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Crushing It!: How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence—and How You Can, Too

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Four-time New York Times bestselling author Gary Vaynerchuk offers new lessons and inspiration drawn from the experiences of dozens of influencers and entrepreneurs who rejected the predictable corporate path in favor of pursuing their dreams by building thriving businesses and extraordinary personal brands. In his 2009 international bestseller Crush It, Gary insisted that a vibrant personal brand was crucial to entrepreneurial success, In Crushing It!, Gary explains why that’s even more true today, offering his unique perspective on what has changed and what principles remain timeless. He also shares stories from other entrepreneurs who have grown wealthier—and not just financially—than they ever imagined possible by following Crush It principles. The secret to their success (and Gary’s) has everything to do with their understanding of the social media platforms, and their willingness to do whatever it took to make these tools work to their utmost potential. That’s what Crushing It ! teaches readers to do. In this lively, practical, and inspiring book, Gary dissects every current major social media platform so that anyone, from a plumber to a professional ice skater, will know exactly how to amplify his or her personal brand on each. He offers both theoretical and tactical advice on how to become the biggest thing on old standbys like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and Snapchat; podcast platforms like Spotify, Soundcloud, iHeartRadio, and iTunes; and other emerging platforms such as Musical.ly. For those with more experience, Crushing It! illuminates some little-known nuances and provides innovative tips and clever tweaks proven to enhance more common tried-and-true strategies. Crushing It! is a state-of-the-art guide to building your own path to professional and financial success, but it’s not about getting rich. It’s a blueprint to living life on your own terms.

293 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 30, 2018

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About the author

Gary Vaynerchuk

52 books2,696 followers
Gary Vaynerchuk is the ultimate businessman. Born with an entrepreneurial spirit, Gary is a proven investor and advisor in the world of startups, and now an expert on the Fortune 500 world, through is work as CEO of Vaynermedia, a social media marketing agency. Having two bestsellers under his belt doesn't hurt either.

Thirty-three years ago, Gary got his start in business by ripping flowers out of people's yards and selling them back. Years later, he would use that savvy to grow his family's wine store from $3 to $45 million in just a few short years by launching WineLibrary.com, one of America's first wine websites. Fast forward to now, and he's continued to use that same business savvy, along with his brother, to build VaynerMedia, a new breed of agency that helps Fortune 500 companies like GE, PepsiCo, Hasbro and the New York Jets find their social media voices and build their digital brands. Along the way Gary launched a stratospherically successful internet wine show, written two bestselling books, and beaten Dr. Oz in basketball.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 903 reviews
Profile Image for Dr. Appu Sasidharan (Dasfill).
1,135 reviews2,162 followers
February 11, 2023

Gary Vaynerchuk tells us how to build a personal brand and become successful in social media based on his and a dozen other people’s personal experiences. The way the author construes the reason for social media success is unique and will help anyone who wants to become a real coup in social media. He deciphers the covert actions taken by the social media influencers to become successful in a vivid manner, unlike some of the other books written by dilettante’s, which are excruciatingly didactic and gives us a cursory reading experience by obliquely disparaging their opponents.

What I learned from this book
1) What is the biggest mistake that social media influencers make?
Social media influencers are facing a lot of competition now. Some people are even taking it to toxic levels. The author is telling us about the mistakes that the influencers are continuously making every day.
“The biggest mistake I see influencers make is, they’ll work with every brand on the planet. It’s all about how many brands can they work with, not about the audience, not about the readership. I see no longevity there. I’m more focused on building my own brand than other people’s brands.”


2) Why is it important to follow your passion?
This is a sentence that we will hear almost every day. The author is telling us why we should follow our passion
“You’re going to go through a time where you’re not going to make any money. It’s not going to be a week, it’s not going to be a month, it’s not going to be one year. It’s going to be years. And during that time, if you don’t love what you do, it’s going to be very hard to stick it out. That is something that people don’t understand when they hear, “Follow your passion.” They hear rainbows, unicorns, bulls***. But the truth of it is that it’s important, because if you don’t enjoy what you’re doing, you’re going to be that much more likely to quit when it is hard.


3) How should you respond if someone close to you tries to belittle you or tells you that you are useless?
This is something which every one of us might have faced in our life. There are multiple ways to deal with this situation. The author is trying to tell us one of the best methods to deal with it.
“Commit to ignoring every single voice that threatens to undermine you. If it’s your mom, find a respectful way to tell her you want her love but not her opinion. If it’s your friends, tell them you are grateful for their concern but they have to choose to support you or f*** off.”


My favourite three lines from this book
“It’s a matter of survival to think beyond your current successes and constantly look for ways to create new ones so that you’re never limited to any one platform or even one topic. How do you do that? By creating a personal brand so powerful that it transcends platforms, products, and even your passion.


“You are better off being wrong ten times and being right three than you are if you try only three times and always get it right.”


“What worked for me won’t work for you, however, and vice versa. That’s why self-awareness is so vital—you have to be true to yourself at all times.”


What could have been better?
The author is repeating many things he told in his first book, Crush It!: Why Now Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion. Readers will feel irritated by it unless you haven’t read the first book.

Rating
4/5 If you are a youtuber or any social media influencer or if you want to become one in the future this is a must-read book.
Profile Image for Liza Fireman.
839 reviews144 followers
April 30, 2018
Well, this book is great at parts, and really annoying at others.

Start with the annoying parts so I can move to the great ones. Gary Vaynerchuk mentions his previous book like half a million times, everybody in the book mention that book as well, and thank Gary, and God for writing this super super awesome book. It goes like this: and then read his book Crush It! and his life changed of course. Brian Wampler even said: “I probably owe my marriage to this idea. " (from the book, yes?).

