Demystifying Prosperity™

If I can help even one person avoid the mistakes I made, then this effort will have been worth it. Enjoy the following video (2m40s).

Let me know what you think by writing a Reply below. And definitely sign up for my e-mail updates using the form to the upper right of this page (or, if it’s not there, then on the main page, or by clicking here). Your input is sure to influence my book.

I had an interesting revelation this morning and thought I’d share it with my readers.

I started my New Year’s resolutions early with a new commitment to an exercise regimen. What has worked for me in the past is the following weekly routine:

• Sunday - Off
• Monday - Weight training routine 1 of 3
• Tuesday - Taiji (a k a tai-chi) and qigong
• Wednesday - Weight training routine 2 of 3
• Thursday - Off
• Friday - Weight training routine 3 of 3
• Saturday - Taiji and qigong

As today is Monday, it was the perfect time to get started again. However, when I looked at the stapled sheets of paper that I had used in the past to guide me through my weight training routines, my mind went absolutely blank. I couldn’t for the life of me remember how many repetitions to do of each exercise, or how I cycled through the sets, or even how many sets. I procrastinated a bit, wondering what to do next.

Then it dawned on me: Just get started. My muscles will remember the exercise routine. And you know what? They did! I enjoyed a great 30-minute fitness session this morning, and it has energized me for the rest of the day.

I couldn’t help think of a saying that has kept me going over the years: “Take the first step, no more, no less, and the next will be revealed.” Commodities trader Ken Roberts used it in his sweet novel, A Rich Man’s Secret: An Amazing Formula for Success.

So how does this relate to the Law of Attraction? If you’ve watched The Secret, you might have the idea that all you need to do is visualize success, prosperity, and abundance, and it will be yours. While visualization and positive thinking are indispensable elements to your eventual success, so is taking daily action.

As I sat paralysed by my inability to remember how to do my exercise routine, I realized that all I needed to do was to take action—to take that first step, no more, no less—and my muscles would remember for me. And they did.

The next action I took today was to make a blog entry about this. Then I’ll take further action and send out an e-mail blast to let everyone know that I’ve updated my blog. So it’s true: the first step, no more, no less, has led to the second and third steps, and beyond.

So take daily action towards your goals. Even a little step is better than paralysis by analysis. Post your Reply below and let me know what your step is and how taking it has brought you closer to the prosperity that you desire.

I have been remiss in posting to this blog, so allow me to make up for my lapse.

One aspect to the law of attraction is learning to act on promptings of the Spirit, promptings of the Universe. I felt one such prompting today. I have been working so hard lately that it seemed time to take a cinema break. I checked out the movie listings in the local paper and saw that Australia was playing at 12:35 at my favorite cinema fifteen minutes away. Having heard good things about the film, I set out at 12:15 allowing plenty of time (or so I thought), especially considering that the first 10 to 15 minutes are movie trailers, meaning that the film wouldn’t start until at least 12:45.

But the Universe conspired against me seeing Australia. I had one brief stop to make en route, to make a deposit in my bank account—always a pleasant errand to run. Well, I was first in line for a teller, but I must have waited eight minutes before the next one was available. Nonetheless, as the check I was depositing was a sizable one, the smile on my face was still there. I finished my transaction and hopped back in my car.

Unfortunately, once I got on the major thoroughfare, the traffic was insane! It didn’t occur to me that everyone and his brother would be making last-minute Christmas purchases, and New Hampshire’s two recent storms resulted in pent-up demand. Long-story-short, I arrived at the theater at five minutes to one.

Since I was there already, I checked out the other titles. Two caught my eye: The Day the Earth Stood Still and Yes Man. Acknowledging the power of positive thinking in the law of attraction, I opted for Yes Man.

I’m glad I did.

Now, don’t get me wrong; the movie was not spectacular. The message, however, resonated with me. It didn’t hurt that the lead character’s name was Carl, either. I felt myself slipping into Jim Carrey’s role several times throughout the movie, as the message hit quite close to home.

Jim Carrey’s character Carl was caught in a humdrum existence. His girlfriend had left him for greener pastures, and he pushed away all of his friends, opting instead to spend his evenings at home alone with rented videos. His favorite word, of course, was No. Then he had a turning-point experience at a motivational seminar he was invited to attend. He learned that to live life more fully and in-the-moment, he had to learn to say Yes.

I have had similar turning points in my life. One was at a seminar actually called The Turning Point, put on by The Millionaire Maker™ Marshall Sylver. (If, after clicking on these links, you think you might want to attend, give me a call. If I still have tickets left, I can get you in at a significant discount from what Marshall charges on his website.)

