I’m going to share a little story Stephen R. Covey used to get this point across in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People…

“Two battleships assigned to the training squadron had been at sea on maneuvers in heavy weather for several days. I was serving on the lead battleship and was on watch on the bridge as night fell. The visibility was poor with patchy fog, so the captain remained on the bridge keeping eye on all activities.

“Shortly after dark, the lookout on the wing of the bridge reported, ‘Light, bearing on the starboard bow.’

” ‘Is it steady, captain,’ which meant we were on a dangerous collision course with that ship.

“The captain then called to the signalman, ‘Signal that ship: We are on a collision course, advise you change course 20 degrees.’

“Back came a signal, ‘Advisable for you to change course 20 degrees.’

” The captain said, ‘Send, I’m a captain, change course 20 degrees.’

” ‘I’m a seaman second class,’ came the reply. “You had better change course 20 degrees.’

“By that time, the captain was furious. He spat out, ‘Send, I’m a battleship. Change course 20 degrees.’

“Back came the flashing light, ‘I’m a lighthouse.’

“We changed course.”

Covey compares our Principles to Lighthouses….like in the story.

He has also compared our Paradigms to maps. So, our Principles are the territory.

See the difference?

Principles are NOT practices and they are NOT values.
“Principles ARE deep, fundamental truths that have universal application.”
“Principles ARE guidelines for human conduct that are proven to have enduring, permanent value.”

Examples of Principles Covey gives are…

• Fairness
• Integrity
• Honesty
• Human Dignity
• Service
• Quality or Excellence
• Potential
• Growth
• Patience
• Nurturance
• Encouragement
  

At the end of this section, Covey states that the more closely our paradigms (maps, theory, perception, assumtion, frame of reference) are aligned with our principles (natural laws, fundamental truths), the more accurate and functional our paradigms will be.

Believe in Your Success, I Do!
Karen

There is always a lot of hype about the big money that can be made in MLM.

Presentations showcase income potentials by creating examples of checks that “could” be earned.  They usually have very high $ amounts that get the prospect starry-eyed.

Some examples take a sampling of a downline’s highest monthly earnings and combine them into one hypothetical month. 

Another example is to show a possible 4 or 5 level downline with 2 or 3 superstar builders.

Then the potential commission that could be earned by You, the potential upline sponsor, is shown.

The problem with these kinds of examples is that they do not accurately represent reality for the average person who joins an MLM.

Very few distributors ever create a lucrative downline with a handful of superstar builders, or distributors who make top commissions every month.

Additionally, no one ever mentions to the new prospect that to make a consistent 5 figure income takes several years of dedicated work.

A more accurate example of earning potential is to answer the 10K question. 

How many people (distributors and retail customers) does a distributor need in his/her downline to make $10,000 a month in residual income?

Residual income does not count one time bonuses or superstar 1% payouts.  
Residual income is only the commissions paid on group volume from product sales.

The 10K question also gets prospects starry-eyed since so few people can actually envision making that kind of monthly recurring income.

The demonstration that needs to be made to answer a more realistic question is to show how to make new distributors financially successful in the first 2 –3 months.

Most new distributors walk away from their MLM business because there is no financial reward.

A pay plan has to be structured so a new person working part time can start making a few hundred dollars a month within the first couple of months.

My fellow mentors, Bob and Anna Bassett        , have called this the Half-K Question.

Their example asks how much money will a distributor make if he/she generates $500 a month in sales.

This could mean having one distributor in the downline and a handful of retail customers.

Find the commission the company pays for volume.  It could be 5%, 10%, or up to 40%. 

Commissions are figured counting volume points, but the percentage is paid on the dollar amount of sales.

If the commission is 5%, then multiply 500 by .05 to get your commission $ amount of $25.

A commission of 10% on $500 is $50.

A commission of 20% on $500 is $100.

This isn’t going to buy anybody a yacht just yet.  But it does give a prospect a realistic idea of how hard he/she has to work to make a hundred bucks.

The first $100 is just the first step to achieving the $10,000 a month income.  The next $100 is the next step and so on.

Know your compensation pay plan so you can figure out the Half-K Question.

Know how you will make your first $100 and know how easy or hard it will be for the people you sponsor into the business to make their first $100.

If you need help figuring it out, just ask!

Believe In Your Success, I Do!
Karen
mentor.karen.j.miller@gmail.com

An important part of your business success includes personal development.

One of the books I have enjoyed immensely is The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey. 

The great thing about investing your time into personal development is that it impacts your entire life, not just your business.

Over on Facebook, I have a group called  The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People for MLM & Network Marketing.

Several times a month, I host discussions on the book.  I decided to make double use of my efforts and share those discussions here.

The next step in the lessons about our paradigms, or our perceptions or assumptions, is the Paradigm shift.

Often in life we are faced with circumstances that challenge the way we view the world and interact with it.

Covey gives several examples of paradigm shifts in our history…

• Ptolemy believed the earth was the center of the universe,
• Copernicus created a paradigm shift by proving the sun is th ecenter of the Universe.
• Sir Isaac Newton shited paradigms in Physics
• Albert Einstein shifted paradigms in Relativity.

