How Long Does it Take to Build a Network Marketing Business? Well, that depends...

When you first start a network marketing business, you’ll likely need a reality check.  If you expect to be earning money your first week, month or even two months, sorry but it probably won’t happen.  You must also realize that as a business owner, your income can fluctuate from month to month.  It is an unfortunate fact that not all ABO’s are willing to put in the time and effort required to succeed, so they quit.

When we work for someone else, our income is usually steady, but as a business owner you are not paid immediately, but this is a sacrifice you must be willing to make. If you are not willing to do so, your business will be short lived.  In the long term, you can be rewarded handsomely, but in network marketing in the short term, it can be difficult.

No business – whether it be a network marketing business or a storefront, it is important to realize that your business offers you a long term financial solution. If you’re expecting to be earning thousands of dollars within your first few months, you will likely be disappointed.  If anyone tells you otherwise, don’t believe it!   I am not saying it is impossible to earn good money in a short period of time; but for the vast majority, it takes time.

The great advantage of a network marketing business is that it is an uncomplicated and affordable way to achieve financial freedom.  But, as I said, it offers a long term financial solution, so you must be willing to make a long term commitment to get your desired results. If you work your business consistently and persistently, persevere in your efforts with a positive attitude, and you are patient, your sacrifices will pay you back in the years to come.

The biggest problem that most network marketers face at the beginning is that they feel as though they are spending money to get their business established but seeing no results.  How is this different from opening a hair salon or a retail store?  

A huge advantage of starting a network marking business is that it is low cost.  Most traditional small to medium size business are in the red for years before they start to earn positive cash flow.  This is why we see so many small businesses close down within the first few years. Once you earn enough with your network marketing business to cover your monthly expenses, you are in profit mode.  In many businesses, it could be as few as five transactions; with others more. 

As you’re building your home business, it is important to keep the big picture in mind.  Many fail because they expect success to happen.  In reality, success comes to those who make it happen.  Anyone who fails at network marketing does so because they chose not to put in the time and effort.  People who quit their network marketing business – and of course, many do so repeatedly - do so because they were not committed enough or were unwilling to persevere.  

The difference between those who succeed and those who don’t in any given network marketing company is the individual’s commitment, dedication and persistence towards achieving their goals.

Going forward what does this mean?  It means that you should expect that in at least your first couple of months you will likely pay out money with little or no income.  As you continue working your business, your exposure will multiply month after month, and then you will begin to be rewarded financially for all your ground work.

As you are first starting out in your business, you need to make a commitment to yourself, your team and your business for at least your first year, giving it all the effort it requires to become established.

As you work towards achieving your goals, it is important to remember that perseverance is not a long race; it is instead many short races.  By identifying your long term goals and setting smaller goals along the way, over time, you will see the results of your efforts.

Who was Benjamin Clark?

This is an abbreviated version of the article posted at http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/09/11/the-story-of-an-unsung-9-11-hero.html.  I encourage you to read the full article at the website.

This is an abbreviated version of the article posted online.  I encourage you to read the full article at the website.

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The Story of an Unsung 9/11 Hero

By Michael Daly - Sep 11, 2013 4:45 AM EDT

At midnight every September 11, Elsie Clark hangs a banner on the fence alongside the front-yard memorial to the 39-year-old son who perished at the World Trade Center.

“In Loving Memory
Benjamin Keefe Clark
9/11/01”

Benjamin Clark remained in the South Tower of the World Trade Center helping countless to safety.

The son was not a firefighter or a police officer.

He was a chef.

But a morning that began with him preparing meals for the people at the Fiduciary Trust Company suddenly led to him becoming as brave as any first responder. A Fiduciary official would later credit Clark with saving hundreds of lives as he made sure that everyone in his department along with everybody else in the company’s 96th floor offices in the South Tower was safely exiting the building.

He then paused on the 78th floor to assist a woman in a wheelchair.

“He could have gotten out,” his mother says. “Everybody else did.”

The mother would ascribe some of his courage to him having been a Marine for eight years.

“My son was a Marine, so you know he wasn’t going to leave anybody behind,” she says.

