Gary Vaynerchuk Net Worth 2024: His 10 Lessons for A Successful Life

Gary Vaynerchuk is a known name in the online marketing industry. Many people who want to shine in this industry look up to Gary Vee for inspiration. Gary Vaynerchuk net worth is $200 million. But it did not come easy, like other people he had to work hard to reach this position.

In this post we will look at his many pieces of advice that we can incorporate in our life for personal and professional success.

Who is Gary Vaynerchuk?

Gary Vayerchuk born Gennady Vaynerchuk and known by many as Gary Vee is the Chairman of VaynerX, the CEO of VaynerMedia and the Creator & CEO of VeeFriends.

He is a New York Times best-selling author, entrepreneur, speaker and internet personality. He is also the co-founder of VaynerSports, Resy and Empathy Wines.

After graduating he joined his family business of wine selling, renamed it Wine Library, brought it online and transformed it into a huge business. It was Gary’s first online venture with many more to come in the future.

Gary Vaynerchuk Biography:

Born: November 14, 1975; Age – 46

Birth Place: Babruysk, Soviet Union (now in Belarus)

Current Country: United States of America

Marital Status: Married Lizzie Vaynerchuk (2004)

Education: Bachelor’s in Management Science (Mount Ida College in Newton, Massachusetts)

Gary Vaynerchuk Milestones in  Numbers:

• Has 353 million downloads in Apple podcasts
• 3+ million followers in Twitter
• Nearly 5 million people follow him on Facebook
• Has 10 million followers on Instagram
• Nearly 4 million subscribers in YouTube
• More than 5 million followers in LinkedIn

10 Things to Learn from Gary’s Life

1. Follow Your Passion, But Be Cautious

Everyone wants to follow their passion and be successful and there are two types of people when it comes to passion.

One: Those who are yet to find their passion.

Two: Those who know their passion but are afraid to pursue it.

When a young guy named Michael said to Gary that even though he is making a decent amount of money, he hates his job, has to work long hours and is not passionate about it.

Gary’s advice to him is, “Don’t over pressure yourself”. He asks the youngster to be practical, continue in his job, be financially stable while trying to find his passion. He said, “Quitting with no answer is unacceptable”.

When the guy says he doesn’t know what he is passionate about, Gary’s reply blows everyone’s mind, he says, “Not fighting to find an answer is unacceptable” too.

So Gary’s advice here is very clear. You have to find your passion but it is not a one time daredevil adventure you do it for the purpose of thrill. You have to be very cautious about it and take calculated steps towards your goal.

Another important point here is finding the right time to leave your job or changing your side hustle into a full time business. Till then, working hard and providing for yourself and your family should be the priority.

Key Points: Following your passion should not mean losing your health, family or values. Believe in yourself and take calculated risks towards your goal while having an eye on the present.

2. Tough Decisions Last Longer

We all have to make decisions all through our life, be it small or big. Most of the time tough decisions will serve us better in the long run but it is difficult to make them.

Gary in a chat with Matthew McConaughey talks on this subject. Matthew as we all know starred in romcom, boy-next-door roles at the beginning of his career and after a period of time found himself getting similar roles only.

He decided to not work in repetitive roles and once when he got an offer to do a similar role, he was offered 8 million$ but he refused. Then the producers increased it to 10 million and then to 12.5 million and finally at 14.5 million. But Matthew was so strong in his decision and never committed to that film and that film was never made.

Gary says that we can learn this important life lesson from Matthew and look to make the tough decisions instead of succumbing to the short lived pleasures.

Key Points: As per the saying, “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going”, your tough decisions today are the ones which are going to make your life easier in the future so don’t hesitate to take them and always take decisions which is not only profitable for you but also to the society and nature.

3. Losing Discipline is Not a Bad Thing, But….

Some people are so hard on themselves, that they always think low of themselves and always feel down. They curse themselves that they are not good for anything and cannot achieve anything substantial in their life.

Having an honest look at your life, your work, your ethics, your goals, and your passion is different from doubting your self worth.

Gary had a chat with Ryan Holiday in his podcast, and Gary asked this question, How does one get back into the discipline track if they have lost it? To this Ryan replied, It is not humanly possible to always stay in the track, but one can always try to get back to that track.

There are always going to be ups and downs in each and every part of our life, so rather than complaining about life’s problems, we can try to get back into the track of discipline.

Key Points: Your cent percent differs each day. Some days it might be winning a good bid and another day it might just be showing up to work or just cleaning your lawn. Remember achieving success does not mean achieving it each day, sometimes you have to lose a battle to win the war.

4. Get Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable

Gary says that people’s ability to tolerate, to be patient has reduced largely in the last 50 years.

In today’s world accepting defeat or tolerating family problems is seen as a negative habit.

Yes, sometimes it is true. No one should face domestic violence at home, it is an offense and it cannot be tolerated at any level. But tolerating your partner’s sleeping habit can be done.