So now after venting, that building a personal brand can be brain washing exercise, and sometime too much, I want to get to the great parts.

First, Gary does a very good job in explaining what each media is for. I think that some of them I really understood better (or for the first time) thanks to him.

For example, he explains FB here: First, unlike any other platform, Facebook gives you the gift of flexibility. Written content and photographs don’t work on YouTube. Instagram allows for a maximum of one-minute videos on a user’s main page at the time of this writing. There’s no way long written content is getting traction on Snapchat, but on Facebook a thirteen-paragraph blog post will work. You can post pictures, and they’ll work. You can embed a SoundCloud audio play, and it will work. A thirteen-second video will work. So will a thirty-one-minute video. Facebook offers complete and utter creative flexibility and has the greatest ad-targeting product ever created. No one is too cool for Facebook. If you haven’t already done so, go to Facebook right now and register your fan page, because even if it’s not the place where you create the pillar content for your personal brand, it is where everything you do on every other platform will come to live for the remainder of your personal brand’s existence.

Second, this is inspirational! People can do what they want and succeed. The world is changing, success can be achievable (even though most people will not become extremely rich, but they can try). I love that new world, and the fact that people like Gary (or also the awesome Hannah Hart or Sophia Amoruso). Here is what we were used to: And then you put in my parents, who are even older. For me to say I’m leaving a really good job that took me a long time to get to where I am, to step away from that to make YouTube videos, they were definitely scared, even when I told them the numbers. Those conversations were hard, because you don’t want to feel that you’re letting people down or that people are worried about you.
And here is an example of the new world: So many people don’t think of themselves as cameraworthy, but vlogging and documenting doesn’t demand that you be glamorous or beautiful or really superficially special at all. Have you looked at what’s out there? Aside from the beauty bloggers, the bodybuilders, and the rising pop idols—in other words, aside from everyone in an industry where your looks really matter—everyone on YouTube looks pretty damned ordinary. There are vloggers with disfiguring tumors, vloggers with disabilities, vloggers of all ages and shapes. Vlogging is a terrific way to document instead of create, which means that literally anyone can do it. You don’t need to be accomplished (at least not in the way 99 percent of you reading this define accomplishment) to break out on this platform because, remember, when you’re documenting and not creating, you’re allowed to learn as you go. You don’t have to be an expert (yet). You don’t have to be successful (yet). The only thing you really do have to do is make the road to getting there interesting.

Third, there are awesome stories of success, and their amazing starting points. One example that I found fascinating was What's Inside: Lincoln decided that since he loved sports, he’d like to find out what was inside a sports ball. With his father’s help, he started cutting balls in half and putting together his project. Dan decided to film the process, posting the results on one of his YouTube channels And then: People were clicking on it, and some were commenting, offering suggestions for other types of balls Lincoln could cut open. “Maybe this is it".
So you get funny and fun stories, with their interesting "how it all started", and really inspirational ideas, that most of us might not consider, but are really successful today.

Anyway, almost 4 stars. I'll forgive him for the brain wash, since there are enough good parts to it.
Profile Image for Christopher Lawson.
Author 10 books121 followers
January 3, 2018
When the Standard is Pretty much Nothing, You Have to be Just Altruistic Enough


Readers of CRUSH IT! published in 2009 will want to know what is different about CRUSHING IT! In this new book, author Gary Vaynerchuk includes lots of stories of folks successfully using the Crush It! principles. So this book is less of a “lecture,” and more of practical suggestions from others. In contrast to his earlier book, Gary isn’t the only one talking: “I want to introduce you to other entrepreneurs who have met with unbelievable success by following Crush It! principles.” In most chapters, a great deal of space is devoted to these stories. The idea is, see how others implemented the concepts.

For readers not familiar with the earlier book, CRUSHING IT! includes a summary of the Crush It principles. I found this a valuable section, especially since I wasn’t familiar with the first book. The author boils it down to a pretty short list: “What really matters is a pretty short list: intent, authenticity, passion, patience, speed, work, and attention.” The author then discusses in detail each of these aspects.

It soon became clear to me that CRUSHING IT! will require a TON of really hard work and sacrifice, continued for a long time. The author has a tremendous work ethic, and encourages others to follow his example of tireless focus on developing his brand. This means little time for vacations and long coffee breaks—and hardly anything else, for that matter.

Gary makes it clear that this book is not some magic template of success, in 3 simple steps: “Don’t look for a nine-step program to success here, though. I can’t give you one. The principles are universal; the path is all yours.” The stories provided in this book all illustrate the passion and exertion of really successful entrepreneurs.

Of the entire book, I most liked Gary’s discussion of “Authenticity.” This chapter really rang true. When I think of people who have done well in digital marketing, they always stand out as genuine. The author makes a funny (but true) assertion about selfishness and business. He doesn’t say your entire outlook should be focused on other people—but just enough, since everybody else is ENTIRELY self-centered: “If your nature is at least 51 percent altruistic and only 49 percent selfish, you have a real shot at breaking out, because the vast majority of people are 70 to 99 percent selfish.”

There is a lot to consider in this new book, and lots of interesting stories to read. I could related to some of the stories better than the others. I suspect many readers will focus on the stories most relevant to their personal situation.

This one statement seems to me to sum up the essence of the author’s business philosophy: “In a world where the standard is pretty much nothing, you have to be just altruistic enough.“

So all in all, I found CRUSHING IT! to be a fun, inspiring read. If you are already familiar with the first book, you can probably just skim over the earlier sections of the book, since they are a recap of the original principles. It was interesting to see all the examples of successful entrepreneurs.

Advance Review Copy courtesy of the publisher.


