Trust Upline?

 Over the years, I have encountered many IBOs and they often have a common theme. They trust their upline and in some cases, consider them as trusted mentors and teachers. Some IBOs go so far as to trust their new mentors over trusted friends and family. (This is also the insidious part of this whole scheme) Now in a business venture, it might be good to have a mentor or someone to guide you, but in the Amway opportunity, most of the upline mentors make money off those who they mentor. That is a major conflict of interest but IBOs simply fail to see it.

When an Amway IBO sees the plan in a big meeting, the speaker will often be built up as a financial genius, and possibly as an expert on how to succeed in Amway. An IBO may hear something about the trail was already blazed by upline and you just need to follow the trail. Don't re-invent the wheel, just duplicate what upline has done. But as I have said many times before, duplication sounds easy and looks good on paper, but in real life, the vast majority of IBOs run into problems that they simply cannot overcome, such as the bad reputation that the Amway name has in the US or trying to justify the ridiculous prices of some Amway products, which are generic in nature, but premium in price, which often makes sales difficult, save for sympathetic friends and family.

What is troubling however, is that IBOs are taught to trust upline and do as they say (defacto requirement), but they are also taught that failure is their own shortcoming, even when they do exactly what upline told them. It is also troubling that many uplines will tell their faithful followers that they need to purchase more and more tools (voicemail, cds, seminar tickets). In some cases, an upline may advise their downline to sacrifice basic family needs to buy these tools. Some IBOs were advised to skip meals to buy a cd, or skip paying the mortgage to be able to attend the next big function. I personally witnessed IBOs in my crossline who followed upline advice to their own demise (home foreclosure and bankruptcy). Sure, IBOs are culpable too, but the upline had the gall to give that kind of advice and had no accountability for the advice.

I might also add that as a newer IBO or prospect, you may have heard that "everyone starts at zero", or that it's a level playing field. It is not. As a new IBO, you will likely be in the 100 PV bracket. Since Amway pays out about 31% in bonuses, your upline(s) will split up about 28% in bonuses off your efforts while you get a 3%bonus. That doesn't sound very level to me. You also do not make any money from the tools. That is reserved exclusively for higher level pins.

So, each IBO should look at things objectively and see if your upline is helping you or simply helping himself by giving you advice that ends up in profit for himself with little or nothing for you. You might be surprised to know the answer.

Why You Can't Win?

 In Amway, there are recruitment meetings going on all the time.  These meetings could be small 1 on 1 types of meetings in coffee shops, or they could be house meetings with someone showing the plan to a handful of prospects or a large meeting in a hotel ball room or a convention center.  Last I heard, these Amway meeting venues have gotten smaller.  I know covid was a factor in the shrinking meeting sizes, but I don't know if things have recovered or not.  In the end it doesn't matter because Amway as a business opportunity is a lose money proposition for most, especially if you factor in the IBOs who are gung-ho attending meetings and functions and participating in the tools system such as WWDB, BWW or Network 21.   

The speaker will talk about big dreams, and possibly how he was in a struggle or rut, discovered Amway, had a big adventure building his/her Amway empire, but now live in luxury with cash rolling in while they sleep until noon and have no jobs.  This approach is very appealing to many young people, who are often in entry level jobs, or even perhaps professionals who think they can somehow gain a shortcut to untold wealth and riches if they can only overcome the name Amway and get serious about building a huge business.  In my experience, there were doctors and lawyers involved in the business, although they didn't seem to last very long, save for my physician sponsor who stayed in for more than 25 years.  I have no idea if he's still involved, but IMO, he stayed in long enough to basically ruin his life.  

The reason why so many people quit Amway is for various reasons.  Some people are lazy and never do a thing once signing up.  Or, they sign up and try really hard, but soon realize that the system will never work for them and after seeing nothing going on, they wind up quitting.  Some people, like my former sponsor, get bitten hard and stay hard core dedicated for a long time.  I recall my former sponsor telling me you can never ever quit if you have sponsored an active downline.  It's a sad result but so very common in the big picture of things.  I've been out of Amway for more than 25 years and I can barely see any changes or differences in how things are run, except for the online ordering aspect.  It eliminates the need for the ancient product call in and pickup like the old days where you literally had to call upline and order stuff and pick it up in person every week.  If your sponsor had a lot of downline, then this process could take up a lot of time.

