What’s the ROI of Your Mother? 

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0:36She was like, but what's the ROI of social media? And I'm giving her my best stuff. For example, if you want some best stuff, go look at what your engagement rate is on your Facebook page. You have a certain amount of fans and then you have a post. Go look at the number. Is it.01? Is it.02? It doesn't matter how many fans and Twitter followers you have. It's how many of them are going to buy something and give a fuck. So she's drilling me and I'm giving her some really good metrics, at least for a 2011 world, and she's pushing, and I know why. She works in a conservative company, and the more conservative she comes across, the more likely she'll be the CEO.

1:08I get it. I'm fine. But she's pushing and pushing, and finally I look at her and I go, she's like, but Gary, what's the ROI? And I'm like, she's like, but what's the real ROI of social media? And I'm doing my normal thing, like, can you give me the ROI of television and print? Because I love that you spend a shitload of money on Vogue, and you're buying the subscription, but can you guarantee me that somebody's looking at the ad on page 139? because you can't. And I'm giving her everything I've got and she's still punching me directly in the throat. So I had to pull it out. She goes, what's the ROI of social media?

1:37What's the ROI of social media? So I look at her and go, what's the ROI of your mother? This is the Gary Vee Audio Experience. She said, excuse me. I said, uh-oh. I said, I have no interest in making a mother joke and I'm not making fun of you. But let me explain one thing to you. The ROI of my mother is everything. The reason I'm going to buy a multi-billion dollar sports franchise is because of my mother. My mother, the way she parented me, which oh by the way is perfectly, is the reason I have the ability, the confidence, and absolute wherewithal to execute the businesses that I'm building.

2:17However, my friends at Inc. 500, I cannot come to you with slides and put them on those screens and say, over here, click, in sixth grade when I got a mullet, You know, and my mom said I was gorgeous and beautiful and I could do anything. Well, that was building self-esteem. And so what I did with that on the next slide is you'll see here, I sold a couple more cases of wine in 1994 because of that self-esteem, which led to this. And now I can't show you. I can't show you in data the ROI of my mother. But I promise you, it's all of it. Some follow the noise. Bloomberg follows the money. because behind every headline is a bottom line.

2:59Whether it's the funds fueling AI or crypto's trillion dollar swings, there's a money side to every story. And when you see the money side, you understand what others miss. Get the money side of the story. Subscribe now at Bloomberg.com.

3:25Your mom, what's the first memory you have with her? Do you remember how old you were? Was it in Queens? I think my first memory was when I poured hot tea on myself. A story I haven't told much in my life. I poured hot tea on myself when I was three, when we first came to America, and burnt my skin, and went to the hospital. In Regal Park. in Regal Park and spent two days there or one day or three days. Luckily, no scarring, but could have been really nasty. I think that's really kind of my first memory. And she was there. Of course, every second. Yeah, of course. But that's like where my memories start to begin.

4:13I would say that. It's like when I think about living, I remember my grandpa, my great-grandpa quite a bit during that time when we lived in Queens. But yes, I remember that incident quite a bit. Was it then or at what point did you really start to feel that her, you talked about her unconditional love, when did that really have it for you? Oh, probably in my late teens and 20s. You know, when you really understood it, right? Like, you're just living as a child, you know. But I was incredibly close to my mom. Like, there's really funny stories of, like, my aunt trying to watch me when I was, like, two after my mom was literally with me every second of my life and me losing my fucking mind.

4:57Like would not leave the window until she got home. Just looked outside. I was like, when's my, like we're incredibly close and like very attached to each other. I was very attached to my mom. It was like, spent every second with her. When you made a mistake as a kid or failed or did something wrong. Yes. You've said that she was really good at balancing the warmth with sternness, whether it was grounding for the grades, right? Well, I think when I was doing something wrong, there was not that much warmth with it. She was good that every minute was warmth. I mean, even you two have been here for a second and definitely trained, who's been here for a few minutes.

5:43Like, you guys see when I'm like upset or something bad happens. I'm like I don't explode and make it nasty I get my point across but it's like it's almost like you're more upset because you let me down than you're scared of me I think I took that from her you know though I mean when I really pushed her buttons she could get there what did you come to understand as an adult that maybe you didn't as a kid that she did for you and your whole family? What sacrifices did she make that you maybe didn't understand until you left home for school or you started developing her? I'm sorry? What are some things that you didn't realize she did as far as sacrifices for you and your family until you got older?

6:41The reality is that I always knew the sacrifices. Immigrant kids know sacrifices more more than not immigrant kids. I think it's in the culture. Like also immigrant parents talk about sacrificing more than American parents. They're like, I sacrificed everything. You know, you know, you know. Awesome, thank you.