Profile Image for Amir Tesla.
161 reviews669 followers
August 8, 2018
This is supposed to be an updated version of the amazing book "Crush it" in which Gary lays out step by step action on monetizing your passion.
Profile Image for Arezoo Alipanah.
204 reviews73 followers
November 26, 2021
گری وی تو این کتاب دونه به دونه پلتفرمهای سوشال مدیا رو بررسی میکنه و نحوه‌ی کار باهاشونو توضیح میده. اگه به پرسنال-برندینگ علاقه دارین این کتاب میتونه مفید باشه.
۳ تا نکته خیلی منو جذب کرد:
۱. اشارش به موزیکال.لی. زمان نوشتن کتاب این ایده رو داشته که موزیکال.لی میتونه خیلی پتانسیل بالا رفتنو داشته باشه. من چیزی از این پلتفرم نشنیده بودم، سرچ کردم و دیدم گویا ورژن قبلی تیک تاک بوده، و شگفت زده شدم حقیقتا.
۲. داستان آدمایی تو کتاب اومده بود که باید دونه به دونشونو سرچ میکردم چون اسم هیچ کدومو نمیدونستم. (حتی خود نویسنده روهم اولش نمیشناختم) و جالب بود که چطوری توی چیزای مختص خودشون انقدر موفق شدن. مثلا یکی برای نگهداری و آموزش سگ بود، یکی چیزای مختلفو از هم باز میکرد و داخلشونو نشون میداد، یکی خیاطی میکرد...
۳. توصیه‌ها و پیشنهادهاش برای استفاده از هر پلتفرمی جالب بود.

به نظرم تو دنیایی که همه‌چی لحظه‌ای داره تغییر میکنه و با یه اتفاق ساده یا یه حرف همه‌چی میلیاردی جابه‌جا میشه خوبه همچین اطلاعاتی که این کتاب میده رو شنید و پروسس کرد.

از کتاب:

We should care desperately about everything, yet not care at all what anyone else thinks. Someone will always be trying to tear you down.
Talent has little value without patience and persistence. Success takes a shitload of work, and the people who ultimately break through and crush it are those who get all that and go for their dreams anyway.

I want you to find your courage and go for it. Somewhere out there is a middle-aged engineer, a single-parent exterminator, or a department store sales clerk trying to get through school who is reading this book and thinking, Man, I fucking hate this job...
Profile Image for Sachi.
120 reviews25 followers
March 18, 2018
I’m glad I borrowed this and didn’t buy it. Ask Gary Vee felt far more informative and useful than Crushing It.
Crushing It was repetitive and a complete bore. I know Gary has a ghostwriter but his books feel like he’s had involvement in it, unlike this one which didn’t even feel like it had any.
The tips on how to use social media platforms well were closest to useful but not deep enough. ‘Create good content and be patient’ is pretty much all you’ll get out of it.
Save yourself the time, read Ask Gary Vee, listen to a few podcasts and move on to someone who has something new to say.
Profile Image for Evan Clark.
30 reviews
March 1, 2018
I love Gary Vee - however this book is far from his best work.

I’d recommend you start with his earlier books - and then read this only if you’re desperately seeking more of his social media marketing inspiration.
Profile Image for Laurent Michiels.
30 reviews6 followers
May 27, 2018
Hmmm, although I don't think reading this book was a complete waste of time, it didn't contain much new insights. I think the book is way too long for the points being made and is largely storytelling. After a while, I skimmed or even skipped much of the stories of all the people successfully (surprise surprise) applying the Crush It!-principles, as outlined in Gary's earlier book. I didn't read Gary's earlier books, but I heard that those were at least much better than this book.

Main takeaways I got from the book:

1) Substance > form. Without great content you can't build your online personal brand and gain a solid follower base. (This one might sound a bit ironic now since I found this book actually often lacking sufficient substance.)

2) Be yourself and always speak the truth; without authenticity you can't bring consistent content. This also applies to choosing which brands you work with, as you should only work with brands that are aligned with your personal brand.

3) It isn't easy to establish your own successful brand and eventually monetize it -- it requires countless hours of studying trends, producing content, and engaging with others on the various social media channels. There is no time for leisure. The first months or even years can be hard, so you'll probably only make it through the trough of disillusionment if you are truly passionate about what you are doing.

4) Study social media trends and act on them before they get mainstream. The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll need to catch up. This for instance applies to which social media platforms you use.

5) Finally, the book has some practical tips on using relevant hashtags, direct messaging and forming partnerships with influencers in your area of interest, engaging directly with your audience, and specific advice regarding the various social media channels.

“The path is all yours as long as you commit and are willing to execute.”
Profile Image for Wayne Marinovich.
Author 13 books247 followers
June 9, 2018
Great follow up to “Crush It”. You can almost hear Gary’s break neck speed narration in your head.
37 reviews
September 13, 2018
Great Book. Opened my eyes to stop seeing social media as a time waster for shallow connections and false views of people’s lives.

I remember when Twitter first came out being so excited about the potential for the world. Then I lost interest because I started letting social media control my life wasting time and scrolling through feeds is not where the real value is.

Gonna jump back on and start experimenting again.
Profile Image for Katie (katieladyreads).
450 reviews175 followers
March 11, 2018
Nothing new here other than if you want to be an entrepreneur you have got to be 110% all in. Insightful information for anyone unaware of social media platforms or their influence and lots of stories of people who are “crushing it.”
Profile Image for Margaret.
134 reviews14 followers
January 26, 2019
I liked “Crush It” when I read it last year, but I honestly found this follow up incredibly boring. Listen to his podcast, or read the first book instead 😉
Profile Image for Aman Upadhyay.
33 reviews36 followers
December 31, 2020
If you already follow Gary too much for your own liking, there's nothing new in the book after the initial 25%. Still, I liked listening to the audiobook simply because he's a great speaker.
Profile Image for Stephy Simon.
168 reviews18 followers
June 11, 2020
Crushing It!

