I have never gone to my MLM Company’s annual convention in the almost 3 years that I have been with them.

Excuses abound…usually the one that “I can’t afford it.”  After all, what would I do with my kids?  I can’t take them all with me.  I certainly can’t take the foster children in my care with me, and I have to pay to have them in respite.

More “I can’t afford it.”

Well, this year I am going through a transformation.

I decided to make a New Years Resolution early and start living it NOW.

I have made a choice to Live in Abundance, and not in Poverty.

Living in Poverty means coming from a mindset of lack.  When you come from lack, there never is enough money and there never will be, so you never go anywhere or do anything.

Living in Abundance means coming from a mindset of prosperity.  You recognize what you have and are thankful for the blessing of having it.

You know that God (or the Universe, or whatever your spiritual belief is) will provide you with your heart’s desires and everything that you need.

This week, I registered for my MLM company’s convention. 
I paid the $25 deposit with a payment plan of paying $50 June 1st and the remaining $50 July 1st.

January 1st, I will pay the $50 deposit to reserve my cabin on the Cruise ship.  (Yes, my company is holding convention on a cruise ship!).  This will leave 7 payments of $103 a month, which includes airfare.

I made a commitment to myself that I am going and that my business will grow and produce the needed funds to pay for my trip.

I expect it to happen.  I expect the money to come.

This is in sharp contrast to saying “I’ll go to convention when I can afford it.”  With that kind of poverty mindset, it will never happen because there is no expectation of the money coming.

When you want something that before you thought was unattainable or unaffordable, you need to write it down.

But speaking your desire and writing it down isn’t enough.

You have to write down your plan on how you will pay for your trip & expenses and how you will pay to have the kids and household taken care of while you are gone. 

Make sure to cover every expense you can think of and include it into your budget.

Figure when you need to pay your deposits, when installments or final payments are due, and how much you need to save each month.

Start making arrangements for childcare, pet care, and housesitting now and plan for at least one backup plan!

Again, figure when you may have to pay deposits to secure services and how much you will need to put away each month to pay the final bills.

When budgeting total amounts for your trip to convention, be sure to add in airfare, transport to & from the hotel, hotel room, food, tips, taxes not already added to rates, and any extra entertainment or events you might take advantage of.

Start now! 

Don’t wait until January 1st or until your team leaders start talking about your company’s convention coming up in a few short months.

Make your plans to attend the very next convention. 

If your company’s convention is right around the corner, and you don’t have enough time to budget your money, then start planning for the next year’s convention. 

It is never too early to start saving money…$50—$100 a month seems much more doable than looking at the total cost.

I have always heard that after a person attends convention, they come home and work their business with such enthusiasm, drive and focus, that their business booms.

So, get crackin’ and I’ll see you there on deck!

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

The great inspirational leader, Zig Ziglar, once said, “Many people spend more time in planning the wedding than they do in planning the marriage.”

What does planning a wedding have to do with building your Network Marketing business?

Everybody knows how much time and money a bride-to-be invests in her wedding. It is very easy to get caught up in the hype and be seduced by the glittery gowns, shiny limos, and fine foods to be served at the reception.

Before she knows it, the bill is $10K or more, and sadly…50% of marriages end in divorce.

If only the couple had put as much planning and effort into building a strong foundation and having support systems in place for the bumpy times.

Starting a Network Marketing business is a lot like planning a wedding.

We get starry eyed and hooked on focusing on our dreams. It is easy to get sidetracked with all of the glitter and hype.

We think we are prepared and have the guidance we need to succeed, but so often, many of us find achieving our goals and reaching our dreams far out of reach.

Then we quit.

Wouldn’t it be better to know there was a way to plan for building a strong foundation and have the support systems in place for the bumpy times in our business building?

Wouldn’t it be better to know how to succeed at being the 3% who actually make it in MLM?

There’s no great secret to this…no special person you have to become.

Be Yourself.

Be Committed.

Be Persistent.

Be Focused.

Be Informed.

Learn how to ask the 5 Critical Questions to your Success and Know How to Get the Answers.

Send me an email to mentor.karen.j.miller@gmail.com requesting an audio training of the Five Pillars to Success.

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

“The Future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their Dreams.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

PS: Be sure to check read our FREE eBook which shows you step-by-step how to reach your dreams.
http://mlmsuccess4u.successin10steps.com

I am so inspired and touched by MY American Idol favorite, Crytal Bowersox’s performance of “People Get Ready”, I had to look up the lyrics.

