When I was growing up, I played a lot of basketball. I loved it. I got pretty good and ended . . . → Read More: You Have To Suck To Succeed]]>

That title certainly caught my attention when it landed in my email inbox. The accompanying article came from a newsletter that I receive. I post this with the author’s permission. Contact info is below the article.  Enjoy!

When I was growing up, I played a lot of basketball. I loved it. I got pretty good and ended up playing on my high school and college teams. But, as anyone that’s ever learned a sport has experienced, I sucked at first. Like really, really bad.

But my desire to get good was burning hot and I put in hours and hours of practice. Every week I sucked a little less until one day, I had a magical epiphany: I didn’t suck anymore. I could move and protect the ball well, I was a good shot, and I understood the flow of the game.

Why am I telling you this? Because it’s very relevant to business. If you want to achieve any level of success in your business, there are many things that you must be willing to suck at first.

I used to suck at sales, but I studied and “practiced” until I got good. I used to suck at managing salespeople, but I stuck with it and got good. I used to suck at marketing, but I persisted until I got better. Whenever I got into some new aspect of running a business, I was totally fine with sucking because I knew I had the will to persist until I got better.

Over the years, many people have told me that they were afraid they’d never be able to master some specific skill of business. They would hold themselves back because of this fear and never push beyond the “suck” phase. Don’t be like them.

The fact is there are quite a few things that you must do well to build a thriving business and most of them won’t be second nature to you. You’re going to have to learn them from scratch and, well, you’ll probably suck at most of them in the beginning. But don’t get down on yourself for this or let it dissuade you from your course. Sucking is just a part of the game.

It’s also true that many businesspeople don’t want to face up to the types and volume of work that it takes to really make it. I’ve known many people that completely ignored the things they knew they should’ve been doing because they felt they didn’t have enough know-how and weren’t willing to learn, or because they just “didn’t like that kind of work.”

Well, if you feel like your business is stuck and you just “don’t know why,” take a look at what you’re not doing that you know you should be or what you’re not good enough at, and I bet you could figure out how to unstick it. Maybe that means you’ll have to burn the midnight oil and learn something new. Maybe it means you’ll have to do things you don’t particularly enjoy. Maybe you’ll suck at them at first. That’s normal.

Give yourself permission to suck and just keep working at those things. You’ll get better and better, and one day you’ll realize, “Wow, I’m pretty good at this!”

by Pat Clouden

Accelerated Training Solutions

http://www.accelerateyourtraining.com

800-809-0487

601 Cleveland Street, Suite 220, Clearwater FL 33755

First, a few definitions.

Fraud – One who assumes a false pose; an impostor. From the Latin for deceit or injury.

Liar – A person who knowingly utters falsehood; one who declares to another as a fact what he knows to be not true, and with an intention to deceive him. From a predecessor to . . . → Read More: What To Stay Away From]]>

Frauds, Liars & Scams

First, a few definitions.

Fraud – One who assumes a false pose; an impostor. From the Latin for deceit or injury.

Liar – A person who knowingly utters falsehood; one who declares to another as a fact what he knows to be not true, and with an intention to deceive him. From a predecessor to Old English meaning to be untruthful.

Scam – A fraudulent business scheme; a swindle. U.S. slang, a carnival term, of unknown origin. Perhaps related to 19c. British slang scamp “cheater, swindler”

A Man Named Gordo

I advertise my home business opportunity in a magazine called the “Home Business Connection.” Now, surprisingly, you might think that I would expect people to call me who are looking for a home business opportunity. At least that’s why I thought I was advertising in that magazine.

Enter a man named Gordo. Gordo left me a voicemail in which he said he was interested in my business opportunity. Seems pretty straightforward, I normally call people back and find out about them and what they’re looking for and find out if there’s a match.

When I called Gordo back however, it turned out he was more interested in selling me on him, than vice versa. He called himself the “Greatest Networker in the World.”

The Greatest Networker In The World, by the way, is an actual book written by John Milton Fogg, who has been in the networking industry for over 20 years, and was also one of the founders of UPLINE magazine, a magazine about the network marketing industry. John gives seminars and lectures, writes books and articles, and in general would not be cold calling someone to invite them to listen to a conference call. So red flags were already going off.

When I mentioned that I had read “his” book, he responded “yep, that’s me.” I never bothered asking why he was disguising himself as Gordo. I was too curious at this point to see where he was going with this.

