Have you ever been to The Next Web Conference in Amsterdam? The event organized by Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten is unique in the Netherlands. Nearly 20.000 internet lovers gather annually in a festival-like setting in the Westergasfabriek to gain inspiration in the field of technology, innovation and the internet. This year it was exciting again. The lecture that has stuck with us the most is without a doubt that of Gary Vaynerchuck, a living legend in the field of personal branding. We would like to share his unique view on the field with you.

We've gone crazy

Gary is the textbook example of a personal brand. With his great presentation skills and his wonderful story, he will captivate every room. He is a living legend, especially within the social media community. With the help of the Internet, Vaynerchuck managed to grow his family's wine company from 6 to 3 million within 60 years. He did this, among other things, with the world-famous blog Winelibrary. He is now the owner of VaynerMedia, a digital agency in America.

The main point that Gary wants to make during his inspiring keynote is that we have gone too far in our desire for profile and money. Numerous consultants, entrepreneurs, specialists and startups devote themselves wholeheartedly to their own online profiling. That in itself is of course very good, but they often do it without having proven themselves in practice first. Everyone seems to be one these days guru to want to be, whether appropriate or inappropriate. Profiling yourself online should be a consequence of proven success, not the other way around. New entrepreneurs and startups also have to scratch their heads. They focus far too quickly on accumulating capital and investments. Nowadays, personal branding and entrepreneurship often seem more like a play than hard work.

First prove, then profile

So we've gone crazy according to Vaynerchuck. Entrepreneurship is hard work. He says he didn't look at personal branding at all for the first 15 years of his career. He put all his time into working hard and expanding his company. He is now reaping the benefits of that. In short, start working hard and chasing your dream. Don't immediately think about money and profiling yourself as a specialist. First make sure you have proven yourself in your profession, otherwise you will sooner or later fail. Personal branding is important, but meaningless without the burden of proof.

Giving and renewing

When you have reached the point where you feel that you have sufficiently proven your skills and you can start thinking about your profiling, then it is time to get started with personal branding via social media. Blogs, vlogs, webinars, podcasts, you name it, it's possible. Gary has two tips for entrepreneurs and professionals:

1. Giving without expectations

We live in a society where we assume that everything we do must result in a response. When we give something, we want something in return. Do you want to become a strong personal brand? Then throw that thought overboard! Share your knowledge, give lectures and advise your relations, without expecting anything in return. Only then will you really build goodwill and trust.

2. Dive into every new development, but not like a headless chicken

Every day there is a new network or tool online that you can try. Try them, but not without thinking about it. Gary has tried tools many times that did not work out, but he has learned a lot from them. You don't have to immediately adopt every new tool or social network, it's best to wait a while. But, make sure you're ahead of the crowd so you can build up an advantage.

Would you like to watch Gary's entire keynote again? Then you can here see the recording.