But in the end, you simply can't win in Amway.   If you analyze the plan that is shown at meetings, the plan shows 1 in many achieve the "platinum" level or if you sponsor 6 big groups then you might be a diamond.  However, there is still only 1 diamond with perhaps 500-1000 downline or more.  That never changes.  Add in the fact that something like more than 50% of IBOs never last a single year and more than 90+% never make it more than 5 years.  You can't "win" and have large residual checks rolling in if people quit faster than you can sponsor them, right?

You can't win unless you get to share in the profits from tools and functions.  But rank and file IBOs only share in the PV/BV bonuses paid by Amway, and even at that, the upline gets the lion's share of the bonus unless you are a platinum or close to it.  The tools are where the real money is because they have a greater profit margin than Amway products, and only a certain level or higher has access to these bonuses.  Typically, the diamond gets the biggest share with the emeralds and platinums basically getting a pittance for all their efforts.  

While the IBOs "think" they can outearn their sponsor or even their diamond, it's all a facade.  Your upline diamond will always have power over you.  You think you suddenly arrive and you're "all that" but the reality is that your upline will always be your upline no matter what, unless you quit.  For this reason, it is highly unlikely that you can ever win in this kind of system.  

If you do your own research, you can easily find diamonds suing diamonds over tool money, or diamonds quitting or resigning from Amway (what happened to willable residual income?).  You can also find diamonds in bankruptcy or in foreclosure and even diamonds divorcing.  Oh yeah, they put on a good show and make the whole thing look appealing, but if you look with a critical eye without bias, you'll see that you really can't win.

I'm Nicer?

 Many Amway IBOs "think" they have become nicer people as a result of their association with other IBOs and because a part of the system they are with advises them to read self-help books. They are also taught that as a side benefit of the Amway business, that they are nicer people. Of course, many IBOs mistakenly think that they started a business not to make money, but to become "nicer".  I believe this is because upline needs to move the goal posts to distract from the fact that the vast majority if IBOs are at a net loss financially month after month, especially if they are participating in the tools and functions.

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

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

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

So IBOs, are you a nicer person? Is it evident by your words and actions? It doesn't appear to be very clear to me, especially after seeing some of the comments left here by IBOs and supporters.  :)

Pyramids?

 Let me start out by saying that Amway is a perfectly legal company as far as I know, and therefore I am not saying or implying that Amway is illegal. But I believe that the way Amway businesses are run with AMO guidance, are run like illegal pyramids. In most groups, you will have the lowest level IBOs efforts and tool purchases being responsible for the upline bonuses and tools income. Many IBOs are fooled into thinking that the ability to surpass your upline or that you don't get paid to recruit downline makes this a good deal. But this makes me wonder why IBOs are recruiting like their lives depended on it.

Unless you have a very rare group where actual product sales to non-IBOs in sufficient to cover the costs of running your business, functions and all, then it is true that the lower level IBO's jobs are likely the source of income for the uplines. How many groups are like that? None that I have ever seen or know of. In fact, how often do IBOs even sell enough products to cover their expenses for even one month out of the year? The groups that teach "buy from yourself" end up doing the most financial damage to their groups because the downline's expenses are then covered exclusively from the downlines jobs, bank accounts, or drive the downline into debt.

I've seen and discussed group structures in forums many times and I can only conclude that tool sales wipe out what little profits/bonuses some of the downlines might receive. Only when an IBO is able to sponsor enough downline to absorb the losses for them will they finally break even or make a little profit. I would guess that the 4000 PV level or platinum is where a dedicated CORE IBO would break even and possibly start to make a real profit. But we also know that most platinum groups have 100 or more IBOs in order to generate 7500 PV. Thus, we can also conclude that less than 1% of IBOs make a net profit. The only way IBOs can earn a net profit at a lower level is to avoid purchasing tools and to avoid paying for functions. Those who get involved in a system such as WWDB or N21 almost guarantee that they will have a net loss.

