Sunday is spiritual day
“Certainty is not an option. Failure is almost guaranteed.” (Chris Locke, Gonzo Marketing)
Yes, a little different than the familiar “failure is not an option.”
Rather than being depressing, this new mantra acknowledges what each of us already knows first hand – that most things we do don’t work out like we hoped they would.
Rather than continuing to deny this and punishing ourselves and others for it, what if we were to accept this as part of being human?
Approach any marketing venture prepared to test and try MANY different things. Sampling your own and others’ ideas and suggestions here and there, tinkering, experimenting, looking for what clicks for you and your niche…
We could let go of the fear of errors and screwing up then, right? With the 95% drop out rate, it isn’t as if we’ve got any earth shattering secrets to lord over anyone, including ourselves.
To help, what if we assume the mindset of an amateur again? Someone who does something for the love of it or the delight they get out of doing it? Why does work have to mean the opposite of fun, challenge and excitement, anyway?
Amateur doesn’t mean someone who’s incompetent or unskilled. It’s an attitude one brings to the job at hand -what Zen Master Shunryu Suzuki called “Beginner’s mind” – an ability to look at the world with fresh eyes and open spirit.
Marketing of any kind is a giant experiment. No one knows what will work until they’ve done it. And it’s different for different people. So start experimenting and have fun with it.
Because certainty is not an option.
P.S. Chris Locke comments about the downside of professionalism versus the amateur mindset – something I’ve written about quite a bit here. See if you recognize it in our own network marketing industry.
“Over time, any functional specialization tends to forget its relationship to the larger social context it was created to work within and serve. Instead, it concentrates on developing an inner sanctum of specialists who talk among themselves in a private language inaccessible to outsiders.”
Behold, techno babble. Our private language, inaccessible to outsiders – the very people we are trying to reach out to. (Patented, proprietary nutraceuticals, anyone?) Do you long for those early days when you just loved the product and the idea of your own business, and loved talking like a normal person about them like a normal person? Those were the days, huh?
—
Learn the basics for talking about your product line so you amaze and delight your niche: Here’s the book and CD program on it. And here’s the CD set and scripts for talking to niche-mates about your business.
Why are we so obsessed with the idea of “professionalism” in network marketing? And why are we so paranoid about being seen as “amateur”?
Surely we’re always LEARNING?
It’s the LEARNER’s mindset we need, not some specious notion of “professionalism”.
True professionalism in network marketing is NOT about “slick, polished or plastic”.
It’s about being DUPLICABLE BY ANY SINCERE LEARNER.
The emotional response we need from prospects is “this is safe… I could do this without looking foolish or risking anything.”
NOT the emotional response to the typical “professional” stuff of “I could NEVER do that… I’d make a fool of myself!”
There are five types of network marketers, I’ve always found:
Leader
“Leaders” (fakes!)
Learners
Leaners
Leeches
Success lies in being able to help each level progress upward, one stage at a time, to the top one.
Every single one of these stages requires the ability and willingness to LEARN.
John
http://www.MyPearlMaker.com
Professional Sponsoring System
About Techno-Babble:
Just the movie “Envy” with Ben Stiller and Jack Black, two of my favorite comedy actors. The movie wasn’t that good but still worth seeing.
Anyway, in the movie Jack’s character invents the “Vapoorizer”. and there’s a scene about 15min into the film where he explains what it is:
“It’s a can and you spray on dog poop and the poop dissapears”. Ben’s character gets all hung up on on why it can’t work. when he asks his wife, she says: “it’s a can and when …” so funny.
When I saw this, I thought of K2. I think this could be the poster scene for Kim’s approach.
yves
http://www.NoPainMoGain.com
According to Webster the definition of an amateur is “a devotee or an admirer who engages in a pursuit, study, science or sport as a passtime rather than a profession, but lacking in competence and experience.” That person will never receive professional status. So although the word amateur comes from the latin to love – it does not mean that an amateur at network marketing will succeed except in a very limited capacity. A comparable example is someone who can play a musical instrument but never have the talent, nuance, and other 100% reliable technique that would get them a job in a symphony orchestra. I think it would be better to describe some of the many people who “JUMP” into network marketing opportunities and fail as dilettantes, who may love what they are doing but never go far enough to become professional at it. They are no doubt dilettantes at oher things too – that meaning that their knowlesge and exposure to what they have picked as a love is fairly numerous and fairly superficial. Failure is not an option if the person who is attempting success doesn’t give up each time something happens that doesn’t fit their picture of success. If a superficial exposure to something forces people to quit no wonder the drop out rate is so high but then they havn’t had to go out and buy the equivalent of a musical instrument and study scales for a at least a year before they can even play a tune. The trouble with our industry is that people learn a little bit and think they are doing everything they need to do to succeed, then decide that it cannot be done and then quit. Instead, each failure should be a notch on the belt of experience that is building a stronger professional; a person of character, who can eventually see the wood from the trees and in the future be a mentor and leader for the new dilettantea that join his or her team. If the people who join have those kinds of people as an example maybe they wouldn’t be quitting so soon. Juliette Gray http://arbonnnejuliette.networkmarketingcentral.com.