The law of attraction is a wonderful/terrible thing. We attract into our lives our major thoughts and emotions. In the current economic climate, many of our thoughts and emotions are quite negative, and guess what? That only brings more negativity into our lives! When I find myself sliding down this slippery slope, I stop, take a deep breath, and say “Thank you!” out loud.

This “attitude of gratitude” has been a lifesaver for me. And it can be a lifesaver for you. Let me know (by submitting a Reply below) how the law of attraction has helped (or hurt?) you. I care.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone!

It’s the day after Halloween 2008. If you weren’t scared yesterday, there’s another scary thing happening in three days: the presidential election! What’s scary about it is that neither Barack Obama nor John McCain has a viable plan for Social Security. As you watch the following video, try to answer the question, What’s your Plan B for retirement?

If you’re one of the fortunate few with steady employment and a nicely funded pension, you might not need a Plan B at all. For the rest of us, Social Security will clearly not be enough to pay all of our retirement bills.

So what is your Plan B?

For many, network marketing is the logical choice, but for retirement purposes you’ll need to pick your network marketing company wisely. Be sure their compensation plan provides a steady stream of income once you’re no longer actively pursuing the business. The ideal would be to find a company where you could work hard for two to five years, and then have the option to “retire” and still collect commission checks. Not all compensation plans support this.

One thing to watch out for is a compensation plan that pays out only if you continue to sign up new customers or associates. You may receive a growing residual income from your existing organization, but you have to keep working … not my idea of a rewarding retirement.

For me, the power of network marketing is residual income. Without residuals, it’s really nothing more than direct sales, and if you don’t keep selling, you don’t get paid.

As it turns out, I am actively involved in two opportunities. One is what many consider to be the best network marketing opportunity out there. The other is actually a direct sales venture, yet the compensation plan is such that a strong residual income is quite possible. If you’d like to discuss either or both of them, just give me a call or send me an e-mail. I’m in this to serve you. Let me help.

In any case, do something to prepare for your retirement. Social Security is not going to be enough no matter who gets elected on November 4^th.

Network marketing can provide for a significant residual income. Yes, it takes effort, and yes, it takes time. But for those who stick with it, the rewards can be a life style that most only dream about.

So does that mean you should quit your day job and plunge full-time into your network marketing opportunity? Absolutely not! Significant rewards take time, and initial commission checks are usually not enough to live on—not by a long shot. The ideal prospect for network marketing is someone who already has a way to make ends meet, but who doesn’t want to stay at that “subsistence” level forever—in other words, someone who has dreams and aspirations.

Residual income tends to start low and grow exponentially over time. To illustrate this, ponder your answer to the following question:

Would you rather have a million dollars today or a penny doubled every day for 30 days?

It seems obvious that a million dollars is the right choice … were it not for the power of compounding, as the following table illustrates:

A penny doubled each day for 30 days turns into a whopping $5,368,709.12 (or even $10,737,418.24, depending on how you count your days). The only advantage of the million dollars is that you don’t have to wait 30 days.

Let’s relate this analogy back to the reality of network marketing and residual income. Your “day job” is like the million dollars up front, but it stays at a million dollars. For those who want more out of life, the typical measly cost-of-living salary increases simply don’t hack it. In contrast, network marketing is like starting out with pennies and having to wait for them to turn into significant income. Furthermore, note that after a week (Day 8) you barely break the one-dollar mark, after two weeks (Day 15) you’re still only making $163.84, and after three weeks (Day 22) you’re finally at $20,971.52, but this is still only 1/256^th of what you’ll see on Day 30 if you simply stick it out.

In other words, it takes time before small (or no) commission checks turn into income that can replace your current income. So avoid the temptation to fall for get-rich-quick, pie-in-the-sky promises that some network marketers use to attract people into their businesses. It’s a lie. It will take time if you put effort into your business … and it will never happen if you don’t work at it at all.

Just never lose sight of the prize: financial freedom, time freedom, stress-free living, and all the other side benefits of choosing the right network marketing opportunity and sticking with it.

In my own case, I know that USANA will eventually pay off big time for me. As for my “day job,” I sell memberships in a network of luxury time-share condominiums (check it out at GlobalRevealed.com). I’m living off of those commission checks for now, as I watch my (for now) smaller USANA commission checks grow and grow.

So keep your day job. Keep your bills paid. Work your network marketing business part time until the commissions surpass your current income. Then and only then should you even consider giving up your day job. And definitely don’t give it up if you love what you’re doing. Just know that you’ll be working because you want to, not because you have to. And count yourself blessed, for that is a wonderful position to be in.

So who am I to write a book about how to be successful in network marketing? I have not yet achieved much success, myself. I’m definitely not a millionaire (not yet, anyway). In fact, I’ve made more than my share of mistakes along the way.