Sure, my job may have a pyramid structure with the CEO making the most money. But the difference is that in a company, even the lowest paid employee still receives a paycheck and has money at the end of the month. The same claim cannot be made by IBOs. For these reasons, I believe Amway to be a legal pyramid. IBOs and information seekers are free to participate, but I challenge them to sit down and really analyze their ability to make a net profit. In most cases, the analysis won't be favorable. If you are in the US in particular, you may have great difficulty in even being able to discuss "Amway" without getting strange looks your way from others. Good luck in whatever you decide

If Not Amway?

  One of the humorous things that Amway IBOs often bring up is that someone who sees Amway in a critical eye should bring up viable alternatives. I mean if someone prevents you from falling over a cliff, they should have warned you and given you alternatives, right? If I recognized you getting were conned by a conman, I should find viable financial investments for you before warning you of the potential scam you are about to walk into, right? It sounds completely ridiculous, but Amway IBOs have actually made those comments on this blog and some other Amway related websites. It's astounding how upline has this special ability to get so many people to suppress their critical thinking skills.  It's almost scary and mind blowing when you analyze this with a neutral perspective.

Well, let's explore a few of these alternatives anyway just for fun. How about you stay home and do nothing? For most IBOs, you would be better off financially than committing your time and resources into Amway's products and their ineffective training materials and functions. If you are really dedicated to tools, sending your upline a check for $50 monthly and not buying Amway goods or related training materials would make you better off financially. Isn't it ironic that doing nothing makes you better off than Amway and the related systems?

A second job where you actually receive a paycheck is very likely a better alternative. While there's no hype and hopes of getting rich in 2-5 years, you can do much for your future by saving a portion of that paycheck each month. If you are young, this especially applies to you. But anyone can help their future by saving and investing. Even someone who panhandles is more likely to have more net cash than most Amway IBOs since most Amway IBOs make nothing or lose money.  At least panhandlers get some action and have some kind of net gain at the end of the day.

Sure, some people do make money in Amway, and some make a lot of money. The problem is they make money by exploiting their downlines and the vast majority of those hopeful downlines basically have no hope. In other words, you profit by selling false hope and false dreams. Basically, you can gain wealth in Amway by being a conman. Can you live with yourself in order to profit at any cost? What the upline does is extract $100 or a few hundred dollars a month from a lot of people.  Now that's a diamond lifestyle!

I haven't even gone into the amount of time lost chasing prospects and attending functions. Your time might be the most valuable commodity that is lost chasing the 2-5 year dream. Ask yourself this question. Where are these diamonds who did the 2-5 year plan living in luxury and doing nothing? I have asked this over the years numerous times and not a single Amway defender can name someone and provide a shred of evidence that it's true.

Rose Colored Glasses?

 One of the things IBOs get attracted to is how uplines will promote traditional family values. They may talk about the "Leave it to Beaver" days where the man works a job, and the wife takes care of the home and drops the kids off at school. While some of these values are great, they are not reality in today's world. The speakers at some Amway meetings may recruit others by saying you can have this out of the box lifestyle if you will only build your Amway business. This gets the wives or girlfriends excited as they would love to not have to work a 9-5 job.

Ironically, an IBO's desire for more time and money, more often than not, will result in less time and money for an IBO and IBO's family. They will take time off to show the plan, attending countless numbers of meetings and to attend functions. They are taught to "delay" gratification, but many do not realize that they are permanently delaying gratification by participating in the "systems".

An IBO's belief is often compartmentalized into thinking that showing the plan, listening to standing order, submitting to upline's advice and attending all functions will result in guaranteed success within 2-5 years. Anyone who speaks a differing opinion of this is "negative" and should be avoided. Sadly, those who put forth such dedication and invest in the system are rarely rewarded with success. Even those who achieve the platinum level may often find that the net profit they realize is less than a minimum wage job with the same number of hours put forth. And maintaining a platinum level is a daunting task.

My former sponsor achieved the platinum level in less than two years, but he never achieved Q12 status, and he never went beyond the platinum level. He has been involved for nearly 20 years now, and last I heard, is below the platinum level. All of that work and effort and I wonder if he even has a net profit of $1.00 for all of his efforts?