Music and poetry so often touch our souls on such an emotional and spiritual level, that no other message can make such an impact.

In Network Marketing/MLM, average people enter the entrepreneurial dream land of starting our own home based businesses. 

We are a tribe of amateurs. 

If we are committed to succeed and stick with the business, we need training in every aspect of business from lead generation to personal development.

We often come to the arena loaded with doubts and preconceived notions of how we should go about growing our businesses.

The best way to overcome our doubts is through personal development.  This not only includes reading from the standard library of self improvement business gurus.  We also need to saturate our lives with positive and inspiring stories, music, art, whatever touches us.

So, as part of my own inspirational library, I will share with you the lyrics to

“People Get Ready”
by Curtis Mayfield

” People get ready
There’s a train a-coming
You don’t need no baggage
You just get on board
All you need is faith
To hear the diesels humming
Don’t need no ticket
You just thank the Lord

People get ready
For the train to Jordan
Picking up passengers
From coast to coast
Faith is the key
Open the doors and board them
There’s room for all
among the loved the most

There ain’t no room
for the hopeless sinner
Who would hurt all mankind just
To save his own
Have pity on those
whose chances are thinner
Cause there’s no hiding place
From the Kingdom’s Throne

So people get ready
for the train a-comin’
You don’t need no baggage
you just get on board !
All you need is faith
to hear the diesels humming
Don’t need no ticket
you just thank, you just thank the Lord

Yeah
Ooh

Yeah
Ooh

I’m getting ready
I’m getting ready
this time I’m ready
this time I’m ready”

Believe In Your Success, I Do!
Karen

http://www.complete-network-marketers-desk-reference.com

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

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

When considering joining an MLM company, or even if you are having doubts about a company you already belong to, you need to know how to evaluate that company.

At Mentoring for Free, we use the 5 Pillars to Success for evaluating any MLM company.

1. Integrity
2. Timing
3. Products
4. Compensation
5. Duplication

This industry has a 95% failure rate.  Everybody claims to have a system that is easily duplicated.

We would have a 95% success rate if this statement were true.

The reason so many people find themselves struggling in a business is because they ask the wrong questions.

The following questions are those you must ask, and must be answered, for your success.

1. Should you trust the people running this company?  Will they actually pay you?
2. Are you gambling with your time, effort and money?
3. Do lots of people want these products?  Can they afford them?
4. How many people do you need to create your target income?  Not how much money can I make!
5. How many people will do this?  Not can they, but will they?

Can you answer these questions about your company?  Can your upline sponsor answer these questions?  Can the person working on getting you signed up with the company you are looking at answer these questions?

Can’t seem to get the information you need to make a sensible decision?

I have more help for you.

Send me an  email at mentor.karen.j.miller@gmail.com to request a free audio training on the 5 Pillars to Success. 

Listen to the training and if you want more assistance, we are a team of mentors waiting to help you.

Believe In Your Success, I Do!
Karen

Most people often mistakenly lump Multi Level Marketing (MLM), Network Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Ponzi Schemes and Pyramid Schemes together as one big group of scams.

In reality, network marketing, MLM, and affiliate marketing are different and usually legitimate business opportunities.

Whereas Ponzi Schemes and Pyramid Schemes are illegal scams designed to make the person or people at the top rich and rip off everyone else.

In the MLM industry, a person still has to be careful in choosing an opportunity to join.

Not all businesses are designed the same and not all contracts and policy and procedure are created equally.

It is vitally important that a person understand what makes a company a strong business opportunity for the distributors. 

At Mentoring For Free, we use the Five Pillars and the $10,000 Question to measure an MLM company’s strength.

Whatever yardstick you use to evaluate your company or a company you are considering joining, you must understand what would make it a scam.

How To Identify A Scam

An Attorney General would ask these two questions:

1. Would a logical thinking person pay this much money for the product or service if there was not a business opportunity involved?
2. Does the income stop when the recruiting stops?

If the answer to the first question is “No” and/or the answer to the second question is “Yes”, then it is a scam.

The word SCAM
brings up Ponzi schemes and Pyramid Schemes.
They are similar and different.

A Ponzi Scheme usually targets more affluent people referred to as “investors”.