More than a Marine, he was Benjamin Clark, since his earliest years ever ready to lend a hand to whoever might need it. He had only to see a neighbor in need of assistance big or small and he would exclaim, “I’ll help! I’ll help!”

“He was always there to help,” his mother says.

Upon seeing others suddenly in the most mortal danger, his everyday decency had become uncommon courage. A chef known for his fabulous meatloaf and for remembering everybody’s name and favorite meals had proven as courageous as if he had stepped off an FDNY rig.

“A hero,” his mother says. “My hero.”

…

The enormity of Benjamin Clark’s sacrifice is made apparent by the photos of his own five children hanging in his mother’s home. He had been happily married to a wonderful woman, LaShawn Clark, and he had been the happiest of dads.

“His wife and the five kids were his life,” Elsie Clark says. “If my son could have walked around with those kids in his pocket every day, he would have.”

She says that her grandson, Taj, had awakened at 4 a.m. on 9/11 as his father was getting ready for work.

“Taj woke up and told his dad, ‘Don’t go to work today. I don’t have a good feeling today,’” she says.

…

More than 1,200 people attended his memorial service at the Marriott in downtown Brooklyn. They included people who were alive only because he had urged them on to safety.

…

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For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance). 

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How Can I Stimulate Team Sales?

I have found that when I have team contests, my team members are more active with their businesses. 

I started a new contest a few weeks ago that will run indefinitely.  I want to thank Andrea, one of my team members, for the idea for this competition.

As we all know, Goals + Action = Results.  Therefore, the more action team members are taking, the better the results will be. 

I sat down and created a list of tasks that I believe all network marketers should be doing to build their business.  I assigned a different number of points that could be earned for various tasks based on the time it takes to perform and the difficulty level. 

To win the contest, team members must earn points.  I believe that team training calls are very important to a successful business, so I’ll award team members when they dial into calls and more points when they participate in the conversation.  ONLY those who are on team calls can win the contest. 

• ·        When team members post a comment on IBOToolbox, for instance, they get two points.
• ·        If they write and post a blog, they earn five points. 
• ·        If they sell a product, they earn 25 points.
• ·        If they present our program to a business or group, they earn 10 points.

These are a just few examples, but there are many more tasks for which team members can earn points.  On our team call, whoever is participating in the contest shares what activities they performed during the week and the total number of points they earned for those activities.  By sharing what they have done during the week, other team members are learning new ways to market their business from one another, and they are challenged to do those activities themselves.

At the end of each month, I award a small prize to the person with the most points.  At the end of each quarter, I award a slightly larger prize.  I don’t spend much money on the prizes.  They are an acknowledgement of team members’ achievements, and everyone loves to win contests!

I have been using contests to inspire my team members for some time.  I have had different types of contests, and I change them periodically to keep them fresh.  The contests encourage everyone to work harder on their businesses.  And, we also have fun with the contests, which makes our team calls even better. 

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For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance). 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle 

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, visit http://joinxpresshealthcare.com. 

Changing Your Mind

Most of us are comfortable with our daily personal and professional routines.  Our day-to-day practices and schedules are familiar to us, so, many of us are resistant to change.   Even though we realize that change is part of life, we sometimes fight it anyway.

With technology today being in a constant flux, we really must have the ability to adapt readily.  It is, in fact, an important skill if we want to succeed. 

At least as often as not, change is an improvement.  Changes can be exciting and fun and keep life interesting.  But there are times when we actually fear change.  We’re afraid it will affect us negatively.  However, if we learn what the changes entail, we may find that truly is positive.  

Even if you dislike the change, it is important to accept it so you can move forward.  It may take some time to adjust, but the sooner we begin, the sooner we will be comfortable or at least accept it.

Another way to look at change is by facing it as a challenge.  Meet it with enthusiasm, and learn as much as possible about it.  It may turn out that it will provide you with new opportunities about which you never dreamed.  Face changes bravely and head on!

When we cling to status quo, your business can become stagnant.  It will cease to grow.  Learn how the change will affect you and your business.  Instead of being afraid or unhappy, seek out ways that the change can help you.  Part of our personal and professional growth is to step out of our comfort zone.  