Yet, many IBOs continue to see the world through rose colored glasses, thinking that they will succeed if only they will never quit. They disregard the fact that 2-5 years has come and gone. They do not see that their bottom line is nowhere near what they were led to believe. But they believe that Amway will be their financial savior, even though there are facts and red flags pointing to the obvious reality that they will never achieve what they initially set out to achieve.

I hope my blog will get a few IBOs to take off the rose colored glasses for just a second and see the reality.

Joecool Headed To Vegas?

 Joecool is headed to Vegas.  I'll be staying on the strip and hopefully will get lucky at the tables or on a slot machine.   The odds are against me, but hey, you probably have a better chance to make money in Vegas than your chance of making money in Amway.  LOL.  Anyway, I'll return to blogging in about a week.  

Until then, this article is about faith and belief in the "business";

In the past, and I believe still today, some leaders in motivational groups such as WWDB or Network 21 talk quite a bit about faith and belief. Speak it into existence they say.  Some of this is the mantra amongst Amway IBOs who believe they are going diamond. Never mind that statistically, your chance of winning the lottery might be better than going diamond in Amway. In fact, I believe there have been more Powerball lottery winners than new Amway diamonds in the US and Canada in recent years. But an honest question for IBOs, prospects, and Amway supporters. Do you truly believe that this business works and that you will succeed?  Do you believe that you will go diamond if you simply refuse to quit?  

If you truly believe, would you feel confident walking into a bank and meeting a loan officer. Tell the loan officer that all you do is sponsor 6 who sponsor 4 who sponsor 2 and you will be a new platinum (silver). Then all you need is 6 of these groups and the money will roll in forever while you sit on a beach in the Bahamas while money rolls in by the barrel full. And then ask the loan offer for a business loan. If you think this suggestion is crazy, maybe you don't truly believe in the business. Surely a loan officer would have some financial acumen and would be able to determine the viability of the business prior to approving a loan.

Would you feel comfortable talking to your doctor about joining Amway because a diamond makes much more income with less effort? How about a business professor at your local university? Surely someone with an established expertise in business would see the value of an Amway business and join your efforts? Or would the professor laugh you out of his office? Do you truly believe in what you do? If so, do you use the curiosity approach or are you straight up with prospects and invite them to an Amway meeting? If it's the latter and not the former, maybe your belief isn't that strong?

How hard do you work at building your business? If you truly believe that going diamond is the answer to all of life's challenges and problems, why aren't you building it and working on it as if your very life depended on it? Maybe your belief isn't what you think it is? Are you adding people to your downline every week or month? If not, maybe your belief isn't what you think it is?  How strong is your belief in Amway and your upline?  

If you have some doubts about what you are doing, then it is probably because you see IBOs coming and going.  You likely see monthly losses in your business. Maybe you see people quitting the business regularly. Maybe you see the same old leaders on stage giving the same rah rah speeches. Maybe you see the logic and the common sense in most of the articles posted on this blog. My blog isn't here to make anyone quit Amway. My blog is to provide information to information seekers and to assist people in making informed decisions if they seek information prior to joining Amway and a motivational group such as WWDB or BWW.  Sometimes the facts and the truth can be a annoying when it doesn't fit what you want to hear and believe.

Do you truly believe in what you're doing?   Do you have faith and belief that simply not quitting equals success?

Business Mentality?

 One of the things IBOs "think" they posssess, but in reality they are far from it, is "Business Mentality". It is not necessarily the fault of the IBOs. Many are sponsored into Amway by trusted friends and lacking business experience, they will "submit" to upline as they are advised and will try to learn about the Amway business. The problem is that many upline leaders teach self serving business practices such as hard core dedication to their tools system, from which they often handsomely profit. Let's examine some of the questionable practices.

"Buy from yourself". If you have a business owner mentality, you only buy from yourself if it's beneficial to your business. Many IBOs talk about ridiculous things like a McDonald's owner would never eat at Burger King. That's bull crap. Just because I own a McDonald's doesn't mean I am eating Big Macs the rest of my life. You cannot spend yourself to prosperity. If I sold pens for $1.00 and my cost was .50, and my competitor had a special on the same pens at 3 for $1.00, I'm buying them from my competition. Also, buying from yourself makes you a customer, not a business owner.