A Pyramid Scheme targets more of the blue collar section of society.

They are both illegal and designed to rip people off while making the guy(s) at the top rich.

Rod Cook of MLM Watch Dog wrote an excellent article about Ponzi Schemes and Pyramid Schemes.

Take the time to read it here: Pyramids and Ponzi Media Reporters.  At the end of the article is some interesting history about Carlos Ponzi.

As Rod says, “A good MLM provides goods or services that a consumer would buy if an income opportunity were not included!”

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

This is the third and final article in my series on Make Money Fast Scams.  

The first part was on Chain Letters, and the second on Pyramid and Ponzi Schemes.

Whenever financial times turn into times of financial hardship, people start panicking and looking for ways to make extra money.

They are usually looking for a quick fix to their money worries.  When people are desperate, it is easy for us to believe in a slick sales pitch that promises easy money with little or no effort on our parts.

One such pitch common today is Cash Gifting.  This is also referred to as “Mailbox Money”.    Cash Gifting programs are all over the internet.

They seem like a no work way to make a lot of money simply by giving gifts of cash to people in the organization…usually a “Gifting Club”.

To “join”, you give a “gift”, generally $500 – $3500, to a member higher up in the organization. The new member is promised that they will receive similar “gifts” once they recruit more members into the organization.

Sound like a Pyramid Scheme?
It is.

Cash gifting programs are illegal.

The Federal Trade Commission reminds you to:

* Consider that a legitimate gift has no strings attached and is not an “investment.”
* Avoid being misled into thinking a gifting club is legitimate because the ads say that members consider their payments a gift and expect nothing in return. This is an attempt to make an illegal transaction look legal.
* Be wary of success stories or testimonials of tremendous payoffs. Very few members of illegal gifting clubs or pyramid schemes ever receive any money.
* Take your time. Don’t buckle under to a high-pressure sales pitch that requires you to join immediately or risk losing out on the opportunity. Remember, solid opportunities – and solid friendships – aren’t formed through nerve-wracking tactics.”

 

Just remember, the famous P.T. Barnum quote:

“There’s a Sucker born every minute”

Be smart and educate yourself so you know the difference between a scam and a legitimate MLM business opportunity.

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

Occasionally, I like to share an “MLM Letter” Michael Dlouhy sends out to people who have signed up to receive them.

I wanted to share this letter because it is such a common “excuse”.  I know, I used to think this same way!

“If you’ve been in network marketing very long, you’ve run into plenty of prospects who are totally focused on ONLY joining a company where they can sell a product they love.

I tell them, “Look. We have 30 products. You don’t have to use them all. You don’t even have to like them all. Matter of fact, we have a Woman’s Formula that helps balance out the hormones. Guess what? I don’t use the product. I don’t use that one. My wife does. She loves it. We’ve got hundreds of women who buy that product. They love it. I don’t have to use it.“

And That Makes Them Realize How Stupid It Is -
- that they have to love the product. Right there.  And if it’s a woman – guess what?¬ Our company¬ has a Men’s Formula! It’s for the prostate.
And last time you checked, you didn’t have a prostate, because you’re a girl. But guess what? I’ve got a lot of guys that buy that product.

Another one I’ll talk about is our product that helps balance blood-sugar. I ask them, “Do you know anyone who has hypoglycemia, diabetes, low blood sugar, a sugar problem?”
“Yeah.”
“Great. Do you think that person would like to know about a product that’s all-natural, it’s been proven to help re-build the pancreas, and¬ will help them to use less insulin, and maybe even get them off of insulin?”
“Oh, yeah!”

You Don’t Have To Have Diabetes To Sell the Product, Do You?

Make it so ridiculous, they get it. I’m telling you, this is magic. People will come to you and they’re totally focused on finding a product that THEY love.

But that is NOT the way to build a long-term, successful, profitable business. When I hear that, I’ll tell them, “Well, then, go get diabetes. Go get diabetes, and this stuff will help you fix it. OK?

And of course, they laugh. It’s a ridiculous solution. But it makes them realize that the attitude that they MUST love the product is also ridiculous.

To get them into your company, tell them why YOU joined. Why did you join this company, this team, this sponsor.

I did a call the other day with a lady who is married to a heart surgeon. If I told you what they have to pay in insurance for him to stay in that business, it would blow your mind. Basically, he’s working for the insurance company.