Gary says our grandparents and parents endured a lot more than us but were very patient with life while bringing the next generation up. In one of the interviews he said that his parents worked hard to provide food and shelter to him.

When he was a child, all his friends used to watch the New York Jets games and he too got interested in it and he once asked his mom to get him a New York Jets jersey but she could not afford it and so she knitted him one and put on the number 5 in it.

Even now he uses the number 5 for all his work and says his goal is to buy the New York Jets team. So having a negative emotion is not a crime and everyone feels it. Even the super rich and successful people deal with it.

Key Points: Whenever you feel down or experience a negative emotion, remind yourselves that it is not a bad thing and think about your parents struggle since everyone’s parents would have gone through a lot to raise their kids and who else can inspire you more than your parents.

5. Gary’s Advice for Parents

Gary says that you should start listening to the next generation. You should really be supportive of your kid’s passion.

According to him, high school does not do wonders for everyone. Passion does. So it is really important to think with the mindset of the next generation and not just what other people think, be it your neighbors, relatives or friends.

He also has advice for parents who find it difficult to prevent their children from online addiction. Children nowadays are so glued to their screens that they lack social habits. It can be games, social media or movies but they all seem to be interested in it.

Gary’s first advice to parents is to not allow the children to indulge in it which can be extremely difficult in today’s scenario since most of their friends will be using it and kids like to gel with their peers by doing what they do, but it is worth a try. He says he knows how difficult it is since he has a 13 year old daughter.

His second piece of advice is to build the self-esteem of the children. This holds true for even adults. When you are confident about yourself you don’t look for external validation and thus will not be addicted to anything.

In today’s toxic environment everyone is looking for an escape mechanism to try to forget the reality and even kids can get trapped in it. So it is important to develop self-esteem so that your child does not get caught up in the dangers of the internet.

Key Points: Change is the only constant and upbringing of children is no exception to it. Education, Entertainment and Career of your children are all going to be different from yours and so it is necessary to first understand their needs by viewing the world from their perspective. Raise a confident child rather than a smart one.

6. Make Your Social Media Platform Your Resume

Gary says now is the best time to be an entrepreneur, solopreneur or any other “preneur” out there. Social media is a great thing that has happened in the last decade and you can use it to your advantage.

As you can see in any social media platform, it is not just about entertainment, you can see information about business enquiries such as DMs, email IDs, and even contact numbers. People can sell anything and everything nowadays with a single Instagram account. It can be products, services or guidance.

Gary says it also works for job seekers. Times have changed and customers and employers look for uniqueness in your profile. It is of no use if your content is the same as others. Each of your profiles should be a brand, a unique brand.

He also says that the way in which we communicate and respond is also very important and that it adds value to our brand. His exact words are “Developing your personal brand is the same thing as living and breathing your resume”.

When a solopreneur asks Gary what his advice would be for him, Gary replies to go for TikTok since that guy is starting out and needs maximum reach in a single post. He says when he started out he had to struggle for years to get an average reach for a content.

But the scenario has changed now and it is the best time for anyone to start following their passion and work on their dreams.

Key Points: Each century will have something which people will go after to make it big and this century it is definitely the internet and social media. If you work hard on the various social media platforms available with passion, it can be converted into your resume and in the long run it can be turned into a big brand.

7. Filters, Filters Everywhere…

We are all accustomed to filters in our social media platforms. But what is the best filter for a person who creates content? Quality. If you want to stand out in the crowd, Gary’s advice for you is, create quality content.

Now it may seem like normal advice, but what he is trying to convey is to create quality content consistently. And it takes years to achieve this consistency. Opportunities more or less, have become equal for everyone and that means competition is huge and everyone out there wants to make their mark in the world.

Gary’s exact words when it comes to quality are, “Cream always rises, my friends, no matter how many cups of coffee you pour”. So it is always about being one step ahead of the competition and you have to work very hard for it.

Key Points: Creating quality content is what makes your brand unique and even if it takes time, strive towards making it which will help your business grow.

8. Showcase Your DNA

DNA, is the word which Gary uses most in his speeches, blogs and videos. Since everyone’s DNA is different we all have different ways of excelling. He says he wants to do big business but also be authentic.

He says when he started the “Wine Library” youtube webcast for his family wine business back in 2006, his introduction was very loud and he was literally screaming at the camera. He says about 12 percent of the audience would leave seeing his introduction and he thought of maybe toning down his tone but he did not. If he tones down his voice and talks in front of the camera he would be putting on an act and he will not feel true to himself and thus can not add any value to his viewers.

All through his public life Gary Vaynerchuk has been his true self while conveying his thoughts and ideas to others. Don’t mind the unimportant stuff like your looks or the quality of your camera. He says people ask him, “What mic does he use”? to which he replies, “Your content has nothing to do with the mic, camera or the lighting you use”.