So he invited me to listen to a live conference call which was limited to 10 network marketers. He claimed it would be 100% live and 100% interactive. After inviting me, he then asked if there was anyone in my organization who I wanted to invite to the call.

The next thing that was odd was he couldn’t just give me the number to the conference call and the PIN. He had to call me back later in the day to give me these.

Finally, the appointed time rolls around and I call the number and get on the conference call. The first 15 minutes of the call were spent trying to locate someone who was supposed to be on the call and hadn’t called in.

He started the conference around 7:15, by saying the call was designed to help us make money, it’s not about making friends or saving the world.

Other statements he issued were: “Gordo hates liars,” “No one in the world knows more about networking than me,” and “No one in the industry earns more than me.”

Remember that statement about the call being 100% interactive, once the call started, everyone was locked out or muted except for Mr. Gordo, so much for the “interactive” call.

Another gem was “The secret to making money is not to make money.”

“Stupid is okay, don’t act stupid.”

“Same circus – different clowns.”

Since he had told us to be at our computers at 7 and the red flags were screaming at me by this point, I got online and started looking up Gordo and Gordo’s phone number.

What I found was pretty interesting.

http://www.ripoffreport.com/directory/Gordon-Moss.aspx

Or you can check out his blog. But be forewarned it has nothing to do with networking.

http://theworldsgreatestnetworker.blogspot.com/

Okay, one more

http://www.scam.com/showthread.php?t=17999

Okay, I think you get the idea. Stay away; far, far away.

Better idea

For more info on how to pick a real opportunity, go to www.AlansMLMTips.com and sign up for the “7 Days, 7 Insider Secrets” email newsletter.

Those tips will help you avoid falling victim to any frauds, lies, or scams.

Have a great week!

I hope you enjoy this as much as I . . . → Read More: Man’s Basic Impulse]]>

Someone sent this to me recently. After watching it, I had to pass it along.  I thought it such a moving commentary on the basic goodness of man, that in one of the darkest moments in recent U.S. history, people responded to the basic, simple impulse to help.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did. It’s about 12 minutes long.

Watch movie here.

I’d love to hear your comments, if you’re so inclined after watching the movie, come back and tell me what you thought.

Never Give Up

by Dr. Wendy Ghiora – August 13, 2011

As I teacher, “Never give up,” was my mantra. Time after time, the most unlikely students would wind up finding the genius . . . → Read More: Never Give Up – part 2]]>

A recent posting from a friend whose blog postings about education are wonderful. I loved this one so much I wanted to share it.

Never Give Up

by Dr. Wendy Ghiora – August 13, 2011

As I teacher, “Never give up,” was my mantra. Time after time, the most unlikely students would wind up finding the genius within and become my “brightest star.” As a teacher, leader, mentor, boss, whatever, you can help others find their own” hidden genius.” I believe there is a way to find that special something in every student; and when you do, all I can say is “WOW!”

See if you can guess who each one of these supposed ne’er-do-well’s is: (answers at the bottom)

1.This person’s teachers said he was “too stupid to learn anything.” He was fired from his first two jobs for being “non-productive.” As an inventor, he made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at his invention until he finally succeeded.

2.This person failed and went broke five times before he succeeded.

3.This person failed sixth grade and was subsequently defeated in every election for public office until the age of 62. He later wrote, “Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never – in nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never, Never, Never, Never give up.” (his capitals, mind you)

4.This person did not speak until he was 4-years-old and did not read until he was 7. His parents thought he was “sub-normal,” and one of his teachers described him as “mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams.” He was expelled from school .

One interesting anecdote, told by Otto Neugebauer, a historian of science, goes like this:

As he was a late talker, his parents were worried. At last, at the supper table one night, he broke his silence to say, “The soup is too hot.”
Greatly relieved, his parents asked why he had never said a word before.
He replied, “Because up to now everything was in order.”

5.This person was cut from his high school basketball team. He once observed, “I’ve failed over and over again in my life. That is why I succeed.”

6.After his first audition, this person was told by the casting director, “Why don’t you stop wasting people’s time and go out and become a dishwasher or something?” It was at that moment, that he decided to devote his life to acting.

7.This person flunked out of college. He was described as both “unable and unwilling to learn.” No doubt a slow developer.

8.was fired by a newspaper editor because “he lacked imagination and had no good ideas.” He went bankrupt several times. The “bright idea” he proposed was rejected by the local city on the grounds that it would only attract riffraff.