.

We have seen a tremendous surge in business, be it of any kind, in the last two decades. With this growth comes the companion-competition. When this is a boon for the economy, it's not the same for a new entrepreneur. The time that a new enterprise takes to reach the break-even point has increased to twice or three the earlier and many quits trying before that.

When it comes to growing your business, nothing would be more beneficial than one's contacts\reach. And that's where this book becomes useful


Crushing It!: How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence-and How You Can, Too 

🔖

If I have to review it in a single line, I would say it's a complete guide for building a personal brand on Social Media, along with stories and lessons from successful people. This book by Gary Vaynerchuk @garyvee, an extremely accomplished marketer and businessman, deals with his view on social media as a marketing tool.

He also discusses about different platforms, how to reach your potential customers using it, possible mistakes one could make, etc. The internet is super-packed with information on growing business using social media; well, this book saves you the time for researching on each platform separately. 


The platforms discussed in the book are musical.ly, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Podcast. Along with the discussion on different platforms, he gives examples of content types that he would post in each platform. One can also learn significant strategies that would be useful in growing his business from the stories of the successful marketers given in the book.

Imp takeaway

1)There is always a customer for what you intend to sell.

2) create a personal brand to reach your potential customers

3) Don't depend on a particular platform

4) Never quit experimenting.

5) Avoid being perfectionist, be real.

6) Stop chasing numbers. Talent+ patience+ persistence= success


I recommend this book to anyone who has a marketable talent n want to create a market for it over the social media.

.

.
Profile Image for Austin Okolo.
24 reviews
August 5, 2020
This book is up there with one of my favourites.

Gary Vaynerchuk is a hero of mine.

He is an exceptional entrepreneur and an even better person.

Gary is a speaker, a New York Times best selling author and business owner helping him to amass a huge net worth of 150 million dollars.

In 2018 he wrote one of the most empowering , life changing and impactful books called ‘crushing it’

In this book he breaks down how people can create the life they want through building their personal brand,
By using that personal brand to talk about/do what they are passionate about.

According to Gary and many other people who wrote their testimonies in this book It really is that simple.
As long as you have Intent, authenticity, passion, patience, speed, work and attention.

I would recommend to anyone who wants to create the life of their dreams through doing what they are passionate about.

Whether you are 16 or 60 it really doesn’t matter
It is never too late or too early and the examples in this book is evidence of that.

Follow me on LinkedIn for book recommendations every Monday.
Profile Image for Ilie Dobrin.
48 reviews30 followers
January 17, 2019
For who is familiar with Gary Vee it's obvious from the beginning that he didn't personally write this book. :) Because Gary Vee does not have time. He is always in the midst of people who seek him for help. The Ghostwriter has done, however, a great job.

Considering Gary Vee's level of audience, we can imagine that the marketing of this successful book was huge. But, essentially, is just a collection of short stories collected from entrepreneurs who were lucky enough to find, read and respect at the right moment the principles outlined in the book "Crush it".

Of course, it's annoying that he puts his fans to mention his first book in each paragraph; their stories are very boring here and there.

"Gary" explains how you can make the most on the biggest social media platforms, but don't offers too much details or profound ideas of how you can use them strategically in your interest.

I wish I could find some insightful ideas related to LinkedIn, Pinterest or Medium also.

Work! Create content! Be patient! These are the three guiding tips respected by those who have succeeded in following Gary's advice.
But the best advice of the new book is this: start somewhere, just start to build your personal brand.

The best page in the book is the one written by Gary himself, I think. It's the story of his debut on YouTube, that brought him fame and a lot of money. The way he jumped from the professorial attitude, dictated by his fears, to the nonchalant attitude of genuine enthusiasm, is memorable.

Gary's audience is made up of young people in search for mentors and inspiration. His energy can channel their minds to work harder in order to achieve the SUCCESS in business.
But perhaps more through conferences and speeches than through books...
Profile Image for Logan.
211 reviews14 followers
July 3, 2021
If you have read Gary’s other books, or paid attention to any of his content, there won’t be a whole lot of new information here. Which, is good because that means his message is consistent. However, what you will find is new information that’s more current than his 2009 book, Crush It. If you’re looking to start a new business venture, wherever point of that you may find yourself in, Gary offers practical tips on how to get started and be effective on any social media platform. Sure, some may read this and think it’s a load of bull. But I’ve implemented some of the things he has mentioned in this book, and others, and it’s benefitted my podcast. So, take my opinion for what you will.

While I appreciated the brevity of the book, it did come off as though he was trying to get you to read his 2009 book, Crush It. Which, is a bit weird. Some of the information in the book is out of date now, specifically the chapter focused on Musicaly and the chapter on Voice First seemed out of place. But I will hand it to Gary, he is not afraid of new technology and has a way of getting people to try out those platforms because you really never know what could come of it.

All in all, a good read that will give you ideas on how to manage social media for your business and how to handle interactions with customers and community.
Profile Image for Andrej Hribernik.
27 reviews1 follower
May 1, 2018
Let me give you my take on the book with a short summary and a quick review.

Even though this is one of his more time-consuming reading/audio materials, the experience is great, good structure, insightful, with real-life experiences.

Each chapter introduces a quick intro, a step by step system, a testimonial from his book “crush it” - real life experience, and final thoughts.

His chapters and success stories feature these platforms:
Musical.ly, Snapchat, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Podcasts, Voice-First

His advice is to use a mix of this 7 step process when building your personal brand on social media: Intent, Authenticity, Passion, Patience, Speed, Work, Attention

Hope this helps, and let me know if I missed anything in the comment section
24 reviews
June 20, 2022
Tactical Inspiration at its finest. A solid book that breakdowns the different social media platforms and gives practical, step-by-step advice for building a brand on social media. This is one of those books that makes you want to get up & take action multiple times throughout.

