Reaping What You Sow?

 One of the things that many prospects and IBOs believe is that they will make an investment of time and money into their Amway business and that they will eventually get their time and money back in such abundance that they can walk off their jobs and walk the beaches of the world while living in luxury because of lifelong residual income, all because of the Amway opportunity. For IBOs and prospects of Amway, I wonder if any of you can actually name even five people who have actually accomplished this? How about two? Keep in mind that there have probably been tens of millions of people or more who also wanted this and tried Amway and the systems, only to find that reality paints a different picture.

Many people truly believe they will reap what they sow. While that many sound true, I guess the next logical question is what are you sowing? Are you deceptive when prospecting people to see the plan? Are you having to justify and high priced Amway product comparisons that are not favorable? Are you actually selling goods to customers and actually qualifying for your Amway bonus or are you self-consuming and getting others to do the same? Do you have a negative opinion (broke losers) about people who don't join Amway or are not interested in seeing the plan? Do you now think your boss and your job are evil? Do you leave your kids at home to attend endless numbers of functions and meetings? You reap what you sow correct? The questions is what kinds of seeds are you actually planting?

I wonder what some WWDB diamonds were sowing? At least the ones who had their homes foreclosed, and one in particular was involved in chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings. Are they reaping what they sowed? What about the WWDB diamonds who got divorced? What were they sowing? Are IBOs sure about wanting to make the claim of reaping and sowing? And yes, Joecool the person also has his own flaws, but the difference is that I am not on stage proclaiming to be flawless and many diamonds would imply when they speak (and profit from) their tens of thousands of downlines. I am not earning a living by deceiving people and profiting from people I am supposed to be helping. But your upline diamonds are. Take a close look at the fruit on the WWDB tree. Reaping and sowing might be a different discussion then.

Sucked In?

 Sometimes it happens to the nicest of people and it often happens slowly and subtly. These are the signs that you are becoming indoctrinated and you are likely annoying your friends and loved ones at this point. It may not be apparent right away, but the change occurs and eventually becomes noticeable to those who know you. You think you are doing what it takes and developing your ability to succeed in Amway so you may not notice that you've become "one of those Amway people"

You're driven to recruit everyone you know. You made your name list and you're working it hard! You may even resort to deception or outright lies to get people to meetings because saying "Amway typically will not work. Before you know it, your family and friends avoid you like the plague. You end up spending time at malls or book stores or coffee shops and other public placse scouting for "sharp" recruits. You almost become phony in talking to people and feigning interest in other people and their interests because that's how it's done in Amway!

You're encouraged to develop an unreasonable, irrational zeal for the products. Even so far as to justify the quality of toilet paper or to call the products prestigious. You may even argue the quality of energy drinks or about phytonutrients, something you may not even know about. Even when there is contrary but concrete evidence, you continue to defend your Amway goods because it is your ticket to "freedom"!

A whole bunch of demands, promises, subtle threats of failure if you don't try hard enough are made in the promotional material and motivational seminars. i.e. If you quit, you are a loser destined to die broke and unhappy. Or you let someone steal your dream. These ridiculous claims are how your upline keeps you hooked. While the pressure can b subtle, it can still be powerful. After all, nobody wants to be labeled as a "loser".

Because the system is touted as the way you're going to make yourself fantastically rich, you're under pressure to drop any conflicting or competing interests such as your bowling or tennis league or golf club. Nothing else in life has importance except for the quest of financial freedom. All activities in your life must enhance your Amway business and have an effect on your financial future. No other activities matter to you unless it affects your financial future. Even family and friends may be shunned in your quest for the holy financial grail. And this is in spite of your business generating $10 a month in income while you spend $250 on cds, books, voicemail and function tickets.

Your upline soon becomes your most trusted friend. Your thoughts and feelings are shaped in part by the cds, meetings and functions. People who you may have trusted all your life suddenly becomes secondary in your life because of your undying loyalty to your upline. You shun the advice of (formerly) trusted family and friends because they are "broke minded" or have an "employee" mentality.

Do you recognize these behaviors? Hopefully you aren't displaying these behaviors, If you do, you have been sucked into Amway.

How To Silence Critics?

 There's been a lot of debate and activity on Joecool's blog over the years. IBOs come and go. They make interesting claims, but they never silence any of the criticism because they never prove their case. Or they make ridiculous claims or analogies such as comparing the Amway opportunity to a McDonald's franchise, or silly comparisons to colleges. The owner of Amway, Rich DeVos said in 1983, something to the effect that the tools business was basically an illegal pyramid. If the abuse of downline IBOs had been addressed back then, there might be less criticism of the Amway opportunity today.

I recently had a discussion with an (apparent) IBO who claimed that Amway has created the most millionaires in the world. When asked for the source of this claim, that same IBO disappeared. Now I am certain that Amway has created some millionaires, but the most in the world? Also, based on evidence and simple math, it appears that most IBOs who participate with the tools systems lose money, so even if Amway did produce many millionaires (which is not verified), then we could also claim that Amway produced many many bankruptcies and failures as well.  In fact, I would venture an educated guess that the number of real success stories in Amway versus the number of failures and the number of participants would equal something similar to the results of a lottery.  
  
Various IBOs have also claimed that because they are successful, that it serves as proof that the system works. But when asked for evidence of that success, or to show that their downline share some of that success, they disappear into the night.  You know what? Sweat shop owners are usually successful. They succeed by taking advantage of their underpaid workers. Basically, greedy tools kingpin diamonds are the same thing, maybe worse because at least sweat shop workers have a net gain, although it may be small. The only difference is that occasionally, an IBO might be able to break through and join the diamond ranks.  However, the vast amount of failures among the rank and file indicate that the opportunity is nothing like how uplines promote it.

Some of the zealous IBOs dared a critic to post a profit/loss statement some years ago, and it was produced. After that, not a single IBO came forward to post the same, or to even discuss their business income and expenses. Why do IBOs avoid discussion about their business? Is it because it makes you look bad? I'm sure if it helped to prove their points, they would discuss it. Maybe the IBOs who post on blogs have nothing? It appears that the biggest defenders of Amway, do so without any ammunition?

How to silence an Amway critic? Simple, back up your claims and show mathematically how the business can work for the group. It's easier to silence an Amway defender, simply ask for proof that it works.

Why IBOs Fail?

 Over the years, there must have been tens of millions of IBOs who had some experience with Amway. Obviously, not all of these folks got involved in a system or had the intention of trying to make millions of dollars. But looking at the business as a whole, the number of people who make a significant income from Amway is a tiny fraction of 1%. If a typical platinum has about 100 IBOs in a group, then you can conclude that platinum is in the top 1% of all IBOs. And we know that many IBOs quit and go through the business each year. The attrition rate can be staggering for bigger pins who need to keep working to replace those who quit.

But the question that seems to be ignored is why so many IBOs end up failing? Now for the sake of this discussion, let's exclude IBOs who do nothing and quit. Let's talk about IBOs who make an earnest effort. Often, the serious IBOs will be on the system consisting of voicemail, standing order, functions, books and other meetings. These all come at a cost, therefore, IBOs need to make several hundred dollars a month just to break even. Amway reports that the average income of active IBOs is $115 a month. Therefore, the average business building IBO is operating at a loss.

Let's look at some of the reasons why IBOs cannot succeed. In general, Amway product pricing is higher than local big box retailers. Amway pays bonuses; therefore, the bonus payout is included in the price of the products. I suppose a platinum gets a good deal, being at the 25% level, but a platinum is in the top 1% of IBOs. The majority of the rest receive a paltry 3% which leaves them at a loss when business expenses are factored in.

Past IBO abuse and past IBO behavior makes it nearly impossible, at least in North America, to find potential downline IBOs and customers. Seems everyone knows of someone who was tricked into an Amway meeting or was deceived about Amway in some manner. I believe Amway has seen a decline in sales in North America, with foreign countries being responsible for any current growth in business.

Another factor is that IBOs are taught by uplines to engage in too many activities that do not produce income. Attending meetings, listening to cds, reading books and other functions cost the IBO money. They do not result in more sales to customers. These non-income producing activities seem to be the majority of an IBO's activities, thus it's easy to see why so many IBOs fail. While system leaders claim that their system works, there is no reasonable evidence to support this claim. Just the fact that new diamonds and emeralds are so rare these days suggest that the system, with their severely limited success is producing less success these days.

All told, an IBO's chance of succeeding in earning long term sustainable income is so tiny that IBOs seriously would be better off buying lottery tickets instead of buying tools such as standing orders and function tickets. At least buying lottery tickets would not use up 10-15 hours per week of your time, and your chance of winning is about the same. The system doesn't work, it is why most IBOs fail.

Accountability Of Uplines?