Many years ago in my first really serious attempt at network marketing, I was taught a standard lead-in when people if the product would “cure” a certain illness situation. I was taught to say very simply, “I really don’t know about that, all I can tell you is what it’s done for me.” And then give my story and end with something like, “maybe it could work for you too. Want to try it and see?”.
I went through many years of loading people up with all the stats and studies and what I find myself doing again is going back to that original teaching. It’s simple, it’s true, and it keeps me and the company out of trouble with regulators. Sometimes people were very impressed with my knowledge, but they also found it difficult to imagine themselves learning all that.
Some people think it’s evading the question, but all you truly know for sure is what a product has done for you or someone in your family.
I’m finding going back to simplicity makes me feel really free. And I like that.
“an inner sanctum of specialists who talk among themselves in a private language inaccessible to outsiders.”
Well said! I am running off right now to share that quote with my
astrology friends. Which will give me a chance to say where I found it, because I never use anyone’s words without permission.
It’s Mercury conjunct Jupiter in Leo thing. Big Evil Grin.
P.S. Kim, I am pretty sure it is Amateur, not amatuer? We know you are a professional with language.
I love everything you do.
What has worked for me is to research various marketing avenues, try a few and then combine the ones that feel comfortable for me.
I’ve kept some and left some on the table. It seems to me that giving myself permission to test some things and let some go has been the best thing for me. Kim’s right…. there is no one answer in this fast paced market. What works now may not work in one year either.
My husband and I took our youngest three kids to see the movie Meet The Robinson’s tonight. Great movie for the family to see together! I loved it.
I won’t ruin it for those of you who are still planning on seeing it, but grab the kids, grandkids, neighbor’s kids, whoever, and go see this flick.
It reminded me of Napoleon Hill talking about Henry Ford. This kid in the movie knew EXACTLY what he wanted before he even hit puberty.
I know my kids will model after that kid. Thank you Walt Disney….
Lisa
There’s 2 distinct points in that post which are often misleadingly converged for convenience… 1) professional and 2) the language used.
The former doesn’t necessitate the latter… many pros speak in simple language – hardly unexpectedly as ‘reaching your market’ is a basic of professionalism.
Also, much of the babble in NM is from amateurs who swallow and regurgitate stuff like ‘leading-edge wellness solutions’, ‘promotes biomodulation’, ‘unique and proprietary alkalizing biodelivery system, etcetera (all pulled direct from the onsite promo of various companies, so if I’ve pissed-off someone because they recognize the lines, tough – you might want to question why your company chooses to use such pretentious wordery rather than simple stuff).
Beyond ‘in it for the money’ (which, let’s be honest, we all are), the term ‘professional’ denotes: ‘exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner… characterized by conforming to the appropriate technical and ethical standards’.
And that’s something sadly lacking among many in this business where it’s become ‘cool’ to say ‘oh, we’re not like that’ where ‘that’ infers ‘business-ey’… which often quickly leads into more puffery of the ‘this is a special business’ type. Bollocks! NM is simply another marketing channel – albeit one with specific characteristics.
Picking on the ‘amateur doesn’t mean someone who’s incompetent or unskilled’ line… true. But in NM it too often does. ‘Amateur’ works well where the major motivation of people is a genuine love of a specific activity – but NM is a business so let’s not lose sight of that by circulating a ‘pro-am’ differentiation that’s entirely disingenuous.
KK, j’accuse you conveniently sometimes stop short so’s not to alienate your readers. Howso in this example? Simple – you made your money professionally, with all the no-nonsense hard-edge that required. You were – and are still – a professional… so please own the title rather than sweep it under the rug.
Back in the dark days, I too sold water filters for NSA – a company populated by some of the most hard-ass, tough, manipulative people I’ve ever encountered (and I’ve spent much time in direct sales, shifting high-value stuff with up to $20k price-tags – so I’ve known a pro or two in my time).
Considered appropriately, the term ‘pro’ mades a bold and positive statement about the manner in which someone conducts their enterprise. Let’s please not cheapen it just to appease those folk who’d prefer to consider themselves ‘special’ by way of being ‘amateur’ – and in so doing attempt to mitigate and justify not investing appropriate resources of time & money to become skilled at what they’re doing.
Are we supposed to be instant professionals?
I actually am striving just to sound human not like a rehersed speech of very cool sounding words. We need to know our product inside out but we don’t need to sound like the brochure. People respond to honesty.
The real professional in all of us will shine through our humanity.
Nancy Carlson
http://www.perfectmombusiness.com