Pay The Price

     How many times have you heard this phrase? "Pay the price.... to live life nice". If your in an MLM I'd imagine you heard this your first meeting! While I concede the fact that anything worth doing requires effort (see how I threw another cliche in there for you), it does matter what you spend your time doing. I heard Chris Brady of TEAM say many times "What are you busy about?". If you are spending all your time chasing the dream in an MLM like TEAM.....take it from someone who's been there and done that..... your time can be "invested" elsewhere!

     After being hand dipped in the "system" for years, let's examine some of the choices I made to "pay the price". I was told that Tuesday night open meetings and monthly seminars were "can't miss" events. Unless of course you weren't a Leader, and didn't want to qualify for the "Power Player" program. So no matter what.....I was there! The only Tuesday open the TEAM ever cancelled was the one between Christmas and New Years... That's it. 51 weeks of the year, every Tuesday, my butt was in a seat. I missed Christmas concerts for my kids, school plays, parent teacher nights, family gatherings, weddings, nights out with friends who eventually stopped asking, and on and on. Oh I paid the price alright! But I was "fired up"......"doing what it takes"....."leading by example"....."digging depth"! WRONG. What I was doing was messing up my priorities.....ignoring the people who loved me the most....disappointing my kids.....SPENDING my time in all the wrong places. Sound familiar Ex-Teamers?

     So what is the price I paid in the end (remember....begin with the end in mind LOL)? Well post MLM  can be a lonely place. Most of my true friends stopped calling years ago. Tired of hearing no from me and afraid I would throw the "Plan" on them if they got too close....again. I seriously have to remind my extended family to tell me about family gatherings and the like, because they are used to me not coming anyway! My TEAM "Friends", were nothing more than people I saw on a weekly basis... who discarded me when I no longer was willing to chase the dream with them. The truth is I disappointed a lot of people, and have a long hill to climb to regain their trust and respect...if I can. However....I AM willing to pay the price to achieve THAT goal.

The Truth About TEAM

     I've been reading a lot of interesting comments on the Amthrax blog regarding TEAM and Orrin Woodward lately. I was not surprised by most of the comments on this blog, however what I was surprised about was who was making these comments! There are people speaking out on TEAM who used to be in the "inner circle" so to speak. We're talking Round Table members, Turbo 100's, and many others. These are people who like myself spent YEARS of their life chasing a LIE! While I can say I didn't reach the levels that some of these people did, I did see a lot of the same stuff. It comes back ultimately to one of my previous posts "It's Not Your Business". These folks who were running the roads, showing the plan, doing all the "right things", attending every swinging seminar, open meetings, full system.... and on and on.... had their "businesses" taken away by their uplines because they didn't see eye to eye on different points. Oh but don't worry...I'm sure it could never happen to you. I remember my upline trying to explain away a major leader leaving the TEAM, and heard him put the couple down to others! This was for YEARS a good "friend" of his.....supposedly. You see the leaders on the TEAM are only your "friend" as long as you are useful to them. When you stop towing the company line..... they will replace you in a minute. What ever you do.... don't think for yourself!! That is a dangerous concept on TEAM. "Do what the leaders do" you'll hear them say! What you won't hear them say is the rest of the sentence........"Or Else"!!!

A Critic Of A Critic?

So I've had to start moderating the comments on my Blog because of one person....the world "Famous" Tex. What I don't understand is with a business model so broken, and so many things to talk about, why he deems it necessary to attack anybody who doesn't see things 100% his way. He's so blinded by his hate of the tool issue, that he refuses to acknowledge anything else. The tool issue is a problem for sure, but that is only a piece of the puzzle. There are too many problems with this business to just sit down and write about in one post. Proof of this is a quick search of the web and looking at the various blogs about Amway, Monavie, and the like. You'll note Tex..... that they have more than one entry. It's not all about the tools. Instead of gaining allies however, Tex is acting like a wounded animal caught in a leg trap. Anybody who gets within a certain radius of him is going to get bit! Even if your on the same team and trying to help!

