What are my chances of success?

This is a misleading question. If you do absolutely nothing, then your chances of success are precisely zero! However, if you work hard then you will almost certainly succeed, at least to some degree. I say almost certainly, because nothing is guaranteed in this world. Also, working hard isn't worth a penny if you're working at the wrong thing! Learning how to become an effective networker is a valuable skill, and takes more time for some than others. I've met people who were born ready for this sort of opportunity, but I've also met people who are completely unable to relate to other human beings and end up offending everyone they speak to. The latter are not going to make a success of this business model unless they learn how to improve their interpersonal skills.

Network marketing is not a question of luck. There is a certain fraction of the population of your country looking for a business like this. You just have to find them. Of course some people meet with earlier success because they happen to find more keen people early on, but everything evens out eventually. The difference between a successful networker and an unsuccessful network marketer is nothing to do with luck. There are skills to learn in overcoming objections, and a good networker knows the importance of following a simple, powerful system. There is always, as in any area of life, a huge benefit towards developing courage and persistence.

Another vital thing that a successful network marketer will learn is that the only way to get more 'yes' results is to get more 'no' results. You could focus all your time on half a dozen people and maybe increase your chances of success slightly. Alternatively you could ask a hundred people. Even if your chances of success are small, you will still get far more 'yes' results in total - it's a numbers game! If you ever meet someone who failed at network marketing, just ask them how many people they shared their business with, how much time they spent developing it and how closely they followed an established system. Compare their answers to those of a successful network marketer and you will likely find a substantial difference.

If it's so good, why doesn't everyone join?
People who say 'no' to network marketing do so for several reasons. For the majority, they don't see how it could fit into their lives. They have perhaps lived a very long time in the same frame of mind, or the same job, and it has become a fixed pattern. For others, they honestly don't see how they could find enough time in their hectic life. Plenty of people working 90 or 100+ hour weeks have built huge network marketing businesses in their spare time. It's just a matter of priorities. Those who are truly busy appreciate more than others how to fit things into their schedule.

The majority of people who don't join all have exactly the same reason. That is "I just don't think that it will work for me." Of course, they voice that in different ways! The job of a dedicated network marketer is to convince those people that it can work for them, and that the rewards are real and tangible. But in the end, many people will never join. But this is great - if the whole world joined then who would be the doctors, dentists, politicians, musicians, shop workers, police officers, accountants and teachers?!

Then there is the group that is so sure of themselves that they cannot possibly understand why anyone would want to join a NM organisation. Some of them even go out to stop those they know from doing the same. This is almost always borne of an ignorance of NM. There is usually a friend of a friend who tried and failed. Often these people cover their tracks by blaming it on the company or the businesss model - they don't admit that they simply didn't work hard enough. Sometimes they joined a poor company, and didn't research it enough. It's unfortunate, but these people will always exist. Everyone who has ever achieved anything difficult has faced those people telling them why they were sure to fail. Albert Einstein's school maths teacher famously told him that he would never amount to anything! Very interesting quote from that same man whose outstanding mind revolutionised practically all of modern physics:

Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices, but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence.
  
            Albert Einstein
    

Often those people mean well, but they are simply voicing their own opinion. Millions of people have been held back from achieving truly remarkable things with their lives because of 'well-meaning friends' who told them not to. You have to analyse your decision for yourself - make sure that it is the right one and that it aligns with your beliefs, and then absolutely commit to it. It doesn't matter whether that decision is a 'yes' or a 'no' - just trust yourself! Remember - whenever anyone tells you that you're wrong, you almost certainly know a lot more about your business than they do! Don't let someone else's ignorance steal your chance for success!

An Executives Tale

Why would a person go from being a six figure executive to a professional network marketer?

Most of my adult life I’ve been an executive used to a six figure income, stock options, bonus, big office, secretary, a wide range of executive perks and using the corporate jet.

But, I’m also used to very long days at the office, taking work home, working on weekends, traveling all over the country an average of three nights a week away from home; Reading reports and analyzing data, taking conference calls, writing reports, getting ready for Monday’s board meeting, reading and answering E-mails, hiring, firing, mentoring, problem solving – all while at home.

That all came to a halt in May of 2001 when, at fifty-five, I lost my position as Vice President because of a merger that I was responsible for completing.

I wasn’t worried. After all, I had an exit package, years of senior and executive experience, a published author in my field, sought after speaker for professional organizations, a recognized “expert” in mergers and acquisitions, managing large complex projects, used to making big decisions and being held accountable for the results. So I wasn’t in a hurry, enjoyed time with my family again and spent the next four years looking for the right executive position.

It wasn’t that there were no jobs available, there were plenty, but they were all in places I didn’t want to live or move my family. I’d spent my share of time in big cities like Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta and Tampa, had moved to a very small town inAlabama, and was enjoying being a country gentlemen.