It is all about the content and its authenticity. If you look at his videos it will not have an attractive background or a proper order to it. He shoots his videos in real locations and sometimes there is even disturbance going on around him and his audio will not be clear.

But Gary says he does not worry about that as long as he conveys his message to his audience in his authentic way.

Key Points: Be real even if it feels weird right now. Turtlenecks can be boring but if Steve Jobs wears it, it is a fashion symbol. Your values and passion matter and not your looks, voice, background, heredity, education or money.

9. Making Great Content

Content is King in the marketing industry but Gary says context matters.

No matter how good your content is, you have to make it platform specific. Your base content will be the same but you need to configure it according to the audience base of each platform.

In order to create great content you have to know your stuff and passion. To find out if your passion is monetizable Gary in his book “Crush It!: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion”, asks us to test ourselves. The test is if you can think of at least 50 interesting blog topics that you can write about your passion. And, he says 50 is the bare minimum.

He says if we are really passionate about something we should be able to write 500 blogs about it even if it is just about stickers.

Another important aspect in creating content is the art of storytelling. No one wants to hear or see a documentary. Your content should be engaging and what better way to make it engaging than to go story-mode?

Creating a brand is not just for marketers or celebrity brands, it can apply for a doctor too. Anyone can try ro build their brand by having a strong online presence and you can see this trend in social media nowadays.

You can find medicine, service, fashion, art and many other things. Even actors and sports personalities who are already famous have accounts here so that they can connect with their fans and grow their brand.

Another tip from Gary is not to lie to yourself. Be true when you want to find your passion and look for hard answers. Don’t do anything just because it’s cool or everyone does it.

Key Points: Try to create content through your unique way of storytelling. Follow your DNA and it will do wonders for your passion. It does not matter if you are a small business now, hustle as long as possible and you will eventually reap the results.

10. Create Your Community

Community building is very important after all, it does not matter how great your content is if it does not reach the target audience.

Gary says creating content should be the least time consuming efforts of your work and creating your community is the most important step. He says, in our personal life when we move to a new neighborhood we try to strike conversations with our neighbors during evenings, and will introduce our children to other children of the same age.

Gary’s point is that online communication is similar to it and is essential to build your community. Start by reading as many blogs as possible. Leave comments, hear people’s opinion and give your views.

Search for blogs, posts similar to yours and check the type of content, how people react and what they like or dislike. If people are intrigued by your comments, they will want more and start following you.

When they do come to your blog, make it entertaining, fun and informative. It should not be too intrusive or demanding. Don’t try to sell your products immediately. Gary gives an example of one Jared Montz who says he never sells stuff to people who are interested in his views. He says people will eventually find out about what he does and he does not want to spam them.

Your community can be platform specific too. Your target audience may know you only by your Facebook or Instagram or Twitter account and the information you share there. So try to cater to the needs of the platform specific audience who may turn into a life-long customer.

As per Gary, your blog is your home, Facebook and Twitter are your vacation homes. Your main content resides on your blog and you use Facebook and Twitter to build brand awareness and bring people to your blog.

Key Points: Communication has always been one of the main requirements for any type of business for a long time now. Just the way of communicating has changed in this digital era. One of the perks of online communication is you can reach a specific set of audience which you want to focus on based on the type of service or product you offer. Make use of this excellent opportunity.

Top 10 Gary Vaynerchuk Quotes

Gary Vaynerchuk’s quotes are a great reminder to how to live your life as per your DNA, both personally and professionally.

“Look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself: What do I want to do everyday, for the rest of my life? DO THAT.”

“Legacy is greater than currency.”

“Brands mature over time, like a marriage. The bond you feel with your spouse is different than when you first met each other. Excitement and discovery are replaced by comfort and depth.”

“People are chasing cash, not happiness. When you chase money, you are going to lose. You are just going to. Even if you get the money, you are not going to be happy.”

“You need to spend all of your time and energy on creating something that actually brings value to the people you are asking for money.”

“Time, the one asset none of us are ever going to get more of.”

“What’s the ROI of a piano? To me, it’s zero. For Billy Joel and Elton John, it has been substantial.”

“Winning is not defined by me or your parents or even the market. It’s defined by you.”

“Figure out who you are, optimize who you are, but never apologize for who you are, ever.”

“Ultimately, a value exchange matters the most. No matter what, if you bring somebody value, if you make somebody laugh, if you make somebody think, if you deliver on your promise, that is always going to work out, no matter how you do that.”

Also Read

• 27 Inspirational Movies For Entrepreneurs To Watch in 2024
• 20 Best TV Shows for Entrepreneurs You Must Watch in 2024

Conclusion

GaryVee definitely walks the talk. He asks us to be authentic and does show in his business. All of the above points that we learn from Gary’s life is a great insight for anyone who needs to go to the next level in their life.

You can watch his videos for more inspiration and ideas especially if you are someone who is really passionate about something but is lost on how to move forward. His energy is infectious and you will get a new sense of vigor to pursue your passion and happiness in life.

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