Saturday, January 22, 2011

Amway Makes Me "Nicer"?

Many IBOs "think" they have become nicer people as a result of their association with other IBOs and because a part of the system they are with advises them to read self help books. They are also taught that as a side benefit of the Amway business, that they are nicer people. Of course, many IBOs mistakenly think that they started a business not to make money, but to become "nicer".

I certainly agree that some people can benefit from positive books and association with others, but for many, it is not a genuine "nicer" person, but simply a phony personna that is put on in order to recruit potential Amway downlines. That is how my former sponsor appeared to me. Because I had known him for a long time, the "nicer" looked as phony as phony can be. There are many examples of phony niceness that some IBOs profess. Even Amway's biggest defender was apparently called a "cyber bully" by an Amway corporate blogger and some others for making disparaging comments about those with opposing views. Others have resorted to calling people broke or losers simply because they did not agree that Amway was their savior.

On this very blog, there are comments, I assume by IBOs, that make implied or subtle threats. Some of these comments are not subtle at all. In fact, in my blogging experience, it is usually the IBOs and Amway defenders that resort to name calling. I suspect that is because the facts are on the side of the Amway critics. For example, it is a fact that most IBOs never make a dime, even if you don't count the ones who "do nothing". If you look at system IBOs, then the vast majority never make enough to pay their voicemail expenses.

Even the coveted diamond level appears to be a facade, especially seeing diamonds quit, resign and simply walk away from the business without the lifelong passive income. A recent triple diamond's bankruptcy revealed some financials and it wasn't all that impressive considering the size of his business plus longevity in the business.

So IBOs, are you a nicer person? Is it evident by your words and actions? It doesn't appear to be very clear to me, especially IBOs such as David Steadson or Bridgett Baron. :-)

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

So true. When we were building it, at all functions it was hours upon hours of insulting and belittling anyone who had a job that wasn't interested in amway.

Real sweethearts.

And don't get me started about how they made your boss seem like an evil ogre.

Outrageous.

But, hey, just listen to another CASSETTE TAPE. Pigs Don't Know Pigs Stink by Dave Severn. Take a wild guess who the pigs are.

Joecool said...

http://amwayscheme.blogspot.com/2010/09/amway-pigs-dont-know-pigs-stink.html

Anna Banana said...

Amway didn't make me a nicer person and it turned my husband into a nasty miserable person. We did see all the fake nicey nice act at every meeting.

Anonymous said...

Dave Severn's 11 Million Dollar Home has been for sale for a while now. I guess its hard to maintain the life style when you're not selling tapes and you're too old to tour with the Goads.
http://tours.tourfactory.com/tours/tour.asp?t=616612

***Former WWDB Lemming***

Anonymous said...

+1

Anonymous said...

Hi Joe & All! One thing I said to my husband recently was..."It's better to be a *good nobody* than a *bad somebody*!...I'm not impressed with all the hype of giving people/IBO's "Pins-Titles"...it's sad how MLM takes over peoples lives...Cheers; Lady G.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, Joe & All - my comment wasn't meant to be a generalization. I was refering to the MLM World. With anyother businesses/careers/jobs - I would hope that families were important & what we did for a living is simply what we do - so, families/friendships would hopefully still be intact & happy! ~ Lady G. :-)

Anonymous said...

its extremly unfortunate that you all feel this way. I have built my business on morals and integrity, both of which were instilled in me from an early age.......not from rally cd's or functions. I have built a million dollar business in 13 countries but not all the money in the world is enough to buy the time i have with my family.So sorry to hear of your experiences, i hope life treats you well and you find something you are passionate about that affords you the lifestyle you wish.
Best wishes.

Anonymous said...

Well one of the characteristics of this business is you cant retire from it. If you do it collapses. You have to keep working it. No freedom at all

Anonymous said...

"Pigs Don't Know Pigs Stink" is on Youtube. Its classic flim-flam; 2 hours of bash-the-job and then the hard sell on tools, tapes and events. A good, if lengthy example of a con merchant on top form

Joecool said...

Thank you for the information!

Unknown said...

So I guess you never realized you had that stinking thinking??

Unknown said...

"turned your husband into"?? Or brought out the real him under any kind of pressure??

(I never saw any diamond or Ruby wishing he still had a job

Unknown said...

"too old to tour with the goads"??? WTH you TALKING about??

I've seen his bonus checks (personally) from Amway, paying him many thousands per month. Btw what is your house worth??

Unknown said...

Ron Puryear never complained about being free from a job. Neither did Davey. Or Brad (yeah having a Bentley must SUCK LOL)

Joecool said...

Stinking thinking is what they teach in Amway

Joecool said...

Diamonds and rubies have jobs. They are the graveyard shift Amway recruiters.

Joecool said...

Checks mean nothing. After you pay your taxes and business expenses, you have a lot less.

Joecool said...

That's because his job was recruiting downline and conning people into buying tools and functions.

Unknown said...

