

 #QOTD - What are the first three sites you look at in the morning?

 I always find that the best way to attack your own industry and innovate is to spend *zero* time in it. I spent an extreme lack of time in the wine industry, and I spent almost no time dealing with the "agency world" right now. I think I've been to like six other agencies because we had meetings there, but that is literally it. I don't read AdAge, I don't ask my senior people what they did at other agencies. 

For me, my lack of industry knowledge, and my lack of education have actually allowed me to innovate even more. I go with what I think works, not with what everybody else in the industry is doing. 

So pay attention to the food industry, or the rock-climbing business. The best way to not innovate is to pay attention to everybody else in the business, because they're just doing the same crap, too.

 #QOTD: What is your favorite restaurant right this second? 

If you were to go back to a caveman and ask him what he thinks of our media consumption today, he would reject it. it would be weird and unnatural. But the fact of the matter is that it's where we are today, and technology is just a part of our world. I'm not the dad who is going to tell my kids to "get off the computer and go play!" Frankly our kids are already eating a hell of a lot better than we ever did at that age.

Kids are just growing up to be different characters than we are. Information is a commodity, so they're not going to be as "fact-smart" as we were, but they're going to be much more intuitive about learning how to use new systems. 

Sure I'm worried about them being active enough, but if you're a good parent you can make your kids do literally whatever you want. What I'm *not* going to do, though, is restrict Xander's time on the iPad.

 #QOTD - What are you dressing up as for Halloween?

Just because you decided to build a business through Kickstarter doesn't mean you should be thinking about it's promotion differently. Facebook Dark Posts targeting people interested in related products, Medium updates in blog form, GUEST CONTRIBUTING! Email every single blog, regardless of size, in the industry relating to your product and reach out and say "I'd like to guest contribute to your publication" in a way that't not spammy. It's all about creating content, and not about creating infomercials. 

To many of the people watching this show, when they hear about content marketing, think "Billy Mayes infomercial." When I think about it, I think "New York Times" or "Scandal."

 #QOTD: What will the results of the Jets-Lions game be?

Look, I'm a salesman. I'm all about the CTA (Call to action), but at the end of the day we're talking about the difference between sales and branding. Anybody can be a great salesman, but creating a great brand is something totally different.

Being a Nike, being a Puma, as opposed to just selling sneakers, is totally different.

Sometimes I don't go for the CTA, sometimes I don't go for the popup, or the other growth-hacking techniques. The reason for that is I believe in the Jabs. I believe in branding. I believe that there is a time and a place. I believe there's context.

In a 2015 world, people watch this show, and they see that I'm not selling them anything; that I'm taking the time to do this in my favorite place in the world (the Jets' parking lot). Sure I COULD throw some call to action at them, but by asking for that, I leaving something huge on the table. That person has the ability to google me, find out more, and develop a real relationship with my brand, but by selling up front, I could very well ruin that. By trying to score on the first date, I could be passing up the chance to get married. 

#QOTD: 1) How do you like your iPhone 6? 2) What do you think about the Ali Baba IPO?

I love it when a random question leads me back to my core value: Create content (JAB) to grow the audience, and then sell (RIGHT HOOK) them your product. It's so simple, it's so straightforward, and it applies to just about ANY situation where you want to sell something.

#QOTD - What's your favorite tailgate food? (Lurkers, I'm looking at you!)

A wine review?! THAT'S RIGHT BABY! We're bringing it back to my roots for episode 20. Back to the show, though, I get the gender question a lot, and it's always kind of baffling to me. VaynerMedia is 63% female, a number that's equally reflected at the top levels of management. I guess it's just something I never think about because the simple math reveals everything I'd say anyway.

#QOTD: Can we make a deal? I want to get my show distribution, and I want to talk to YOU about getting it on your blog.

HEY LURKERS! Yes I'm talking to you. My favorite part about the old WLTV days was having a real community of commenters who I could rely on to be there day after day. FEEDBACK IS MY OXYGEN, so get in there and TALK TO ME!

 #QOTD: What do you think of the new http://garyvaynerchuk.com ??

The fact that I can (and have) effected and touched so many people is absolutely mindblowing to me. Buying the Jets is will happen one day, but even if it doesn't I take enormous pride in the fact that I've already cemented my legacy as a person who can communicate and engage at scale.