I didn't start this Blog to have a personal war with anybody. I started it because I.... like so many others, have had personal experiences in the Amway, Monavie, businesses that I feel could help others make informed decisions about their involvement. As for you Tex....you don't have to follow my "Lame" Blog any further! You can go back to your mom's basement to head up the command centre! No matter how much evidence you compile in your mission to end the tool scam... YOU will never win because I can only imagine the gong show you would be in a court of law! Somebody else may be successful in this.....it just won't be YOU.

Anybody Can Do This?

Every "Open Meeting" I ever attended I heard this statement as a selling point. Anybody can do this. The fact is......No.....they can't. Are you kidding me!? Do you have any idea what it takes to build an Amway business? Well before you go to bed tonight with dreams of financial freedom, and fancy cars dancing through your head, consider these points.

The time commitment. I was always told that it was flexible, and you could build it around your existing schedule. Unless your thinking of missing an open meeting that is! That's right....every Tuesday for LIFE. Open meetings ran at least 2 hours, maybe more if the speaker droned on longer. No big deal you say? It's like having a sports commitment or something similar you say? Alright, did I mention the monthly seminars? That's one Saturday a month and is the better part of the afternoon and evening that day. Oh did I mention that you haven't shown this to one person yet! Now add in 15 showings or "plans" a month at an hour a piece (I've been to plans that were way longer than that). Did I mention you have to get back together with these people for follow through appointments? At least another 15 hours of work there. Plus all the driving time, extra meetings with your "Team", helping your new people get started, contacting sessions with your group, attending house meetings.....should I go on? Do the math. You think your going to rocket yourself to financial freedom with a couple hours a week do ya? Wake up! Truth is most people get involved at the chance to get their time back! Does this sound like getting your time back? Oh, and by the way.....this NEVER ENDS! Sorry...were you told you could just "Walk away" from your "business" when it got big enough? LIE! Can you imagine how fast your group would collapse if you said "you know....I think I've built this big enough...I'm going to live the big life now" and left! Who would they be able to point to as a "Success"? Oh no....your not going anywhere! It's like the Hotel California.... you can check out any time you like....but you can never leave!

The financial commitment. Seriously. If you build it like the "Leaders" tell you. The amount of money you will spend is astounding! Remember those weekly open meetings? $5 per meeting. Monthly Seminar $30-$35 per seminar. Products on hand....the sky is the limit, but you will for sure have something on hand for people to try. In Amway it was XS energy drinks at $2.50 a can and some protein bars! With Monavie it was $35 bottles of Juice! THEN there is all the promotional items. Audio CD's, books, pamphlets, etc. Also known as "Tools". This will be a future post on it own (I know you can hardly wait Tex). Let's just say that this will be your largest financial investment by far! Sound easy so far? Sound like "Anybody Can Do This"? Really? That single mom with two kids? That high school drop out working at McDonald's? That single income family living pay check to pay check? No chance. All the supporters will point to the very few that have made money, and their personal stories of success. Well after 6 years of building.... and people were still pointing to the same folks they were on day one as examples of success....clearly not "Anybody Can Do This"!!  

What About The Prices?

Sorry to all three of my readers out there! I was away for  a couple of weeks because of work. It did get me thinking though. I do travel from time to time because of my job, and get to see different parts of the country. While I'm away from home I always like to see the difference in product prices compared to what I pay at home. Is it cheaper, more expensive, or about the same? Just something I tend to do. Don't tell me you've never done the same!

Which brings me to the title of this post...."What About The Prices?". The question of doom during my Amway experience. It was a fair question, and in fact, one I had asked myself! However when I actually found out the price of the products I almost died! I was quickly subdued by my upline who went on to tell me "All business owners buy from them self", and "as your business gets bigger, you'll get a better discounted price". I hate to break the bad news to you, but even at a 25% discount (which I did achieve), overpriced is still overpriced! So how do you overcome this objection? I was taught to not even bring the catalogue along until the third or forth meeting! Yeah....that's being proud of your company! I was also taught that if they weren't interested in the business aspect, you could convert them to a customer. Good luck with that! The most common answer I got to that was "So...I would buy these products at twice the price of what I could get them from at Wal-Mart.....because......???" Ah.....because I'm a nice guy, and could use the money?! No....ok....I'll leave now. All you pro Amway people out there, I'm sure will say that I didn't educate them on the products enough, and that they save the environment....save the animals... and save the world! Whatever. I hate to tell you this but....John Q Citizen doesn't care! He wants to pay less and get more! I've never had someone tell me their life changed because they used Amway toilet paper!

