TWELVE AND A HALF

For decades, leaders have relied on “hard” skills to make smart decisions, while dismissing the importance of emotional intelligence. Soft skills like self-awareness and curiosity aren’t quantifiable; they can’t be measured on a spreadsheet and aren’t taught in B-schools or emphasized in institutions. We’ve been taught that emotional intelligence is a “nice to have” in business, not a requirement. But soft skills can actually accelerate business success, Gary Vaynerchuk argues. For analytical minds, it’s challenging to understand how to get “better” at being self-aware, curious, or empathetic—or even why it’s important to try. In this wise and practical book, Gary explores the 12 human ingredients that have led to his success and happiness and provides exercises to help you develop these traits yourself. He also shares what the “half” is—that emotional ingredient of leadership he’s weakest at and makes the most effort to improve. Working through the ideas and exercises in the book, he teaches you how to discover your own “halves” and provides insight on how to strengthen them. Gary’s secret to success is using these twelve traits in varying mixtures, depending on the situation. But how do we know when to balance patience with ambition? Humility with conviction? Gary provides real-life examples involving common business scenarios to show you how to use them together for optimum results. This iconoclastic book will help you refine your ingredients and improve your leadership capabilities. When implemented in the proper situation, these ingredients can help leaders land promotions, retain core employees, move faster than competitors, win the loyalty of customers, and build successful organizations that last.

From the Back Cover

FROM GARY VAYNERCHUK

"I think of business as an art. I think it can be as beautiful as a symphony or a painting when executed properly.

For it to ever have that place in society, we must realize how the twelve and a half emotional ingredients in this book can be the catalysts for success in business."

1 GRATITUED

2 SELF-AWARENESS 

3 ACCOUNATBILITY 

4 OPTIMISM 

5 EMPATHY

6 KINDNESS 

7 TENACITY

8 CURIOSITY

9 PATIENCE

10 CONVICTION 

11 HUMILITY

12 AMBITON 

MY HALF: KIND CANDOR

About the Author

GARY VAYNERCHUK: