Youtube “Gurus” Are Taking Over
I can't be the only one bombarded by never-ending finance bros with the single promise of making me a millionaire if I “just click below” or “above” or go to their website, like right now. We’ve all seen them, flashy suits, perched in or around some fancy sports cars (typically outside a mansion), or in an office highrise overlooking the ocean.
I, like most people my age, like to search for ways to improve myself, financially and otherwise. Unfortunately with the ever-growing precision with which companies or individuals can target us online, I have noticed a growing, highly annoying, and worrying trend happening everywhere. From Instagram to Twitter, to Clubhouse- but mostly on Youtube — the gurus have finally arrived to grace us with their abundant knowledge and are here to make us ALL millionaires. Thank god! Now to better understand this trend, I watched countless ads and videos by these “gurus” — and now my Youtube is forever corrupted. I hope you guys appreciate the sacrifice. With that said, I never bought any services or products from any of these people, so this is not coming from a “bitter customer”, but from an entrepreneur, who has worked hard for years - and is annoyed at this trend, and the folks behind it.
In early 2020, right around the time COVID hit, I had just shut down my startup that I had recently raised some capital for. COVID unfortunately just demolished us. So, just like most people, I started googling and going to Youtube to find some inspiration/ideas/information around and about avenues that I'm interested in pursuing.
Enter — the Youtube “Gurus”.
The sheer number of ads I was targeted with was relentless. Everything from dropshipping to Amazon FBA, sales, affiliate marketing, consulting, real estate, the stock market, Bitcoin, and even relationship gurus and fitness “gurus” you name it, I was getting ads for it. You know the format — “You too can make millions with these simple tools, with zero experience or ability or knowledge. No upfront costs, as long as you have a working credit card you too can be successful”.
The promises are always the same — the schtick, always the same.
“Are you tired of your boring, lifeless 9–5?”
“Earn 6 or 7 figures from the comfort of your laptop.”
“If you get access to our virtually untapped market using our proven method, you too can earn big bucks in no time. But, it's important you take action now! This offer won't be around for long!”
“No experience needed, my students are earning $10,000 a month within their first two months”.
“Do you want financial freedom? Invest in yourself, just sign up for the FREE online training, click below for my completely free e-book.”
The format has already been paved and cemented starting with Tai Lopez’s famous video of him in his garage, with his sports car, and his pride and joy — his library shelves. He is talking straight to you with a handheld video camera (or iPhone), keeping the video feel “low production” to elicit a feeling of authenticity. Since then, many have taken this format, pressed copy-paste, and voila — Youtube “Gurus” are as prevalent as chlamydia in the red light district. They all explain to you how they too were “sleeping on a couch 2 years ago with only $47 to their name” and “how using these 3 crucial things…” or “ these 5 important lessons” or “7 key takeaways” will subsequently, and inevitably, change your life starting right now!
Those that can't do, teach.
How many of these leeches have ever created a tangible market product or a multi-million dollar company? Probably None! They are in the business of selling you “valuable” information, as they call it (information they don't really possess) — and in the process keep you hooked so you enroll in more classes, buy more useless books, go to more seminars — all feeding their bottom line with YOUR hard-earned dollars. These people claim fake or exaggerated credentials, publish fake reviews, testimonials, and fake numerical charts with fake revenue. The ironic part is that through this dishonest process, they actually become high net worth individuals — through lying and deceiving people who just want to better themselves.
Some of the top snake oil peddlers are bringing in millions of dollars at the expense of, well, you! Tai Lopez, $50 Million; Dan Lok, $75 Million; Kevin David, $20 Million; Sam Ovens, $65 Million; Iman Gadzhi, $25 Million — to name a few. They are very wealthy. How rich they actually really are, however, is up for debate. Just like the information they dispense, the figures that they present are also probably exaggerated. They do, however, serve a purpose — to sell you the lifestyle which will, in turn, get more customers to buy-in. Their courses cost anywhere from $100 to $15,000 and span a few hours, a few days, or many months.
