DISQUS

AJ Vaynerchuk · 1 year ago

Awesome video bro, so so so true!

Jaime · 1 year ago

Unfortunately Gary I know all to well what you're talking about. As always, wrds to live by :)

AJ Vaynerchuk · 1 year ago

PS: the little kids in the background are hilarious!

Marc · 1 year ago

Right on, Gary!!

manonthemoon · 1 year ago

The message is a good one, it's like the saying you never know if you can succeed unless you try. I think that people are so afraid of failure that the loose the vision that makes people great. That is why I tell people "dare to be great", some people may laugh if you fail, but many more will respect the fact that you had the curage to even try, and you never know you might even suceed. At least you will never have to say what if, which is the worst of all.

Blantonious · 1 year ago

Very true although there is one time that I lie to myself that is very beneficial. It's when I am feeling self doubt. Then I have to lie to myself that I can do something that I may not be able to. Sometimes it works out well. :-)

Scott Jangro · 1 year ago

Well said Gary. I love that you sat down on a sidewalk in where NYC?, to make that.

The kids catching on to the vibe are awesome.

Zac Garrett · 1 year ago

Great video. It looks like those kids thought you were nuts though. Then again, aren't we all?

Bryan Thatcher · 1 year ago

So true. The one thing that I have been seeing and being a part of is the more you embrace social media and become a voice within it the more you HAVE to be true to your self. It's like forget the shrinks, get involved with a community you will find yourself.

That's why I'm all about creating a platform for visual storytelling, I don't like the way I look on video, and I never honed my typing/writing skills to be a prolific blogger. So I created something that you can be ok in all/any of those and put them together to make something special.

Jose Castillo · 1 year ago

Don't lie to yourself but also tell the truth to others. Sometimes the toughest thing to do is be honest to someone else about who you are.

I don't know much about wine. I do know why I trust you - because you tell me the truth, for good or bad.

Thanks Gary and keep it spicy!

Dale Cruse · 1 year ago

"Mommy, what's that man doing with the video camera at the playground?"

Senor Sangria · 1 year ago

Gary, Great to see you back on your 120... It is motivating to see you put yourself out there! Keep on Keeping On!!!!

Things with Senor Sangria are still moving forward. Hopefully in a month or so i'll have more details for you.

Later bro...

TonyandLisa · 1 year ago

Gary, you know how to keep it real. A job is not work if you love what you are doing.

Rayan · 1 year ago

Seriously! We have a ukulele website. How much more niche can you get??? We have some of the most passionate users on the internet. It's all about becoming the voice of your fans and visitors. Great stuff as always Gary.

Jim Kukral · 1 year ago

Good stuff Gary. I'm following your lead for months now. Lately though, my new video show format is more "myself". I like it, and my audience is liking it. So very true.

Sometimes is takes a while to find your voice, that's all. :)

Frank · 1 year ago

Great video Gary. Live life to the fullest with no regrets. That's how I like to put it if I were to be totally frank with you. ;)

Kristen · 1 year ago

Where are you in NYC GV? lol loved the kids in the background!

Oh yeah, and great content too! :)

Diana LeRoi-Schmidt · 1 year ago

Amen! So incredibly true and I know all too well about telling myself I can't do things that really I can. Fear is an amazing power, and we feel our best when we overcome it.

I love the kids in the background, we could only hope they were taking in those words of wisdom :)

Keith · 1 year ago

Hey man, I struggled with this myself. A few years back I thought I'd become a "professional blogger" and really gave it a shot. I'd been working for Lifehacker and my own productivity blog was pretty hot. Things were going well - 'cept it wasn't me. I'm a designer. A creator. That is my passion, that's what I'm good at. So I scrapped the blogging idea and started a design company, and we're doing really well. Sure we're not the most recognized out there, but we're happy, we're earning a good living, having lots of fun and everyone involved is really happy about where we're at.

Had I continued to ignore my passion and lie to myself, who knows where I'd be.

Good video man. Love the kids in the background!

GrapeStuff (Donald Pipkin) · 1 year ago

Agree, GV. Keep the shorts coming!

4four1ones · 1 year ago

bringing the thunder on personal discovery. gary, you never cease to amaze us. thank you for being the voice of wisdom and motivation for our webculture today.

all my best as usual,
4four1ones

Bundydb · 1 year ago

Amen Brother!!!