"Ignore facts if you have a dream". This is probably the biggest heap of bull crap taught by some upline. I have seen this spouted in particular by IBOs downline from WWDB and BWW leaders. A business owner studies the facts, not ignores them. Any REAL business owner wants to know how much he is bringing in and how much is going out. That's how you detect the heartbeat of your business. A site visitor named Gina on this site, recently posted a profit/loss statement from her real business. Naturally, IBOs were at a loss to discuss it because it was foreign material to them.

"Submit to upline" Another load of hogwash. Why should someone submit to upline simply because they "sponsored me" or whatever? A real business owner would think independently and make business decisions based on facts and numbers, not on the advice of someone upline who hasn't taken the time to assess each IBO on a personal level to be able to give advice on an IBO's "Indepdendent Business", or worse, advice on their personal lives".

"Dedication to the system". Silly advice as well. What dedication does the system have for an IBO? If an IBO succeeds (which is very rare), the system takes credit, but for the more than 99% of people who never make a significant income, it is their own fault if they don't make it. Amway apologists will defend this by saying that many may not have signed up wanting a significant income. While that may be partially true, tell me where people show "plans" designed for the guy who wants an extra $100 a month? The plans shown are always (AFAIK) to go platinum or diamond.

IBOs and information seekers, does any of this sound familiar? Is this a part of your experience? If so, I encourage you to ask questions here and get more information before proceeding with any more "business" activity.

WWDB Parameters?

 There are some Amway apologists named who continually likes to use "old" and "outdated" as their source of criticism against Amway critics. They use this feeble excuse as a means to defend Amway and WWDB.   Apologists claim that things have changed, and that critic's experiences are old and invalid. I once had a WWDB IBO email me with current WWDB documents, and I will be posting the details below. It is exactly the same stuff I was told as an IBO more than 25 years ago.  Old habits die hard I guess. The only difference is that as an IBO, we did not use the internet. Basically, the rest is the same practically VERBATIM.  Anyway, these are the standards (defacto) imposed on faithful downline;

Here's the details from the WWDB IBO's documents:

4 STANDARDS
1. Membership with Amway Global
2. Meet the Bigger Team
3. Ditto on the First
4. Check your Team Website Daily and Listen to LIT Updates sent through e-mail

5 NIGHTS A WEEK
Build your business 5 nights a week!

9 CORE STEPS

1. STP 3-5x Each Week
2. Personal Circle (150PV Single/300PV Couples)
3. Customers (50PV Minimum)
4. Membership CD.s- Listen Daily
5. Read a Book from the Book List 15 min. Daily
6. Attend ALL Events / Game Day.s
7. Associate & Counsel regularly
8. Integrity & Accountability
9. Check your Team Website Daily and Listen to LIT Updates sent through e-mail

3 POWERS
1. Power of Agreement . this means be willing to listen & learn, submit your ego & be teachable.
2. Power of Unity . unity with your growing upline & the bigger Dream Team
3. Power of the Spoken Word . speak positively, expecting the best from yourself & your business

3 CARDINAL RULES
1. Never mess with anyone's money (Is bankruptcy messing with someone's money?)
2. Never mess with anyone's ego
3. Never mess with anyone's spouse

3 NEVERS
1. Never embarrass your upline, downline, or crossline
2. Never pass negative downline or crossline
3. Never do anything for the first time without checking upline

Empty Promises?

 One of the things I often thought odd as an IBO was how our upline would keep teaching us that the Amway business was all about "helping people". Somehow, our upline felt that showing someone the plan or talking to them about the business was helping someone. That is because our upline felt that everyone was doomed for financial failure if they didn't join Amway. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth now that I am looking back. In fact, I would have to say that building the business and purchasing tools  and function tickets was the cause of financial disaster for some of my fellow IBOs. I remember reading about more than one home foreclosure and a couple of bankruptcies.