So they need another income. They have to get something going. The first thing she said was, “Well, I’ll have to try the products first to see if I like them.”

And I went right into the Women’s Formula. I went right into diabetes. And I asked her,
“Do you have diabetes?”
She said, “No.”
I told her, “Well, you don’t have to go and get diabetes to sell a bunch of this product.”

And she got it. She joined on the spot. She figured she’d just try the product but instead, she got the idea. Now she’s in the business.

Do I ask people to join? Do I push them? Do I twist their arm? Do I say, “Get in now and you’ll be rich by Tuesday?”

No. I present the case for my company & our team.

The prospect makes their own decision. Mostly, they ASK if they can join. It comes from THEM. How could anything be more powerful?”

Can you think back now and remember hearing this sort of logic?

Or perhaps it is you who thinks this way.

You are either in an MLM for business or to generate enough retail sales to pay for your product…that you “love”.

If you are in MLM with the intention of generating a serious income, then you have to think like a business person.

You can have the best product introduced to mankind, why, it even raises the dead!  But your compensation plan, policies and procedures, and upline support are what are really behind your check.

Look for the product everyone is going after.  You don’t have to “love” it.  You don’t have to “believe” in it either (provided it’s not a scam!).

What you have to do is make money.  You have to make money in a way that is easy and duplicable for the people you sponsor into your business.

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

Do you ever feel like you are chasing down your prospects or some of the people in your downline? Does attempting to work with them feel like you are pushing a rope up a hill?

How often has someone expressed interest in what you have to offer, only to ignore your calls and emails? Or how about those people who were so enthusiastic when they signed up in your business, but are nowhere to be found a month or two later?

The thing that makes me shake my head is when someone signs up for my free ebook and gives the wrong telephone number. OK, so maybe some were typing too fast and hit the wrong key, or transposed numbers. That’s understandable. But others just simply do not give their correct contact information.

Why do they do that? Why do some people dip their toes into the water only to turn and run like hell in the other direction?

Part of it is FEAR.

MLM is a wonderful industry where AVERAGE people can make ABOVE AVERAGE income.

MLM is also an industry where most of us enter without knowing anything about the business. The “vultures” know this and start circling around the fresh meat that so trustingly entered the arena of Big Hopes and Dreams.

Because the MLM industry is open to anyone, it unfortunately attracts the scammers and “Pyramid” schemers. The pitch always sounds GLORIOUS and GLITTERY. The REALITY is that only the people at the top make money, most people get ripped off, then the company disappears in a few years. POOF!

It’s no wonder so many of us become jaded and skeptical. How many times do you get burned before you stay away from the fire?

But running scared from the potential scammers will also keep a person running away from potential positive business or training opportunities.

Another, more significant reason people run or hide, is TIMING.

Each one of us grows at our own pace…in our personal development, in our commitment to build our businesses, and in our personal lives.

A person may contact you for information, but still feel some insecurity about being successful. As a protective mechanism, he/she will avoid contact or avoid taking action.

You might have sponsored that someone into your downline who seems to have evaporated into thin air. He or she may not have a strong enough belief in themselves, or may have family members who are filling them with negativity and doubt.

Whatever the circumstances are for the individual, the TIMING for them is not right.
TIMING is not right for them YET.

Trying to Motivate someone who’s TIMING is not right…yet…is like trying to push a rope up a hill. Or have you heard the expression, “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.”?

Tom “Big Al” Shreiter has a saying: “Only take the volunteers. Look for the ones with their hands raised.”

This doesn’t mean you give up the ones hiding. Some may never come back to you for help again. Let it go.

But many others will be looking seriously for help when the TIMING is right for them. That may be in a month or it may be in a year.

So how do you increase your chances that these people will return to YOU?

That is where the beauty of an autoresponder comes in. If your prospects or downline have signed up to receive information from you through your autoresponder (such as a weekly or monthly newsletter), then they will continually have your name in front of them.

Always, always, always offer valuable content when using your autoresponder to keep in touch with folks on your list. This is not the time to pitch your business opportunity…it’s a major turn off and sets off salesman alarms.

Valuable content consists of sharing marketing and advertising tips, leadership skills, and personal development information.

A carefully constructed informative newsletter is an efficient tool that takes only 20-30 minutes. This leaves you with plenty of time to work more closely with the prospects and people in your downline who have their HANDS RAISED.

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