You hang out with friends, generally people you like and have similar interests. You have good and bad times, but your true friends are there for you when you need them. You move residences, your friends are there to help you move. They may play a round of golf with you, or watch some sporting events, dinners, backyard cook outs, etc. These are folks you will likely end up retiring with and enjoying your golden years. Sure, circumstance may break apart some friendships. or moves made out of necessity. But these folks will likely remains your friends for a long time to come.
But suddenly, you get enticed to join Amway. You see the "chance" to get rich, with a shortcut (not get rich quick, but a "shortcut"). You sign up and your sponsor is your new "best" friend. Most of the people you enjoyed being with think Amway is a questionable venture to get involved in. Suddenly, because of what you have been told or taught, you view these same nice people as "broke" or "losers", simply because they do not share the same ambition of untold wealth working 12-15 hours a week. Suddenly, you friends become prospects, or people you want to sponsor so you start recruiting them. Some may join, but most won't. Suddenly you are immersed in recruitment meetings, functions, and avoiding "negative", which is people and events that do not support your Amway business.
Now you are missing birthday parties, cook outs and other social events. Your social events are now recruitment meetings, seminars and Amway business related events. You are taught that these events can be put off and your gratification delayed. You can do whatever you want when you go diamond. (Even though there me be only one (1) diamond out of every ten or twenty thousand IBOs) Your dedication will pay off right? Sadly, for most people, even very dedicated people, all they will see is losses on their yearly tax returns, mainly due to the purchase of cds, books, voicemail and function tickets. But these are your "friends" right?
Here's my take on it. Try missing a few meetings or functions. Stop buying cds and see how many "friends" remain from the business. It is likely that your upline will claim that you walked away from the friendship by slowing down on the "system". If that happens, then you have conditional friends, or fair weather friends. They are your "friends" while you are pursuing the same cause. They are your friends when you are attending functions. Are they there for you in bad times?
A short while after I attended my last function (I was still an IBO, just not a business builder), my dad passed away. Not a single one of my IBO "friends" bothered to attend the memorial service. Not a single one of my IBO friends called or dropped by the home to pay their respects. All of my "real" friends, who saw through the AMO smoke and mirrors called to talk to me and/or attended the memorial service.
Are your IBO friends conditional friends? Mine were.
4 comments:
Your Amway up-line is like a prostitute. She's all sweet and lovey-dovey as long as you're paying her money.
This article is a sad truth about Amway and it's associated systems World Wide Group, and Leadership Team Development (LTD). Those groups have a LONG history of encouraging new prospects to only associate with the group and basically neglect/ cut off friends and family who have VALID concerns about the Amway "opportunity". Uplines tell them that those people are "negative" and won't ever be wealthy and will work building someone else's dream. The LTD chapter I left last year (2018) in Virginia had an air of arrogance about them and took any chance to mock and belittle people who quit the scheme. Also, the fake friendships in the group were just beyond obvious.
When I quit Amway/LTD fall of 2018, my upline who claimed to care about me and my success and fostered a "friendship" with me quickly ghosted me when I made the decision to quit due to my losing money each month I was in Amway. I texted him thanking him for his time, but I decided that Amway had to many red flags and I was moving on to other things. No response, no well wishes nothing. I told my sponsor why I was leaving and they basically implied that I was a failure and what not and that I was wrong about the group (basically told me sponsor I thought it was a cult and a pyramid scheme). Luckily, I was already hip to their fake friendships so it didn't bother me much. But it was still eye opening and confirmed I made the right decision to leave that cult/ pyramid scheme.
When you are part of an Amway group, those around you will ALWAYS take the opportunity to bad-mouth and denigrate anyone who has quit the team. There is a tactical and psychological reason for this.
By attacking and showing contempt for those who quit, the team programs you to be afraid of quitting too. You know that if you do, the team members will constantly be attacking you and making fun of you, and calling you a loser. Even if you are no longer there to hear it, you will still be unnerved at the thought that a group of people will be making lots of negative comments about you at their meetings.
So if you are a timid type, you will stay.
This is a classic cult tactic. Make the members AFRAID to leave. Brainwash them to be terrified of group opinion. Compel them (with shame and fear) to remain in Amway even if they are bleeding money month after month.
And this is why leaving Amway is a courageous and empowering act. It gives you back your freedom, but it also gives you new self-respect and intellectual independence. You are no longer enslaved by groupthink.
The friends thing is bull. They are only your friend if you are buying their tools and function tickets. Guaranteed. I never treted people that way and am still very close with many former downline IBO. I go to sleep every night knowing I truly cared about people and treated them right. My upline was a dishonest ass but the buck stopped with me.
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