 Part of what Joecool perceives as the problem with the Amway opportunity is the utter lack of accountability of some upline leaders. They may tell you to trust them, to submit to them and simply copy or duplicate what they have done, and they imply that you will get the same results. Possibly millions of downlines over the years have put in blood sweat and tears into the business only to suffer massive losses following the system. Upline will take credit for meager success but place the blame on the downline when success is not there. Upline will claim that they either did not try hard enough, were not teachable enough, or they didn't put in enough time and effort. Despite a shockingly low success rate of system IBOs, nobody seems to fault the system as being flawed. And nobody seems to question whether upline is at fault. I believe it's obvious that the system and the upline advice is severely flawed.

In my observations, I would say that many financial systems are similar. Whether it be BWW, N21, WWDB, real estate gurus or other systems, the success rate is extremely low. Many systems that advertise on television will have a disclaimer that a success testimony is a rare or unique experience. I believe it is similar to the systems in Amway. Dedication or continued spending on the system is not the problem. The problem is often the system itself. It can work for some exceptional people. These people were likely to succeed in other venues anyway. The problem is that is does not work for the majority of people. People who succeed in Amway likely succeed in spite of the system and not because of it.

The bigger problem, is that for many years, some uplines have lived high on the hog off of the dedicated tool purchases of their downline. All the while, questionable or bad advice was given to the faithful downline. Advice such as quitting a job to attend a function, skipping financial obligations such as the rent or electric bills to buy more tools. One upline even said your family can skip a meal because the standing order may contain the one thing you needed to hear to make your business grow. I have personally seen couples lose their homes and go bankrupt because they followed upline advice. Upline to "has their best interest at heart". Granted, the couple has some culpability in these decisions, but uplines who give this advice seem to get a pass.

Where is the accountability? Some of these uplines who give and gave bad advice, are still active today, and some are still giving bad advice to their downlines. Advice that profits upline and drains downline. Even with valid complaints, it appears that many uplines avoid any accountability. For some, perhaps there is poetic justice, such as diamonds having their homes foreclosed. But as many uplines have nobody to hold them accountable, do you really want to do business with these folks? Would you invest your retirement money with a broker who could not be held accountable? Would you have your car repaired by a shop whose mechanics could not be held accountable? I believe the answer is not to these questions, yet many people are asked to trust and follow the advice of an upline who is not held accountable for their advice.

The system is credited for the few successes that are visible, but the individual is held accountable for any shortcomings or failures. IBOs, I encourage you to hold your upline leaders accountable for the advice they give you. If they won't answer tough questions or take responsibility, then one should wonder why the upline should be given your trust.

Endless Motivation?

 I believe that Amway IBOs have approximately a 50% attrition rate for the first year alone. If you look at a 5-year window, I believe the attrition rate is something like 95%. So, what we're saying is that out of 100 IBOs, only 5 will be around in 5 years, or out of 1000 IBOs, 50 will remain after 5 years. This is extremely significant because if you are a business builder, you will need to replace half of your IBOs every single year. For this reason, I am very doubtful that there are IBOs who "built the business right and built it once", who no longer do Amway related work, but still collect significant residual income. I would guess that significant income could be defined as being enough to live a lifestyle in the top tax bracket (for the US) without having to report to a J-O-B.

Now I understand that some IBOs take it personally when I bring up subjects like this. It is because they have been deceived by some upline diamond or big pin who has sold them on a dream of financial prosperity for life if they will only work hard for 2-5 years. I once thought so too, but realized that there isn't a single diamond that I know of who built the business right and walked away to enjoy the beaches of the world while truckloads of money rolls in. Kinda makes you wonder why you see Crowns still working, and diamonds actually quitting or resigning. I have asked the question many times and it has never been answered. Can anyone name a few people who built their business right and built it once who is currently enjoying these lifelong residuals? Also, if that were a benefit, why doesn't Amway say so?

Instead, you have a constant and endless flow of motivation being sold to IBOs. This motivation comes in the form of cds, books, meetings, functions and other things like voicemail messages. It's sad that IBOs have to continue to pay through the nose for motivation and "teaching" about the Amway business when there are cheaper and more efficient means of communication. For example, why would you need an expensive voicemail when a facebook group account can disseminate messages to your group in seconds at no cost? It is because the uplines want to extract every possible sent from their downline. Because of the internet, I believe people are starting to figure things out and avoid the systems altogether. 

All the motivation IBOs truly need is to see a net profit at the end of the month. If IBOs actually earned an extra $200 a month, or $50 a month, or $600 a month as advertised, there would be no need for motivational speeches. The IBOs would simply look at the growth in their finances and they would keep going. The poor retention rate is easy to explain. IBOs are losing money because of the system expenses, and they lose their motivation to continue. If you are an IBO or a prospect, stop and think for a minute. If you are making an extra $200 a month with minimal effort, would you need functions and other materials to motivate you? Or would you have intrinsic motivation from the profit? All the motivation you will ever need is a net profit. Take that to the bank

Financial Freedom?

 Financial Freedom! That was one of the major battle cries when I was recruited for the Amway business. You gain control of time and money by creating residual or passive income. That is true financial freedom. You wake up at noon, no job, and just do whatever you please, whenever you please. I remember the speaker saying that broke/unemployed people also had freedom, but it was different because they were broke and could not afford to go golfing or do other activities that required money on a regular basis. But are Amway diamonds enjoying financial freedom or do they need to be at Amway conventions to make a living?

I am assuming that financial freedom is still the recruiting pitch for Amway prospects. Of course, upline leaders may toss in a disclaimer that you don't get rich quick as an IBO, but the pitch apparently still contains the financial freedom and residual income theme, based on my experiences with IBOs. IBOs still think they will be rich. Also, 2-5 years sounds like "get rich quick" to me. I heard as an IBO that Amway was simply a "shortcut" to financial freedom.

Financial freedom would be a great thing, don't get me wrong. Who wouldn't want to be 35 years old with enough cash to never have to work again and be able to do anything I wanted without financial restrictions? I mean I could spend some time imagining how fun that would be. It would also be fun to imagine what you would do with all the cash if you hit the Powerball lottery as well. But for the starry eyed IBOs, I simply have a few questions for you to ponder. A few realistic questions that you should be asking yourself. The answers to these questions will tell you a lot.

1. Who in your group or upline truly has achieved financial freedom? Have you seen their financials or simply a display of wealth such as pictures of mansions and fancy cars? Mansions and fancy cars could just be a massive pile of debt. Not too long ago, there apparently were diamonds who had their homes foreclosed, and a triple diamond who was in bankruptcy proceedings. Find out if anyone in your group/upline has actually achieved the success that they are using to recruit you with. Also, if they are financially free, why do they work at function after function? Traveling and speaking might not be a traditional job, but it is still work, nonetheless. If you need to be somewhere at a particular time for money, are you free?  If a diamond could "walk away" and collect barrels of cash, why hasn't a single diamond AFAIK ever chosen this option?

2. Even if you find someone who is retired and golfing every day because of Amway residual income, ask yourself what the likelihood is that you will be able to achieve the same results?  If diamonds are still working, what chance do you have of success if you are new or inexperienced in Amway and have few or no downline?  More than likely, your chance of winning the lottery will be greater than your chance of achieving a significant residual income from your Amway business. Also, I don't know of any Amway retirees who built their business once and walked away with any significant residual income from Amway. Do you?

Where is the financial freedom that Amway diamonds talk about? It's as elusive as the Loch Ness Monster. Everyone's heard about it and some claim to have seen it, but nobody has proven its existence.

My Upline Is Rich?

 Serious question for Amway IBOS.  How would you know if your upline diamond is rich?  Does your diamond let you see business tax returns or a profit loss statement, which would be normal in a business setting?  Or do you simply assume that the diamond is rich because they are on stage talking big and showing you pictures of nice cars and other trappings they claim to own?  How would you know if they own a Ferrari or if they rented one for the pictures?  I can stand on stage in a suit and do the same thing.  But for some reason, IBOS just blindly believe because quite simply, they want to believe it.  For many, they need to believe that 2-5 years of work can result in fabulous wealth and early retirement.  It was what the "dream" is built on.

Without the hope that the diamond dream (or delusion) provides, there would be no good reason for anyone to join Amway.  Who would want to peddle ordinary household goods at premium prices if not for a big reward as ultimate end goal?  People want to believe that they can achieve the same things as the diamond.  I was an IBO at one time and there’s no way I would join if a middle-class lifestyle was the goal.  And that’s where the scam is played out by the upline.  They claim you can achieve what they allegedly have if only you will listen to them and follow their program, which includes a lot of business expenses that uplines directly profit from.  This is the part they never mention.

Join Amway and feel rich.  A few years of work and dedication will get it done.   The diamond has the secret to success and achieving diamond but you must subscribe to their system of audios and functions so they can teach you these secrets.  In the meantime, the diamond is making his bankroll from selling audios and function tickets while nearly all down line are losing money because of the cost of the training.  And I might add that the training in ineffective and does not work.   If the training were effective, there would be a natural progression of new diamonds all the time.  Instead we see the same old tired diamonds speaking and pitching the same old rhetoric function after function.

