How High Is Your Mountain?

Today, I would like to start out with a quote from a new found friend, Jeff Holmers. Jeff is the person responsible for me rediscovering my faith in people and in working as one team toward one common goal. That's another story for another day. Suffice it to say that I would not be a part of the Presidential Group in TVI if it weren't for Jeff. So back to my story. I saw this quote while scrolling through the past few days of team conversation in Skype.

To most, it may sound a bit corny, and well I guess it is. But so many of the sayings that influence our lives, "God Bless America," "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," "It's better to give than to receive," "The customer is always right," sound corny but ring true! My personal favorite is, "Everything I need to know in life, I learned in Kindergarten." If you think about it, that's a very profound statement. Simple yes, but profound. But then most true wisdom is simple, yet profound. Just spend some time in the book of Proverbs and you'll see what I mean. So, back to my story. Sorry if I get a bit verbose, it's a bad habit of mine. I get it honest, I'm the son of an English Teacher.

Here's the quote.

"MOUNTAINS ARE CLIMBED ONE STEP AT A TIME. Everyone who got where they are had to begin where they were. Your opportunity for success is right in front of you. To attain success or to reach your goal, don't worry about having all the answers in advance. You just need to have a clear idea of your goal and move toward it. So what are you waiting for? Go for it!"

The wisdom in this quote is indeed profound. There are at least two very sound principles at work, here. I'm sure some of you will see more, but these two jumped off the page at me.

First, everyone, no matter who they are, no matter how smart, how gifted, how wealthy, how successful, had to start at the beginning. There is NO other starting point. They had to learn, study, practice, and most importantly, fail. Did I say fail? Yes, I did. Thomas Edison said it this way when a lab assistant exclaimed in total exasperation after their attempt at creating the light bulb failed for the umpteenth time. Yes, I did say "umpteenth." That's a real number, you know. Anyway, Edison responded with "no, we haven't failed at all, we have just found one more way that won't work!" What he meant of course was that they were that much closer to finding the one that would.

The second point that struck a chord with me is this. You don't have to have it all worked out beforehand. You don't have to have all the answers. But you DO have to have vision. There's an interesting quote in The Bible, not sure of the exact chapter and verse, but it goes like this. "without a vision, the people perish." Without a vision, a goal, a strong, all consuming "Why," you will not succeed. You will just go around stumbling in the dark, become lost, discouraged, and eventually you will give up. It's inevitable. This is true in business, in relationships, in your walk with God, in life.

So if you have not taken the time to do it yet, stop everything, get alone with yourself and do some intense, soul-searching. Find your vision. Find your "WHY." Write it down, tape it to your refrigerator door or your bedroom mirror (that's where mine is taped up) and every morning when you get up and every night when you lie down, read and say it aloud. Second, stop procrastinating, and as Jeff so succinctly put it, stop waiting and Go For It! It doesn't matter how high the mountain, or how lofty the goal. With these two principles in action, you WILL achieve it. Will you stumble along the way? Sure, but that doesn't matter. Keep going and you WILL realize your dream. It's inevitable.

MLM Success and The Power of Two

MLM Success is contingent upon many factors, not the least of which is the ability to build a large and successful downline. Most MLM practitioners are unable to recruit enough people to sustain their business long enough for it to succeed. The industry average is something like 2.7, meaning that the average person can recruit 2.7 people. Sure, there are gifted men and women who seem to be able to recruit at will but they are the exception, not the rule. So, if a large and thriving downline is critical to Network Marketing success and the average network marketer can only bring in 2.7 people, how can anyone succeed in this industry? The answer lies in a very simple concept, "The Power of Two."

Simply put, recruit two people and help each of those recruit two people. Then teach the first two to help their people recruit two and so forth. This strategy sets the average MLM distributor up for success instead of failure. There are some very good reasons for this. First, you have simplified the whole recruiting process. All they have to do is recruit two. Second, it creates the momentum necessary to achieve sustained growth. And as the team grows, your support system grows along with it because now everyone is helping everyone below them to get their two. Building with The Power of Two enables your team to work together to grow a solid downline that will make the business profitable for everyone.

The numbers are truly staggering! They may seem small at first but watch what happens as The Power of Two takes over and the business begins to grow. If you start with one person recruiting two people in their first month and each person thereafter recruits just two in their first month and if everyone on the team follows through with the plan, in four months there will be 63 people on the team. In Six months it will grow to 127, in eight months it will be 511 and in one year, with everyone only expected to recruit two and help their two recruit two, your organization would grow to 8,191 distributors. Now, in any MLM compensation plan I know of, that translates to success and a boat load of cash! And it was accomplished in just one year.

Of course it's a given that no system is perfect and there will always be folks who drop out or who refuse to do their part, that's MLM. It doesn't matter. You simply bypass those weak spots by recruiting another distributor and help them get their two. Problem solved. MLM Success is not always easy but it is incredibly simple. Achieve success by helping others succeed. Help others succeed by building with The Power of Two.

Developing A Business Mentality is Key to MLM Success

So you found the MLM business you want to get into, great products you can believe in, a lucrative compensation plan, impressive training and marketing tools. You have a real connection with the person who will be sponsoring and mentoring you. The company is just beginning to hit the explosive growth surge that will make it's distributors a fortune over the next several years. All the ingredients for success seem to be in place. It truly is a "right place, right time" opportunity. But none of this matters if you don't have the right mindset, if you don't enter into it with a business mentality. Without that key ingredient, you are destined for failure.