Only drawback is how overly frequently they refer to his other book “Crush It” — makes you feel like you’re constantly missing key information relevant to the teachings or that you messed up by not reading that first.
Profile Image for Cassandra Kay Silva.
704 reviews280 followers
September 22, 2018
This felt very self glorifying which was off putting to say the least. I don't like the over congratulatory tone to the author and his original book referenced in this one. Parts of it were pretty motivating from a Social media perspective and how you can make the most out of that. So I think some of his points were really good but the delivery was not palatable in my opinion.
Profile Image for Kat Riethmuller.
113 reviews6 followers
April 3, 2021
Takeaways:
Social media platforms offer unparalleled opportunities to build your “personal brand” and a thriving business doing what you love.
To succeed on a grand scale, you need to work for free, nearly nonstop, and probably for years before any substantial payoff.
You can devote less effort to earning a living without aiming for success on a grand scale.
Either way, build your business on what most motivates and inspires you.
Only pure passion for what you do will carry you through the lean years.
Overcome your fear of failure and your fear of what others might think.
Build profiles on essential social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
Know and experiment with other platforms, even those you expect will fail.
Collaborate on and create content tailored for each platform.
Never rest on your laurels. Social media stardom fades quickly unless you continually innovate.

Summary:
Building Your “Personal Brand”
Anyone, including you, can build a personal brand on social media and exert enough influence to earn a good – and possibly fantastic – living doing what you love. People spend almost as much time on YouTube today as they do on TV, and they upload billions of photos to Snapchat every day. Even part-time posting – just two posts a week to 10,000 followers – can generate nearly $20,000 a year. You might earn millions if you have the dedication.

“Most of you reading this book will not become millionaires. Do not stop reading!”
Creating your personal brand opens countless channels you can use to talk about any topic that inspires you – while you get paid for it. But it won’t come easily. First you must identify and use your skills. Making lots of money requires working nonstop. You can’t copy anyone; you must find your own path and use the principles of personal brand-building to build a following.

“If you’re earning what you need to live the life you want and loving every day of it, you’re crushing it.”
You don’t have to make millions to “crush it”; you crush it when you get to do what you love and earn the living you want while doing it. For example, while Amy Schmittauer was working to become a lawyer, she created social media marketing videos. She did free work briefly to demonstrate the marketing power of her compelling videos. This earned her paid gigs. She attended conferences, read author Gary Vaynerchuk’s 2009 bestseller Crush It! 

“It’s still true that the right product and content will be the key to building a vibrant personal brand.”
Then, she went all in to create her personal brand. She downsized, sold her car, accepted the risks and started the Savvy Sexy Social blog, which attracted tens of thousands of subscribers. She’s written a book, published online courses and spoken globally. She makes a great living doing what she wants – on her own terms and her own schedule.

The Fundamentals
Adhere, without compromise, to eight main principles:

“Intent” – Don’t fake anything. Don’t try to start a business or build influence if you don’t believe in the business you’ve chosen. Don’t move forward if your goals only or mostly involve making a lot of money. Care more about the good your work does than the money it earns.
“Authenticity” – Do what you believe in and want to share with others. Your love for your ideas should withstand the effort of turning them into an enterprise.
“Passion” – People who do work they love lead happier lives than those who earn a lot at work they dislike. But, passion alone won’t build a business. It may take years before you earn anything substantial. Your passion manifests in the quality of your offerings and in how you differentiate them.
“Patience” – You’ll need patience to hold onto your passions. When you need money, you’ll want to compromise. Don’t give in to temptation to earn a quick buck. Double down on your vision, put your customers first and work hard. Don’t take vacations, live frugally and sacrifice.
“Speed” – Practice haste and efficiency daily to get more done. Don’t agonize over every decision. Move fast, trust your instincts and learn from your mistakes. Make adjustments, and move on. 
“Work” – Don’t take long lunches, watch TV or play golf. You must work. Most people who start businesses run them on the side at first. They work regular jobs and work another six or seven hours on their dream job each day or night, including weekends. Schedule the time you need to spend with family or provide care, and the like. Get six to eight hours of sleep. Put all your other time into your work, building content and relationships. If you don’t care whether your business succeeds wildly, you can do less and lead a more balanced life. Just know what you want.
“Attention”– Focus on what people do on social media. Stay alert to shifts to new platforms, even if they seem small at first. Watch trends, and get to know new platforms early. Don’t get too comfortable with your preferred platform; always learn others. 
“Content” – Your product and content will create your brand, which must amaze, inform and entertain. Build incredible content specific to the platform you choose. People expect different things on Twitter than on Facebook. Tell stories. Only you can tell a story the way you can tell it. Show people your life by posting videos, using Facebook Live and Snapchat several times every day. You never know who will see your posts and what will come of it – for example, advertising opportunities, invitations to speak and sponsorships. Telling your story as you learn a new field can be compelling. “Capture your journey” to build a following.
What It Takes
Rich Roll had everything: a successful law career, big house, cars and a family. But his happiness and health suffered. Fifty pounds overweight at age 40 and fearing a heart attack, Roll dedicated himself to fitness and health foods. He entered endurance contests and earned a small following on YouTube with videos of his training and eating routines. He blogged about his daily regimen. After CNN interviewed him, Ross signed a lucrative book deal. He quit his day job. Yet despite speaking gigs and cookbook sales, he couldn’t manage the bills. His family lost their cars and nearly lost their house. They lived in a yurt in Hawaii for years as Roll struggled to succeed. After seven years of dogged persistence, he became renowned as an author, blogger and influencer.

