I Am NOT One Of The 99 Percent

Image © Sebastian Kaulitski

I'm not one of the 1% either.

I'm also not surprised that a number of commentators are getting more than a little fed up with those who claim they speak for the rest of us, whilst wasting everybody's time on vague statements that seem to demand that "somebody does something, so long as it isn't us."

When I've been unemployed, I've found work. I've struggled to pay bills, worked more than one job at a time when necessary and focused on improving myself and my employment prospects until I either hit that promotion ceiling or got made redundant again.

Despite being qualifed to degree level in three separate disciplines, I've still worked as a cleaner, a carer, a postman and a checkout assistant. I take responsibility for my life and I'm no different from others. I know of people who have slept rough until they've scraped the money together to get a room; who've done 3 jobs a day to pay off mortgages early. They haven't demanded support or refused to pay taxes - they got on with living.

Camping in tents isn't going to change things. Banding together with enough like-minded people will, but there's more influence in cyber-campaigning groups such as Avaaz than you'll find on any of the Occupy sites.

I'd rather put time and effort into something like Branson's Screw Business As Usual, than join a protest where the majority of fellow campers appear to have no idea what it's like to live in the real world.

We live in a rapidly changing world. We need to adapt to survive. If we want to change corporate behaviour, it's better to effect that change in a way where everybody benefits. If the current variety of capitalism doesn't work, replacing it with compassionate capitalism is still better than a system where nobody is able to excel.

The Success Meme

Ever had one of those days where the same thing crops up over and over again? You keep seeing "For Sale" signs, or blue Saabs, or pink pushchairs.

It's a sign that you're focused on a particular goal, to the extent that you are more aware of evidence of that goal. So, if you've decided you want a new Zafira, you'll be more aware of the Zafiras that already exist in your area.

Today, I keep finding references to the word, Success. Blog posts, audio training, work-related emails, and a nice 3 minute movie from Simple Truths that I enjoyed so much, I just wanted to share it. Take a look at The Best of Success and you'll see what I mean.

If the definition of meme is "a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition analogous to the biological tranmission of genes", then network marketing success is a meme.

I really like the idea of a success meme. It suggests that, the more people are successful, the more will become successful in their wake. That resonates with me, which is probably why I'm seeing this word everywhere at the moment.

Here's to your Success.

Stop The Stupidity Now!

It had to happen sooner or later - I opened up my gmail to be greeted with the following Google-served advert:

Become a Herbalife Distributor - Signup Automatically - You don't need to talk to anybody

Just how desperate is this daft distributor, that he feels he'll only get team members if he can promise they don't have to interact with others?

Network Marketing is a proactive, people-focused business. If you don't talk to people, you don't succeed. If you're not active, you don't succeed. If you don't work hard, you don't succeed.

If you're not prepared to be active, to work hard and to build relationships with people, then don't be in a network marketing business. Get a low-paid job somewhere where you can live in a mindless vacuum and exist from day to day.

Don't waste your time. Don't waste that of your sponsor either. Be honest with yourself and what you're prepared to do with your future, make a decision and commit to it. One way or the other.

The Slight Edge Community

Jeff Olson, author of The Slight Edge (Revised Edition) - Turning Simple Disciplines Into Massive Success, has created The Slight Edge Community.

It looks like an oasis in the midst of all of the self-promoting, self-serving "communities" that ostensibly claim to support those of us who want to improve our networking skills whilst spamming us with exhortations to buy the latest upgraded membership package.

I truly hope it succeeds where others have failed.

There are some very talented, very open people who have signed up in the early days of this fledgling network that deserve a wider audience. Tobias Sedillos, for example, has done his best to encapsulate his perspective in his first blog post. Karen Miller is a genuinely nice person whose beliefs shine through in whatever she blogs about.

For an idea of the aims of this new networking group, I suggest you read Renee Olson's post. Maybe I'll see you there from time to time?

Why Aren't You Successful?

A newsblog article caught my eye today, prompting some introspection of my own.

If you look at your network marketing business, you can, as I and others do, justify your results due to a number of factors including the time available to you, other demands on that time and so on. If you're focused on justification rather than results, those factors will include the weather, rottweilers, lack of chocolate or whatever your preferred excuse is.

We can play the self-development game and point out we're better than we were, we're reading all the right books, we're really trying hard but ...

We can toy with self-analysis and before you know it we're on this month's sixth 90-day plan.

But when it comes right down to it, there's only one question that we need to ask ourselves each day. There's only one question that deserves our total honesty, regardless of how painful the answer is.

Why am I not successful yet?

Einstein's Insanity Definition vs Duplication

A much touted Einstein quote is:

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.

In Network Marketing/MLM, we get told to make sure that our systems and processes are duplicatable. Millions of internet pages, thousands of magazine articles, hundreds of thousands of books - all telling us to allow our downlines to duplicate our behaviour.

