Customer Reviews

Crush It!: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Disclaimer: This is my first review for any book or product on Amazon or anywhere really, and I took the time to submit this review because I feel it warranted it.

The book is thin 140 ish pages... but I like that... no fluff.. easy to read.. straight from the hip... just like Gary himself.

As someone who is relatively new to the world of "Social Media" I stumbled upon of Gary V last year and bookmarked his site. It wasn't until this July (09) that I checked out his site again and began to follow him in other social media channels. I noticed how he worked his magic and served his secret sauce to his nation / followers / customers. He is the real deal and a leader in the Web 2.0 world by not only providing killer content and products... but by genuinely caring for the people who are his followers / customers. He spends countless hours being in the trenches, listening and sharing with the people.

You get a feel for that in the book and I found this to be a great book on many levels. It is inspiring & I couldn't help but be touched by his passion, hustle & caring.

The book is a perfect starting point for someone who wishes to learn about how to navigate and succeed (make actual dollars) in this new age of business.

There is also an online version that is called a "Vook" which I also purchased. Personally I prefer reading the physical book over online text but there is a video for each chapter that I found enhanced my connection to the author and his message. (It's also worth checking out.. just google VOOK)

If your still on the fence... then I recommend you follow Gary for a couple of weeks & you can then decide wether to purchase it or not. (Just google his name and follow him on wine library TV, Twitter, or Face-book.)

After reading it... chances are you will kick it up a notch & begin to 'CRUSH IT!' too. :-)

Crush it........ Ohhhhh am I'm going to CRUSH IT!

It is like social media concentrate, when I got the book I was a bit disappointed at the thickness of it but in the end that is one of the best parts, it does not flood you with tons of info. It gives you the info and tools you need to kick start your dream, and not confuse you on what path you should take. It gives you what you need, nothing more. That is more valuable than a few more pages.

The book starts by pumping you up, giving you hope, and opening the door so you can see the light at the end of the tunnel, In a way only the infectious Gary Vee can. Then he jumps right into tooling you up with the online resources you need to 'CRUSH IT' and get on with living your dream. There is no candy coating and he tells you like it is. It is a ton of work. But if you are doing what you love it will not seem like work, you will be living, not working.

A words of warning, it is literary caffeine. Personally, I am going to crush it, super nova style!

Ben.

You have to dig Gary's Enthusiasm. He says everything with so much passion and gusto, that you do get absorbed in this book. During the read (which is short, it's a very easy read) you feel compelled to work on your own personal brand. It gets you to think about your passion. I enjoyed that part as it left me inspired, for a short amount of time reading the book (about 3 days) and it quickly dissipated thereafter.

This is an account of what worked for Gary. I think I try to keep in mind that I don't really view Gary as a consultant or coach, therefore I attribute him towards having very little experience in expressing what others should do and more knowledge about expressing what happened to work one time for himself. He has been working as a consultant since the book came out, so I'd be curious to see what changes he would make to this book, now that he has a little more perpective on others, versus just a perspective on himself. I find that books of this nature are best written by people who have experience in working with others on the subject matter.

In closing, he's a better video blogger than writer (he admits to this himself in the book a few times) but what the book really lacks is substance. It's vague, covers a wide assortment of topics but everything only briefly, as if to only to give you a little taste of what he's utilized to facilitate his own success. After a certain point, you kind of feel let down. On one hand, it is cool to see the process Gary went through, on the other, sad that he didn't include more details about a little more than just the basics. I would have liked to see a little more info on individualization and what his experience working with others has yielded. At least he is real about it all though. His authenticity is refreshing.

While I did enjoy reading about the author's journey to his success, I found the book lacking in useful content.

I was hoping to get some unique tips on building a personal brand but instead this book basically tells you to use twitter, youtube and Facebook (along with other less popular platforms). I'm already quite familiar with social media platforms and the book didn't tell me anything new about how to use them.

Also, the advice/suggestions that the author gives you is a bit unrealistic.... such as suggesting that you quit your day job (if not now, soon) to build your web business or else you'll have to work until 3am to meet your goals. He suggests that if you are passionate enough and use social media then you can make a lot of money. I honestly believe that most of us will be luckily to ever make a tiny fraction of his $60-million business. Of course he acknowledges that some of us will fail, but blames that on people who he says do not fully commit to their projects, aren't authentic and don't have enough passion. If only it was so easy.

Overall, I disliked the preachy and repetitive tone of the book and didn't learn much from it.

I have been following Gary Vaynerchuk and his message for about four or five months now. Around August I had enough of sitting on the sidelines and started chasing my passion. In my case that passion revolves around marketing, branding, and beer. My first step was to start [...] and interacting with the beer community. At this point I am a couple months into the process and have an avid following of hardcore beer fans and brewers. Not only that but since I started focusing my energy on this other doors have opened for me. My internet marketing career is taking off, my nine to five is ever improving, and I am on my way to do what I want to do for a living full time.

All this said, last week I received my copy of Crush It in the mail. Needless to say, I wish I had this book to help guide me since I started on this journey. No useless info, no bs, just the real info you need to get started crushing it. I have to recommend this book to anyone who wants to stop working for the weekend and start doing what they care about for a living.

@cbjerrisgaard

Gary Vaynerchuk's Crush It is a highly motivational instructional manual on how you can use freely available tools on the net to build your brand in order to be successful. Although a short read Crush It contains only the information you need to be successful while eliminating the BS. Crush It is a very addictive read and after finishing the final pages had me jumping up, hitting the computer and looking to Crush It for myself.
If you are looking to be successful and happy in life make sure you read Crush It as Gary Vaynerchuk outlines what needs to be done in order to be both.

This book is quite possibly the easiest to read book I've picked up this year ... it was entertaining, easy flowing and quick to read. Yet it also packed a serious punch.

I dare you to read this book and not feel inspired to work harder, pursue your passion and build your own personal brand.

And... with his simple steps you are going to know exactly what you need to do to begin doing this! He doesn't waste any time giving you a bunch of details but he does give you a plan to follow. And he is doing this without a motive... he's not selling you anything else so he is totally upfront and honest about the fact that you are going to work harder than you ever imagined to do it. You'll also have more fun that you ever thought possible. And the little stories he shares of other people in the world doing great things to build their brand will make you WANT to work harder than you've ever worked before.

I think this is one of the best business books of 2009... and definitely one of the best books I read in 2009. It's going to be a gift under the tree for several of my friends and family!

I can't recommend Crush It highly enough to anyone doing anything on the web (which should be everyone).

Though fairly short, it is packed full of great info. For those who follow Gary and watch his videos/talks a lot of that content is summed up and expanded on in here, with a bit extra. It's great though to have it all in one place for reference or just for inspiration. If you haven't seen much of Gary then this book is even more worth it.

The book is very readable (unlike some business books) and you wont want to put it down. There is also an exact step by step guide on starting a blog and generating tons of traffic, and then monetizing it. This alone is worth the price of admission.

Buy it, you won't regret it.

- Eugen S

Twitter: @eugen_s

This book, which I listened to on iTunes, is awesome. Very inspiring. I found your style to be honest and straight to the point.

Comes down to old fashioned hard work to be successful. No real short cuts.

Love it.

I am going to see you speak in March and I am pumped about it.

Rob

I love the content this author has to share but I always find his tone quite arrogant. The Vaynerchuk way isn't the ONLY way to do good business... Go ahead and buy the book but if you're like me, filter out Vaynerchukisms and you'll get a lot out of it!