My first contact with network marketing was quite by accident. I was doing research on the Internet and stumbled across a web site about network marketing that piqued my interest. To make a long story short, I enjoyed the fact that the person I contacted sounded like a real person, presented himself as a professional and answered all my questions without flinching, ducking my negative perceptions, or trying to sell me anything.

Even though I was actually an independent representative with the network marketing company he was in, I didn’t do anything in the business, but enjoyed our companionship. The problem wasn’t that I didn’t like network marketing, the problem was that I still considered myself an unemployed executive, and therefore not interested in it!

Then, in March of 2005, I found Leadersclub and decided to do a “full court press” on network marketing to see if it would work for me. I liked the very structured way they taught the basics of network marketing and the professional approach to make it a full-time replacement for my old job. The promise was that effort over time would equal success if a person put into practice consistently what they learned in Leadersclub with the right attitude. With this formula, the only way to fail is to quit.

I joined Leadersclub, began the Individualized Success Plan (ISP) which is a 90 day program of study over thirteen weeks based on my unique answers to a questionnaire.

The questionnaire was graded by a real live person (not an auto responder) who put together an individualized plan of study to take me from where I was (lots of experience, but none in network marketing) to where I wanted to be – a full timeprofessional network marketer.

So every week for thirteen weeks (90 days), I received an Email with a lesson plan that included listening to a couple of the more than 400 training audios from the Audio Library combined with specific actions consistent with that weeks training. On June 1st, 2005, I finished the ISP training and began to put into practice what I had learned. The training was so thorough, comprehensive and focused that I saw very clearly the value of the process and was confident that I could use what I was learning to make a living at network marketing.

The next step for me was to begin the Certified Marketing Consultant (CMC) program. This is an accelerated seven month course of study that is very intense, includes many parts, has productivity standards, includes modules on leadership and there is a final written exam. From the first month I began this program in June, I made Top Sponsor by signing up 5 members into Leadersclub. I’ve accomplished that each and every month from June of 2005 through the present (October 2006). During that time, I’ve never missed a Consistency Award (3 consecutive months of earning Top Sponsor).

The seven months of study went very fast and I earned the Certified Marketing Consultant (CMC) designation in January of 2006. As a result of this fast paced learning adventure, I’m now a full-time, professional network marketer earning a living at something that two years ago I would have said was impossible. Impossible because I could never have conceived of it, and impossible because I was unwilling to see myself as any thing other than an unemployed executive.

So what have I learned on my journey of discovery from executive to professional network marketer? First, that it’s possible to transfer all of the skills I learned in the executive suite to another field of endeavor. Second, being an executive and a professional network marketer have both a lot in common and yet are very different.

They are very similar in that communication, people skills, the ability to manage time, money, resources and time, are the same. Making decisions, leading a team over whom you have no direct control (your downline), mentoring, training, coaching are all still important, necessary and make you a leader that others want to follow.

The differences are equally as profound. In the corporate world, not everyone wanted me to succeed, someone wanted my office, another, my secretary, my parking spot or my job. There was much jealousy, back-biting and political considerations on nearly every executive decision. The travel, time away from the family, long days, schedule dictated by others and factors out of my control were taking their toll on my health, my family and my happiness.

By contrast, in my network marketing business, everyone on my team wants me to succeed in the same way I wish all of them, success. Even though I’m doing this business for myself, I am part of a team and don’t have to do it all by myself. I have control of my time, my finances, my expenditures and my life. I can live where ever I want because geography is no barrier to success in network marketing. There is no ceiling on the upside of my income. Because I’m leveraging the time of others by training leaders who are training leaders, I can have a residual income that continues even after I’ve decided to slow down because if a lot of people do just a little, it can add up to a lot.

In retrospect, my only regret is that I didn’t discover the dynamics of network marketing and Leadersclub sooner! I’m amazed at the number of college students who are doing research on network marketing because its positive mention by financial mentors like Robert Kiyosaki who calls network marketing, “The perfect business!” in his book, The Business School for People Who Like Helping People. They don’t want to lose control of their lives by getting into the same old rat race their fathers did. I can hardly blame them.

So, bottom line, if you’re an executive or senior manager whose career has taken an unexpected turn and you’re reading this wondering if network marketing has a place for you, then let me encourage you to take a very serious look into Leadersclub. You can learn the equivalent of a college degree in network marketing, learn to be a professional and find success in any network marketing company that you choose based on what you’re passionate about.

I would welcome the opportunity to answer any questions you have without all the hype and I can share with you accurate expectations of what network marketing is all about, how you can be successful in it and help you find the network marketing opportunity that is the best fit for your passion.

If you’re willing to put the same kind of time, effort and energy into your own future that you used to give your last employer, then the only way you can fail at this is to quit. I love what I do. Have found success in something I enjoy doing – that I can feel good about, and I’m confident that you can too.