We need a sanity check here, not to mention a reality check.

Duplicating your upline's behaviour only works if that behaviour breed success. Otherwise, you're just duplicating failure and that's insane.

Expecting your downline to duplicate your behaviour and systems only works if you yourself stick to the following mantra:

Focused, persistent and consistent action generates success

Focused - because splitting your attention between a portfolio of businesses rarely works and is never duplicatable. Without targetted goals and a plan to achieve them, you will fail.

Persistent - because nothing worthwhile is ever achieved if you only work at it sporadically. You don't become a champion swimmer by occasionally dipping your toe in the jacuzzi.

Consistent - because you only build trust in others if your behaviour or systems are known and understood. Being unusual, unpredicatable or just plain unreliable is no use in business. It's not that much use in creative matters either, despite the claims of many.

Action - because having the greatest attitude, plans and mindset in the universe is no use at all if you do nothing to advance towards your goals.

Nike got it right with their "Just Do It" campaign. When all is said and done, you only succeed by just doing the work, regardless of weather, personal issues and negative comments from well-meaning friends.

Reasons for Business Failure Part 2: Cashflow

We're all aware that the Credit Crunch drastically limited the sources of finance for small businesses. The media is full of stories about how SMEs (small/medium sized enterprises) are not getting access to loans to help their cashflow or to fund further growth. Accountancy organisations such as the UK's ICAEW give firm advice about small businesses having to provide good reasons for needing capital injections.

That's just one more reason why business owners need to be realistic about their survival costs before they start a business. All businesses need startup capital, to cover the initial outlay on property rental, vehicles, tools, overheads, stock, office equipment and stationery, fuel costs, etc. The new business owner also needs to ensure that their personal overheads, such as mortgage/rent/loans, household expenses, personal vehicle & fuel costs, are also covered.

Traditionally, business advisers suggest that most small businesses take up to three years before they are fully profitable. That's three years where, every time you take money out of the business for personal use, you delay the point where your business "breaks even" and moves towards profitability. The more net profit you can invest in your business in the early years, the earlier your business will break even.

If you need an income of £2000 ($3000 or 3000 euros) per month to survive on before you start your own business, ask yourself how you will fund that income in the first 3 years of running your own business. If you can't fund that income out of savings, where is the £72000 coming from? From redundancy payments? From family? From another income in the household?

Or would it be better for you to build your business part-time, in parallel with an existing job? Can you do that with your current skill set? If you can, how will you get customers? How will they pay you? Will you need to take time off your existing job to visit prospective customers, or can you sustain business growth outside of your existing workday?

All of these questions need answers before you build up your own business. It's part of making sure you're not a business failure statistic in 6 - 18 months time.

Reasons for Business Failure - Part 1: Planning

So, why do businesses fail? Why are a third of businesses gone in the first two years, and why do half not survive the first five years? What goes wrong between the initial enthusiasm and the final desperation? How can we stop that happening to us? How is this relevant to network marketing in general, and Kleeneze in particular?

Let's take the main reasons first:

Poor Planning

I don't know about you, but if I hear "Failure to Plan is Planning to Fail" one more time, I'll hit something. Anybody attending a network marketing training session will be told that, as though it's a failsafe mantra. Anybody who works at a relatively experienced level in any business or industrial sector will have heard a version of it.

Yes, some people fail to plan, but most people who are serious about building a business do plan. They are told to provide business plans to banks, or to plan their workload, so they sit down, try to work out what they want to happen over a given time frame and write it all down.

The trouble starts with what happens next.

Some create plans that look good on paper but which are wildly optimistic and are based on everything in life, including the global economy, being absolutely perfect. 

Failure to plan for adverse situations is planning to fail.

Some assume that, once the plan has been created, that's it. By some mystical universal force, everybody and everything will telepathically understand what's required and align with the plan, without further input from the creator. 

Failing to work according to your plan is planning to fail.

Some write the plan, allow for real life to intervene and work the plan but they don't amend the plan to allow them to grow their business. They are stuck in a mindset that tells them that as long as they do the minimum level required, they'll be fine.

Failure to review your plan and reset targets upwards is planning to fail.

I've planned to fail in the past based on those three criteria and it's painful. It's also OK. Planning to fail is a learning exercise that all new entrepreneurs will go through in one form or another and it should not be used as either an excuse for failure or a reason for others not to try the same path.

So you're overoptimistic at times? You haven't accepted how much work is involved in building your own business? You think you're heading for the stars when really you're coasting in neutral? 

Get over it, get a new plan written and commit to it. Work it; review it at weekly, 4 weekly and 13 weekly (90 days, remember) intervals; change it and improve it as necessary. Then get back to working the plan. Repeat until it's a part of you.

Because where your future's concerned, it's not an attitude, it's a way of life.