Network Marketing Journey

Back in 1933, Paul Harvey began is career on the radio, while he was still in high school. Over the years he reached out to many an American and then in 1976, just a year after I was born, he began telling a series of stories titled The Rest of the Story. These stories are what I grew up listening to in a small farm community in rural Minnesota. Now, years later his stories can still be heard and I’d like to take a moment to share a story that has been told many many times. And then provide the rest of the story which is commonly left out.

The other day I was talking to a friend, who is involved in an opportunity other than my own. He was detailing the conversation that he recently had with a gentleman he signed up.

The conversation with this new recruit consisted of my friend spilling the beans about everything. The company. The opportunity. The benefits from product use. Being your own boss. And best of all the dream of making millions.

After a hype intensive conversation the prospect decides that he’s going to sign up. Obviously, at this point my friend is excited and goes through the process of getting him signed up. A few days pass before they connect again and the ball drops. Within a few short minutes of this first discussion as partners in a team, the new recruit asks the million dollar question. Literally. So when do I start making $50 dollars an hour?

This gentleman expected to sign up, and all of the sudden the money would generate itself. I like to refer to this as the lottery mentality.

Sadly, it is my friend who dropped the ball in this case. He’s caught up in the idea of just signing people up regardless of their mindset or whether they understand the costs involved. The truth is that Network Marketing isn’t the lottery and there is no free lunch. When you sign up as a rep within a company you are starting a business. Unless you treat it with respect and make it clear to your prospects that they are doing the same, you’ll find that they will dropout faster then you can sign them up.

The rest of the story is this: There are costs to owning a business, and that means your Network Marketing business as well.

There are many things to consider but 4 of the big ones that come to mind are time, money, self-esteem, and the fact that there is no guarantee.

• It takes time and also effort to build a business.

• Building a business costs money. Without investing in yourself and also in the business you aren’t creating a foundation to build upon.

• Your self esteem can become bruised and battered as you discover that not all people will react the way you hope.

• There is always risk involved in starting a business. And there is no guarantee saying everyone can succeed. In fact, there is a overwhelming rate of failure.

Everything has a cost and requires effort. Be sure to tell them the whole story.

If you communicate they will respect you more for it and in turn you will have an enrollee that sees the big picture.

(If you are thinking of signing up, regardless of which company has been presented to you, be sure that you understand these costs and any others that may exist for you)

As Paul Harvey would say, “And now, you know the rest of the story.”

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