1.Thomas Edison
2.Henry Ford
3.Winston Churchill
4.Albert Einstein
5.Michael Jordan
6.Sidney Portier
7. Leo Tolstoy
8. Walt Disney

Next time you are just about to give up on someone, I hope you will think about these examples. The “I CAN,” is there in everyone. Just find it.

from Teaching For A Change

Since there seems to be widespread disagreement about what to call the current economy, but pretty much everyone agrees the current economy is in the trash can; yet there can be a silver lining in every cloud. Some of the biggest and brightest companies in the U.S. were started . . . → Read More: No Jobs?]]>

Jobs & Recession/Depression/Economic Uncertainty

Since there seems to be widespread disagreement about what to call the current economy, but pretty much everyone agrees the current economy is in the trash can; yet there can be a silver lining in every cloud. Some of the biggest and brightest companies in the U.S. were started or formed in recessions.

Also remember that whenever someone loses money by selling a stock, someone else is buying that stock in hopes of making money.

Home businesses always thrive in a recession as people look for ways to supplement, increase or replace their incomes.

With those positive notes in mind, here is an article that outlines part of the problem:

Porter Stansberry: This is why there are no jobs in America

Monday, May 23, 2011

I’ve decided to re-publish the most popular essay I’ve ever written. For some subscribers, this will only be a reminder about the serious problems we face in America. But for the many subscribers we’ve added in the last several months, this will be all new.

If it resonates with you… if you see these same problems in your communities… I encourage you to pass this along to your friends. This is a message we must get across to our fellow citizens. Robbing Peter to pay Paul will not lead to national wealth or prosperity. It will only lead to bigger problems for our children and grandchildren.

This Is Why There Are No Jobs in America

I’d like to make you a business offer. Seriously. This is a real offer. In fact, you really can’t turn me down, as you’ll come to understand in a moment…

Here’s the deal. You’re going to start a business or expand the one you’ve got now. It doesn’t really matter what you do or what you’re going to do. I’ll partner with you no matter what business you’re in – as long as it’s legal. But I can’t give you any capital – you have to come up with that on your own. I won’t give you any labor – that’s definitely up to you. What I will do, however, is demand you follow all sorts of rules about what products and services you can offer, how much (and how often) you pay your employees, and where and when you’re allowed to operate your business. That’s my role in the affair: to tell you what to do.

Now in return for my rules, I’m going to take roughly half of whatever you make in the business, each year. Half seems fair, doesn’t it? I think so. Of course, that’s half of your profits. You’re also going to have to pay me about 12% of whatever you decide to pay your employees because you’ve got to cover my expenses for promulgating all of the rules about who you can employ, when, where, and how. Come on, you’re my partner. It’s only “fair.”

Now… after you’ve put your hard-earned savings at risk to start this business and after you’ve worked hard at it for a few decades (paying me my 50% or a bit more along the way each year), you might decide you’d like to cash out – to finally live the good life.

Whether or not this is “fair” – some people never can afford to retire – is a different argument. As your partner, I’m happy for you to sell whenever you’d like… because our agreement says, if you sell, you have to pay me an additional 20% of whatever the capitalized value of the business is at that time.

I know… I know… you put up all the original capital. You took all the risks. You put in all of the labor. That’s all true. But I’ve done my part, too. I’ve collected 50% of the profits each year. And I’ve always come up with more rules for you to follow each year. Therefore, I deserve another, final 20% slice of the business. Oh… and one more thing…

Even after you’ve sold the business and paid all of my fees… I’d recommend buying lots of life insurance. You see, even after you’ve been retired for years, when you die, you’ll have to pay me 50% of whatever your estate is worth. After all, I’ve got lots of partners and not all of them are as successful as you and your family. We don’t think it’s “fair” for your kids to have such a big advantage. But if you buy enough life insurance, you can finance this expense for your children. All in all, if you’re a very successful entrepreneur… if you’re one of the rare, lucky, and hard-working people who can create a new company, employ lots of people, and satisfy the public… you’ll end up paying me more than 75% of your income over your life. Thanks so much.

I’m sure you’ll think my offer is reasonable and happily partner with me… but it doesn’t really matter how you feel about it because if you ever try to stiff me – or cheat me on any of my fees or rules – I’ll break down your door in the middle of the night, threaten you and your family with heavy, automatic weapons, and throw you in jail. That’s how civil society is supposed to work, right? This is Amerika, isn’t it?