It's like Amway IBOs held some dark secret and they could save the world by sharing this secret with prospects. So, the theme of many voicemails (Amvox at the time) was about how IBOs in the group were saving the world by helping people. I used to wonder how we were helping people when we basically only "helped" IBOs who wanted to build the business. If someone declined to join, they were forgotten. Our upline said we threw them a life preserver, but they rejected it, so we are moving on. it was often compared to a church activity where IBOs are saving souls. I actually found this extra weird because we were often taught that we could give the church money in the future ($10,000 checks) and we could serve in ministry after we were "free". I find this ludicrous now, but at the time, we were told that this was delayed gratification. After I left Amway, I spoke to the senior pastor of the church, and he opined that Amway was harmful to many because it simply held too many empty promises. In other words, they promote big dreams and wealth, but very few ever attain any success, for whatever reason. The pastor said the reason for the low success was not relevant. The fact that it was rare to see success was enough to conclude that Amway was not a good opportunity.

In fact, some diamonds can be seen as prosperity preachers. They speak about wealth attained through Amway when in reality their wealth may come from other sources, such as tools income, yet they falsely promote Amway as their primary source of success. Then they bait and switch IBOs and tell them that the tools system is the only way to succeed, all the while profiting handsomely from the tools. They then justify their conflict if interest by claiming that IBOs are helping people and/or doing God's work by joining Amway. I believe many IBOs are giving false hope and promises to prospects as taught by upline leaders. All the while they themselves are losing money while thinking they are supporting a noble cause. I hope they awaken before it's too late.

Is It A Cult?

 Many outsiders see Amway members as being cult like in nature. I also believe that many Amway groups act eerily similar to some cults. The only major difference I can see is that Amway members are free to quit or simply leave. But there are many similarities to a cult following which I will outline.

Groups are often told not to associate with non-members. If your friends and family do not like Amway or are not positive about Amway, they are to be shunned. Members are told not to put anything but positive into their minds, thus IBOs are told not to watch television or read newspapers. Thus, depriving an IBO of basic information about their communities or their cities and even what's going on nationally. It makes them apathetic.

IBOs are often advised or told to submit to their upline leaders. Just follow the trail already blazed by upline. Don't reinvent the wheel. Just copy or duplicate your upline. IBOs tend to dress alike, act alike and say the same things, but they are discouraged from speaking to crossline IBOs, which I find ridiculous for business associates.  Some uplines would say they "made it big" because they had an ability to copy or duplicate success. 

Downlines are trained to edify the diamonds. Standing ovations, adulation and complete submission to these "great" leaders. IBOs are often told to "counsel" with these great leaders. A 50 year old successful married businessman would have to "submit" and listen to the single and 30 year old diamond, because the diamond has accomplished what everyone wants - to be a diamond. (Doesn't this sound like the funny farm?)

Downlines are also constantly on the hunt for new cult members (recruiting). They go through all kinds of trials and tribulations to do so, even attending out of town seminars to learn this skill. The IBOs also channel significant amounts of money to upline leaders in the form of tools and function purchases, or in some cases, special functions run exclusively by their upline.

So are Amway groups such as BWW, N21, LTD or WWDB cults? I don't know, but I can say pretty confidently that they certainly exhibit traits that can be compared to a cult. 

The Cardinal Rules?

 Below is an excerpt from an apparently newbie IBO in Britt Worldwide (BWW). Note how they are taught that they must ask upline before doing their work. This Amway IBO also talks about not having to use his brain, just follow your upline’s advice. Submit to the leaders. Follow the system and success is guaranteed. Right, and Amway apologists have the nerve to deny that this stuff still goes on? I suspect it is more common than Amway defenders will admit.

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http://greatdealmway.blogspot.com/2009/08/bww-system-and-get-success.html

*3 Cardinal rules

A. never pass negative advises or rumors to your down lines.

B. you must ask to your up lines before going on your first work.

C. never ever go bad with anyone’s self motive, money and family members.

*4 powers

1. Unity: unity is most powerful aspect. Do work in unity.

2. Power of submission to your work, up lines and customers: you must understand that you do not need to use your brain in this business. Just follow your leaders and submit yourself to them.

3. Power of spoken words: try out this simple but effective formula to gain success in your life. Speak out regularly about what you want in your life. It should be for this business, for family, for country or anything you want. This will reduce the negative energy and will create positive energy around you.