Ask others in your company for feedback; ask them how they are adjusting to the change.  If you use your network of co-workers as a support system, you can all share ideas and work through the adjustments together. 

Once you accept and adjust for changes, each additional change will be easier to face.  Changes are inevitable, so learn how to face them positively, and the fear of change will evaporate and instead become challenging and exciting.   

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For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance).

 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle 

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, http://joinxpresshealthcare.com. 

Here's Your Sign

Bill Engvall has made a career out of the stupid statements people make, saying that stupid people should carry a sign identifying themselves.  He is my favorite comedian.  In case you’re not familiar with Bill’s “Here’s Your Sign” jokes, here are a few.  I hope they brighten your day.

(Please remember, these are jokes, intended for fun.  They are not meant to offend any person or group of people.)

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Last time I had a flat tire, I pulled my truck into one of those side-of-the-road gas stations. The attendant walks out, looks at my truck, looks at me, and asked, "Tire go flat?" I couldn't resist so I said, "Nope. I was driving around and those other three just swelled right up on me. Here's your sign."

One day I locked my keys in my car and as I was standing there with a coat hanger halfway thru the top of my window, a guy walks up and says," Lock yer keys in the car?" Without missing a beat I said, "Nope, Just washed it and was hanging it up to dry."...Here's your sign.


It's like before my wife and I moved. Our house was full of boxes and there was a U-Haul truck in our driveway. My friend comes over and says "Hey, you moving?" "Nope. We just pack our stuff up once or twice a week to see how many boxes it takes. Here's your sign."


A couple of months ago I went fishing with a buddy of mine. We pulled his boat into the dock, I lifted up this big 'ol stringer of bass and this idiot on the dock goes, "Hey, y'all catch all them fish?" "Nope -Talked 'em into giving up. Here's your sign."

I stayed late at work one night and a co-worker looked at me and said, "Are you still here?"
I replied, "No. I left about 10 minutes ago. Here's your sign."


Went to the grocery store, got everything on my list and went up to the checkout. I put a bag of pet food for our rabbit on the conveyor.
The girl looked at me and said, "Do you have a rabbit?"
I looked at here and said, deadpan, "Nope. Just like 'em cause they're crunchy. Here's your sign."


I shot me a nice deer, and I hung it on the den wall in my house. My neighbor comes over and he says, "Did you shoot that thing?"
I said, "Nope. He ran through the wall and got stuck. Here's your sign."


I arrived home the other day, and it was just pouring rain outside so by the time I got from the car to the front door I am SOAKED. I walk in side and take off my jacket and my wife says "Is it raining out" I couldn’t help myself when I replied "Nope, I had to take the gold fish for a walk. Here's your sign."

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For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance). 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle  

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, http://joinxpresshealthcare.com. 

I Have this Bad Habit of…

"Your net worth to the world is usually determined by what remains after your bad habits are subtracted from your good ones."  Benjamin Franklin

Do you check your email many times a day, even when you should be focusing on other work?  Are you late for appointments or training calls?  Do you take personal phone calls when you should be working?  These and many other bad habits can prevent you from being successful with your business – and even damage your reputation. 

One definition I found for the word “habit” is, “a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up.  There are helpful habits of course, like being on time for work or being optimistic.  In this post, I’m discussing harmful ones than can prevent us from focusing on tasks that need our attention and ultimately affect or personal lives or careers.

We all know examples of really obvious bad habits like being late for appointments, gossiping, being resistant to change and negative thinking. Some are not as obvious, so you’ll have to think hard to determine what they are.

Bad habits are difficult to overcome because they are automatic.  We do them unconsciously, giving them no thought.  These deep-rooted behaviors have become habits.  In some cases, we actually prefer doing these activities instead of work we should be doing.  Texting or sending emails to friends on our cell phones is more enjoyable than attending a training session.  The enjoyable activities become habits although they are not good habits.

Overcoming bad habits is not an overnight process and can take weeks or months to break them.  Once you do break the habit, however, it is a great feeling of accomplishment.  The biggest incentive to break a bad habit is the knowledge that it could be harmful to your career and reputation. 