About Paradigms Shifting, Covey says,

 “…whether they shift us in positive or negative directions, whether they are instantaneous or developmental, paradigm shifts move us from one way of seeing the world to another. And those shifts create powerful change. Our paradigms, correct or incorrect, are the sources of our attitudes and behaviors, and ultimately our relationships with others.”

On a more personal level, we often experience Paradigm Shifts when we…

• face a life-threatening crisis
• suddenly step into a new role (spouse, parent, manager, etc.)
• come face to face with a stranger undergoing a hardship and find ourselves involved in some way.
  

All of these events and more, minor to major, cause us to almost immediately to reorganize our priorities.

Anyone of you remember the total avalanche of feelings that came over you the first time you held your newborn child in your arms?

Talk about some Paradigm Shifting!

Seeing is Being.

Some Paradigms shift quickly and some shift over time. In order to SEE something differently, we need to BE differently.

This requires investing in the growth and development of our own characters.

Believe in Your Success, I Do!
Karen

Those of us active in MLM are burning up our keyboards in response to the news that iLearning Global has shut down the MLM part of their business.

Whenever something like this happens, it sends shockwaves through the Network Marketing community.

Hundreds of thousands of people depend on operating a low start up home based business, like those found with a multi level marketing or direct sales business.

We are single mothers, stay at home moms, working dads trying to make ends meet, students, retirees, anybody going after the American Dream.

It is frightening for us when an MLM company shuts down or ends their MLM program.  Overnight thousands of people can lose their checks, whether they were making a couple hundred a month or 10s of thousands a month.

It is tragic for everyone.

Network Marketing is still a sound industry.  There is a lot of money to be made by anyone willing to be educated, coached and committed enough to put forth the effort and time required to succeed. 

Part of the learning curve can be shortened in respect to learning how to evaluate an MLM opportunity.

If you’re in MLM, you need to be willing to treat it like a serious business opportunity.  This means learning skills like the 5 Pillars to Success. 

The 5 Pillars are tools you can use to evaluate the stability of an MLM company. 

• Learn how hard you will have to work with a company’s pay plan.  Can a part-timer make satisfactory income?
• Learn what clauses to look for in the Policy and Procedures that do not have the distributor’s’ best interest at heart.
• Learn what else to look for in the company’s management experience and product.

In just a few short hours, Mentoring For Free will be having a free teleseminar on the 5 Pillars.

For access information for the 9 pm EST call tonight, March 20th, please email mentorkaren.freetrainingoffer@gmail.com .

If you miss the live call, send me an email requesting the link to the recording of the call to mentor.karen.j.miller@gmail.com .

Believe in Your Success, I Do!
Karen

Recently I have been getting a ton of calls—recorded calls, no less!—offering to sell me endless prequalified leads for my MLM home based business.

They are using web harvesters to pick my phone number and other contact information off of my website.

I don’t mind being called by people.  After all, that is why my number is posted here.

But I do want to talk to real live people and I do not like being pitched.

Believe me, once I hear it is a pitch, I hang up!  If you are a real person calling with a pitch and expect me to return your call, I won’t.

It is best to generate your own leads. 

1. Network with like minded people who are already interested in MLM. 
2. Offer something of value for free that will help your contacts in building their businesses.
3. Build relationships with your network.

Of the people you help, a handful will likely want to join you in your business.

1. These people know, like, and trust you.
2. They are motivated and coachable.
3. You know they will be committed business builders.

This is the essence of
“Work Smarter, Not Harder.”

Build your business with these people and you will have a low attrition rate, a smaller group of people to train and support, and a group of people making good income for themselves and You.

If you think buying leads is a good way to build your business, listen to this recording from my mentor, Michael Dlouhy.

Selling Leads Is a Scam.

Believe In Your Success, I Do!
Karen

You might not know this about me…I take care of foster children. So far I have taken care of over 20 children and adopted one.

This past month I took in an ity bity baby boy, then cared for 2 little siblings for 3 weeks. After they left, in came another baby. So now, I have a 10 week old boy and an 8 week old girl.

I have been thrust back into those days of no sleep and having my household ruled by a miniature person who’s demands must be met immediately.

Even with the challenges, it’s fun.

Having these babies and being so busy with their care has also reminded me of why network marketing is such a great industry. You really can tailor the business you build around your lifestyle, needs and time constraints.

A huge factor in being able to customize the time and efforts you put into your MLM business is your compensation plan.

Many comp plans contain sinister clauses hidden in legalese few people can understand. Knowing what your company’s comp plan says, line by line, and how that affects your ability to build your business on YOUR terms.

I am giving you a gift of the link to last Saturday’s training call on Compensation Plans. 

Just send me an email at mentor.karen.j.miller@gmail.com requesting the Bob and Anna Comp Plan training from February 27, 2010.  I’ll send the link right to you.

Bob and Anna Bassett hosted the call and taught how to answer the 10K question. If you can’t answer this about YOUR company’s compensation plan, then you really don’t know how much you need to work to reach your financial goals.

Knowledge IS Power!  Learn what you need to know about your contracts and you’ll become 10 feet tall and bullet proof!

Believe in Your Success, I Do!
Karen