Do best and follow this system. Success is guaranteed!

Where's The Money?

 I find it humorous when so many IBOs talk about their anecdotal stories of success or talk about how their system teaches a foolproof way of succeeding in Amway. Yet I have not seen a single IBO who was willing to describe their business structure or talk about how they progressed from zero PV into a profitable structure. Amway's biggest defender, IBOfightback was a good example of someone who can talk a good game but cannot back it up with evidence of any success in Amway. Back in my IBO days, someone who could talk a good game was a teacher, and not a doer. Many IBOs may have a good theory about how to build a business but evidence clearly shows that it is talk and not action. One specific example is how an IBO is supposed to find 20 customers who each buy 20 PV from an IBO. Amway's own numbers show that an IBO who can actually do this is rare or nonexistent. Less than 4% of Amway's products, apparently are sold to those who are not IBOs. IBOfightback sits in the quiet confines of his blog where his kool aid induced followers blindly agree with everything he says. Apparently, IBOFightback is all theory and no results. So I say - show us the money someone.

Based on my observations, most IBOs have a small business, unable to sponsor enough downline to move any significant volume. They faithfully self consume 100 PV and do most of the CORE steps, except for being able to consistently show the plan and sponsor downline. Why is this? It is because the Amway reputation is stained and getting people to see the plan is an enormous challenge by itself, not taking into consideration that sponsoring is even harder. If you are reading this blog and you can relate to what you see here, perhaps you need to re-think your business situation and ask your sponsor some tough questions.

Now this leads to another question. Other than flashing a photocopy of someone's diamond bonus or the like, has your sponsor or anyone upline actually showed evidence of a profit in Amway? If you asked, what response did you receive? When I asked my sponsor about profit, I was told it was "none of my business". I believe that someone who is asking you to follow their system, which is not free, should be tasked with providing this information. If your upline teaches submission to upline, even more so you should demand to see results.

If your upline or sponsor refuses to show you evidence of profit, it should send up red flags all over the place. Maybe, just maybe, the critics of Amway are onto something.

Can Someone "Choose" Success?

 Many IBOs seem to think that success in the Amway business or in other aspects of life is simply a choice. They mistakenly believe that you can actually choose to succeed or not. They apparently believe that persistence and choosing to win will eventually land them a premiere spot at diamond club. If that were truly the case, wouldn't we see hordes of new diamonds each and every year? Instead, we see one here and one there, and while there are a few new diamonds in the US every so often, we see others quitting, dropping out or leaving Amway for greener pastures. Make you wonder if the prize is worth pursuing in the first place.  Wouldn't everyone "choose" success if they could?  Obviously, success requires some work, I'm not saying you can choose success without any effort.

But IBOs and information seekers should understand quite clearly. You cannot simply "choose" to win or succeed. In a football game, both sides can believe and choose to win, but still, only one can be the victor. In Amway, it is common for a platinum to have 100 to 200 downlines.  Thus, to be a platinum, you need to be in the top one half to the top one fourth of one percent of IBOs. To be a diamond, you will need to have about 600 to 1200 downline IBOs, not counting the masses of IBOs who register and do nothing or register and do a little and quit. Only one in about ten to twenty thousand or more will ever reach diamond in North America.

Sure, IBOs may cite some touching story like (Sean Astin from the movie) "Rudy". Basically, a nobody with little athletic skills and talent who dreamed of playing football for the University of Notre Dame. He busted his butt and did whatever it took to make the team, and the movie ends with him getting in a game, making a sack and being carried off the field by his teammates in a blaze of glory.  A great and inspiring movie. But what you don't see is the possible tens of thousands of young men who had the same dream, may have worked every bit as hard but circumstances and situations prevented them from achieving the same limited success. Uplines want you to think these kinds of stories can happen to everyone, but the fact is that there is only a little room at the top. If stories like Rudy were common, then there would have been nothing special about it. An elite athlete like a Michael Jordan or a Tiger Woods only comes along once or twice in a lifetime. It is like achieving diamond. It happens but it is a rare occasion, especially in North America where Amway appears to be shrinking instead of growing.