For the IBOS and prospects who think the upline diamond is rich beyond belief, I ask this question.  How in the world would you know?  The fact is you don't.  If you ask, you'll more than likely be told it's none of your business or some other excuse will be forthcoming.  Just stop and think analytically for a minute, maybe you'll see through the facade. 

Hidden Business Expenses?

 One of the things upline leaders do is to disparage people with jobs. Oh, they would say we needed people to wait on our tables and clean our toilets, but in general, jobs were put down and basically the group was told that Amway is their best chance at achieving financial freedom, giving them the ability to flush their jobs. Some upline might even show a video of someone who walked off their job because they made it big in Amway. Ironically, IBO's jobs are what funds their Amway businesses. Most IBOs would be out of business within weeks if not for their job income funding their Amway businesses.

The key selling point appears to be the 2-5 years of part time work rather than working a job for 30 - 40 years and then retiring on social security which may or may not be there when you retire. This plants a fear in people about the future and then the Amway opportunity is presented in a positive light because the Amway opportunity comes with a low startup cost. What uplines do not mention is how the opportunity can become a money pit as the monthly defacto 100 PV quota starts to add up. It is my guess that if people only bought items they truly needed, these IBOs would likely move 100 PV every three months, unless they are actively selling goods to non-IBO customers, which also appears to be uncommon.

When an IBO finally agrees to register, it is then that the hidden business expenses begin to be revealed. Many uplines will introduce standing orders and functions and present these tools as vital to IBO success. Some upline may give you some free cds and function tickets at first, but eventually you'll be told that a "serious business owner" buys their own. You will also be expected to do the same for your own prospects. Most new IBOs don't know better and feel subtle pressure to conform and give it a try. Some upline may loan some tools to downline in the beginning but eventually, the IBO will be encouraged to be a "serious" business owner who should be purchasing their own tools to loan to their downline and the cycle goes on.

If you examine some version of the Amway recruitment plan, you will see that most IBOs are at the 100 PV level, which will reward you with a monthly bonus of about $10 or so. If that same IBO subscribes to the tools system, then IBO will likely be losing over $100 a month not including the product purchases. And because many IBOs have been convinced that working a job is so horrible, that they can be convinced that this condition of losing money is temporary and that untold wealth is right around the corner. Sadly, for most, this condition is the norm and even the sponsorship of a few downline, the losses continue to mount. Yet many are convinced that this is better than a job.

Ironically, a job allows people to pay their monthly bills, feed their families and many people enjoy their work and coworkers. While upline leaders may convince you otherwise, it is this very same excuse upline leaders use when asked why they are still working instead of walking the beaches of the world collecting massive amounts of residual income. I would encourage IBOs to truly analyze their efforts in Amway and determine if it is beneficial to your finances. In most cases, your Amway efforts ONLY benefits your upline's finances. For most who get involved, the Amway opportunity is not better than a job.

Better Than Amway?

 One of the silly comments I often receive on this blog is that Joecool should offer suggestions about what might be better than Amway since I make comments against the Amway opportunity. First of all, I would like to make clear that most of my point of contention is against the tools companies and not Amway itself. Having said that, I believe Amway can and should have done more to prevent IBO abuse by upline and tool selling companies. But I believe Amway has not because the uplines are the ones who recruit new IBOs and teach (defacto) 100 PV quotas to new IBOs, thus keeping Amway sales consistent. Uplines also teach product loyalty.

But what can be better than Amway? Well, since most IBOs earn less than $15 a month, there are many things better than Amway. I might add that the $15 I refer to is gross, not net income. Thus after expenses, the vast majority run their Amway business at a loss. Working part time for minimum wage would be more beneficial to most people who get involved in Amway. Buying and selling items for a profit on Ebay is likely to get you more income than selling Amway products. Heck, a lemonade stand on the roadside is likely to get you more net income than an Amway business. Since most IBOs lose money, staying home and watching TV makes you better off as well.

What makes the Amway business financially dangerous to many, is not Amway and Amway products, but the involvement in Amway training such as voicemail, standing orders, functions and other materials. This training is promoted as the key to Amway success, but as far as I know, there is ZERO unbiased documented evidence that any of this materials work. In my old LOS, Worldwide Dream Builders, or WWDB, the same leaders I saw 12 years ago are still (minus those who left or passed away) there and there are no new diamonds that I know of. I would guess that there were "some" new diamonds, but there are also many diamonds who are no longer in business. Kind of makes me wonder why diamonds would quit or resign from Amway if they could "walk away" and continue to collect "residual income". Perhaps this residual income is a myth perpetuated by your LOS. Afterall, Amway doesn't mention anything about residual income and income from your business would come from Amway.

What is really discouraging is that so many eager and motivated people get caught up thinking their financial dreams and goals will be achieved by their involvement with the Amway opportunity. Sadly, most will end up losing money because of the very training that was supposed to bring them success! Even the fiercest of Amway defenders have no documented proof of success. It appears that Amway success is elusive even to the most dedicated of IBOs.

So, what's better than the Amway opportunity? Seems just about anything. In fact, if you are involved in the training system, donating $100 a month to charity and doing nothing else would make you better off financially than participating in Amway and the related training. Doing nothing would make you better off. Watching football games would also likely make you better off financially than Amway and the training systems. My recommendation (but you must make your own decision) is to simply find part time work and invest your extra income wisely. It isn't quick or flashy, but you are likely to benefit long term. Of course, your mileage may vary. Good luck on whatever you choose to do.

Options?

 One of the things I heard as an IBO was how money may not make you happy, but it buys you options. I agree with that, but what is not said is that for 99% (or more) of IBOs, they are likely to have less money because of their involvement in Amway. More specifically, the tools end up being a drain on IBO resources and income, thus the result is a net business loss. Factor in the time spent doing the business-related activities and the collateral damage can begin to get significant, especially after several months have passed.

I find it somewhat ironic that the reason why many IBOs get involved in Amway is to attain the dream of having more time and money. The time to do anything you want, and the money to be able to do anything you want. This dream, however, is like chasing the end of a rainbow. You can see it, but it is always just out of your reach. Your effort makes no difference, you can never find the end of a rainbow. Just as IBOs are out chasing the dream, hoping to find like-minded people to sponsor.

No matter how many people you can find, it will never be enough. Just look at the triple ripple mega crown ambassadors and quadruple diamonds. How many of them are doing what they want, whenever they want? Sure, you see slide shows of them on trips or at Disneyland but stop and think. Why are they constantly at functions and meetings? Do they really and truly want to be playing Amway when they can do anything they want whenever they want? Or is it more likely that they profit from selling you standing orders and functions, so they continue to work? Do you honestly believe that the diamonds are philanthropic and work out of love for their downline? If so, then ask why they are compensated for doing so. If they loved what they are doing, they would do it for free right? That's how they related to my job, that if I loved it, why would I need compensation?

Money is an important aspect of life. Everyone needs to earn some money to pay for their homes and to put food on the table. Having more money can obviously give you more options. But do diamonds really have all that money? I suspect not. Diamonds seemingly speak about being "job optional", and being able to walk away from the business, but it makes me wonder why nobody can name even a handful of people who built a sizable Amway business, and walked away to enjoy the beaches of the world while the money keeps pouring in. Amway's been around more than 50 years. Surely there must be many people who are retired and living large on (primarily) Amway income. But these Amway retirees are about as common as the sasquatch or UFOs. Everyone seems to know about them and have heard about them, but no one has bonafide proof that they actually exist.

Money buys you more options. But the question is whether or not you can actually attain that money from Amway. My conclusion is that it is highly unlikely.

Ruthless?

 The really scary and insidious part about some of the Amway LOS leaders, such as the ones I had in WWDB, is that they apparently are ruthless businessmen with nice suits and disguised as your mentors and friends. They get you to trust them, and they will tell you that they have your best interest at heart, or that they would never purposely lead you astray (which is likely not true). On the surface, you may think this is true but look at their actions and you can easily discern that some of these uplines are absolutely ruthless businessmen who would take every cent from you if they could. I was in WWDB, and I have good reasons to believe that they are still doing this, based on a WWDB IBO blog. On this blog, I see all the same teachings today, that I heard as an IBO and some of the same claims such as buying homes in cash. It's scary.   (The blog was called "Expeditions of Truth" and the fired up blog owner has now quit and is doing other things)

They may even claim moral superiority such as using religion as a basis for building the business. I heard some leaders say "Amway is a God pleasing business". Really? God likes lying and exploiting others? I would beg to differ. They might tell you lies such as Amway and/or WWDB IBOs have a lower divorce level than the world. They may tell you a bunch of unsubstantiated details. I urge IBOs to verify and confirm claims like these.  How do splines know who gets divorced?

