I had the pleasure of talking with Gary Vaynerchuk last week about his new book “Crush It! Why NOW Is The Time To Cash In On Your Passion.” I received a copy of the book a couple of days before and was able to read through it in short order (about 2.5 hours). I highly recommend you get a copy. Below is the video I put together for your viewing pleasure (with the help of Brian Matson, Mr. FargoMoorhead).

The biggest takeaway from the book and talking with Gary was the focus on branding and how to pursue branding to the ends of the earth. In the end, everyone has their own brand and if you aren’t managing and interacting with others, your brand will be determined for you. So as Gary would say, jump in the trenches and get dirty.

All of this brand management and social interaction comes at a great cost of time and participation. It doesn’t take a lot of money or talent to set up a Twitter account and start talking to people. But the currency of the day is sweat, not dollar according to Gary. The more you spend doing what you love and building your relationships with others, the more successful you’ll be. The reality is this works for everyone and everything. That is why Gary’s message is priceless. Here is the video he references in the interview, The 80/20 Business Rule.

I mentioned the other day on Aylln Hane’s Video Blog that it really boils down to what you want, your goal. Without knowing your end goal or desire it doesn’t matter who you get your information from: Vic, Griz, Problogger, Gary Vaynerchuk, Seth Godin, Warren Buffett or whoever. You have to know what your goal is, find the person who best fits your personality and style to model, then spend every waking moment (minus family and work) pursuing that goal. And guess what? You’ll reach it.

Reading Gary’s book “Crush It!” is one way to help you reach your goal. I said before I highly recommend you pick up a copy and get fired up. This book with help you tremendously in organizing and prioritizing your work to reach your goal the Gary Vaynerchuk way. If you don’t want to go the same route as Gary to reach your goal(s) then use the book as inspiration to get fired up about your goal and dominating everyone else in your niche.

I give the book two thumbs up and will reference and recommend it to just about everyone. It’s your choice in how you pull information from the book and apply it to your life. For $13 or so, it is more inspirational and packed with solid info than any other e-book. Most of the information presented in the book can be found on GaryVaynerchuk.com and if you started at the very first post you’ll gain a lot and save the $13 and reading time. Knock yourself out and Crush It in one way or another!

I would never advocate you try to become and do something that you are not. But if you’re so excited about your goal or a subject that you can’t sleep and want to connect to every single person on earth about it, Gary and Crush It has the formula for you. Care more about everyone you come across in life and business and you’ll win.

On the 8th of Oct. I will be interviewing Gary Vaynerchuk for your pleasure and mine. I look forward to hearing what Gary has to say and want to hear your questions. Use me as your proxy to ask Gary whatever comes to mind in the amount of time I have with him.

This is your chance to ask all of the burning questions you might have like @lanejoplin question of: when will Gary play her in UNO. But seriously, drop your questions in the comment section between now and thee 8th and I will do my best to ask Gary for you.

If you want to get a copy of Gary’s new book Crush It just follow the link. Here are his sites (garyvaynerchuk.com and tv.winelibrary.com) and where you can go to leave your comment / questions for Gary.

This week I interviewed Michael Marcil, the founder and CEO of The Marcil Group, based in Fargo, ND. The Marcil Group is primarily centered around the management of commercial and rental property in and around North Dakota. Other areas of involvement include construction, technology, capital investment, venture capital, restaurants and philanthropy.

I actually had about 20 some questions drawn up that I really thought would lead the interview. How wrong I was. I only asked a couple from memory, and the rest of the conversation took on a natural course of its own. Michael Marcil was recently named a winner of The Forum’s 20 under 40 award (local newspaper). A diverse panel gave the award out to recipients chosen as those who are making a difference in the Fargo community.

A majority of my conversation with Michael was focused on the unbelievably bright economic future North Dakota has and how that will transform the state’s citizens. In a time of uncertainty for the U.S. economy with the sub-prime housing mess and skyrocketing commodities such as oil and wheat, the only downside for North Dakota is its chilly winters. Just about everything else in the state will benefit greatly due to the rise in oil and food prices. Michael shared his love for all the different types of energy our state has the potential to produce and pictures North Dakota becoming the “Dubai of North America.” In case you didn’t know, North Dakota is very rich in agriculture, coal, oil and wind. Michael Marcil spent roughly 10 years in the dot com industry with his hand in a few projects like food.com and many, many more. Through consulting, he built up his management and development company extremely fast. So fast, that The Marcil Group has grown over 800% in three years. Not only that, but the company has been in positive cash flow every quarter since inception. It takes a man with a grand vision to grow and expand a company that fast. I have no reason to believe there is any slowing down in his future. The sky is the limit.

I have never before met someone who has openly endorsed the idea of promoting their competitors. I know this seems very counterproductive, but there is a genius behind it that most will fail to realize. Imagine that you own and operate a business in a town that is bursting at the seems. If you can garner some business even for your competitors, eventually you are able to leverage that flow of traffic to further your reach in that market. Essentially, you are making your competitors reliant upon your business more and more. Now that’s some unconventional marketing.

I enjoyed my time with Michael, and I can’t wait to see what he does in the future.