That’s the offer Amerika gives its entrepreneurs. And the idiots in Washington wonder why there are no new jobs…

©2011 Stansberry & Associates Investment Research. All Rights Reserved. Protected by copyright laws of the United States and international treaties. This website may only be used pursuant to the subscription agreement and any reproduction, copying, or redistribution (electronic or otherwise, including on the world wide web), in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited without the express written permission of Stansberry & Associates Investment Research, LLC. 1217 Saint Paul Street, Baltimore MD 21202.

Why Network Marketing?

For my money, the best way to leverage one’s time, create residual income, and minimize Uncle Sam’s intrusion into our lives is network marketing.

To learn why it’s such a brilliant concept, please watch Brilliant Compensation.

Okay, Looks Good, What Next?

All right, so now you need to find a company that will allow you to make the concept you learned in Brilliant Compensation work.

If you don’t know how to pick a good company with a great product, network marketing probably won’t work for you.

One of my favorite mentors came up with a book and course called “MLM-The Whole Truth.” In it, he lays out what he calls the 12 Critical Success Factors™. You can get a free introduction to the factors he’s isolated by going here. It’s a 7 day series of emails where you learn 7 of the 12 concepts.

I Already Have A Company, But It’s Just Not Working For Me

Okay, fair enough. Did you get the 7 day series of emails? Does your company/product meet the qualifications that he talks about? If not, you probably need to go back to the drawing board and find a company/product that does meet the 12 Critical Success Factors.

If your company does meet them, then my next recommendation is to run, not walk to get your copy of “Professional Inviter” to learn how to do the business. In it he covers what is communication, the six steps of the “Inviting Formula”, how to tell when you’re done greeting someone, what qualified means when prospecting for network marketing business partners, and much, much more.

For more info or to order the course, go to “Professional Inviter.”

Quote

“Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires to reach their potential.” – John Maxwell

“This might sound easy, but commitment is more than just a word. Commitment is an action towards success.

“Most people assume that they first have to figure everything out and only then will they commit. The issue . . . → Read More: Commitment]]>

This is from an email newsletter that I get, I loved this one so much that I wanted to share it:

“This might sound easy, but commitment is more than just a word. Commitment is an action towards success.

“Most people assume that they first have to figure everything out and only then will they commit. The issue is they then never seem to get around to it. Even if they figure it out and are ready to commit, that original opportunity then no longer exists or someone else has already taken claim to it.

“Committing first means getting 100 percent behind whatever it is you are committing to before you figure out every detail. Sure it may be risky to commit first and then, turnaround to figure the rest out later, but it is my absolute belief that creativity and problem solving are stimulated only after a person fully commits. Preparation, details, and training are still critical, but the challenges you face in life will require you to act before you determine how to make everything turn out right.

“Remember, it‘s not necessarily the smartest and brightest who win in the game of life but rather those who can commit the most passionately to their cause.”

Grant   © Copyright Grant Cardone

Another Look at Commitment

“But when I said that nothing had been done I erred in one important matter. We had definitely committed ourselves and were halfway out of our ruts. We had put down our passage money–booked a sailing to Bombay. This may sound too simple, but is great in consequence. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, the providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets: Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!”

from The Scottish Himalaya Expedition by W. H. Murray, 1951

So…

Are you committed?

Are you willing to do whatever it takes to make your dreams come true?

Till next time!

Alan

Originally, a pipeline was a pipe or system of pipes designed to carry something such as oil, natural gas, or other petroleum-based products over long distances, often underground. (For some reason not entirely clear to me, a pipeline carrying water is not generally referred to as a pipeline, instead . . . → Read More: Pipelines]]>

What Is A Pipeline?

Originally, a pipeline was a pipe or system of pipes designed to carry something such as oil, natural gas, or other petroleum-based products over long distances, often underground. (For some reason not entirely clear to me, a pipeline carrying water is not generally referred to as a pipeline, instead being called water pipes, water mains, or aqueducts.)

Near as I can tell, this was then generalized to: a system through which something is conducted, especially as a means of supply. So you could have a manufacturing pipeline, or a food pipeline, etc.

This more general definition then morphed into a popular expression for things that are in process. For example,“There are over 10,000 condo units in the pipeline, in various stages of construction or conversion.” Or “I’m not worried about apartment move-outs this summer because I have a number of prospects in the pipeline.”

