Let me state something right off the bat — I LOVE Gary Vaynerchuk. A little secret of mine — when I want to get pumped up for the day or I'm feeling down, I pop in Gary's 'Crush It' audiobook. His enthusiasm, energy, and ideas blow me away every time.

I just finished my publisher's preview copy of The Thank You Economy (due to be released on Tuesday, March 8th). Once again, Gary not only hits a home run — it's a grand slam.

Gary has delivered another opus of energy, bundled with a myriad of proven business tips on how to interact with our customers. The explosive growth of social media is quickly delivering unprecedented power and breadth to everyone's customer base. No longer can you treat anyone badly — you need to integrate specific inter-personal behaviors into all parts of your company.

But it's just not your customers — it's your employees, your partners, distributors - everyone. I consistently speak and write about the "shark mentality" in business — take no prisoners, no one counts unless it's you, run over everyone to make more money.

Gary's philosophy is at the exact opposite end of the spectrum:

Caring is the key word here — be self-aware (EQ), commit to change, invest in your employees, be authentic (I've been saying this for years) and empower your people.
Let your client help you develop, guide, and modify your brand. They are an integral part to the entire process.
Community is critical — get the conversation going and flowing.
My favorite — If you're small, play like you're big; if you're big, play like you're small.

It's the humanization of business.

Great words from a 21st century sage. I hope to someday meet or speak with Gary — I think he and I would hit it off quite well. Gary transcends the typical, boring, stale business book (as I've always said, 98% of them suck). His genius integrates great ideas with the energy of the sun — you just want to run out and execute all of his ideas immediately.

So go out — nay . . . run out — and get this book, or kindle download, or audiobook (my favorite). You will thank me.

What are your thoughts about Gary Vee? Do you love him as much as I do?