As an IBO, the diamonds may tell you to never miss a function, ever. The only good reason for missing a function was for your own funeral. I recall some crossline IBOs rearranging pre-planned anniversary parties, weddings, and other special family events in the name of being core and attending all functions. Some IBOs actually did quit their jobs to attend functions, and they very well may have done so because some uplines taught this. IBOs were also encouraged and told to go into debt to attend a function. This was okay because it was an "investment" into your business. 

Our group was also strongly encouraged to buy extra cds every week. To be core, you needed to listen to a cd each day and you cannot listen to the same one each day, right? Couples were told to buy their own separate standing orders. Brad Duncan even had a true north tape (cd) that said sponsors were to eat the standing orders for downlines who quit because it was too much trouble to call upline who calls upline who calls upline to cancel a standing order. Oddly enough, they didn't mind upline calling upline calling upline to add a standing order. 

In the end, I was lucky enough to have been progressing up the pin ranks, so my losses were not that devastating. I ended up losing in my early months of the business but mostly broke even when I was at 4000 PV. Sadly though, my crossline did not fare so well. I know of one couple who declared bankruptcy. I don't know how much their WWDB involvement contributed to bankruptcy, but I am certain it was a major factor, and I know of two couples who had homes foreclosed, and I believe that their allegiance to WWDB was a factor in those foreclosures. But I guess hey, two WWDB diamonds had homes foreclosed so maybe they were duplicating?

Do not be fooled. The diamonds may have a nice smile and a nice suit, but they are cutthroat wolves in sheep's clothing who will take your last dime if you allow them to.

Do Uplines Insult Your Intelligence?

 Joecool has been out of the Amway business for nearly 30 years now.  Looking back, I have no regrets as Amway products along with the WWDB systems were becoming a drain on my finances as I had attempted to be CORE and tried to build a big business.  Of course, it never materialized for obvious reasons.  Quitting turned out to be a blessing to me as I managed to recover financially from my experience and got om with my life.   

But now when I reflect on the experience, I realized how uplines basically insults everyone's intelligence with their teaching.  When you're involved in the system, you likely won't see it because you want to or maybe have to believe that you're going to find six and go diamond.  Uplines teach you this.  That you basically have no chance other than Amway to gain wealth and live a good life with a secure retirement.  Upline will tell you stories about people being old and broke or having to keep working because of a lack of financial security.  

I recall bat shit crazy stuff that we were taught that seems insulting to my intelligence.  I'm guessing that some of my readers can relate.  How many of you heard the following teachings?   For example, fake it till you make it.  The premise being that you pretend to be successful because you'll eventually be there so you may as well act the part in advance.  It's nuts, but this was actually taught at meetings and functions and we paid money to be taught this BS.  Another one was buy from yourself.  As if you could buy your way to prosperity.   The thought behind this was that people don't like selling so you teach this.   IBOs following their upline don't question the leaders so this kind of craziness goes on.  

There are other things that insult your intelligence that might go unnoticed like submission to upline.  Or to seek upline guidance on the business and even in your personal life and finances.  And what qualifications does your upline have to provide this guidance?  They signed up for Amway before you.  Thus, if I'm an older person and financially stable or even wealthy, I would need to submit and seek guidance from someone who might know nothing about life or finances but because they signed up for Amway before me, that qualifies them?   Is this insane or what?  But this is true and partly why Amway appears cult like to some people.  

I could go on forever, but a last example.   That you should have a business checking account, which is not crazy, but if you're taught that you make money by purchasing from yourself and you transfer cash from your savings to your business account is insulting.  How do you profit by moving money from one pocket to your other pocket?   But this is actually taught and it's amazing that uplines have been teaching this garbage for years.  I'm not sure if it's their actual strategy or if they purposely insult your intelligence, but it sounds like insanity when you are no longer under the spell of upljne teaching.   There are many more examples of this kind of teaching.   

I think upline just insults your intelligence and adds insult to injury by having you pay for this kind of ridiculous teaching.  Feel free to comment or share your own stories of upline insanity.  It's amusing now that I can see these things clearly now.  

Teaching On Debt?

 Getting out of debt sounds like good advice. On the surface it is because people should not be racking up consumer debt or committing large sums of their income for cars they cannot afford. But what does it mean for an IBO? I know my former upline taught our group to get out of debt. However, I believe my former uplines had self-serving intentions when they taught this. Let me translate what I believe they meant:

"You should not have any debt because it would affect your ability to buy more PV and tools. If you have debt, it affects my cash flow"

Ironically, for many, maybe most IBOs, although taught to get "get out of debt", the bottom-line result is more debt. There is more debt because the cost of products and tools begin to mount. How many families actually spend $300 a month (approximate cost of 100 PV) on household products? And then to add onto that expense, IBOs who are trying to be "successful" need tools which cost anywhere from $150 a month up to more than $500 a month depending on whether the IBO is married, single and the level of commitment. Thus, IBOs are now spending at least several hundreds of dollars that they never spent before.

Most IBOs, especially new IBOs, generally earn less than $50 a month. In fact, $50 a month income in this business would make you quite exceptional. Most IBOs earn less than $20 a month. With that kind of income and with the expenses I listed above (tools = voicemail, books, standing orders, and functions), nearly all "serious" IBOs operate in the red and never turn a profit. The only way an IBO can turn a profit is to sell Amway products like crazy (which I have never witnessed) or to sponsor enough downline to absorb the losses for them. The only true success stories are the ones who sell the tools.

The reason why I believe that my former uplines (who are still in WWDB and apparently teach the same things now as they did back when I was an IBO) are teaching self-serving advice because although they said to "get out of debt", they made an exception to this and said it was perfectly okay to go in debt to attend functions or to buy more standing orders. IBOs were also told to do "whatever it takes" to get to the next function or to buy more tools. It is why I witnessed some cross lines go bankrupt, more than one couple lost their homes following upline advice. And these couples were told they shouldn't worry because they can pay cash for their homes when they go diamond. Another apparent lie told by WWDB leaders, especially those who had their own homes foreclosed.

Let's be perfectly real here. If you join Amway and participate in the system consisting of voicemail, books, standing orders and functions, you are far more likely to get into debt or increase your debt rather than making money and getting out of debt. The math bears it out if you are willing to look at it objectively.

Are Lies Needed To Promote Amway?

 The first time I was prospected for Amway, I was in college. I actually didn't know much about Amway, but I had somehow formed a negative opinion of it because of things I had heard about other people's experiences.  Needless to say, when I was invited to a beer bust and it turned instead to an Amway meeting, my impression of Amway got even worse. I eventually did join because a close friend of mine had achieved platinum and he had assured me that it could be done and that he would make sure that I would also achieve it. I did achieve a level just below platinum (4000 PV), but I quit for several reasons. First of all, I didn't make a net profit as the tools ate up my profits. Secondly, the more I progressed in the business, the more and more my upline wanted control of my life. For example, we were told that we should check upline before getting married, buying a car, or even having children, etc. I thought that was very strange and I eventually left the business.

But in the US at least, I believe Amway's name to be so battered that an IBO cannot sponsor downline and build a business without lies and deception. There are hordes of stories confirming testimony that lies, and deceit are common in prospecting potential IBOs. This was extremely rampant when Amway changed their name to Quixtar. IBOs would deny the connection or IBOs would say they are with network 21or WWDB and claim something ridiculous such as Amway simply being their supplier. The promotion of perfect water also brought on silly antics about a $50 case of water being capable of performing miracles. If the opportunity could stand on its own merits, then IBOs would not have to resort to such desperate measures.

Even the Amway presentation if often filled with deception and lies. I remember seeing the presentation and they said shopping through Amway, an IBO would save 30%over local retailers. When I actually saw the catalogs, I wondered where the savings was. The 6-4-2 plan or similar variations are made to sound easy and the presenter talked about lifelong residual willable income, which I also find to be deceptive if not an outright lie.

But can Amway be successfully promoted without lies and deception? It is my opinion that an IBO has no chance of building a business by being completely upfront and honest about Amway and about being an IBO. Even with lies and deceit, many IBOs still cannot get people to see the plan or to buy products. An Amway rep has stated that very little Amway products are sold to non-IBOs. So if you cannot sell products and you cannot get people to see the plan, you cannot build a business and if you are purchasing tools, you are simply digging yourself a financial hole that will only grow larger as time passes. The cost of 100 PV is already more than what most families and/or singles spend in a month on household products. This means that most people simply cannot sustain themselves in the business and it explains why most IBOs drop out in the first year.

It is why lies and/or deception are very likely needed for an IBO to have a chance at promoting and building an Amway business.

Millionaire Mentality?

 A comment left by an anonymous site visitor:

"I love Amway. I just don't understand why people have to be negative about it. I don't hurt or steal from anyone yet I make money. I'm not a millionaire as of yet but working towards that goal. It's called "millionaire mentality". Joecool you will never succeed with penny mentality."