Kekoa · 1 year ago

Gary, readin' the minds of content creators again! THANK YOU for reminding me about this. It's something I always need to hear. Being true to oneself is SO KEY to creating something worthwhile.

"It's a DNA game now" I am SO using that. Love that quote! So true!

I wish I could subscribe to this and watch it on my iPod, but it seems like the video is all flash. hmm...

Tim · 1 year ago

Good words Gary, thanks!

AKDocmike · 1 year ago

I hear a lot of business trainers out there constantly talking about "think big" and I think that the average person misunderstands what the heck that means. You hit the nail right on the head "stop trying to be someone you're not." Most people think "thinking big" means trying to be like someone who already is big. Find your passion, get on fire and people will come from miles around to see you burn.

Love the kids in the background while you're recording this. Very organic.

Lindsay · 1 year ago

I love the kids behind you peeking over your shoulder.. lol
They're thinking 'Who the heck are you talking to?' Haha!

Brian Wynne Williams · 1 year ago

Great points, Gary. Focus, passion, authenticity, honesty ... all words to live by ...

ryptide · 1 year ago

Again, you're right on the money.

Adam · 1 year ago

Good advice Gary! are you okay because toward the end you almost looked like you were going to shed a tear.

Jim Louderback · 1 year ago

Good, but too simplistic. Follow what? Be what? Try what?

Hard to be true to yourself if you don't really know who you are.

I suggest you try on personas. Be different people. Try being Kevin Rose. How does it feel? Try being Gary V. Try being the girl next door. I think only through trying on different hats (and rejecting most of them) do you discover who you are.

Human beings are wired for analogies. Build your analogies. Throw away the ones that don't resonate. Keep the ones that do.

Be true to the resonations.. Because it takes a long time to figure out who "you" are.

jim

wolfgang · 1 year ago

Funny, I've been doing exactly that for the past few days. Very surprising results there, and a wee bit scary. But it's definitely good advice. Love the kids too, especially the one in the last couple of seconds.

James Cox · 1 year ago

one more awesome nugget from the church of the vaynerchuk. :)

ilan peer · 1 year ago

righto!
gonna try and implant.

Sam Brown · 1 year ago

You should be charging for advice like this GV. Love it.

Jose "Don Fubar" · 1 year ago

Yo GV!
Pardon my language, but you speak the fucking gospel man!
Always a pleasure to listen what's going on in the mind of the GV!

You keep it real, and that's one of the most respectable things ever.

You stay classy

Colin Devroe · 1 year ago

I will never be Steve Nash. I will never be Steve Nash. I will never be Steve Nash. I will never be Steve Nash. I will never be Steve Nash.

Thanks for the advice!!

Tranquility Jones · 1 year ago

'How to find yourself...' is a whole case of video. Sometimes it takes trying to be Oprah or whoever for a little while... recognizing the best pieces of that journey you excelled at... clipping, pruning... trying new things... always expanding your experiences. Identifying how you might be lying to yourself is perhaps one of the hardest things in life to see sometimes... for example... if a big slimy ball is stuck to my eyes, myself or someone i know needs to pull it off and get it about 8 feet away for me to see it's an octopus. perspective is absolutely necessary for us to evolve. and it's not just a personal journey--occasionally we need help pulling the octopus off. But perspective comes every day if you take the time to look at thing on a deeper level... and really try to see things as they are. by experimenting in combinations of trying to be people like Oprah, AND, trying to form the originality that is yourself. And it's lifelong and never too late to reinvent who you are. i'm just sayin' !

Tranquility Jones · 1 year ago

oh and it's 4am where I am and an octopus is covering my face so excuse my insomnimaniacal typos please :)

Smith MBA · 1 year ago

Jim Louderback and Tranquility Jones are right on with their comments. It is not about lying to yourself, it is about figuring out who you are and what drives you. You can think you are the next Trump and truly believe it but until you step back and assess how realistic that is you will spin your wheels.

As always I am enjoying the journey and the learning experience in this brave new world.

Alan E. · 1 year ago

Amen brotha. Self-doubt and self-deception go hand in hand most of the time. Sometimes lies don't come from yourself though, they can come from outside. The naysayers and the doubters saying that you'll fail at everything and your venture will never succeed. Not even critiques, just a drone of depression, and they can sound oh so convincing.