“If you’re not crushing it, it’s not because you’re too old or poor or have too many other responsibilities. It’s because you haven’t fully committed to making the leap yet.”
You can rely on many excuses – your job, your lack of savings, your kids, your mortgage, your age – but countless others have crushed it in the face of these and bigger obstacles. Overcome these fears:

“Fear of failure” – You don’t want to embarrass yourself or disappoint your family. Talk with those close to you about your idea; tell them that you expect to fail at first and will need their help. Work it out with your spouse. 
“Fear of wasting time” – If you don’t spend all your time doing something productive that you love, you won’t be afraid to waste time. Stop watching TV, playing video games, golfing or engaging in any other leisure activity – and build your business. 
“Fear of seeming vain” – Building a personal brand at scale means appearing narcissistic. You’ll also look like an idiot, but everyone’s a jerk “until they’re a pioneer.” You can’t care about what anyone says or thinks of you. 
How to Crush It
First build your Facebook business page. No matter what, make Facebook part of your personal brand strategy. Realize that you will have to grind it out, one potential customer or collaborator at a time through the digital equivalent of a cold call: “direct messaging.” Expect to do this for years. If that scares you, stop reading now. 

“Socialites, celebrity progeny and reality-TV stars have been doing it for years. Now it’s everyone else’s turn to learn how to get paid to do something they were going to do for free anyway.”
When you reach out to people who can help you, offer them something in return. If, for example, you hope to gain exposure by working with established influencers, devise a unique offer that benefits them as well as you. They’ll almost always ignore you. Nonetheless, persist every day, for months, for years, or more. Use any or all of the following platforms to build your brand: 

“Musical.ly” – Even if, as you read this, Musical.ly has left the scene, you should still know about it. Less popular platforms offer you the best opportunity to succeed as a recognized master due to the lack of competition. On Musical.ly, you upload videos of your performances. It attracts children and teens mainly – a prime feeder audience. It doesn’t matter whether Musical.ly makes it; go there because it has an audience. Learn the relevant social media platforms so you know what their users expect when you communicate to them. Then create or adapt your content for that audience. When you join and master a platform early, you become a go-to person for those who follow. If it fails, it fails; you still learn. If you try it and don’t think it matches your plan, move on.
Snapchat – In seven years, Snapchat developed into a deep platform that attracts billions of views and uploads every day, yet it still offers early-adopter potential. Snapchat started out by quickly erasing photos that users uploaded. This gave people the freedom to post without fear of future regret. It now allows for videos and keeps your uploads in place. Spontaneity and authenticity make Snapchat content stand out. Snapchat will hone your marketing skills because you need to have the greatest skills to get noticed. Collaborate across platforms to build your profile on Snapchat. To promote yourself as a Snapchat influencer, write blogs and articles about the platform, attend Snapchat events, and buy digital ads that promote you as a leader on the platform.
Twitter – Though the ingredients for success on Twitter haven’t changed over the past decade, few people have figured them out. To succeed, listen to others to learn who cares about what. Twitter lets you discover everyone who’s interested in a niche and connect with them directly. With a massive investment of time, patience and quality posts, you can build your reputation in your niche with a targeted audience. Retweets help your posts spread further, and those posted on other platforms spread even more. Twitter grants more potential to connect with more people than any other platform. Know your niche so you have something to add to the conversation. That knowledge may require you to read 30 hours or more every weekend. Then, for perhaps another 30 hours a week, post and respond. Keep doing this, and one day, one tweet — who knows which or who knows when — will catch the attention of someone who can propel you.
YouTube – YouTube creates the most stars and the most wealth. Increasingly, the platform attracts audiences that rival and will soon surpass it. If people hate your initial videos, keep refining them; don’t give up. Title your videos carefully. Include a link people can use to subscribe to your channel. Provide at least 10 tags per video. Create a descriptive “thumbnail” and attach a YouTube Card at the end to link people to your other videos. Put your videos in the right channels, and describe your channel well. Include playlists and a trailer.
Facebook – With more than a billion daily users of all ages, Facebook remains the most relevant social platform. Build an active Facebook page and a Facebook strategy. Facebook is the most flexible platform and offers the most targeted advertising. This delivers value even for a tiny marketing budget. On Facebook Live, you can share video of what you do while you do it. Get comfortable with prerecording your videos before you try Live. When you do go live, record it so you can repurpose it afterward.
“Instagram” – As the hottest, fastest growing major platform, Instagram has introduced and launched almost as many famous people as YouTube. Instagram’s new Stories element, which allows you to post content that automatically deletes, doubled its popularity. Create an active Instagram account. First fill your page with the best content possible. Then find and connect with your market. Suppose you make helmets. Search #motorcycles, for example. The first pictures at the top will have at least a million followers each. Address the group, sending each one a personal Instagram message about your helmets. Offer a free sample, and explain how you can help their brand. Do this all day every day, for at least six hours at a time. Almost no one will respond, but you only need a few answers – or just one right one.
“Podcasts” – Busy people, including drivers and commuters, listen to podcasts when they can’t watch videos. Post podcasts to Spotify, Apple, and other platforms. Promote them through your other social media accounts. 
“Voice-first” devices – One-fifth of Google searches use voice via Google Assistant. Amazon’s Alexa rivals it. Eventually, these devices will dominate user time and pervade everyone’s homes and cars. Both platforms offer what they call “Skills,” which you can use to create information bytes for Alexa to benefit your followers. Voice-first options are faster than mobile search or an app. You can dominate Alexa’s Flash Briefings with a fraction of the effort it would take to emerge from the pack on more established platforms. Create 60-second flash briefings that summarize your podcasts. Keep your content brief, keep it original to the Alexa or Assistant platforms, and focus on quality. Link people from your Alexa Skills or snippets to additional information on your other channels.
After You Succeed
Keep your eyes on the horizon. Don’t dismiss new platforms because you dominate one and fear changing or learning. Consider the next disruptive technologies, like AI, and virtual and augmented realities. Social media opportunities are still in their infancy and many opportunities remain, especially for those who make or offer a valuable product or service faster and easier.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Jasmine.
212 reviews6 followers
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April 9, 2019
this is the first marketing / personal branding book I've read. it was easy to read and I found myself reaching for it over my current romance novel whenever I had spare time to read. I don't completely see how I can apply all of these insights to where I am now, but it's given me the motivation to sit down and figure out how my social media reflects who I want to be professionally.