Joecool's commentary:

Most diamonds do not have a millionaire mentality. If you see how they spend money and how they flaunt excessive wealth, I see people who could win the power ball lottery and wind up broke. They might earn a nice income (even if it may come by lying and deceiving), but they spend it all, and possibly more by portraying the diamond lifestyle. In my opinion, the diamond lifestyle as portrayed in functions such as "dream night" are not sustainable For this reason, we are now seeing evidence of this such as a triple diamond who participated in chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings, diamonds losing homes to foreclosures. We are seeing diamonds selling their mansions. Sure, they might be downsizing or liquidating their assets, but if these homes have been paid in cash as they claim, why sell them in a bad real estate market? Why not wait a few years?

In the past, I have posted some articles showing the traits and characteristics of millionaires. Many of these articles cite saving, investing, and living below your means. Many wealthy people drive regular everyday cars and live in the suburbs. They don't commonly have Porsches, and Jaguars. And for the record, the average diamond income, as reported by Amway, isn't all that much when you factor in business expenses and taxes. So why do diamonds try to show off wealth?

I believe diamonds show off wealth because it is a way to attract recruits. Because the Amway opportunity has a high turnover rate, nobody can reasonably "walk away" from their business and have cash rolling in for long. Attrition would eat away your business in a matter of days or weeks. It is why I believe diamonds do not walk away from their businesses, because they can't afford to. The business requires constant attention, or it will crumble faster than stake cookies.

Most IBOs are simply fooled into thinking they are developing into having a millionaire mentality. An honest question for IBOs. How do you even know if your upline diamond is a millionaire? Anyone, even a broke guy can wear a nice suit and show off pictures of mansions and sports cars. For that matter, how do you know if your upline diamond is currently qualified as a diamond? Amway doesn't release that information except for new pins.

In my opinion, diamond's displays of excessive wealth and luxury portrays something, but it's not the millionaire mentality.

What Is A Diamond?

  I was an Amway IBO back in the 1990s and I recall how the audience basically worshipped the diamonds and treated them as if they walked on water.  After all, they had achieved what everyone wanted right?  They were allegedly wealthy beyond most people’s dreams and could sleep until noon each day because they didn’t have to report to a job.  But if you’ve been around and experienced some of what I’ve seen, you get a different perspective.  Yes, diamond is a nice achievement, but let's look at it with a more critical eye, shall we?

Basically, a diamond is an Amway customer and an Amway salesperson who works for commissions only with no fringe benefits.  Additionally, Amway basically owns them because Amway has the power to stop their commissions if Amway’s in disagreement over various business issues.  And if you think about it, you don't have much leverage in a dispute with the company that issues your bonuses and checks.  In a way, a diamond is as dependent on Amway as a rank and file employee is on a job and a paycheck, even if a diamond might earn more than some employees.

Secondarily, Amway diamonds have a second job/business selling tools and functions.  I believe it would be common for a diamond to make as much or more income from tools and functions than from Amway.  You say no chance?  How about this?  Diamonds only have to qualify one time and possibly may never actually be a diamond again but can still appear on stage earning their living by speaking and selling audios or cds.  And, a diamond makes more profit from tools and functions than on Amway goods because rank and file Amway IBOs do not get a cut of the profits from tools and functions.  

Also, tools and functions have a higher markup than Amway products thus the potential for more profits.  Rank and file IBOS receive Amway bonus money but don’t share in the action for tools and functions.  It is why the tools and functions are emphasized by upline. But in the end a diamond is just an Amway customer and salesperson.  In my informed opinion, a diamond has done nothing worthy of all the undue adulation and worship.  Since many diamonds claim to be Christians, which might be good, then they should know better than to accept worship and adulation for themselves, especially when they are simply salespeople for the Amway corporation.

Do They Exist?

 I was watching several shows on Discovery channel the other night about Bigfoot/Sasquatch.  It was called Expedition Bigfoot.  It showed some compelling evidence such as a huge handprint and videos of a large dark hairy bipedal being walking in the forest in Washington State.  It was followed by a show about evidence of UFOs. It made me start to think about these phenomena. It seems like everyone has heard about or knows something about Sasquatch (Big foot) and/or UFOs. There are many documentaries showing pictures and evidence of both, but to date, there is no bonafide evidence that these things exist. You'd think that a body or bones of a Sasquatch would turn up somewhere, sooner or later, or we would find compelling evidence of a spaceship from another galaxy.

It sounds just like stories of people who built a diamond ship, then "walked away" from their businesses, retired in the lap of luxury and did nothing while the money kept rolling in. I heard numerous scenarios about this happening, but looking back, all the diamonds kept working and since Joecool left the business, the diamond either kept working, or quit or got terminated. But I never heard anyone name some higher up Amway pin who built a business, and then walked away from it to travel the beaches of the world while hundreds of thousands of dollars kept rolling in. Many have heard about it but nobody seems to be able to name any of these folks. I mean after over 50 years in existence, you'd think some of these folks would exist, especially when it seems to be a selling point of the business for many AMOs.

It is my opinion that Sasquatch, UFOs and retired Amway's diamonds (with significant Amway income) are nonexistent. If these folks existed, there should be at least some shred of evidence of it. The lack of evidence indicates to me that it is either nonexistent or so rare that nobody can display bonafide proof. I mean there aren't any T-Rexs roaming the earth anymore but fossil evidence proves that they existed at one time.

Keeping in mind that the Amway business has a high attrition rate, coupled with low sales to non-IBOs and you can easily conclude that residual and significant income is nearly impossible. An Amway business that is left alone will deteriorate like a sandcastle does as the waves wash it away. You (in theory) could possible walk away from an Amway business for a while and collect some income, but you won't be collecting enough income to live the "diamond lifestyle" as portrayed by diamonds in their functions and open meetings. I'm not even sure that active diamonds can comfortably afford that lifestyle even when building their businesses. There is ample evidence to support my claim. Diamonds losing homes to foreclosure, former diamonds revealing secrets about their income. If you really believe you can walk away from your Amway business and collect untold wealth, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. :-)

Your Business Valuation?

 Many people see the Amway plan, sign up as an IBO in the hopes that Amway income will help them fulfill their dreams and that they will walk away from their jobs at a young age and collect lifelong residual income while walking the beaches of the world. Sadly, most IBOs will never even sponsor a single downline or see a net profit. These IBOs may continue in the business for a while but will eventually quit when they see the writing on the wall. Someone mentioned on another forum that people who want to work 2-5 years and do nothing thereafter are probably lazy and therefore, are not capable of achieving in anything, much less in Amway. I agree with this but even hard working eager IBOs generally make nothing or lose money.

But wait, you're an "independent business owner". So instead of quitting, why not sell your Amway business? I wonder if any IBOs actually think about what their business is worth. I mean a diamond in theory could sell their business and live large happily ever after, right? Here's some food for thought. Why are there instance of diamonds quitting or resigning from Amway? Why would they just quit when they could either walk away and collect an income "forever" or sell the business? I mean do IBOs ever stop and think about this? It is an honest and serious question that should get some consideration. Honestly, why would a diamond not walk away if they could collect income forever?

I believe diamonds quit and resign because their business is worth very little or nothing. And most Amway businesses do not even generate a net profit. For IBOs who are seriously pondering on this very important message, try looking up this topic in Amway's rules. There are very complicated steps to be taken when selling your Amway business as each person upline must be offered ownership (To the best of my understanding). This process can go on for a long time and the attrition of your business could render it worthless before you can find a buyer, if you have a buyer at all. Also, if you quit, the downline in your group would be surrendered to the immediate upline anyway. So why would your upline want to buy your business?

So IBOs, I ask you. What is your business worth? You don't own your downline. They are independent owners like yourself. You should not have inventory, employees or some warehouse storage complex. Aside from the ability to add downline volume to your own, your Amway business likely has very little value in the real world. So IBOs and prospects, think about it for a minute. What is the value of your Amway business? Ever see anyone sell their Amway business or actually walk away from Amway to collect residual income? Do you ever wonder why crowns and double diamonds are still working, even beyond retirement age for people with jobs?

Early Retirement?

 One of the humorous things I read is when a Amway IBO says he or she is 19 years old and will be "retired" at the age of 24 because of the Amway business. I personally don't know of anyone who has retired primarily on residual Amway income, as many seem to claim. I am not suggesting that nobody has ever done this, but I suspect that there are so few people who may have done it that it is not noteworthy. Even the Crown Ambassadors appear to not only be working but have very busy schedules where they are constantly on the run. In fact, several crowns have passed away while still working the business. Sure, you can argue whether a crown works "hard" or not but having to be somewhere at a particular time (functions) to earn money is not the freedom that these folks preach. And the poor retention rate of IBOs would suggest that even a sizable Amway business could fall apart rather quickly without a constant replacement of IBOs, which is why I believe even crowns keep on working seemingly forever.  