You must be aware of the behavior, the bad habit, in order to eradicate it from your habitual activities.  As you go through your day, pay attention to your actions.  Are you doing things that are nonproductive or even harmful to your business?

Once you are aware of your bad habits, you can use a variety of strategies to replace bad habits with good ones.  One particularly good way to begin is by including habit-breaking into your goals.  As with other goals, break them down into mini-goals so you’ll recognize your achievements as you work toward totally eliminating the habit.

Self-awareness and self-motivation are required throughout the process of eliminating your bad habits.  Some people prefer to quit a behavior “cold turkey,” but most are more successful if they limit the behavior or a period of time.

Using the example I mentioned above about surfing the internet when you should be working.  You may start out by limiting yourself to a few minutes per hour for a week.  The next week, reduce the time to five minutes every two hours until you have eliminated the behavior altogether.

The method you use may depend upon the habit you are trying to break.  Sometimes avoiding temptation helps.  For instance, if you are aware that you gossip, try avoiding the break room if that is where you normally gossip.

Replacing bad habits with positive behaviors can be very effective.  For instance, if your goal is to stop checking your email during meetings begin taking notes during the meetings, thereby keeping your mind and hands busy.

Reward yourself for overcoming a negative habit with something you really want.  If you are consistently late, after you have worked hard to be prompt for a week, reward yourself with a gourmet coffee or lunch out with friends.  You can also make the rewards better and better as your positive habit replaces your poor one.  Eventually, the positive behavior will become a habit.

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For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance).

 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle 

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, http://joinxpresshealthcare.com. 

How Can I Gain Self-Confidence?

If you are not confident in yourself, it can be contagious.  Others will not be confident in you, which can be detrimental to building a business and/or improving your life. 

It is not possible to simply snap your fingers, and “ta-da,” you are self-confident.  Gaining self-confidence is a process, and it is unlikely to happen quickly.

However, building self-confidence is achievable for anyone who wants it badly enough.  It takes determination, focus and a little time.  Self-confidence comes from achievement.  And you are in control of your achievements. 

If you believe you lack confidence in yourself, whether it is in your personal or professional life, take time to think about the direction you want your life to go.  What are your goals? Write them down, both your long term and short term goals. What is it you want to achieve in your personal or professional life?  Then, commit yourself to reaching those goals and achieving everything about which you now only dream.

Start by looking at your life.  What have you achieved so far in your life about which you are proud?  They need not be huge accomplishments.  Did you earn a college degree?  Did you work with a charitable group that helped many others?  Did you pass an exam, or were you selected for a position you wanted?

No matter how small, think of ten things you achieved in your adult life, and write them down.  Put them somewhere that you’ll see them frequently – on a bulletin board perhaps or the refrigerator door – to remind you that you have achieved a lot already in your life.

My mentor once asked me, “What do you think is more important, working on your strengths or your weaknesses?”  I immediately replied that I should work on my weaknesses.  Wrong!  We should instead use our strengths to help us grow.  Don’t dwell on our weaknesses.  I was surprised to see that when I followed his advice, my strengths got even stronger, but at the same time, my weaknesses were minimized. 

Concentrate on your strengths, and you’ll find that your confidence will grow.  EVERYONE has strengths, even if you don’t believe you do.  Pay attention to the negative talk in your head.  “I can’t” should be eliminated from your vocabulary.  If you catch yourself thinking or saying it, quickly change the words to “I will.”

Change your vision of your future.  Create your mental picture to see yourself achieving the goals you have set for yourself.  You can start small, and then allow yourself to grow your vision.  You can use imagery to picture yourself in a year, in five years or ten, having achieved many of the goals you set out to complete. 

Commit yourself to success, and you will achieve it!  When you find self-doubt rising to the surface, use self-talk to challenge it.   Remind yourself that you can achieve all you have set out to do. 

I don’t believe for a minute that this process is easy or quick.  It is neither.  It will take time and repetition.  Like “The Little Train that Could,” remind yourself that you CAN do everything to which you have committed yourself.  You CAN and you WILL build the professional and personal life that today seems to be only a dream.

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For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance). 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle 

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, http://joinxpresshealthcare.com.