So as much as your upline will tell you "It's not about the products" (anybody heard that one before?), then it begs the question.... what is it really about then?

The Post You've Read Before!

This post is for anyone that is thinking of getting involved in an MLM, and is doing some research on line. Which by the way, I wish I had done more of during my time. However I was always told that "negative brings you down", and that "the internet is the worlds largest bathroom wall". While some of that is true, how can you truly assess anything without looking at all sides? Once you do that, wouldn't common sense and reason dictate what the right choice would be? Why would anybody who believes in what they do, try to limit your information before making a choice? Chew on that one for awhile.....

If you have been searching on line, then you've read this post before.... or at least a similar version somewhere else. Please..keep track of your out going, and incoming (or lack there of) expenses! I know your excited! I know you have met some people who are "Living the dream" or have "Fruit on the tree". I know you feel this could be your chance......I know. I simply encourage you to keep track of your numbers, like any real business would. If your already involved in MLM... this will probably fall on deaf ears... it did for me. When I was involved I thought " I know I have to invest in my own business, and I can write off my expenses" and "Most business don't make money in the first few years anyway". Sound familiar? I just encourage you to keep track of your money! A guy I built my business with for over 4 years just came over to visit during the Christmas holidays. It's really the first time we've sat down and talked since we both left. Now keep in mind, this was my right hand man during my building days. He was easily the most successful person in my Line of Sponsorship...by far, and I had HUNDREDS of people on my team. He told me when he quit, he had a $14,000 line of credit to pay off, and $8,000 on his credit card! Just a personal example of what can happen when you are "chasing the dream". I beg of you.... watch where your money is going! Pay attention to your bottom line, you don't have to be an accountant.... out going versus in coming. The money never lies. My upline told me once " Money runs away from poor thinking"....... I couldn't agree more.

It's NOT Your Business!

One thing your going to hear at any MLM meeting is "it's your business". They'll go on in great detail trying to convince you that you'll be the boss, work when you want, live your priorities... not your obligations... and on, and on. Nothing could be further from the truth! Here are a few points to consider:


1) The companies I was involved with (Amway / Monavie) preached 8-10 hours a week to build "your" business. Look, if you were just retailing product and nothing else, sure.... you could put in whatever amount of time you wanted. For the record, this is probably your best bet to be your own boss, however you'll still be a slave to your customers because if you think all of them will be on an autoship, and you won't be the middle man...your wrong! They'll show up at your house, call you on the phone, wanting you to order for them, or sell them some of your product....because.... you will have product. So if this sounds great, by all means, fill your basement and sell away my friend! However, this is not what they want! They want you to become a "Leader"! What is a Leader? I could spend an entire post on that alone... and probably will at a later date. Let's just say, that a Leader laughs at 8-10 hours a week. Who's looking for an extra job...anyone?


2) You don't OWN....anything! As an Independent Business Owner "IBO" wouldn't you think you actually own something? Oh...but it's an internet based business, they'll tell you! Why would you want the stress and financial hardship that goes with owning a "brick and mortar" store, they'll say! Ah.... because then the decisions are yours! You ARE the boss. In most MLM's ... you are a slave to whatever company's products you represent.....and their rules of conduct!


3) Which brings me to point #3! The rules of conduct. It's "Your" Business right? You want to run your business with honesty and integrity right? Well you can force yourself to do the right things....but what about others? What's that they say? A Leader...shouldn't force anybody to do anything? Your example of doing the right thing should be a shining light for others to follow! I challenge you right now to think of the most offensive person in your life....and imagine that they...were in business with you right now! I know what your thinking, "I would never allow someone like that to join my business with me". That's fine. Yes, you pick and choose who you sponsor, but what about after that? Stay in long enough, and I'll tell you... there will be people in your group that you could never have imagined! Some of them will do the craziest things! Even....break the rules of conduct! Now "Your" business is on the line! 


So... quick review. It's "Your" business, but you don't get to pick your hours, you own nothing, and your business can be destroyed by your downline, or taken from you by the company who's products your moving. If this sounds like "Your" business....Welcome to the world of MLM.