Too many people get into MLM thinking it will be all sunshine and roses. They're told that the product and business opportunity will "sell themselves." All they have to do is show it to people and they will be beating down the door, to get in. The truth is, good products will sell themselves but not everyone is going to buy. And when it comes to sponsoring new members, things can become even tougher. If you don't have a business mentality, prepared to deal with hearing the word "no" more often than you will hear the word "yes," you will quickly become discouraged and quit. Rejection is part of the game so you need to be prepared for it.

Another problem is what I call the "Hobby Mentality." Hobbies cost money, businesses make money. But all to often, people get into an MLM and don't take it seriously. If it takes off right away and makes money, great. If not, it's on to something else. MLM success takes work. It requires training, planning and preparation, goal setting and taking deliberate action. It requires time spent talking to people, getting your product and opportunity out there so others can see them. Success not going to just happen, it's the by-product of hard work and determination. You have to DO something if you want something to happen, even with today's online automated tools and systems. They won't work FOR you unless you work WITH them. And success takes time to achieve. It won't happen overnight.

In summary, if you desire MLM success, long term residual income, financial freedom and security, find a good MLM with a profitable compensation plan and products you can believe in. Then if you don't have one already, you must develop a business mentality. Educate yourself, set measurable goals, expect and be prepared to handle the ups and downs associated with any business endeavor and grow a thick skin so you can handle the word "No." Be prepared for the long haul. Business is a marathon, not a sprint. Do this and you will achieve MLM success.

Your Home Business Success Is Up To You

I've spent time over the past few weeks reading and paying attention to all the media hype over the current recession, both here in the US and worldwide. The news is depressing. This is the worst recession since the stock market crash of 1929. Making matters worse is the fact that in 1929 our currency was still backed by a gold standard. Today, it's all pretend money. With hedge funds, stock options, annuities, retirement accounts, bank notes, one country in debt to another who in turn is in debt to another and another, and so on, there is no such thing as real money anymore. In the words of that famous hamburger joint commercial in the 1980's, "Where's the money?" Answer, there is none. It's all pretend. This is profoundly terrible news, for sure. So what you might ask, does this have to do with your home business success? Everything.

Listen to all this depressing news for long and it's easy to feel like just giving up! Many network marketers are doing just that. Their dream of home business success and financial freedom has turned into a nightmare. Hope turns into despair under the onslaught of one "woe is me" news report after another. The nightly news has become the nightly "Death Knell." But I am here to tell you it doesn't have to be this way! Success is a choice. It has no more to do with what the news media has to say about the world financial climate than it does with what the weather channel says about the weather. The only person that can determine your home business success or failure is, you got it, you. Let's look a bit of history and see how this is so.

I wonder how many people told Wilbur and Orville Wright that their contraption would never get off the ground. Or how many people believed Thomas Edison was crazy, thinking it possible to light up a room without lighting a fire? Then there was Alexander Graham Bell. Hold a conversation with someone miles away using electricity and a bunch of wires? Yeah, Right! Were any of these men deterred by what other people had to say about what they could and could not do? No, they continued to press on, to pursue their dream, no matter what. And they succeeded. The truth is, no one but you determines your fate. Your home business success is within reach, so reach out and grab it! Don't listen to all the gloom and doom. Don't listen to the "Nay Sayers," there are plenty of them out there.

Instead, listen to your heart. Believe in yourself. Press on. Never give up on the dream. So what, if it takes you two years, three years, five, more, to realize true financial freedom, is it not worth it? Only you can answer that question. For me the answer is a resounding YES! How about you?

To Achieve Your Dreams Remember Your ABC's

The following is written on a plaque hung in one of the bathrooms in our house. I cannot tell you how many times I have stood there and read these words. A couple of days ago I was, well, standing there and reading the plaque yet another time. But this time the words burned through me, all the way to my heart and this time they spoke to me, really spoke to me. These words are powerful. They truly are a recipe for achieving one's dreams. They are a recipe for success in life, in any endeavor one choses to undertake. I submit them now to you, my readers and ask you to consider their consequences. Take them to heart as I finally did, if you want to achieve your dreams.

Remember your ABC's.

Avoid negative sources, people, places, things and habits.
Believe in yourself.
Consider things from every angle.
Don't give up and don't give in.
Enjoy life today, yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come.
Family & friends are hidden treasures, seek them, enjoy their riches.
Give more than you planned to.
Hang on to your dreams.
Ignore those who try to discourage you.
Just do it.
Keep trying no matter how hard it seems, it will get easier.
Love yourself first and most.
Make it happen.
Never lie, cheat or steal, always strike a fair deal.
Open your eyes and see things as they really are.
Practice makes perfect.
Quitters never win and winners never quit.
Read, study and learn about everything important in your life.
Stop procrastinating.
Take control of your own destiny.
Understand yourself in order to better understand others.
Visualize it.
Want it more than anything.
Xcellerate your efforts.
You are unique of all God's creations, nothing can replace you.
Zero in on your target and go for it.