Why 98% Fail: Facebook Farmville financial interdependence Varney & Co. virtual business
by Tony Lauria
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Paying For Virtual Pigs
Last week on the FOX Business Station’s morning show Varney & Company, a peculiar business model was presented and then roundly criticized by most. It very vividly reminded me of the MLM model gone wrong and the human behavior common to both.
One business analyst just “loves the model” that the online game called FARMVILLE is based on. Just go to Facebook and after enrolling you can pay real money to get the fullest experience of the game.
Pay REAL money to buy VIRTUAL feed for your VIRTUAL cattle and VIRTUAL pigs that live in the VIRTUAL barn that you only VIRTUALLY have to upkeep. (Thank goodness for that task being virtual!)
When challenged by the more level-headed and pragmatic host of the show Stuart Varney, the analyst responded, “What’s not to like? It’s a money maker! Don’t underestimate Americans’ need for escape – like when movies shot up in popularity.”
Later in the show another commentator described and dismissed it as “selling distraction in a hard economy.”
Distraction is one thing. Delusion another. Broken down to its barest bones here’s what I see going on:
- A vendor has made available the online illusion of owning a farm along with the necessary animals and chores that go along with such a real world enterprise.
- The owner pays REAL money for this virtual business and all it entails.
- The owner never has to get down and dirty with the beasties, or drive the necessary vehicles, etc. Just click away from the comfort of a keyboard.
- The costs are REAL, the rewards virtual, i.e., NOT REAL.
- Some make money, most lose money. (Hey, THAT’S not what MLM stand for!)
Can’t begin to tell you how many people I have run across, asking for real help for a MLM business run very much as described above – virtual.
Hard economy. Virtual business. Delusional satisfaction.
Happy New Year.
When the real world comes a’knocking on the door of your virtual reality and you need help, just ask. I and my team have real world solutions for any MLM – provided you don’t ask us to feed the pigs.
Adversity & Success
It may be a hard pill to swallow but if it were easy it wouldn’t be worth so much and we wouldn’t call it success. Seth agrees. Here’s his post and the link to his blog:
Adversity And The Route To Success
Resource-rich regions often fall behind in developing significant industrial and cultural capabilities. Japan does well despite having very few resources at all.
Well-rounded and popular people rarely change the world. The one voted most likely to succeed probably won’t.
Genuine success is scarce, and the scarcity comes from the barriers that keep everyone from having it. If it weren’t for the scarcity, it wouldn’t be valuable, after all.
It’s difficult to change an industry, set a world record, land big clients, or do art that influences others. When faced with this difficulty, those with other, seemingly better options see the barrier and walk away.
Why bother? The thinking is that we can just pump some more oil or smile and gladhand our way to an acceptably happy outcome.
On the other hand, people who believe they have fewer options take a look at the barrier and realize that even though it will be difficult to cross, it’s the single best option they’ve got.
This is one of the dangers of overfunded/undertested startup companies. Without an astute CEO in charge, they begin to worry more about not losing what they’ve already got than the real reason they started the project in the first place.
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/11/adversity-and-the-route-to-success.html
The Difference Between Management and Leadership
Seth Godin does it again:
Managers work to get their employees to do what they did yesterday, but a little faster and a little cheaper.
Leaders, on the other hand, know where they’d like to go, but understand that they can’t get there without their tribe, without giving those they lead the tools to make something happen.
Managers want authority. Leaders take responsibility.
We need both. But we have to be careful not to confuse them. And it helps to remember that leaders are scarce and thus more valuable.
Stupid OR Lazy?
Here’s the link to the latest post from Seth Godin. http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/10/stupid-and-lazy.html
I highly recommend it for several reasons, the first being that I totally agree with his assessment. The second because it greatly explains, in my opinion, much of our economic woes.
Are we in this economic trouble because we ARE stupid – perhaps untrained is kinder and more accurate – OR because too many of us just don’t want ANYTHING enough to move off the couch or away from the computer?
Closer to my own situations is this: I have people in my network marketing organization that surely expressed deep desires to own their lives and thus live their dreams, but once in and thoroughly trained, nothing ever happened.
Stupid OR Lazy?
A shame on many levels, not the least of which is that self-employment is the way out of the economic doldrums, not JOBS.
Who’s Paying the Price?
In line with the current topic of what OCCUPY is all about comes this blog post from Randy Gage.
Now I admit that at first glance there does not seem to be any relationship but allow me to connect the dots.
There is a stifling sense of entitlement that seems to be permeating the globe from huge businesses and banks that expect to get bailed out even when they screw up, to the politicians who love to spend wealth they have not created, to the radical chic in Zucotti Park-like demonstrations, to network marketers who join a company, don’t want to work, but expect success/wealth.
Just what the hell is going on that so many are so allergic to work and effort? Millions upon millions of long gone immigrants to North America et al must be turning in their graves.
That leads us to Mr. Gage. I trust now you’ll be able to see the connection.
