Can I Tell you About my Gary Vee Obsession?

Agi Saari
Agi Saari
Sep 6, 2018 · 6 min read
“boy singing on microphone with pop filter” by Jason Rosewell on Unsplash

If you don’t know who I’m talking about, don’t go looking, he’ll come to you. Gary Vee is a successful, fast-talking businessman-slash-content-ninja-slash-motivational-speaker who puts his word out daily on nearly every social platform known to humankind. He is loud, brash, self-promoting, and a prophetic business preacher who is unapologetically f-bombing his way into the hearts and minds of young, impatient, entrepreneurs in the genesis of their careers, aspiring to “win”. He lectures about the hustle and the grind and the sweat with befuddling phrases like “macro patience” and “time arbitrage”, but underneath it all his wake-up call is plain and simple. Love the work.

So Who is this Guy?

His actual name is Gary Vaynerchuk. He is a serial entrepreneur, investor, sought-after speaker and a five-time New York times bestselling author with 1.7M twitter followers. He was born in Belarus and came to the U.S. with his family as a young immigrant. He learned about supply and demand selling baseball cards, then joined his dads liquor store business and turned it in to a major success when he realized if he wanted it to grow, he didn’t have to open 8000 stores because there was this thing called the internet and it was 1994. Later, he founded VaynerMedia which is now a growing agency staffed with millennial digital gurus that help well-known companies create amazing branding strategies.

And, his BHAG is to someday own the New York Jets.

But Here’s the Thing…

I am not Gary Vee’s target demographic. I’m a late 40’s professional, a wife, and a mother of 2 who is preparing for an empty nest. I’ve climbed the ladder, I’ve put in the time and I’m hitting the peak of my career. I don’t need some dude telling me to how to “win”. I’ve been busting it out for over 20 years to the point where you could call me “seasoned,” (just please not to my face.)

So why am I obsessing over this foul-mouthed hustler? Why do I find his rhetoric oddly refreshing, particularly to women and leaders like myself?

“woman lying on bed” by Kinga Cichewicz on Unsplash

My Gary Vee obsession started earlier this year. One night I was doing the toss and turn. You know, the one when you’re wrestling with a major life decision and crazy ideas wake you up at 3am. In my lucid state I grabbed my phone (and my glasses) and started mindlessly scrolling. I can’t recall what app I was on (doesn’t matter, he is on all of them) when I landed on a 90 second video of a highly-caffeinated Gary Vee on the streets of NY yelling directly at me through his selfie cam, recorded at some ridiculously early hour.

You see, I was at a career crossroads and the decision I’d been pondering had to do with taking a leap of faith, leaving my job and going out on my own. And here was GV, hitting me square in the nose from 3000 miles away, saying things like “Who’s f*&^ing permission are you waiting for?….Your going to die!…..Go do your thing….If you’re not happy, quit your bullsh*% job!

I never fell back asleep that night, and within 2 weeks I had quit the job I’d had for 11 years and went out on my own. Thanks a lot, Gary.

After a few months of paying attention to his podcasts and interviews and videos, I’ve realized that even though I may not fit the stereotype of his audience, his message is highly relevant to just about anyone.

It starts with this.

Are YOU Winning?

Almost every time I’ve heard GV speak he mentions winning. He’s not asking “Are you WINNING?” but rather “Are YOU winning?” Subtle, but big difference. Winning needs to be defined by you and only you. It is your definition of what you are and what you aspire to be. The problem is, especially for women like me, we listen to these fake voices that lead us to believe that winning equals perfection, based on a copy of someone we’ve idolized or manufactured in our brains. It can be crippling. And every minute we spend aspiring to be someone we’re not is time forever lost.

So what is your definition of winning? Is it owning 7 pairs of pants or 11? Is it having a big fancy job title at a corporation, or starting your own business. Is it a Honda or a Tesla? I heard it recently said best: “You do you.” So are you winning?

(But that’s not all….)

Winning is the process.

So you’ve got your eye on the big job title, the right number of pants, the car. GV would probably ask you next, how much of your life are you willing to sacrifice for those things? How much time with your family are you willing to give up? How many hours a week? Is that time worth it because you love the process SO much that it makes you a better human for doing it? Or are you only focused on the prize while the journey makes you miserable? Are you doing something you hate to get something you think you want but don’t really need at the expense of those you love?

If you despise the process, you’re not winning.

You have to love the battle scars, love the setbacks, love the learning. Love the process. Love what you do.

I once heard him say “I don’t give a shit if the tree comes down, I love the chopping more than the tree coming down.

Why must you love the process? GV doesn’t mince words so I guess I won’t either.

Because You are Going to Die.

This is a fun one. Wish I could tell you there was a way around it, but every day that goes by, you’re closer to the end. So if your definition of winning was created by someone else, based on things you don’t need and you hate the process of getting there, how much of your life are you going to continue to give up, knowing your time is finite? If that doesn’t motivate you to live your best life, I don’t know what will.

So now what?

Take stock.

GV says that every day he takes inventory of the people in his life that really matter and if those people are healthy and happy and well and alive, then everything else is pure gravy. If any one of those people in your life became ill or experienced a misfortune (and I pray that never happens), your entire definition of winning will suddenly become dramatically different. So consider that you are already winning and when you get the title and the pants and the car, it’s all background music.

“woman near brown bowl with dish” by Mc Jefferson Agloro on Unsplash

Gratitude

Once you’ve taken stock of what is really important, then the one thing you are left with is gratitude. GV often reminds me that despite what we hear in the news, we are living in the best of times. We are not hunting for our food (out of necessity). We’re not in a depression. We’re not fighting to survive a plague.

Using that perspective, consider that the things in life we generally complain about are very trivial. Instead of giving my examples, think of the last 5 times you complained and judge for yourself.

Be grateful for how easy and convenient your life is. We are living in a time where it’s very simple to communicate with one another. Information, goods and services are at our finger tips, and you can create a future for yourself using the device in your hand right now.

So if you’re not happy, define your win, take stock, be grateful and then go make the change you need to make.

Gary Vee, you got my attention. I am now working for myself and feeling genuinely grateful. You have me right where you want me, sharing your message with the world.

Well done, sir.

Agi Saari

Written by

Agi Saari

Parallel parking champion of the world. Writer. Impostor.

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