Amway was one of the most tragic episodes of my life. I so much wanted to believe in the integrity, wholesomeness and genuineness of the business. I was told early on that the tapes, books, events( WWDB), etc were "at cost" and the profitability of the business was the product flow. Boy was that a lie! It was never about the products, but THE DREAM...selling the Dream. I lost an amazing career as a result of my participation and oh how I desperately wanted to believe I found "rest" in Amway. I have finally forgiven myself for ever getting involved and have found my peace and rest in my Lord and Savior. God have mercy on those leaders who were NOT forthright and in full disclosure to all of their innocent and well meaning members.

Joecool said...

Unknown, thank for sharing your story. It's sad how WWDB tries to up sell their "integrity" but when you wash away the facade, they have none. They would take your last dime and leave you penniless if you allow them too. I used an example once of maybe some really shady and unethical dude were to join Amway and WWDB, does that mean he suddenly has integrity? That term sounds nice but when you see them WWDB leaders for what they are, you often see a lack of integrity.

Anonymous said...

Hi Folks,

There are folks in Amway who seem fake by not airing dirty laundry as they grow, true, but are trying to be better people, not intentionally faking folks out, trying not to be negative around others. I have seen couples fight over Amway, one is positive, and one is not. Have witnessed fights concerning underlying problems which surface while building the business, not sure why just seems to.

The goal is to get out of the 50-hour, five-day workweek. Some folks retire from a job and do not work their Amway business, some do. Some lose their business if it is not built correctly, just like any other business. If they are smart, they will transfer the work habit after their job to assist those coming in after them. 6 to 8 hours a week of work, not counting commute time.

Money is made in Amway, look at the government approved BOV document showing 50K+ before any tool profit-sharing. Name a business that does not profit from selling its tools. Tony Robbins weekend seminar cost a lot and sells tools in the lobby? Don't blame Robbins if failure happens, it is not realistic. Gaining knowledge and not putting that knowledge into action is crazy. Without action, nothing happens. Also, there is failure in everything from bands, flippers, athletes, to actors and everything else in between including your job.

Folks in Amway, including WWDB, should not cut down others or disown folks if they do not want in. Don't get mad if the individual can't make all of the family functions, even though they should do their best. The folks in WWDB I am associated have become best friends because they are like minded. Do you hang out with people like-minded, be honest? I bet most do not want to hang with those that are not for any length of time.

There are products more expensive than down the street prices, but there are some that are not. Some products are not as good as down the street and some are better. A distributor can easily identify 100 to 200 PV of like products they are already using along with selling 50 to 100 PV to those that do not want to be involved. An individual who hits 1500 to 2,500 PV will be able to use the profits to pay for personal use and fund business building efforts.

Not everyone within Amway is a robot or an evil person, nor are they angels with no side agenda. I was taught to serve those within our business to help them get what they want first and if you do that with enough folks you will get what you want. If one has a transparent agenda and a servant’s heart with integrity their business will flourish and be profitable.

Be honest about your job as well, there is a lot of folks who hate their job and would love to do something else. Do you look forward to your Monday in a positive light? Do you look forward to your Friday in a positive light? Generally the answer to the Monday questions is negative and the Friday question is positive? Why? Because you look so forward to a couple days of freedom to do what you want when you want, be honest. I am admittedly pro-WWDB, I have met about a dozen folks that I do not want to have anything to do with and that includes one person in my upline, which we have passed. Nothing is perfect and when one takes a clear look at things and is honest it is usually not as bad as one may think.

I am truly sorry some of you have had a bad experience in Amway, but just like a bad McDonalds restaurant experience does not make all McDonald's restaurant bad, just think about that if anyone ever talks to you about an opportunity. Almost every person I have ever met does not get in this business to treat people bad or to take them for a ride. People get into this business to achieve their dreams of their choice.

Best of luck!

Rick W.

Anonymous said...

Well, Rick W., that's all very interesting. But it's utterly beside the point.

What are you saying, basically? Just this: There's good and bad in everyone, and in every work situation. Nothing is accomplished without effort. Some of the Amway products are not so bad, or just as good as non-Amway stuff. And some decent people do make money in Amway honestly. (YAW..W..W..N!)

Is that it? Is that the sum total of your argument? A bunch of innocuous cliches?

There are three decades of anti-Amway and anti-MLM blogs up on the internet, with literally hundreds of testimonies and evidence and anecdotes about the essentially fraudulent nature of Amway and the MLM schemes in general. Have you read NONE of this material?

Are you unaware of the thousands of lives ruined, relationships broken, families devastated, by the Amway nonsense?

Will said...

Rick W I don't know if you are truly being sincere here, but I will give you the benefit of the doubt. If you are being sincere, you are in a very small percent of Amway people that can at least see that thousands of people have been screwed over by LOS systems uplines and Dianmonds in World Wide Group, LTD, and others. There may be some people doing Amway with pure intentions, but their minds eventually get warped by the corrupt uplines and diamonds and they become arrogant, greedy, con artist that don't care one bit about their downline and only see them as dollar signs or pawns in their endless scheme to be a diamond on stage at some dumb conference.