I appreciated Gary's focus on being authentic and showing your personality. that felt validating; just because I use something for professional networking doesn't mean it can't be candid.

one thing that did frustrate me is the main advice about how much time and energy needs to be put into being an entrepreneur. I don't mind the idea of hard work for a long time—I have a disability that strictly dictates my sleep schedule, my energy for a given day, etc. I can wear myself out by doing something silly like walking too much one day, and then I'll be in bed unable to do anything for the next day. I firmly believe that I will not be a failure because of my time limits, but accept that they affect my pace.

that aside, I'd recommend this book for anyone interested in personal branding or who has a business idea they want to get off the ground. it's a good overview of different platforms, and I was able to find what interested me so now I can read more specialized books.
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July 9, 2020
Gary is a magician! The previous book in the series was the opening act and this book is the main act (for now). The book is an extension of the concepts dealt with in the previous book with the additional description of new platforms, Instagram and Snapchat and new digital services, Podcasts and Voice-first. The cherry on the top being the first-hand experience of the successful people in their respective spaces.
Entrepreneurship requires work and hustle, and this is what Gary preaches and preaches incessantly. The hustle done towards one’s passion trumps hustle done just for the sake of getting in a few dollars. The book asks all of us to be a sensible and empathetic individuals before being a hungry shark. Optimism, patience, and downright hard work make good ideas great businesses.
Gary asks us to be open-minded and not to refuse any platform before even trying it as where the crowd goes, the business goes. He is a big supporter of Zuckerberg and his Facebook and suggests everybody to have a Facebook account for business no matter what. He shares anecdotes revealing personal experiences with each of the in-rage platforms and also details the workings of the same, including Musical.ly, Snapchat, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and also podcasts and voice assistants.
The book serves as a huge wake-up call for anyone with a hobby or passion, which is basically all of us. The only person stopping you from achieving your dreams is you. Get up and get working!
28 reviews
August 8, 2020
"I worked obsessively. I studied, studied, studied, studied trying to understand how to do this right & how to build this, because I was so obsessed with doing something special." -Sean O'Shea (excerpt from an excerpt in the book)

I didn't realize that this was a follow-up book, & am very much looking forward to getting my hands on the first one. This is the first business book I've read that "gets it", at least in relation to exactly what I specifically want to do, what I want to create & where that foundation will hopefully lead me. It excelled my thought-process of the matter & lit a different kind of fire under my ass, so to say. Like, I am so glad I came across this book. I don't really talk about what I want to do, at least not too in-depth, because I'm somewhat embarrassed about it; I don't know how to explain it, because I know people aren't going to get it. And this book validates my vision & what I've been working on, & I have a renewed sense of inspiration because of that.

To put what I always believed, especially in a business stand point, & the very general message of this book in one sentence: The relationships you cultivate will always be your greatest asset.
Profile Image for Fahri Rasihan.
472 reviews106 followers
April 23, 2021
• Judul : Crushing It!: Bagaimana Wirausaha Besar Membangun Bisnis dan Pengaruh Mereka---dan Bagaimana Anda Juga Bisa Melakukannya
• Penulis : Gary Vaynerchuck
• Penerjemah : Agnes Cynthia
• Penyunting : Fajarianto
• Penerbit : Gramedia Pustaka Utama
• Terbit : 18 November 2020
• Harga : Rp 115.000,-
• Tebal : 364 halaman
• Ukuran : 13.5 × 20 cm
• Cover : Softcover
• ISBN : 9786020645308

Di zaman sekarang peranan media sosial bisa dibilang teramat penting. Di mana media sosial tidak hanya sekadar untuk bersosialisasi, tapi juga dapat digunakan untuk berwirausaha. Melalui media sosial kita dapat membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 yang kuat agar mudah mendapat 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘴. Apalagi kini muncul berbagai jenis media sosial yang dapat dengan mudah diakses. Fenomena ini sudah diprediksi sebelumnya oleh Gary Vaynerchuck dalam bukunya yang berjudul 𝘾𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙝 𝙄𝙩! yang terbit di tahun 2009. Di dalam bukunya tersebut Gary Vee meramalkan penggunaan media sosial yang bukan hanya sekadar untuk bersosialisasi, tapi juga dapat dipergunakan untuk berwirausaha dengan membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥. Nyatanya prediksi Gary Vee sejalan dengan kondisi saat ini. Di mana banyak wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 yang terlahir dari 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 media sosial. Seakan ingin menegaskan prediksinya di masa lalu, kini Gary Vee menuliskan pandangannya lebih jauh berdasarkan pengalamannya dalam buku terbarunya 𝘾𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙩!. 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘵! sendiri berisi pembahasan soal membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 melalui media sosial yang diselipi pengalaman beberapa orang sukses yang telah membaca 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘐𝘵!

𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘵! seakan menjadi buku petunjuk bagi siapapun yang ingin menjadi wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 dalam membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 yang kuat di media sosial. 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘵! dibagi menjadi dua bagian yang berisi lima belas bab. 𝗕𝗔𝗚𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗜: 𝗕𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗞𝗜𝗧𝗞𝗔𝗡 𝗦𝗘𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗔𝗧 𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗔 yang terdiri dari Semua Jalan Ini Milik Anda, Apa yang [Masih] Penting, Unsur Pokok Kedelapan---Konten, Apa yang Menghentikan Anda?, dan Satu-satunya Hal yang Anda Perlukan untuk Mendulang Sukses. 𝗕𝗔𝗚𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗜𝗜: 𝗖𝗜𝗣𝗧𝗔𝗞𝗔𝗡 𝗣𝗜𝗟𝗔𝗥 𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗔 yang terdiri dari Kerjakan Ini Terlebih Dahulu, Buatlah Diri Anda Mudah Ditemukan, Musical.ly, Snapchat, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Podcast, dan Voice-First. Sebelum membahas soal berbagai media sosial dan karakternya, Gary Vee terlebih dahulu meyakinkan pembaca untuk mantap dan bersemangat saat membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 di media sosial. Baru setelah itu Gary Vee mulai menjelaskan karakter dan bagaiamana cara untuk membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 di setiap media sosial yang ada dalam buku ini.

Ada delapan unsur pokok yang Gary Vee jelaskan untuk membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 di media sosial agar dapat menjadi seorang wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 yang dapat menarik 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘴. Kedelapan unsur pokok tersebut adalah tujuan, kesungguhan hati, gairah, kesabaran, kegesitan, bekerja keras, atensi, dan konten. Saya pribadi setuju dengan kedelapan unsur pokok yang Gary Vee paparkan di sini. Pertama-tama kita memang harus memiliki tujuan sebelum menjadi seorang wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳. Tanyakan pada diri sendiri apa tujuan kita masuk ke dunia ini. Apakah hanya untuk sekadar uang? atau ingin membagikan ilmu yang kita miliki? Kesabaran pun menjadi poin pokok yang dapat membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 dengan kuat. Banyak di antara kita yang ingin prosesnya serba instan. Nyatanya hanya mie yang dapat menghasilkan sesuatu yang enak secara instan. Sedangkan menjadi seorang wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 diperlukan waktu yang tidak instan agar dapat membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 yang kuat. Selain penjelasan kedelapan unsur pokok ini pun diselingi pula dengan pengalaman beberapa wirausaha dan 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 sukses yang sudah membaca buku 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘐𝘵!.

Ada delapan 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 media sosial yang dibahas dalam 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘵!, yaitu Musical.ly, Snapchat, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Podcast, dan Voice-First. Yang menarik bagi saya adalah pembahasan soal Musical.ly yang kini sudah bertransformasi menjadi TikTok. Bagaimana dulu Musical.ly hanya menawarkan konten 𝘭𝘪𝘱 𝘴𝘺𝘯𝘤 bagi para penggunanya. Namun, kini setelah bertransformasi menjadi TikTok, di sana kita bisa melakukan apa pun mulai dari menari, 𝘭𝘪𝘱 𝘴𝘺𝘯𝘤, hingga memberikan edukasi. TikTok pun yang pada awalnya diremehkan kini berhasil menjadi 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 media sosial yang tidak bisa dianggap sebelah mata. Prediksi Gary Vee tepat saat menandai Musical.ly sebagai 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 media sosial yang akan menjadi sarana utama bagi seorang wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳. Kini TikTok tidak hanya digandrungi oleh kanak-kanak saja, tapi dari berbagai usia pun mulai mencoba dan menjadi bintang di sini. TikTok seakan-akan memberikan wadah bagi siapapun yang kreatif dan percaya diri untuk membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 yang kuat di sini. Ini menandakan jika media sosial bergerak dan berinovasi dengan sangat cepat. Jadi jangan menganggap sebelah mata setiap munculnya 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 media sosial baru.

Secara keseluruhan 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘵! seakan-akan menjadi penegasan bagi Gary Vaynerchuck untuk prediksinya di buku sebelumnya, 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘐𝘵!. Saat memaparkan pandangannya soal media sosial yang akan menjadi sarana wirausaha baru dalam 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘐𝘵!, Gary Vee sempat ditertawakan dan dipandang sebelah mata. Nyatanya prediksi Gary Vee tepat. Kini media sosial seolah-olah menjadi kekuatan baru dalam dunia pemasaran. Media sosial menjadi 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 untuk melahirkan bintang-bintang besar yang dulu hanya bisa muncul lewat media konvensional. Buku ini menawarkan kiat dan cara untuk memahami setiap media sosial yang ada untuk membangun 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 yang kuat. Gary Vee terasa menjadi mentor yang mendorong dan menyemangati pembacanya untuk berani mencoba. Kekurangan yang saya rasakan mungkin terdapat pada beberapa cerita wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 yang terasa cukup membosankan. Selebihnya Gary Vee mampu membuka dan menyadarkan pembaca untuk memulai detik ini juga jika ingin menjadi seorang wirausaha atau 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 yang memiliki 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 yang kuat.
Profile Image for Debyi  Kucera (Book&BuJo).
502 reviews2 followers
August 27, 2021
Gary Vaynerchuck is not for everyone, he has a pretty in your face personality, but, you can tell that he really cares and has a passion for helping others. Being an entrepreneur is also not for everyone, so if you like working a 9 to 5 and having the rest of your time to chill out and relax, sticking with the status quo, that’s great! But, this book is probably not for you.

Listening to some of the success stories that he includes in the book is inspiring and it was pretty cool to recognize who some of them are! You can pick and choose which tips you want to listen to and implement, but I am sure there is at least one that will resonate with you and inspire you to move forward.

Quote, that stuck with me -
��This is your life and your chance of truly ruining it are slim, short of self-destructive behavior or complete lack of self-awareness, there is very, very little you can do that you can’t recover from.”
- Gary Vaynerchuck
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