A difficulty I have with business books is I love them too much. Often they excite me. They seem crammed full with experience & advice. I have difficulty absorbing it all.
I recently wrote down my Action Plan after reading three chapters of Mitch Joel’s book. My 14 point plan. As if that wasn’t enough…
Smarter Egg reading group, led by Aodan Enright consists of these businesses:
Fuzion Communications – Greg Canty
Roger Overall Photography – Roger Overall
RGD Logistics – Rudy deGroot
Leadership Management Ireland- Bob McCarthy
AutoMotif & – Paul Allen
Curam de Cara Marshall Art Academy – Liam-óg Griffin
Success Partners - Julie Silfverberg
MarketingWriteNow.com – Paul O’Mahony
We’ve moved on to our second book, “Crush It” by Gary Vaynerchuk. We have both text & audio version (in which Gary veers off into adding extra stuff – plus you get the exciting sound of his enthusiasm for the subject.)
In Cork Coffee Roasters this morning, I reached “Crush It” page 69 of 142 pages. I felt it was time to review – go over what I’d read & pull together all the highlighting & margin notes to self. In a hurry I jotted a Moleskine Notebook page of 16 “Wisdoms” [backward chronological order]
16 Wisdoms from reading “Chuck It” by Vaynerchuk:
1 Be authentic
2 Let people in to your personality
3 Mix it up sometimes (the personal & the business)
4 Set up a Facebook Fan page
5 Email gary@vaynerchuk.com
6 Put “Share it” functions on my blogs
7 Check out “Tumblr” for blogging
8 Write long enough comments on blogs – so that people feel they’ve gained from my contribution
9 Step up AudioBoo
10 Get ready for Videoblogging
11 Sort out
- Is [writing for business as passionately curious] my ultimate passion?
- Am I good enough to be the best blogger about [writing for business as passionately curious]?
12 Write blog/twitter content about the learning process (the process of learning to be a better writer of my type)
13 Explore the idea of “provocative analysis” (Gary’s phrase)
14 Build Brand Equity : what does this mean? Idea = interview Fuzion, ThinkTank & Fergal Kinery (Whisper)
15 Storytelling… Storytelling… Storytelling
Next…
My fellow Smarter Eggs will come to our face-to-face gathering on Tuesday (in 3 days) with their own experience of reading Gary Vaynerchuk. It’ll be great to see what they’ve made of the book. The group is there to help each other change habits, adopt new practices, change the world. I better read on, finish “Crush It”.
Your next move…
- Like more detail about my thinking, contact me (Twitter @marketingwrite & @omaniblog).
- Like to chip in a comment & make us think deeper about all this business, do it now please.
If you’re Gary Vaynerchuk picking this up via social media monitoring, thank you so much for an exhilarating ride. I’ll email you a link.
8 Comments
Great book. Audio tapes even have some updated content from what was originally published, so I’m told.
I’ve been putting into place as many of the things suggested by Gary that I can – Quite frankly, I’m exhausted. The man has boundless energy that goes beyond my own. My tank is empty about the same time as he gets up to full cruising speed.
Anyway, the results have been remarkable. I’m on course to double the monthly traffic to my blog since starting the SmarterEgg group three weeks ago.
I’m also bursting with exciting ideas – both for blog content and social media outreach.
Not only that. I’m finding that I can spot marketing opportunities everywhere all of a sudden. It’s as if Gary’s enthusiasm has lifted a veil from my eyes.
Great book.
Paul,
Delighted to see that you are getting so much value from this group. There’s something magical about how discoveries are shared and synthesised within the group.
Your skilled writing has given me a beautiful description of the Smarter Egg purpose:
“The group is there to help each other change habits, adopt new practices, change the world.”
Amen!
And Roger, you’ve helped me with an always challenging and vital question of any learning engagement, what’s the ‘return on investment’?
“I’m on course to double the monthly traffic to my blog since starting the SmarterEgg group three weeks ago.”
I hope we make it 3X or 4X before we’re done. The real you is coming through like never before. It’s fair to say that your readers want more of this great content.
Aodan
Thanks Aodan.
I make no secret of my experience that you’re a one-off. You’ve carved out a niche with your Smarter Egg learning groups in Cork Ireland, making a big impact. The knock-on results of your indirect influence, how can we best measure?
It strikes me you’re building a business in this little corner of the globe. This testing ground is perfect: Cork needs what you offer. But I love the challenge of thinking: how could the influence of Smarter Egg be spread? It’s just not fair that we get all the benefits.
Gary Vaynerchuk would have a view on your potential. Passion, work & stamina – Bob McCarthy and I were talking about this today – for another context.
Perhaps I’m projecting my own issues on to your business opportunities? Perhaps we all share this dynamic world in which the technology has put it up to us. In the old days, we could say “If only I had the opportunities… if only I knew how…” Now, with this bloody internet miracle, there seems to be no excuse – only the limits I put on myself.
Thank you for saying that was a “beautiful description”. The hearing made me feel good . All I can say is ‘it was easy to write that purpose statement. You made it so.’
I wonder what lurkers think of this discussion? People who don’t know you, or any of the rest of us? Perhaps a more detached observer will chip in? Please.
Roger,
Before you ever heard of Gary Vaynerchuk you were on a journey. You’ve been thinking deeply about the essence of your business. I know because ever since I first met you, you’ve been restless. Always pushing a bit deeping into the source of your individual “snowflake” (my term) style. I’ve noticed how thorough you are, and how thought-provoking a person you are.
You may be a documentary photographer (and a superb one of those) but if you keep at it you’ll build a reputation on a broader field. You change perceptions. Your photos don’t just tell stories, they challenge the eye to look closer at the action. That’s what I’m expecting to experience as you get into podcasting and the rest.
Ideas & marketing opportunities are great, but changing perceptions may be your greatest gift. We’ll see.
Matt,
When a proper business entrepreneur pops in to comment here, I sit up. You’re a wine man, as Gary was. Your brother told me Gary was the best wine blogger in the world – one day when I was out buying a case from Curious Wines. That didn’t lead me to look at Gary’s blog. As far as I was concerned, Curious Wines heads were good enough wine enthusiasts for me.
I haven’t time to tune into wine blogs but I have time for business. If Gary’s book appeals to you as “great”, that’s some recommendation.
We have your brother Michael Kane coming to join in Smarter Egg discussion tomorrow. That’ll be a privilege, to learn for your business experience