Why are we not allowed to be capable in many things and excel in more then 1 area, I sure think many if not most people can!
1 trick ponies- I DON’T THINK SO!
Tags: "1 trick ponies", garyvee, my120, people, skills, vaynerchuk
Gary Who
Gary Vaynerchuk has captured national attention as a businessman and Internet celebrity. Gary’s fame can be attributed to his pioneering, multi-faceted approach to personal branding and business building. more
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April 8th, 2008 at 12:04 am
Killed it again GV. Great vid.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:05 am
Dude… welcome to the resurgence of the Renaissance Man! (and Woman…)
April 8th, 2008 at 12:05 am
Another amazing video Gary.. Keep it real..
April 8th, 2008 at 12:06 am
Gary - I got my @santagaryvee present in the mail today. Thank you VERY VERY much. You are truly an inspiration and I’m glad that I found you on Twitter and on wltv.com. Keep on keepin’ on!
–Brian
PS - Hope you enjoyed your trip to Seattle. I would have gone to Taste, had I not gotten this nasty flu bug. All the Best!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Absolutely brilliant — you are dead on here Gary, we as people have *a lot* to offer and its time to bring it!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Awesome stuff, Gary! What you talk about reminds me of the “Renaissance Man” that many of my friends and I aspire to be. While we all have our special interests, I would never want to live a one-dimensional life specializing in only one thing. There are SO many things to do, research, and become interested in. I think it’s rather unnatural to do otherwise!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:12 am
You suck dude. Just because you know facts on a few subjects does not make you multidimensional. What you DO makes you multidimensional. Everyone knows a lot on a many subjects.
Stop floating your own boat. Trying to be real brother.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Love it Gary. I was feeling myself starting to gravitate to the single dimension and you reasserted my inclination to broaden myself. Thanks for the constant motivation. Still waitin’ on the wristband….
April 8th, 2008 at 12:14 am
Great video. Also I got my WLTV wrist band today, thanks
April 8th, 2008 at 12:14 am
People have an automatic need to ‘categorize’ each other. ‘Oh, that’s Oprah, the talk show host’. ‘That’s so and so, the actor’. ‘That’s my mail man’. ‘That’s Gary, the Wine Guy’.
My two cents? Folks choose the easy way to put each other in categories, versus taking the time to absorb what each other likes, is passionate about and enjoys on a daily basis.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:16 am
I can REALLY REALLY RELATE to this video!! I get asked all the time why is it that I can have different professions and actually be good at them all at the same time….and it’s annoying! Yes, people are multi-dimensional, and it’s something to be embraced and thankful of, and share those talents with the world. Thanks for that, Gary
April 8th, 2008 at 12:16 am
Love this. Being who you are in the fullness of yourself and complete open isn’t always the easiest thing but I always believe that the web rewards sincerity. You are proof of that.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:17 am
Amen Brother! You are absolutely right–well put.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:17 am
It’s an interesting thing that you’re talking about here, and I feel that it is something that is learned as you grow up. From a young age, people are always asking, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” and, “What are you going to major in in college?”. It’s as if people are training us to be great at just one thing, and if you want to branch out, discover new things and be a “jack of all trades” you’re considered non-committal. That doesn’t fly with me. Thanks for bringing this up, GV! Great message.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:17 am
Yep, as long as your authentic and passionate about something, who cares if its not what your known for. People aren’t hard wired to be talented at one thing, that seems more of a society-imposed limitation that is hard to break.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:18 am
Definitely, Gary. People think of others that way, and they also do that to themselves. Sometimes it just makes things easier or happens to do with circumstance, though. Regardless, it’s surely unnecessary.
I think that people tend to identify themselves and others too much by their work in general. Conversations rarely start with, “So, what do you do for fun?”
April 8th, 2008 at 12:18 am
Hey. I’m a cook as well! mmmmm, Cheese and Tea
Good job!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:18 am
We all have many things we can be good at, but don’t lose sight of what you are truly good at in an effort to diversify and as a result settle for mediocrity.