Why Do We Use The Phrase “Pipeline”

In any business, there is a sequence of steps that one has to go through to get the final product. These steps can then be likened to a pipeline.

For instance, in putting together a marketing campaign, one might first come up with some bright ideas, these would then be presented to the client, who would pick the idea that they felt best represented their company or product, then someone would come up with ideas of pictures, videos, etc. to represent that idea, all the way to the final roll-out of the campaign to the public it is intended for.

In my electronics repair business, the pipeline started with someone bringing in their broken electronics for repair. Then we would diagnose the problem and give them an estimate. After the customer approved the estimate, we would order the parts needed for the repair. The parts would come in. We’d install the parts, test the item for proper operation. Create an invoice. Call the customer. Customer comes in, pays, picks up his electronics and goes home happy.

So pipeline is a handy phrase to describe the process or the sequence of steps that one has to go through to get the product that one is aiming for.

The Pipeline & Network Marketing

In network marketing, since we are marketing a product, we are moving our company’s products into the hands and homes of consumers. Whether it’s vitamins, water, legal service plans, or home decorations, nobody makes any money unless someone buys that product.

The customer pipeline begins with the methods you are using to interest people in your product. Once a person has expressed interest in some form, he is in the pipeline. You give him more information. You might give him samples. Go to a meeting to learn more. He comes out the other end of the pipeline as either a customer or a non-customer. To keep customers coming out of the end of the pipeline, you have to keep putting new people in at the beginning of the pipeline.

No people entering the pipeline, no customers coming out of the pipeline.

Lots of people entering the pipeline, lots of customers coming out of the pipeline.

The Pipeline

If you chose your company/product well, you have a great product at a competitive price that your customers use and reorder or buy more of. This creates residual income, every time someone uses up their stuff, they buy more and you make a little bit each time.

As you continue to add customers these add up to a stream of income that you don’t have to create from scratch each day/month/year.

This becomes similar to the gas pipeline for the oil company, as long as the product is moving through the pipeline, the oil company makes money.

Lou Abbot has come up with a great little video based on a book by Burke Hedges that illustrates this in a very entertaining way.  I recommend you go watch it. When the site opens, scroll down the page to step 1 and click on “View the demo!” Click “START” on the next page. Go here to click over to it.

Make it a great week!

Have you ever wondered how to ask someone to look at your business, . . . → Read More: Training That Makes Sense]]>

If you’ve been around the block a few times in network marketing, you’ve probably realized that most training in network marketing consists of personal anecdotes, “run the numbers,” success stories of how others did it, hoopla, rah-rah and motivation; but darn little real training.

Have you ever wondered how to ask someone to look at your business, or even whether you should invite them to look at your business, or how to start a conversation?

Have you ever decided that there must be something wrong with you because you see others having success, but you’re not? Have you ever wanted to scream in frustration because no matter how many trainings, calls, meetings you attend it just isn’t happening for you?

Tim Sales has a course that he has written that answers all of these questions and much, much more. This is the first training that I can honestly say: “YOU NEED THIS.” Unless you’re already making more money than you can ever possibly spend, this can improve your game. Check it out at Professional Inviter.

Here’s Tim in an excerpt from the introduction:

Inviting Basics – Introduction

“Hello, Network Marketing Professional. My name is Tim Sales. My purpose and intention with this training pack is to teach you the skills or increase your skills at inviting people to look at your network marketing business.

…

“Inviting is the ability to ask someone to do something. You invite someone to go to dinner, you invite someone to play golf, and you invite someone to look at some information. This training package specifically addresses you inviting someone to look at your network marketing business.

…

“There is nothing more important in network marketing than inviting. See, if you can invite well, you can put your prospect in front of good presenters and good presentation tools (like videos, audios, websites – things like that). But if you can’t invite well, you’ll have a tough time in network marketing. So the information in this training pack is critical to your success.”

Take Your Skills To The Next Level

Since starting this course, I am having more fun than I thought possible in network marketing. I’ve always read and heard that if you’re not having fun, you’re doing it wrong. Well, I was doing it wrong. Tim shows you how to do it right!

Go to this link: Professional Inviter. Really, you need this.

Quote

“Men often become what they believe themselves to be. If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it even if I didn’t have it in the beginning.”  – Mohandas Gandhi