In the Amway business, many prospects and IBOs are motivated and driven to succeed. Many of them are fine young men and women who want more in life. But the vast majority of those who try will not achieve their dreams via the Amway opportunity no matter how hard they work and no matter how badly they want it. The reason is because there are too many variables that are not in direct control of the IBO. The Amway reputation in North America is spotty at best so sponsoring downline is nearly impossible. And when you can sponsor, chances are your downline will do little or nothing. Many new IBOs will work hard but quit because they are faced with the challenges I just mentioned. And even if you can overcome the overwhelming odds, you still need to keeping working hard constantly to maintain the business, all for an unstable average diamond income of about $150.000, which doesn't consider taxes, medical insurance and other perks you may receive at a job. All told, I believe the diamond income is not all it's cracked up to be when you consider the charade you must play to display the diamond lifestyle. Do the math and you will be able to see for yourself.

In the end, it seems as though the prize isn't as great as it seems, and the trail to success is one that most cannot endure. And even if you achieve diamond, you can lose it quite easily as others have discovered. The bottom line is that you cannot simply choose to succeed in Amway or any other endeavor. Good luck if you decide to attempt it anyway.

Lifelong Residual Income?

 Do the work once and reap the rewards for life. Lifelong willable passive/residual income. These are some of the things that attracted me to the Amway opportunity. That I could do the work, go diamond, and have the option of sitting back, enjoying a fabulous lifestyle of riches and never have to work again. I could wake up at noon if I chose to, and/or I could stay out late hanging out with my "free" Amway buddies.

It sounds great on the surface, however, when you analyze an Amway diamond's income and look at things carefully, you can see where this lifestyle is just not possible. Even if a diamond earned $250,000 a year from Amway and the tools income, after considering taxes, business expenses and other necessities such as medical insurance and retirement savings, you don't have enough left to live what is often portrayed as a "diamond" lifestyle. Also, keep in mind that a lot of a diamond's income is received in the form of an annual bonus so a diamond's monthly income might be relatively small.

One could also wonder why there aren't any diamonds (that I know of) who have actually walked away from their businesses and continue to collect any significant income from Amway. With more than half of all IBOs not staying in business for a year and about 95% of the rest of the IBOs being gone several years later, it would be an insurmountable task to keep your income rolling in with that poor retention rate. As far as I know, an IBO also need to have a minimal amount of side volume in order to qualify for certain significant payments/bonuses. That is a lot of volume to move when IBOs are quitting the business daily, and these days, it seems as though there are fewer IBOs getting involved, at least in the US and Canada.

It is for that reason, I believe these crown ambassadors and higher level pins are still working. Once you stop, it is very likely that there is no tool income, and once your downline starts to suffer attrition, then you Amway income and bonuses will eventually dry up as well. I believe there is no true residual income in Amway. Sure, build a big business and walk away. You may continue to receive some income for a while, but eventually, it will disappear. It is like building a sandcastle on the beach. The bigger you build it, the longer it will last, but it is for certain that the tide will eventually wash the sand away, just as time and attrition will eat away your Amway business. If you are popular and charismatic enough to attract a large downline, once you leave, so will your downline.

As far as I am concerned, I believe the residual income claims from Amway is just a long running myth used to attract recruits. I don't know of anyone who built a large Amway business and then walked away, and is still collecting a significant income. Do you?

The Real Cost?

 One of the common things Amway leaders apparently 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. 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. With Amway products being so concentrated and efficient as IBOs claim, why would you need to replenish these products so often?

When an IBO finally agrees to register, it is then that the true, but hidden costs are revealed. Many uplines will introduce standing orders and functions and present these tools as vital to IBO success. 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. There is also the cost of additional cds, books, voicemail and other business-related costs that are not mentioned until later which the prospect doesn't necessarily know prior to start up.

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 to $250 a month not including the cost of 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. And this is just the financial cost, not the time and effort spent pursuing a false hope and dream that Amway IBOs and recruiters promote.

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.  At least a job gives you a paycheck.  In Amway, if you are on the "system", you are very likely to be running at a deficit each and every month.

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.