Keep it coming GV!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:18 am
supposedly “jack of all trades” means “master of none”. i don’t hold to that opinion, myself.
i consider myself something of a “professional” student. i’m a mathematician, an artist, a craftsman, a techie, and a grandma. and there’s a lot more to do and try before i’m ready to quit.
yeah, i burn my candles at both ends, and sometimes in the middle too. doesn’t seem to have burnt my fingers any, and the house is still standing.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:21 am
Great message! It’s very important to do what you’re good at but don’t be afraid to branch out and try something new…you never know, you might be great at it.
as always, see you on twitter (@topicm)
April 8th, 2008 at 12:23 am
Absolutely Gary! Great video… and this is what social media is all about. We don’t just want a bunch of social media experts talking about social media all day. We want wine, college sports, philanthropy, and Harry Potter experts all talking with us! Or one person who is all of those things… that would be even better
April 8th, 2008 at 12:24 am
I’m not kidding when I tell you that totally made my day. Completely unexpected. Gary, you rock. Thanks a million buddy. Looking forward to getting some hang time when you’re in Chicago for SEED and TechCoctail.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:33 am
Good stuff man. I think people do get pigeonholed because society tells us that it is better to be specialized in one thing than well versed in many.
Some people I know get insulted by people with a lot of different passions. Some people I know are passionate about everything they do. Some people I know are so good at the one thing they do that I would trade all the knowledge I have about so many things to be an expert at that one thing. I think the point of it all is for people to be who they are, and be honest with themselves and others. A lot of uptight people in this world who have lost their inspiration so for those that do, I guess the multidimensional people are making up for it!
You’ve inspired me to dig up all my old writing from about 7 years ago from my first blog, and add a page for it to my new blog. Writing was something that I felt passionate about but in the last few years, I have slacked on both blogging, writing and generally connecting and sharing.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:37 am
It’s so Awesome to see other people fighting the same battles in life as myself. Keep rockin the Thunder Gary!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:50 am
Gary, great point. Most people are physically, as well as mentally always on the go. We live in the era where people without “ADD” are the minority. I think if people promote themselves as just a one trick pony, they are simply stubborn and ignorant to change.
Great episode again,
Justin Carder
April 8th, 2008 at 1:05 am
You are definitely Right on the Money with this observation. Preach it brother!
April 8th, 2008 at 1:05 am
Very nice.
Sometimes though I experience a feeling that is opposite to your thoughts. It’s as though I know 25 things “good enough to get by,” but I don’t really have any one individual thing that I am 100% spot-on with.
Though maybe through your perspective that’s something to be positive about, rather than something to feel stressed about.
But for the most part I can relate. People at work see me as “the Mac guy,” but they don’t realize that I could have very detailed and in depth conversations about things like music, hockey, Subarus, photography, etc… so yes, in a way I’ve been pigeonholed.
Is it my own fault for not putting my other skills out in the open for all to see, or is it their fault for not showing an interest in the other 99% of my brain that they never see put to good use?
April 8th, 2008 at 1:14 am
Been thinking alot about this Gary. You’ve said before to do what you’re passionate about and make that your niche. In today’s world, it seems like it’s tough to put yourself out there and to not be pigeonholed into whatever niche you do, especially to the people outside of this tech world. Say you create a video blog, it’s no good, then you’re interviewing for a job or going on a salespitch. That video will always be out there and people will create their perceptions of you based on that video, or that blog, or that twitter message etc.
You say as long as you know what you’re talking about, talk about it. What about Boom goes the dynamite? Dude, probably know who “the guy” was who took the shot, but he blanked. Now, if you meet that guy, he’s the boom goes the dynamite guy.
Just a thought as I have been tight lipped on my personal blog, but am thinking about expanding from it and putting myself out there more. Any thoughts.