Pay the Price
By Randy Gage
October 19th, 2011
Here’s the very unsexy thing no one likes to talk about. But I’ll tell you the truth:
Success doesn’t come without sacrifice or inconvenience. There is a price for success. And in Network Marketing, that price is going to include some levels of rejection, no shows, dropouts, skepticism, doubt and fear. Perhaps even getting let down by a company or two, some government harassment or negative publicity.
That’s the truth. So what?
No other business has a higher reward ratio. Pay the price and you’ll live a life most can’t even dream of.
And remember you are overcoming to become. Which makes it all that much better…
Ain’t it great!
- RG
MLM Tip from 'Big Al' What It Takes To Win Why 98% Fail
by Tony Lauria
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Here’s What Works in MLM ~ WORK!
I like to call it the ‘Bought a Lottery Ticket’ syndrome:
People fed up with the boss, fed up with not having enough money at the end of the month, fed up with not living the life of their dreams, get into a home based business, a Multi-Level marketing company.
Without doing much if any research they jump into a deal that appeals looking for a stash of cash.
“I got a business now, got my websites up and and I’m ready to earn. And . . .”
then they do nothing. They’ve bought the business much like buying a lottery ticket and take the same action, which is NO action. After all , there IS no action to take when you buy a lottery ticket. Just sit back and wait for the money to come in.
And wait.
And wait.
But they have bought a BUSINESS, so why aren’t they getting BUSY?
The answer or answers to this are many but they all explain this:
Why 98% Fail.
The most direct action you can take if you are in such a situation and realize you MUST do something about it is to get the skills that WORK so that your business will WORK.
Yes, WORK. You have bought a business and nothing works like work!
Don’t have the skills? Don’t even know what they are? You can get a list of them here:
And you can register for a new series of free generic webinars focusing on these same 25 business skills, again all generic and free, from the master trainer in MLM, Tom ‘Big Al’ Schreiter.
Register here for the webinar http://www.MLMreadysetgo.info
Each session is live at 1pm ET on Saturdays and each is archived to be reviewed again if not seen live. Just use my name ~ Tony Lauria ~ as the person who invited you.
And please know this is not an affiliate program since there is no cost involved.
Only You Can Save Yourself
I am posting a recent blog article from my mentors, Bob & Anna Bassett. If time management is a persistent problem, you’ll find this hits the bull’s eye. And may cut too close to the bone.
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Only You
Thanks to Gary Ryan Blair, The Goals Guy, for this kick in the butt …
I just got off the phone with the CEO of a company in Phoenix who is in need of refocusing, and who desperately needs to have a strong 4th quarter.
His business is slow, competition fierce, and his margins are getting slimmer by the day. Quite frankly it’s a serious competitive problem that requires a serious, sustained, and immediate solution.
He asked and paid me for advice as to what he can do to finish the year strong. While the medicine I provided was initially tough to swallow, the answer is the same for YOU and anyone you know who currently has their back against the wall and needs to turn things around quickly.
The things you NEED to be doing in the 4th quarter are the EXACT same things you should have been doing all year long!
REREAD THAT LAST LINE …
The things you NEED to be doing in the 4th quarter are the EXACT same things you should have been doing all year long!
The reason why my client, and for that matter why MILLIONS of people throughout the world are in desperate need of refocusing is actually very simple.
Feel free to check all that apply …
- You did not have a specific set of goals when the year began.
- If you did, you were not 100% committed to achieving them.
- You did not develop a detailed action plan to include deadlines and hold yourself to those deadlines.
- You allowed yourself to lose focus on your key priorities.
- You were undisciplined and inconsistent in your actions.
- You wasted a lot of time, talent and resources on low payoff activities.
- You did not enforce personal accountability and made excuses for your inaction.
- You did not take massive action each and every day and as a result you are now dealing with an undesirable reality.
It deeply concerns me when people think that they can really improve their 4th quarter performance by engaging in the same performance, the same habits, the same strategies, the same beliefs, and the same work ethic that got them in the lousy situation in the first place.
It’s not too late to turn your year AND your life around … “
Gary is right that it’s not too late to turn things around. Forget about the date. Think of today as January 1 and get started on what you know will bring you success.
In our network marketing checklist, we cover everything on Gary’s list, but …
- We can ask you to write your goals, but only you can commit to them.
- We can help you with your action plan, but only you can hold yourself to your deadlines.
- We can help you plan your day, but only you can stick to the plan.
- We can help you set priorities, but only you can keep your focus.
- We can help you choose actions, but only you can choose discipline and consistency.
- We can warn against low payoff activities, but only you can avoid wasting your time, talent and resources on them.
- We can ask you to send in your daily accountability report, but only you can be accountable to yourself.
- We can encourage you, but only you can stop making excuses to yourself for your inaction.
For help in setting goals and understanding WHY you are doing this, start with this free MLM report.
If your inaction is due to not knowing what to say and what to do, get some help from Tom ‘Big Al’s Schreiter’s list of 25 Essential Skills For Network Marketers.
And seriously consider signing up for a new series of webinars featuring these skills, which began September 24th. The entire series is free and if you miss any sessions, they will be archived at the site.
Just go to http://www.MLMreadysetgo.info and use my name Tony Lauria as the person who invited you.
“No one goes there any more, it’s too crowded”
So said the great American philosopher Yogi Berra. (He was also a helluva baseball player.)