Actually, that is precisely why I have chosen to write this book. Of course, it helps that I enjoy writing. But I feel I do have something to say, precisely because of all the mistakes I have made. If my writing this book can keep someone else from making the same mistakes, then it shall have been a success.

The first and foremost mistake I made was to allow my focus to get diluted. For those who have listened to my radio interview from this past Monday, you already know some of what I am about to say. (For those of you who have not yet listened to it, I invite you to click or right-click here. The hour-long show with news break and commercials is reduced to a 44-minute MP3 recording, which is still long enough that you’ll want to allot sufficient time to listen to the end.)

My first venture into network marketing (excluding a horrible experience back in 1979—perhaps you have had horrible experiences, too) was with a health-and-wellness company in 2002. It was recommended to me by Robert Allen, New York Times best-selling author of several books, including Nothing Down, Creating Wealth, and Multiple Streams of Income. He presented network marketing as an additional income stream for everyone to consider. He outlined how to evaluate various opportunities, then he invited us to “cut to the chase” and call an 800 number to learn about the one network marketing company that he endorses. I did so, liked what I heard and read, and ended up joining within the week.

The company was USANA Health Sciences, and I have been a dedicated consumer of their award-winning nutritional products ever since. The problem was that I didn’t stay with just USANA. I was immediately pitched several other opportunities, one of which I joined, and that diluted my focus from USANA for the first year I was in the business. I have joined and quit several other opportunities; more recently I have joined some that I intend to stay with.

However, the more I have learned about network marketing companies, the more I realize that Robert Allen was right: USANA is simply the best.

Does that mean that everyone reading this post should become a USANA associate? Absolutely not. Health and wellness has always been one of my passions, but if it is not one of yours, you may be better suited to joining an equally fine company in a totally different industry. However, passion aside, USANA remains the best that I have seen in terms of compensation plan and distributor satisfaction. (So if you are indifferent to the product involved, do take a serious look at USANA even if health and wellness is not your passion.)

I can help you analyse your options. Simply leave a message for me toll-free at 866-964-9025 (international +1 978 299-6777) with your name, your phone number, and the best time to call you back including time zone. In addition to the companies I am directly affiliated with, I have colleagues in several other reputable companies that I would wholeheartedly recommend, should they be a better fit for you.

And please spread the word about this website. I thoroughly enjoy helping people. And I enthusiastically endorse network marketing as an industry. That is why I refer to myself as a network marketing evangelist.

Best of success to you!

I had the great pleasure of being interviewed on the radio yesterday morning from 11:00 to noon. My friend Debby Hoffman has a weekly radio show called Community Business Connections on WKXL 1450 AM in Concord, New Hampshire. In the show I speak about my upcoming book, Demystifying Prosperity™: Why You Should Take a Serious Look at Network Marketing.

The show has been recorded, and the MP3 file can be found on www.wkxl1450.com—click on Program Audio; then click on Community Business Connection under Weekly Shows; and then click on Monday, August 4, 2008. A direct link to the 44-minute recording (bypassing all the above steps) is right here. You can click on the link to listen to the interview, or right-click to save the MP3 file to your computer.

Let me know what you think. Your comments are sure to influence my book.

This is a “reprint” of a post made to another blog. It is fitting as an initial post for this new site dedicated to my book Demystifying Prosperity™: Why You Should Take a Serious Look at Network Marketing.

When people ask me what I do for a living, my typical response goes something like this: “You know how most households are struggling financially, barely getting by, even with two or more incomes? Well, I teach people how to leverage their time and effort to produce the financial freedom they so desperately want.” In a nutshell, this is the power and the promise of network marketing.

Since 2002 I have been involved in several network marketing enterprises. Some have come and gone, and a few have stood the test of time. This series of posts will ultimately become the basis of an e-book on How to Choose the Right Network Marketing Opportunity for You, as well as the aforementioned book.

So what is network marketing? The traditional business model is to develop a product and then market it through various distribution channels: national wholesalers, regional distribution centers, local retailers, along with a hefty advertising budget. In recent decades, more and more companies have begun marketing their products through a network of independent associates in a direct-to-consumer model that bypasses all the middlemen. And instead of spending a fortune on advertising, those monies are distributed to the associates in the form of commissions, remunerating them for their word-of-mouth advertising . . . which is essentially what network marketing is.

Network marketing is a subset of the direct sales industry. Typically, network marketers receive commissions for their own efforts, along with commission overrides for the efforts of the associates that they introduce to their businesses. This results in residual income that can grow over time and become quite substantial. In many cases, these residual income streams can be willed to your heirs and continue indefinitely. Now that’s leverage!

And that is precisely why you should care about network marketing. Even if you enjoy your current job, you should give serious consideration to augmenting its linear stream of income with something more residual and powerful in the long run.

That’s enough for now. Feel free to add your comments below. They are sure to influence my future posts.