I ask this of IBOs. Is your upline diamond, or someone in between you and the diamond retired because of (primarily) Amway income? Do you as an IBO have a projected date when you will "walk away" from the business and retire? When I was an IBO, I always wondered why nobody "walked away" from their business after they went diamond. I believe the answer is crystal clear. Because IBO turnover is so high, if a diamond were to walk away from the business, he would probably fall out of qualification in less than a year. The bonuses would disappear and the diamond would probably have to look for a job. There are many examples of diamonds who have quit, and in some cases, went back to work. But generally, diamonds just keep working the business, probably because they have to!

Many unsuspecting prospects may be lured into the Amway business with the hope of an early retirement. Amway recruiters may mention that control of time and money is the key to success, but ironically, for most who sign up, will end up with less time and money than if they did not join at all. For many people. especially young people, it might be a good idea to seek financial advice from a professional and to make long term investment goals. Am investment of about $200 a month can net you close to a million bucks after 30 to 40 years.

Yes, there may be "some" people who retired early due to (primarily) Amway income. But I don't know any. Do you? Can anyone name even two of these people?

Walking Beaches?

 So many Amway IBOs apparently get involved in Amway because they are under the impression that one day they will get rich. That much is clear. The uplines are smart enough, though, to say the right thing such as Amway is not gt rich quick. By doing this, the new IBOs or prospects can think they are in a legitimate business because they have been told it is not a get rich quick scheme. In fact, they may even be told that Amway is hard work. But the bottom line is that they must have been told they will eventually get rich or that they will make it if they only follow the system. 

By saying that Amway is not get rich quick, the upline can also hook you into the tools systems for several years. They will say you need tools, just as a carpenter needs a saw and a hammer. But an Amway IBO's role is simple. Sell products, buy products, sponsor downline. You wouldn't need a 500-page manual and a bunch of cds to learn how to turn on a television would you? Yet so many people get sucked into functions and standing orders under the false idea that these are investments into your business. But still, people will do this because they have been sold on the idea that they will eventually get rich in Amway. 2-5 years to achieve financial freedom seems like a get rich (quick) scheme to me. 

I may be repeating some of these questions ad nauseum, but it should reveal an answer that IBOs and prospects need. Where are the people who built their business right in 2-5 years and chose the option of walking away and enjoying financial freedom while the money keeps rolling in? In over 50 years of existence, I don't know of anyone, save for Amway's owners, who can walk away and have significant income. Also, if this were an IBO benefit, why doesn't Amway list this as a benefit? Maybe it doesn't exist? Maybe it's just a myth? 

Do you really believe that all the diamonds could be anywhere in the world with anyone they choose, but they simply choose to be at your function because they love you? Isn't it more likely that all those diamonds at your function are there because they love your money (from ticket sales)? Seriously, if all the diamonds could be walking the beaches of the world with unlimited money rolling in, I'm sure some of them would choose that option instead of being in Edmonton or Portland for a Dream Night in January.  I know I would if cash was pouring into my accounts while I played golf or walked on exotic beaches sipping mai tais.

If you believe you truly will get rich in Amway, remember that Amway says the average active IBO earns $202 a month. If you do get rich in Amway one day, you'll have many downline losing money in order for you to be successful. Can you get rich in Amway? For most I seriously doubt it. You are more likely to fill your garage with stuff and lose money from attending functions than the possibility of getting rich in a person-to-person business.  Even those who make money in Amway do so at the expense of their downline, not because "everyone succeeds".

The Amway Hobby?

 Many Amway IBOs get into the business with high expectations. They get in with oftentimes, a dream of early retirement, living a fabulous lifestyle, mansions, sports cars and "walking the beaches". In order to do this, IBOs are taught that they need to "plug into the system". So IBOs get on standing order, they attend all the meetings and functions, they read books and show the plan. They think these activities will make them rich. The sad reality is that it lines their upline's pockets.  Unless you can keep momentum going constantly, you will hit a wall, run out of potential prospects and stall out.  It's what happens to IBOs, whether you admit it or not.   

But because the Amway business has so many handicaps and shortfalls, the IBO soon falls into the trap of "playing Amway". The IBO will do their 100 PV, either by self-consumption or selling, or a combination of the two, and will continue to listen to the cds or tapes, and will continue to attend every meeting. When I was an IBO, our group had many who did not sponsor a single person, yet they were at all of the meetings and functions. These folks, in my opinion, had Amway as a hobby.   A hobby might be fun and have relaxation built into it, but purpose of a business is to make money, whereas a hobby is mainly for fun and not necessarily for a profit.

Also, a hobby is something you do in your spare time, usually something you enjoy. For many people, Amway meetings are a social event. It is evidenced when some people say they enjoy the meetings, being with "positive people", and they have become nicer as a result of their involvement. While this may or may not be a side benefit of the functions and meetings, it is not relative to the bottom line of a business. A business exists to make money. If a business is losing money, expenses are usually cut or adjustments made so a profit can be realized,  

If you have been an IBO for more than a month or two, have you actually sponsored someone? If the excitement of being a new IBO has not resulted in acquiring new downline, it is unlikely that you will ever have a downline. If you have been in the system reading books, listening to standing order and attending functions and showing the plan, and you have no results, you have Amway as a hobby and not a business. Don't feel bad, sponsoring other IBOs is not a common or easy feat. But as a business owner, you should think about your involvement in the business and if you find you are participating in a hobby rather than running a profitable business, then you should decide whether or not you are accomplishing what you set out to do. 

Are you running a business (to make money) or are you playing Amway?

Don't Quit Your Job?

 So many Amway IBOs have grandiose dreams of untold wealth and financial freedom. They think they will "build it once' and sit back on the beaches of the world sipping exotic drinks while the 6 figure checks keep coming in the mail. Sure it's a nice thought, but not a single IBO I have encountered can name a single IBO who achieved diamond and walked away from the business to enjoy freedom while the money pours into their bank accounts. It is very likely that nobody like this exists. I suppose someone could go diamond and walk away from the business and still earn some bonuses, but very quickly, that business would likely fall out of qualification and the bonuses would shrink to nothing very quickly. Also, to earn bonuses, I believe an IBO needs to have side volume exceeding 2500 PV, which is roughly $7500 monthly in personal group volume. With normal attrition, it's easy to see how a diamond business can fall apart faster than a cheap suit without maintenance.

I also see and hear many IBOs popping off about how someone in their upline might be earning $60,000 a year. While it may seem like a nice income to someone who has a low paying or entry level job, that income is gross and may not leave much left after taxes and associated business expenses. Even a diamond with an average income of $150,000 or more in a year likely has a very low monthly income from Amway as much of that income comes in the form of an annual diamond bonus. As a former emerald once told me, you needed to budget out that annual bonus or you could be in financial trouble later in the year, if Amway is your sole source of income.

Also, you may have seen diamond showing off sports cars and other displays of wealth. My former LOS, WWDB has a function called "Dream Night" where they show off lavish displays of wealth. Well, it is my informed guess that most diamonds cannot afford the lifestyles and toys that they show off in these functions. If you do the math, you can see that after taxes and other expenses, a diamond lifestyle is likely to be quite ordinary. Normally, nobody would care about this but since diamonds use this display of wealth to recruit IBOs and to sell tools, it is significant for IBOs to know.

While it is great for someone to have dreams and goals, it is also important to have achievable goals. It is simply impossible for a room of IBOs to go diamond and to earn the kind of income that is shown in "the plan". Amway recruiters will show you "what's possible", but not "what's likely". To put perspective on that, it's "possible" that you can start a software company that puts Microsoft out of business, but it's not likely. It's possible for you to win the lottery, but not likely. My advice to IBOs is not to quit your day jobs - ever. Your dreams and goals can be accomplished in many ways, but it is unlikely to be achieved with an Amway business.

Food for thought. If diamonds have so much free time and money to burn, why don't we see slide shows of them donating $10.000 checks and volunteering to help the less fortunate more often?

Recruitment Tactics?

 I will admit I haven't been accosted by any Amway representatives lately. I'm certain they still exist and I'm certain some of the recruiting tactics used back in the day are still used now. When I had my first brush with Amway, I was outright lied to about attending a "beer bust". I showed up at my friend's house ready for some beer and chips and I get stuck in a stinking Amway meeting. I remember sitting in the meeting still ticked off about it and to make it worse, the presenter also spoke about association and how we would be left behind if we don't join because our friend in Amway would have to associate with Away folks, who were destined to become rich. There was no beer to be had so our gang left and went out to a local pub for some beer. That was my first brush with Amway.

My second brush with Amway was a high school acquaintance who saw me working at my second job at the local market and asked if I was interested in making more money. I told him I was doing just that with a second job. I asked if he was pitching Amway, and he admitted he was. I asked him if actually made any money at it and he admitted he had not. I told him to come back and see me if he was still involved and making money a few months later. I have never seen him again to this day.