April 8th, 2008 at 1:20 am
Gary, you’re right… and you’re wrong. Yes, we can be multi-dimensional but the list of people who are great across diverse disciplines is a rare list indeed. How many Arnold Schwarzeneggers exist in this world? Well, he’s a special case because he’s achieved greatness & the heights of success in 3 disciplines (it’s hard enough doing it in one!) I guess the real message/ lesson that Im getting from your video is that it is OK to have diversified interests and talk about them but isn’t it also true that at the core, you have to be an expert in 1 thing over & above every other thing and that is how you make your mark (set your brand) in this world? I was thinking that once you’ve achieved domain expertise in that 1 thing, nothing is preventing you from being pretty good @ other things, but that 1 core thing, that is what sets you apart and gets you a seat @ the table of greatness, no? Or perhaps I am missing the whole good vs great point…
April 8th, 2008 at 2:04 am
absolutely!
The sun doesn’t only shine in summer.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:05 am
Great message Gary I agree with you 100%
April 8th, 2008 at 2:07 am
[...] from garyvaynerchuk.com posted with vodpod [...]
April 8th, 2008 at 2:10 am
Great video Gary. People are missing the point that you need to be an expert in one thing, or if you’re knowledgeable in many things then you can’t be an expert in any of them. It’s not about being an expert, or being the best at many things. It’s about your passion and what you’re doing with your life.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:26 am
Great word, Gary! Thanks again. “People will always embrace real and authenticity.” Want that on a t-shirt.
April 8th, 2008 at 3:28 am
I’ll say one thing Gary, you certainly ‘have’ found out ‘The Meaning Of Life’.
AND you’re passing it around ‘undisguised’, great stuff.
Pete.
April 8th, 2008 at 3:55 am
Yes, you rated yet another blog post.
http://atechdiva.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/1-trick-ponies-i-don%e2%80%99t-think-so/
Had I not refused to be pigeonholed, I would still be uneducated, general labor in an Arkansas factory. Farming and factory work are all the people in my small rural community do. Instead, I’m a senior in college who plans to go on to grad school with hopes of becoming a university professor someday. Believing in myself,keeping it real, and allowing myself to be multidimensional is what got me here.
Kudos to You!
April 8th, 2008 at 4:55 am
Gary,
Although I like calling myself a Jack of All Trades, I like thinking that _everything_ I do makes me incrementally better in the field it’s in, and if the wisdom I’m learning is, well, more global, then it synergises and makes me (the Jack) incrementally better at what I’m doing.
Thankyou for continuing to inspire. Mucho kudos!
April 8th, 2008 at 9:09 am
Honestly, start up Cheese&TeaLibrary.tv the world needs it!
April 8th, 2008 at 9:18 am
As always, thanks for the great video! You have been an inspiration in my life to broaden my horizons and to start taking a positive and exciting look at life. I sincerely believe you are going to leave behind a great legacy. Your teachings on life, wine, cheese or whatever gives people like me a chance to learn about something new and to have something to look forward every day. I thank you so much for giving up time in your personal life to do these things for us all.
Oh, and I got the Santagaryvee gift on Saturday and will be uploading a photo to flicker today. I may have to whip up a video as well…
April 8th, 2008 at 9:19 am
I believe more people have to accept the breadth of people’s interests before people who market themselves in various ways will be accepted. In my own life that applies in my current job hunt.
I am graduating from Business school in 2 months and do not have a job. There are probably a number of reasons for this but I think the primary one is that I am viewed as unfocused. This is because I am interested in real estate, finance, investing (equity, real estate, hard assets), new media marketing, and strategy. I am more knowledgeable than almost all of my classmates in almost all of these areas yet because they all interest me I am scattered.
God Bless you Gary, for having an open mind.
April 8th, 2008 at 9:49 am
Ugh, this happens to me all the time. In the 90’s I was the video guy to all these people and now I’ve morphed into something else, but it always seems to only be one thing. I don’t think the problem is with me (those of use that are multi-faceted) so my question is, how do we change the mindset of those people who do the pigeon-holing? I haven’t found a great, good but not great, answer yet.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:25 am
A recent criticism of my company is that I don’t fit what is called the Iron Triangle. It is an economic theory that says that you have to provide one of three things to get business for a product or project. They are (1) quality (2) cost and (3) efficiency.