 #QOTD: Share something about yourself in the comments. I want something to cheer me up!

Sorry I'm in just a bad mood today, guys. Miss America was a totally amazing experience, but the Jets game yesterday really put me on a bad track for this week.

On the plus side, I got to share some new facts about how I built up VaynerMedia this episode.

#QOTD: What was the hardest decision you've ever had to make?

If the Apple Watch is one thing, it's predictable. I think when I say "we're all going to become robots" people think I'm kidding, but I really mean it. Over the next 100 years, evolution is just going to take us there.

#QOTD: What state do you live in?

I'm just not that interested in other people's rules. I mean thinking like that can be really helpful for some people, but I've only ever done what felt right, and I think layering on some kind of framework on top of it starts to create a product. Value your authenticity!!

#QOTD: Where's your favorite vacation spot?

#mini-QOTD: Sound off if you have discovered me because of this show!

Loving these video questions, but definitely try to keep them to under 30 sec! Today's episode had a really special energy to it. Maybe it was Nate's cameo. Maybe it was all the talk about soccer and tennis. Maybe it was the fact that I got to work some good old-fashioned #humblebrag action in at the end. Whatever it was, this is a really truly fun episode, and perfect to share with any of your friends who might not know about The #AskGaryVee show yet.

 #QOTD: What YouTube star would you like to see me make a video with?

I have always said that my #1 most important trait is self-awareness. I mean that. People come to me and they ask all these personal questions that I just can't answer because I don't know them! My number one advice to everybody reading this is to step back and take a really honest inventory of your strengths and weaknesses. Are you a strong writer? Are you good on video? Do you have an awesome voice? Are you a photoshop wizard? The answer to these questions will point you in a very clear direction and show you whether you should be on YouTube, Souncloud, Medium, or Slideshare. They're all out there waiting for you!

#QOTD: What's your fantasy football lock for this week?

It feels so amazing to be back from vacation and in the VaynerMedia offices hustling again! Did you miss me? Today we went all out! There are plenty of guests, and plenty of REAL answers. I mean it. It gets a little weird today, but that is the point of this show: for me to be 100% honest and deliver as much value as I possibly can.

 #QOTD: What are you doing this weekend?

Guys, I'm so serious. If a winery in Napa started doing unbiased wine reviews from around the world, it would be HUGE. When one of you does it, you can thank me later ;) I'll see you all in a couple of weeks when I get back from vacation. I hope you all get to spend tons of time with your families, and I can't wait to answer your questions in September!

 #QOTD: What did you think of today's episode?

In today's episode we examine one of my least favorite actions: complaining. We also talk about cute old ladies, Facebook's organic reach, and why I'm so obnoxiously lucky to be living in America and doing what I'm doing.

#QOTD: Who in your family inspires you the most?

 Today we a very special episode of The #AskGaryVee show. I've been holding off on the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge for awhile now, but when my man Michael called me out, I knew I had to make the move! So now I challenge YOU, VaynerNation, to get out there, soak yourselves, and DONATE!

#QOTD: What is currently your favorite single beverage?

Things that I have decided are important: Keeping life spicy, wine, my health, and being honest.

 #QOTD: What other personalities in the video world are you enjoying content from?

Getting into some long-winded answers today! It's a really great sign, too, because it's clear that you guys are asking me amazing questions, so I really want to give some of them the time they deserve. Also be sure to hit me up on CyberDust tomorrow (@garyvee) so I can answer some of your more personal questions.

In this episode we talk about getting familiar with Facebook advertising, my love for my family, and the magic of red-headed quarterbacks. On top of that we get into being grateful, being right, and being patient. Three of my favorite things!

Episode three already! This time around I'm talking about what my father taught me about building businesses. I also talk about the future, building local startups, and how small businesses can conserve their cash.

Guys THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A BORING BUSINESS! Do you have any idea how many people are in the market for DIY content? A hardware store is literally DROWNING in potential content. Also in this episode, I get into how music producers can use social media to market their products. Watch now!

Welcome to the first episode of my new show! This is the perfect way to start things off as we get into some nitty gritty about long-term business goals, Facebook dark-posts, and even non-profits. This is the beginning of a new era, my friends. Get ready!