One thing that I was unaware of as an IBO was that our uplines were massively profiting from our tools purchases. I was in WWDB at the time and I was told very clearly that nobody made money from the tools and in fact, I was also told that WWDB was a non profit organization. Both of these statements were bold lies told by WWDB leaders and they have never been held accountable. We were told that upline cared about us and our success, thus they spent their own money to fly to functions to teach us how to succeed. Turns out they were all lies.
Eventually, the internet amd other media made it impossible to cover up these lies and uplines finally admitted that they profited from tools. However, it looks like they downplayed the magnitude of the tools profits. I believe some upline may have made most of their income from tools, especially leaders who may have fallen out of qualification. Now days, the upline admits they make some profits from tools, but there is still a great deal of secrecy in the tools business. What makes the whole thing ironic is that the uplines allegedly are not supposed to entice Amway prospects into joining by using the tools money as a draw, but at the same time, they are told that tools are vital to their success. Uplines also show off trappings and lifestyles to attract recruits, but I believe that these trappings were likely obtained with tool income. Tool income has a higher profit margin than Amway products and fewer people are in the pay plan so it makes perfect sense.
I wonder how many prospects or IBOs would be fired up about buying tools if they knew that their uplines might not currently be qualified at the level they claim to be, and knowing that the uplines will make a ton of money whether or not you make a cent as an IBO? Also, some uplines are shameless in pushing the tools on downline. Sure they might cut the newest guy a break and loan them some cds, but once that IBO decides to start building downline, they are likely to be told that a real business owner buys their own tools, or that a business owner needs to be a leader and purchase extra tools for their downline.
How would you feel if your upline was touting themselves as a financial genius but in the background, their homes are foreclosed or they have other financial difficulties? What if your upline touts their morals and you find out they are divorced or getting a divorce? What if your upline said Amway saves marriages? Your upline certainly won't say they are perfect, but conversely, they should be held to the highest standards if they are using their status to be able to sell tools and make large profits. This is something too many prospects are blind about.
My 25 year old daughter was randomly approached by a person last November and she is now and Amway IBO. I am a nervous wreck over this, I have done research and I'm very scared for her future. She is a successful professional and makes a very good income and I'm afraid this will ruin everything for her. She will not listen to anything I tell her. She is starting to alienate her friends and putting my events before family functions. She has even broken up with her boyfriend, who was not interested in being a part of her new business. Can someone please help me!?
ReplyDeleteThe sad thing about Amway is that it can suck anyone in, even professionals. They get caught up thinking they will create untold wealth and receive adulation from the downline. It's a difficult spell to break but unfortunately, the person needs to see the light and snap out of it on their own. Anyone who tries to intervene will be labeled as "negative" and shunned by the indoctrinated Amway IBO.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes it difficult is the upline cleverly tells their prospects that people will try to dissuade them and how to respond. So the victim expects to encounter people trying to question their beliefs.
The victim normally snaps out of it quickly, but some people get nailed hook, line and sinker like my former sponsor who is still in Amway 25 years later without achieving anything of significance.
To Anonymous at 9:10 AM --
ReplyDeleteAmway is a very dangerous cult. It works by capturing the minds of energetic and naive young persons, and slowly bleeding them dry of money.
It is very typical of Amway to cause ruptures between its new members and their families or friends. An Amway supervisor (called an "up-line") will work very hard to get your daughter to break away from you and the rest of the family, just like she has already broken away from her boyfriend.
Fortunately, most intelligent people leave the Amway racket within six months to a year of joining. There are many websites that describe in detail the nature of Amway's cult control. And have your daughter look at the book "Merchants of Deception." It is the best expose of Amway's corrupt cultic practices that has ever been written.
See the website "married to an Ambot," and Dr. Doe's website on MLMs. (Amway is an MLM or "multilevel marketing" business cult).
The book Merchants of Deception is very hard to find...?
DeleteThank you for the info! Hopefully it will help to open her eyes (and mindset to the other side of this.
ReplyDeleteI have a PDF copy of Merchatnts of deception. Look for my contact information on my profile.
ReplyDeleteThank you! And I also should mention she gave up a traveling nurse job to pursue this amway thing! She is still working as an RN , but if she would have went ahead with her travel nursing (whuch she was SO EXCITED so begin) she would have been able to pay off her student loans in no time. This is all SO FRUSTRATNG and heartbreaking for a parent to see (and feel ��)
ReplyDeleteAnd actually, it's not even so much the money part of it, that could be a lesson hard learned. It is how it changes a person, sucks the life right out of them, pulling them away from what used to be so important to them, their family, friends, and passion for the career they had chosen. It makes me angry, sad, and fearful for her future.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous --
ReplyDeleteThat is EXACTLY what all cults do. They insist on a change in personality and orientation for anyone who is a serious member. You must give up your old life, your old habits of thought, your old friends who are not sympathetic to the cult, and anything else that interferes with cultic control of your life.
This website and many others are filled with stories of the human devastation caused by Amway and other MLM cults. Divorces, breakups, ruined friendships, estrangement, financial disaster, and wrecked lives of children -- all the result of someone's sick attachment to the fake dream of becoming a millionaire through the recruitment of other dreamers. Amway is EVIL.
You know what? Tell your daughter that giving up a major career as an prestigious RN and as a highly paid traveling nurse to be in Amway is like giving up living in a sumptuous villa in the South of France to live in a broken toilet stall. She CAN'T be that stupid!
They have her believing that within 3 to five years she can retire from nursing because she will be making so much money in Amway or wait let me say WWDB! This is so uncharacteristic of her this behavior that she is presenting. She has always been so sensible and level-headed. She's a very kind caring person and very hard working with a tremendous work ethic this is all very Troublesome for me as her mother. I cannot get her to listen to me
ReplyDeleteI am going to print out a digital copy of merchants of deception and request her that she read that along with some other materials I have collected
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, you need to be prepared for the fact that the Amway upline will have prepared their faithful downline to deal with the issue of "Merchants Of Deception". They will have a canned response just like how the deny that Greg Duncan filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy.
ReplyDelete