So if you don’t want to charge less you have to be a fast expert. Well, that is an issue with people and their perception of you. If you can do more than one thing well then the deductive argument is that you’re not an expert at anything and therefore you should be cheap and fast. I thought we would have tossed this idea say, back in renaissance Florence. Maybe we have our own renaissance coming?
What do you all think? Does having more than one thing that you do confuse people? Does it force you to provide cheap and fast goods? Remember, it matters what people think, even if they are wrong, because that is what they will make decisions by.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Yes, you taste wine, but you taste wine ON A SHOW ON THE INTERNET and it’s wine pulled off the shelf from your SUCCESSFUL WINE BUSINESS. It’s shortsighted for people to only see the wine part and not the method of delivery
and the source of the show itself.
There have been several really successful examples of transending the familiar pigeonhole - was Ronald Reagan the President of the United States or an actor? He was both.
This episode topic begs another 120 on the topic of how to successfully build your personal brand in two different segments of expertise. Should we have two blogs, two twitter accounts, etc. to appeal to the two different demographics or should we mix it up by exposing both parts of our expertise to all?
Kathleen Lisson
April 8th, 2008 at 11:45 am
Gary, great video!
There seems to be something in the air lately… a return of the Renaissance Soul. More and more I’m seeing people realize that they can be and do different things. For so many years (and generations) people did indeed pigeon hole themselves.
I think we all have so many years ahead of us, so much potential. We (society) use only 5% of what we’re truly capable of.
I’m nearly 40 and I still don’t know what I want to do when I grow up because I want to do it all!
Can’t wait to see what the 21st Century Human has in store.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
I actually don’t agree on your ‘authenticity’ and ‘real’ points, but I think that’s a matter of semantics more than actual disagreement.
I think pushing the idea of “authentic” and “real” lead to the kind of hipster snobbery that, say, WLTV strives to break down. By claiming that there’s an essential nature to an interest, action, or person– that is, that you can have an authentic self, or present an image that’s ‘real’– we construct a space where it’s POSSIBLE to be pigeonholed. Because if we act outside of what’s seen as our essential pigeonhole, we aren’t being our ‘real’ selves.
That said, I’m not sure what you’re talking about is necessarily related to authenticity at all. There’s a lot of identity theory out there, but if you haven’t read up on Judith Butler, I suggest you do– she’s the one who popularized the idea of gender (and by extension, identity in general) as ‘performative.’ That is, identity is -made real- by bearing said identity.
Thanks for sparking my thoughts on this, Gary. There’ll be another Theory Schmucks article on this point tonight. Keep up the good work!
April 8th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
I agree that the most interesting people are multi-dimensional/faceted, and one shouldn’t feel threatened if they choose to express these differing and or seemingly incompatible interests/talents. I do think you GV are clearly that way, and cheers to you! Please continue with the GV.com videos when you feel inspired. My faves were the DNA and the 80/20 videos. You are clearly the most real/transparent celebrity I can think of. Is ‘celebrity’ too tacky? ‘well-known personality’
ps: My daughter received her wristband - thanks! I nagged her (nicely) to send in a photo, but you know how teenagers are. I’ll post one in her stead.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
nice post! are you in the stairwell of the hotel or something? nice insights and very cool to hear about Jason’s B-Day
April 8th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Absolutely agree! Because it’s not only about trusting your own pallet and trying new things wine related, but it’s about trying new things period.
For example my mother cannot understand how I can listen to such different music, I mean I wanna hear what’s out there, not only what’s on TV (and BTW I don’t even have a TV).
I mean I could go on and on forever and ever with examples but I think I’ll stop there.
Keep up the good work!
Cheers!
April 8th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
WORD!
Just thought about this the last week.
On my blog I write about anything and everything that interest me and that I’m passionate about. When I first was deciding on a theme for my blog I initially wanted to go with only writing about eMarketing related stuff, but since I realised there is more to me than just an interest in media and marketing, I went all out.