Now charlatans have always been around (think religion), but the scope and reach of today's charlatans are much wider. Money is our new religion, and someone promising you buckets of it is basically God. As humans we are drawn to magnetic personalities, we want to find a charismatic character that will lead us to the light. We have always had problems, and there have always been people that are more than happy to swoop in and fix any insecurity, doubt, loneliness, or emptiness we feel, and in the process, they make a buck or two or three.
Bentinho Massaro, Keith Raniere, Tony Robbins, Grant Cardone, or “annoying Youtube guy”, the idea is the same. Exploit vulnerable people, tap into their insecurities, promise them that the dream they are chasing is a swipe away, or even just a course away. Promise them enlightenment or assertiveness or confidence or spirituality and abundance. Promise to connect them to god, to a community, to themselves. Whatever it is they seek, tell them you have the answers, and discuss some generic problems that we all go through, in order to connect with them. If you actually listen to any of these ‘gurus’ speak, it's almost never with any actual, real, concrete advice. It’s usually a lot of unintelligible industry jargon, meaningless buzzwords, a lot of hyperbole, and purposefully being as generic as possible. Then, once in a while, they'll toss out one thing that is connected to reality, to show their “mastery of the craft” thus making it seem legit. It does not matter if it's financial or spiritual, the format is pretty much the same for all.
The harsh reality is that there are no secret formulas, there are no get-rich-quick schemes. Making hundreds of thousands (or millions) of dollars easily, or quickly, is a farce. It is a fable, a lie that is being sold to you at, well, your expense, and to your detriment. The reality is — growing an audience, a company, or a brand; or becoming a respected top dog in your field, takes time, hard work, and creativity. The fact that they are telling you that their system or method is a failsafe way, I repeat failsafe, to become financially independent should raise immediate red flags. Now sure are there some shortcuts to make money, of course, but those are for the most part not sustainable ways for economic prosperity.
Now, I don't have anything against getting rich, on the contrary, I like money, I want everyone to succeed financially, but these people are not your salvation.
Ask yourself this — have you ever seen any of their students riding around in the back of a Bentley or charting private jets, landing on their private Caribbean island, to be greeted by 7 Sports Illustrated models? No! And if they would, you can be sure the “gurus” would capitalize and market the shit out of their prodigies, and promote them everywhere. No, their “clients” make some money at best, and no money at worst - from these courses, seminars, and “masterclasses”. The main reason more people are not coming out against this fallacy is usually a sense of shame that these students are left with after “failing” these classes. There are a few stories out there of people committing suicide after cleaning their bank accounts, and more stories of people who lost a lot of money, with nothing to show for it. The crazy part is that many clients leave the courses thinking they didn't do a good job or commit enough, thus it did not work for them. It's the perfect psychological sting — promise them the world, and when ultimately they don't get it, make them think it's their fault. At the end of the day, the ONLY ones getting rich in this endeavor are the financial “gurus”, who amass fortunes built on people's naivety, desperation, or motivation to better themselves.
The truth is, and anybody that has ever build something will tell you the exact same thing, that making a lot of money over a long period of time, starting a company, selling a company, building a product or service that people want and will use — is hard work. It takes time and does not always work out.
I don't have the magic formula for success, and I know that's not the sexy answer people hope for. “I don't have the magic formula to make you a millionaire” is an e-book no one is buying, but the truth is no one (even multi-millionaires) possesses the magic formula that will make you, specifically you, successful. They have the secret sauce that worked for them, that does not mean it is relevant and will work for everyone.
So seek out mentors, there are a lot of benefits in working with a real mentor. They can help you with networking, thinking about an issue in a different way, bouncing ideas around, teaching you the nuts and bolts of a particular industry— with a lot. Just choose wisely who you follow. Naval Ravikant is a great example, all of his content is free, he is not trying to sell you anything, he is proven in his industry, he is admired by his peers. Seek these kinds of people, do your research on who you give your most precious commodity to — your time.