Today Seth Godin uses this somewhat brilliant observation to make a crucial point about what marketers (or any of us) need to do: don’t interpret what’s observed into what you want to see. Enjoy it.
“No one goes there any more, it’s too crowded”
It’s also true that most of your friends have more friends than you do.
The law of large groups is at work here. This explains why the people you see at the gym tend to be in better shape than you are.
People with lots of friends are more likely to be friends with you than people with no friends, right? And the people who are at the gym a lot (as in the people you see the most often) tend to be in better shape because they show up more often.
Discernment is the hardest part of marketing–seeing the world as it is, instead of how you experience it.
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/09/no-one-goes-there-any-more-its-too-crowded.html
The MLM Placebo
Seth Godin’s latest post http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/09/everyone-gets-their-own-belief.html begins:
“The placebo effect isn’t a lie. In fact, if you believe something is going to help you get better, it may very well do just that.
This very same effect works with stereo equipment, wine, politicians… just about everything where our belief intersects with reality.
You can believe that Ford is better than Chevy, that California reds are better than French ones and that your particular tribe is right (and that everyone else is wrong.)”
So too can you believe that your Network Marketing company is the greatest, the best, the most generous, the marketer of the most desired products, etc.
Yet what happens when belief collides with fact? With demonstrable proof?
Marketers, Godin writes, love the placebo effect because it opens the possible use of stories, fables and constructed perception to sell more than is visible: price and features.
You and I were sold an MLM opportunity by a marketer. Chances are extremely high that we were sold – and we bought – a story, a fable, a myth and a constructed perception.
How’s that working out for you? Has any of it collided yet with demonstrable fact?
What to do about global warming is an issue we all have an opinion on. Fair enough. But Godin asks, should we, the uninitiated in science, be asked to determine whether global warming exists or not? Does the weather care what we believe?
When you joined your MLM there was a definite, almost measurable, amount of belief as part of your decision process. But how much of your need for verifiable proof was suspended? And is there now some collision with “scientific” real world empirical fact?
Do the economy and the company care what you believe? We’re all entitled to our ‘placebo effect’ beliefs, but as Godin asks, are we entitled to our own science?
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There’s a new series of webinars featuring the generic Network Marketing trainings of Tom ‘Big Al’ Schreiter. This series is open to everyone desiring the necessary skills to succeed in an MLM company.
To register for the series go to http://www.MLMreadysetgo.info and use my name Tony Lauria as the one who invited you.
The series is entirely free, as is the pdf Success In 10 Steps gotten by going to http://ajlauria.bigmlmsecrets.com
Spirit and Money What It Takes To Win Why 98% Fail: mlm policy and procedure mlm protection reading your policy and procedure
by Tony Lauria
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The ‘All-Seeing’ MLM Policy & Procedure
As an MLM mentor I assist struggling Network Marketers. Among the help I am able to provide is the deciphering of their Policy & Procedure documents.
A P&P, as it is known, is the actual contract a networker has with the company he or she has chosen. Regrettably there are a number of clauses to be watchful for, all designed for one purpose: to “legally” steal the rep’s paycheck.
This morning as I was sitting before my computer reading the P&P document for someone’s network marketing company, I got the distinct vision of the Eye of Sauron atop the tower of Barad-Dur in Mordor from the Lord of the Rings.
Crazy I know but pretty damn accurate. 
Most P&Ps are benign to most reps for one reason only: 98% of all reps fail, meaning if they generate any income at all for themselves it would not be enough to draw the attention of the company’s CEO and top-earners.
Much like the Hobbits who did not typically draw the attention of Sauron’s eye, most reps are too small! Assumed to be of no significance, sponsoring on average only 2.7 new distributors for the company, they are essentially left to be what they are: consumers of the products/services. It is further assumed that they will not ever seriously challenge the vast wealth accumulated by the ownership.
And as long as they stay small, most of the P&P clauses will have little to no effect on them and they won’t have any real serious problems. As a former VP once said, “Let them protest all they want as long as they pay their taxes.” Similar attitude.
However, the closer you get to the big money, that is the bigger your check becomes, the more attention you will attract.
Just as the One Ring grew heavier the closer it travelled to Mordor and consequently drew more of Sauron’s attention, so will you draw attention the more they will have to pay you.
Then your Sauron-like CEO will look to invoke clauses in your P&P (contract) that will facilitate the appropriation of your check.
What to do? Here are some choices:
- Keep a low profile, be sure your check doesn’t grow and so escape notice. But is that why you joined your company?
- Learn what is in your P&P. Knowing where the traps are, you might be able to avoid notice and stay at a safe distance. But is such a limitation what you want?
- Pardon the corn but you could ask for help from a Fellowship of Networkers. We at MentoringForFree would be honored to assist you and show you how to protect yourself and your paycheck from the spying gaze and long greedy grasp of your CEO’s evil insatiable greed.
If you would like to explore what help you may find, please email me tony@ajlauria.com
And you may download a free copy of the manual that reoriented thousands of network marketers’ lives here: http://ajlauria.bigMLMsecrets.com