Everybody should follow this advice.
April 8th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
AMEN. AMEN. AMEN. I can’t tell you how many times I got the same reaction when I left working in “supply chain” to create cool glass art. Turns out I’m also a pretty good cook…and I give great hugs, too! Where does this primieval fear of being multi-dimensional and authentic come from anyway?
Btw our interview is coming - as soon as I can get it uploaded to Viddler or Blip or whatever site that doesn’t give me “encoding error”, whatever that means….
Namaste,
B
April 8th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
Dude. You are awesome.
April 8th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
I think it depends on your branding strategy. Ben Franklin did pretty well with the ‘Eclectic Genius’ thing. For others, it might dilute one’s expertise in the event that the multiplicity doesn’t sparkle as brightly as one wishes it would.
April 8th, 2008 at 7:17 pm
You nailed it GV!!
April 8th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Wow, you’re so damn right buddy.
April 8th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
Gary.. all I can say is you nailed it. AUTHENTICITY!! people know it when they see it. We have all been around people that are selling you their one liner over and over again. YAWNNNN.. but when you can relate to people on variosu levels that relationship is sooo much more real. it is all about how can I conect with you?.. what are you about? how can I realate to you? By sharing those other aspects of oirselves we put ourselves out there for people to connect.
You are a Jets fan .. and so I am . it intrigues me..so that pulls me into giving you my attention as oposed to another wine expert. I love when I have an aquantice and I find out that they also have this other skill, passion, and gift. Sure it is great to pursue your given natural talent, but if you think that is all you are about you are soo sadly mistaken.
Thanks gary!!
mary beth
April 8th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
Gary, it’s funny that you did an episode on this topic today. I was thinking.. it would be awesome if you came out with a book on wine and cheese. Come on Gary V!
April 8th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
Gary, you are so very right on every level! Concerning you, and WLTV, it your multi-dimensionality and way of “keepin’ it real”, just as much as the real wine content, that keeps me coming back for me. Please don’t let any of the 1-trick pony nay-sayers bring you down! Keep it real, keep it passionate, and above all, KEEP IT COMING!
Nathan Nontell
April 8th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
sorry about the typos… sheesh… must be ME keepin’ it real!
April 8th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
hey, good points–all made from the stairwell of an NY walk-up! Cool. oh, and checked out 37 Signals–very cool. Writeboard looks awesome. Cheers.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
Gary, you kick ass. I honestly don’t know a single person I would call a one trick pony. Life would be pretty boring if each of us only had one thing to bring to the table.
Our unique combination passions and skills is what makes us who we are. It’s what makes us great. We should all strive to be polymaths and celebrate our talents.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:49 pm
Another good blog but I would like to make one point on your side note.
Good people dont finish last, nice people do. Good guys kill the bad guy in movies, thats not NICE is it. Good guys can also be ass holes to bad people. Nice guys dont have the guts. Thats why NICE guys finish last and the good guy always wins.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
You Rock!!
April 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
[...] As my last entry makes clear, I’m a huge fan of Gary Vaynerchuk. Over at his vlog, a recent episode focuses on pigeonholing and identity—in G.V.’s case, how strange people find it that he is a [...]
April 11th, 2008 at 8:02 am
Gary, you’re “spot on,” again. I like to see the good guys like you and Jason win also. Keep on keepin’ it real, dude.
You always give me something to THINK about and I like that!
Regards,
@DoxieDenDiva
April 14th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
So totally true…
Make stuff for the people and the people will love you if it comes from the heart
April 21st, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Well Sir I think it’s an interesting point. But I’m not quite sure about how you propose the interplay. For example, what happens in the case of James Gandolfini? How do you escape such dogma?
This reminds me of a recent episode of This American Life where they spoke of Jerry Springer and his attempts at going back into politics. Worth a listen!
http://thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?sched=1238
May 8th, 2008 at 9:48 am
[...] hide their multidimensional knowledge. They should talk about it. That will help in new social era.read more | digg [...]