Anybody else remember the torture of Captain Picard on Star Trek where all he had to say was that there were five lights instead of the four that were really there and the torture would stop? All you have to do is deny the reality of what you are really passionate about and you don't have to deal with the doubters and naysayers inside you and outside. The methods may not be as extreme, but the results can be as insidious.

Tranquility Jones · 1 year ago

One of the most common modes of human interaction is negative criticism... it's easier for people to try and drag you down to their level, then for them to attempt to rise to your level. You gotta believe. That doesn't mean you shouldn't listen to negatives though, as often there are things to learn about yourself even from naysaying. But you have to believe in the face of no evidence as well... because every journey that rips over uncharted ground must start somewhere.

We also have a 15 minute mentality in this country. If it does happen right away... people are quick to move on. Commit for the long haul. Have some discipline to stick it out even on the days it seems stagnant. Stay fluid... nimble... create new ideas and learn how to sort--building on the good ones, jettisoning the ones that aren't working. Build a network---even if it's just one person---because have feedback is valuable. Develop realistic meters to determine what is and is not working for you... and be real. And knowing your end goal is vital!!!! It's not necessarily about money either. (I've known plenty of clueless people who were wealthy, yet unhappy.) The end goal is about personal satisfaction. Because someone who is comfortable in the own skin puts out and attractive chemistry and charisma that is easy to pick up on. Good personal energy creates a ton of opportunity.

And that's my quarter for the day GV....

Tranquility Jones · 1 year ago

**does not happen right away (beginning 2nd paragraph.) Man, I gotta learn to type slower and proofread!!!

ChrisH · 1 year ago

So true! These little videos really do brighten my day and give me that extra little push to try to be my best. Keep it up Gary!

Cristian · 1 year ago

Of course. Now I see why there are no negative comments. They all go through him and he's full of himself so he doesn't approve.

Steve · 1 year ago

Great video! I'm slowly starting to learn this as I figure out who I am.

Karen Sugarpants · 1 year ago

Great advice Gary - something I finally embraced a few months ago... and now I blog about what I want - if it's boring, oh well! I do it for me!

k00k · 1 year ago

Gary,

You say, "The people that stop lying to themselves...", I think that a lot of people don't really know that they're lying to themselves and thus can't break the cycle. Thoughts? @k00k me.

gloriakt · 1 year ago

GV - spot on! but to @kook's comments - what about those people who don't know they're lying to themselves? do we start calling each other out?

Also - in the risk of sounding like an insecure teenage girl - what if you're not sure about what you like or do? Blogs that aren't focused on a topics seem to lose consistent readership base. I mean a "day in the life-of" blog seems circa 1999, right?

Kitta · 1 year ago

So true. I know so many people that lie to themselves, get nowhere fast and then wonder why.

"They think the can't do things they can" rang true for me. I recently changed my career path to medicine after I realised that if I don't try I'll never know.

I said it on the Digg comments, and I'll say it again... all hail Gary V!

Dave · 1 year ago

Nice VID Gary..

You got 1 more fan :P

Harry!! · 1 year ago

I cant how true that is

Ria Kennedy · 1 year ago

Wow, I watched quite a few of your broadcasts this AM, but this one really hit home. It's exactly what I am trying to do, after trying out a lot of other stuff that didn't really fit, but I was pretty nervous about settling on an extremely narrow niche.

Thanks, Gary, for saying it's OK to just be you and that you'll be better off for it in the long run. My favorite line: "Yourself is the victory in the social media game, and in this world..."

Albert · 1 year ago

Lying to yourself is key to accomplishing anything big. Sometimes you need to shoot for the moon, or seemingly impossible, to actually get there. If you believe your bullshit, others will more likely believe it, and suddenly your bullshit has become once unthinkable reality. Sorry Gary, but there are better tips for those looking to make it in social media.

Stephanie Quilao · 1 year ago

I'm at a turning point with something I've been working on for some time (3 years), and have been wrestling with resistance and even insomnia. You just gave me something really good to consider. This was an inspiring video. Keep up the good works!

Chris · 1 year ago

LOL! It's like you made this for the Perth (self-proclaimed) Web 2.0 crew! Brilliant video and extremely true.

Clintus McGintus · 1 year ago

[viddler_video=38dc1eb5]

Merc · 1 year ago

Spot on. Nailed it.