I finally did get sucked into Amway when an old friend of mine joined and prospected me. So, I ask him if he's made money, and he said no. I also told him to come back and show me later if he makes money. He came back 6 months later and said he was now a direct distributor and making about $1500 to $2000 a month. He said it was easy, and he could show me how to do it. Being a man of my word, I saw the plan and I signed up. I was still a bit skeptical, but I got in and the rest is history. (My story is on this blog)

But what I saw were dishonest Amway tactics. We were told to give half-truths (lies) to prospects. We were told to fake it will we make it (lies) and the upline used all kinds of angles to make Amway seem better than it was. Older but unsuccessful IBOs were told that Amway was more than about money. That we were making lifelong friends and becoming nicer and better people. That were were a small army making the world a better place. (How is the world better when you deceive people to make your upline rich?). We were told that Amway saves and strengthens marriage (even though our upline Diamond got divorced (Wolgamott).

Despite all the tactics and tricks used by our Amway upline, there was little to no success to speak of. Even our former upline Diamond (Harimoto) moved to the mainland (Hawaii is too expensive? Not enough people to recruit?) and it was hard to believe, seeing that he loved the ocean and ocean activities.

Amway sales and revenues have dipped about 25% since 2014 and I can only imagine it will get worse as the antics and tactics used by upline are easily recognizable and ineffective at this point. The internet also made access to information so readily available that prospects can easily find pertinent information and have enough disclosure to make an informed decision about Amway. And that's why Joecool's blog still exists to this day.

Build It And Retire?

 I believe that Amway IBOs have approximately a 50% attrition rate for the first year alone. If you look at a 5-year window, I believe the attrition rate is something like 95%. So, what we're saying is that out of 100 IBOs, only 5 will be around in 5 years, or out of 1000 IBOs, 50 will remain after 5 years. This is extremely significant because if you are a business builder, you will need to replace half of your IBOs every single year. For this reason, I am very doubtful that there are IBOs who "built the business right and built it once", who no longer do Amway related work, but still collect significant residual income. I would guess that significant income could be defined as being enough to live a lifestyle in the top tax bracket (for the US) without having to report to a J-O-B.

Now I understand that some IBOs take it personally when I bring up subjects like this. It is because they have been deceived by some upline diamond or big pin who has sold them on a dream of financial prosperity for life if they will only work hard for 2-5 years. I once thought so too, but realized that there isn't a single diamond that I know of who built the business right and walked away to enjoy the beaches of the world while truckloads of money rolls in. Kinda makes you wonder why you see Crowns still working, and diamonds actually quitting or resigning. I have asked the question many times and it has never been answered. Can anyone name a few people who built their business right and built it once who is currently enjoying these lifelong residuals? Also, if that were a benefit, why doesn't Amway say so?

Instead, you have a constant and endless flow of motivation being sold to IBOs. This motivation comes in the form of cds, books, meetings, functions and other things like voicemail messages. It's sad that IBOs have to continue to pay through the nose for motivation and "teaching" about the Amway business when there are cheaper and more efficient means of communication. For example, why would you need an expensive voicemail when a facebook (or some other social media) group account can disseminate messages to your group in seconds at no cost? It is because the uplines want to extract every possible sent from their downline. Because of the internet, I believe people are starting to figure things out and avoid the systems altogether. I hope Joecool's blog contributes to this.

All the motivation IBOs truly need is to see a net profit at the end of the month. If IBOs actually earned an extra $200 a month, or $50 a month, or $600 a month as advertised, there would be no need for motivational speeches. The IBOs would simply look at the growth in their finances and they would keep going. The poor retention rate is easy to explain. IBOs are losing money because of the system expenses, and they lose their motivation to continue. If you are an IBO or a prospect, stop and think for a minute. If you are making an extra $200 a month with minimal effort, would you need functions and other materials to motivate you? Or would you have intrinsic motivation from the profit? All the motivation you will ever need is a net profit. Take that to the bank.

Joecool's Amway Sponsor?

 This blog post is about my old Amway sponsor who started sometime in 1993 or 1994 and last I heard, he was still active in Amway. At one time, he reached the level of Gold/platinum direct. I believe he peaked there and has never surpassed that level. I don't know where he's currently at, but I can confirm he's still active and I can confirm that one of my former cross line, who was one of his loyal downline, is still active. My sponsor was/is a physician and I knew someone who had contact with his office so I had some information passed on from time to time.  I haven't seen or heard anything in the last few years except that he was still active in a limited manner.  I suppose this allows him to save face and not admit he quit/failed?

My sponsor (Let's call him Jim) approached me to join shortly after he joined and I declined his offer to join, telling him to visit again if he made actually any money. He came back some time later as a Gold direct and I joined (my story is on this blog). I am of the belief that if you repeat a lie long enough, you begin to believe it. My sponsor, while probably not making much from tools, pushed them hard. He also helped to perpetuate the lie (at the time) that nobody made money on tools. He was a good soldier. He kept repeating what upline told him and never let up and never quit.

I believe my sponsor may not have been in Amway only for the money. I mean, he wanted to go diamond and leave his medical practice behind, but for him, it was more important to receive adulation from the group and he told me he really wanted to be on stage because he has always dreamed about speaking to a large audience and being treated like a rockstar. For that reason, he was really pushing me hard because he thought I would be his first downline direct.

During my tenure as IBO, I was growing quickly, and my sponsor was in contact with me almost daily. He would even drop by my house at midnight sometimes, to see if I was home or out on the road building the business. As my business grew, he became more and more "controlling" of my activities. He wanted to be involved in every decision I made. He told me I should ask for advice even for things like buying a new car or even getting married. At the time, I had a girlfriend, and he told me to ditch her, build the business to diamond and I could choose any of the single ladies in my group. At that point, I knew he went off the deep end and I thought about it and quit. At 4000 PV, I wasn't making any net money despite upline promises that I would. I told my group I was leaving and explained why. They all went with me except 1 or 2 IBOs who had developed loyalty to the upline. (That girlfriend has now been married to me for more than 20 years).

After I left Amway, my sponsor Jim called a few times, asking how I've been and whether he could help me with anything. This is a technique called "stirring the pot" and was taught by a diamond (possibly Dave Severn) and the intent was to stir the pot just to see if there was any renewed interest or curiosity that you can capitalize on. I wasn't biting and I shortly after, got on with my life and forgot all about Amway. I tried to keep tabs on Jim just to see if he would wake up or keep going. Well, from all accounts I could access, he was going as strong as ever but not making any progress. That didn't surprise me at all.

Then in 2001, my wife and I were purchasing a house (without asking anyone's permission!) and our real estate agent was also an acquaintance with Jim. After we purchased our house for about $300K, our agent asked Jim if he would also like to look at homes. Jim declined, saying it was a bad idea to pay interest on loans and would buy a home when he could pay cash. (Typical Amway teaching). So as of today, Jim, a physician is still renting a home, and me, a former quitter, and bitter broke loser, owns a home recently appraised at more than 800K. (Hawaii has a real estate boom between 2002 and 2007). That's quite a good appreciation on my investment, which Jim missed out on because of adherence to bad Amway upline advice.

I last ran into my sponsor Jim about a year ago. We just said hi and exchanged some pleasantries. I later told my wife; I feel sorry for him. He sold out 1000% on Amway. He probably did everything upline asked of him. He sold out on the system. I know he drove the miles and worked the system hard. I know he did this for more than 2-5 years. I know his kids grew up missing a lot of his spare time, likely due to functions and meetings. While I'm sure a physician can still provide well for his family financially, I wonder what he missed while he was, and is still chasing an impossible dream?

The Bottom Line?

 In my point of view. one of the most critical mistakes that many Amway IBOs make is to ignore the bottom line when analyzing their Amway businesses. (Many IBOs don't even analyze their businesses) Most business building IBOs, sadly, are taught by their uplines to ignore losses, or to view losses as investments into their businesses, or that money is really not important. Some upline may teach that the business is more about making friends or being a nicer person. All of these things may be nice side benefits of reading personal development books, etc., but when running a business, the only goal should be to turn a profit.

For many IBOs, their businesses consist of listening to standing orders, attending functions and meetings, but not focused on selling products and earning a net profit. And for most IBOs, nobody can blame them as upline may give them bad advice and because the Amway business is person to person selling, it is so inefficient that many groups end up teaching IBOs to simply buy their own volume and get others to join the business. For groups who operate primarily in this manner, you are probably running an illegal business because new and existing IBOs can profit only by continuing to add more downline IBOs in the hope that they too, will buy their own volume and sponsor others.

When you look carefully at the business plan, whether it is 6-4-2, 9-4-2 or some other variation, the majority of these business building IBOs will have low volume and likely to earn only about $10 a month. But to earn that $10 a month, you are likely to have to spend $300 on products, and if you are on standing order, voicemail and functions, then you likely spend anywhere from $150 to $250 monthly to participate in the teaching system. Thus, these IBO's bottom line is a net loss! It is only when you are able to sponsor many downline that your losses will get smaller, and you will only profit when you have a sizable downline. That means your bottom line is a loss. And while Amway defender will argue that Walmart doesn't even give you $10 a month, you can certainly get more products from Walmart for $300 than you can get from Amway for the same price. Walmart will match any advertised price on a product that they and a competitor may carry. Also, Walmart's advertising reaching millions of people, which is much more effective than person to person. While Amway runs some ads now days, they do not directly drive customers to IBOs. The vast majority of IBO business is still to themselves and their downline, and not to non-IBO customers.

I challenge IBOs to look objectively at their bottom lines. It is likely a new loss. If it is, ask your upline how long this is expected to last. Set hard goals and if you are doing what is advised by upline and results to not improve, you may have to ask yourself what will change to make your business profitable. Basically, if you aren't adding active downlines and customers regularly, you aren't going anywhere and are likely to be running your business at a loss month after month after month. It won't take long before you realize that you have lost thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars.

As a former IBO with a 4000 PV business with eagle parameters, I was not making a net profit. I saw my bottom line and although doing and achieving what my upline advised, there was no money. I decided the effort, time and money invested wasn't worth it. Plus, my upline started to interfere in my personal life. I saw my bottom line and wasn't satisfied, and I left Amway. I later discovered the lies my upline had fed me to keep me in the business and to keep me buying tools. It is why I started blogging. For now, my bottom line is to get the truth out about the tools scam run by upline. That is Joecool's bottom line.

Get Rich "Slow"?

 One of the things upline used to say was that Amway is not "get rich quick". I suppose they say this because most people would more likely think scam if they promoted it that way. (I believe Amway is a scam) Ironic, but when you stop and think about it, 2-5 years, build it right and you have willable, residual income for life while walking the beaches of the world? That's not get rich quick? Or is it more of a disclaimer so that the opportunity doesn't sound "too good to be true"? One thing is for sure, even if uplines tell you that it's not get rich quick, it's obvious that IBOs think they will eventually get rich, even if it's not super quick. Amway leaders have said "Amway is get rich slow".  The reality is that you go broke fast if you are hard core into the "system".

What most IBOs don't figure out quickly enough, is that they are unlikely to even make a profit, let alone getting rich from Amway. How many of these retired Amway people exist? Where are all of these retired Amway IBOs who built a business in 2-5 years and then walked away from their business and will be collecting a significant residual income for many years to come afterwards? I don't know of a single person who has done this and none of the Amway defenders and zealots I have encountered over the years has been able to supply this information either.  Are wealthy retired Amway people that rare or non-existent?

I can acknowledge that Amway is a business opportunity and will definitely take some work to be able to achieve something of significance.  But thinking realistically, what business could you actually be able to walk away in 5 years and not work again? More than likely that business doesn't exist, whether it's Amway or not. Say you opened a conventional business. There wouldn't be many scenarios where you could walk away after a number of years. The business would still require work and maintenance. But for some reason, people are misled to believe that you can do this in Amway where there is a high attrition rate and where your business can only expand by person to person, which is quite inefficient.

Sadly, many of the people who are attracted to the Amway opportunity are often young people looking to get more out of life. They are often ambitious but may lack a means to gain wealth, thus the appeal of the Amway opportunity is there. Unfortunately, these nice young people are more likely to end up channeling their hard-earned dollars into standing orders and functions which will almost guarantee that they end up with a net loss. The bottom line is that not only is Amway not get rich quick. The more likely scenario is that your involvement with Amway will very likely be not getting rich at all. A net loss is the most likely result. The real-life results and Amway's own disclosures suggest that I am spot on.

Do The Math?

 It is my observation that people who join Amway usually end up losing money in the end. They may get involved to make a few bucks or because they are mistakenly led to believe that they will become millionaires in Amway in 2-5 years. I know my sponsor convinced me that we would be millionaires in a few years. These folks who recruit new IBOs into Amway are often associated with a "system" such as Worldwide Dreambuilders (WWDB)or Network 21 (N21). These system promoters, often diamonds, may mislead the recruits by showing them pictures of mansions or other luxuries, implying that they attained these goods with their Amway business. In many cases, it is a deception, especially when we know for a fact that some diamond leaders who proclaimed that they only make cash purchases, had their homes foreclosed. Without the hype, I am sure there would be fewer signups. But what is the evidence?

It is simple. Amway reports that the average active IBO earns about $200 a month in gross income. This average includes diamonds and other higher end IBOs. I believe if you calculated the median, the average would be much lower.

But what makes IBOs operate at a loss is the system expenses. The system generally consists of voicemail, standing orders, cds, functions, books and other materials. An average business building IBO might spend an average of $250+ a month or so on these expenses. Amway defenders like to decry the amount, but there are couples who would likely spend more and IBOs who must travel by air to functions would spend more. Single IBOs who buy only the minimum might spend a bit less. Some IBOs with abusive uplines might spend much more than $250 a month on tools. I believe my former sponsor spent easily an average of $1000 a month on average. (I am from Hawaii, so the average cost of functions is greater due to long distance travel)

Thus, if the average IBO earns $200 a month but the same average IBO spends $250 a month on tools, the average active IBO is losing $50+ a month, with lower level IBOs (i.e. 100 PV) would lose more.

Look at a group of 100 IBOs at 100 PV. (This is just a model). If a 100 business building IBOs average $250 a month on tools, they as a group would expend $25,000 a month on tools and functions. Their volume would be 10,000 PV, or about 30,000 BV. This would generate about $7500 in bonuses per month. Thus, this group spent $25,000 to learn and be motivated while the group splits up $7500 a month in bonuses. The platinum would get the lion's share of the bonus but most of the rest of the group will suffer net losses. As the group grows, the bonus may grow, but so will their expenditures on tools. Keep in mind that a group of 100 IBOs spitting up $7500 would be an average of $75 each. It is the diamonds that drive up that average. The math bears it out.

The only way the group can make money as a whole is to avoid participation in the tools altogether and to actually sell products to non-IBO customers. The evidence is right here with simple math. The systems do not work because the cost of the system is likely to consume all of the Amway generated bonuses and more. I gladly challenge anyone to explain in detail how this post is not reflective of the reality of being in Amway and a system such as WWDB or Network21.

The math speaks volumes.

Buy Your Way To Prosperity?

    One thing I can credit Amway diamonds with is coming up with the most bat sh@t crazy ideas that sound sensible to Amway IBOs but utter madness to anyone else.  One thing that I heard about was how you can buy your way to prosperity.  Buy your own Amway products and get others to follow and you’ll soon be on the road to early retirement and residual income.  In a pure business sense, that's insanity.  In what business can you buy your way to financial success?  That's just the selling point used to attract recruits, that you can buy your way to riches.  Or to summarize, buy and copy your way to riches.    

Have you ever seen a store or business prosper when the major of sales are simply to the business owner and employees?   The answer is no because such a business does not exist.  It’s amazing that people actually believe that you can get rich buying from yourself.  But it works on the downline, so the diamonds perpetuate the storyline.   And IBOs soak it in because it sounds so simple and easy to do right?   Or maybe they believe it because they want to or need to believe it after putting their blind loyalty and trust in the upline?  

One thing I saw at a live function was the diamond telling IBOs to ask prospects if they like selling stuff and whether the answer was yes or no, your response would be “great, then this business is perfect for you”.  Of course, actual stories of significant retail sales were rare, and my own experience suggested that sympathetic family and friends comprised most of whatever sales took place and I found myself at times selling items at my cost just so the expenses of moving 100 PV wasn’t all on me.   And I highly doubt that I'm alone in having done this.

The strategy of buying your own stuff seems to work because most people do not like selling stuff and especially not to friends and family.  But many will give it a run because they are hopeful that Amway will deliver the wealth that upline seemingly promises.  The sad thing about the whole this is that dreams of wealth is all you get and there’s very little success to speak of.  From function to function it’s the same old diamonds time and again.  You don't see a steady progression of new diamonds and growth because the system doesn't work.  If it did, a steady progression of new leaders would constantly emerge, and Amway's growth would also be steady.  But that isn't case......

The diamonds might say they want downline success, but in reality, they don’t.  They just want to keep replacing quitters with new members as long as they can churn in new tools and functions subscribers.  That’s the real game of the diamonds and that’s why the emphasis of the tools and functions is recruiting new people into the game. It’s an elaborate scheme that prospects and new IBOs don’t see because they have Amway dreams clouding their thoughts.   Think about it, new diamonds means another person getting a cut of the tools and functions profits.  It's more profitable to just keep bringing in new recruits who are the customers of the tools and functions scam.  If they quit, you just replace them.  But new diamonds means less tool and function income for the existing diamonds.  Food for thought.

In no business can you buy your way to prosperity.