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 dooomed 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 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 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 wante dto 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 relevent. 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 sourcse, 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.
Believing that your group possesses some special "secret" that can save the world is a sure sign that you are in a cult.
ReplyDeleteCults are ancient, and those scholars who have studied them seriously have noted that every cult has what is called a "gnosis." That word means a kind of secret knowledge, available only to cult members and to those who choose to join the cult. If you don't receive the gnosis, you are lost, damned, condemned, judged, and fated to doom.
Amway is not an intellectual or deeply religious cult -- it's just a nickel-and-dime business cult for small-town nobodies. But it shows all the normal outlines of any cult: secret knowledge (the sacred "Plan"), a priesthood to be obeyed (your up-line), contempt for outsiders and skeptics (they're all "broke losers" or "stuck in a JOB"), and a profound dependence on crazy hopes ("You gotta BELIEVE! You gotta BELIEVE!").
And above all, they think that they can save the world, provide hope to the hopeless, and improve everyone's character and morals.
What mindless bullshit.
I'll add that these groups will tout that their group is the most profitable, the teaching is the best, etc. The reality is you are selling Amway products and trying to get others to join you. It's really that simple and there is no need for extensive training. The tools scam was born out of selling hope and motivation. But reality would say that IBOs actually making money would be sufficient motivation.
ReplyDeleteBy saying "helping people", isn't that straying the main purpose people why people join an MLM structure? Hoping for an extra income.
ReplyDeleteThe only reason to be in any MLM plan (or any serious business at all) is to make money. If what you do doesn't earn you cash, it's futile, and you'll eventually starve.
ReplyDeleteBut since only a minuscule percentage of persons in an MLM racket ever make money, the organization has to come up with bullshit reasons for your staying in the system and losing cash regularly. Hence all the pietistic crap about "becoming a better person," or "helping others," or "saving your marriage." (By the way, this is why Evangelical assholes and Mormons are so big into Amway. They fall for sentimental whingeing like that).
Imagine if you applied for a job with a major corporation, or even just a small private business. And imagine that the person hiring you said "I don't know if you'll get any money out of this position, but I can guarantee that you'll be a better person, and it will save your marriage!"
Would you take the job? And yet that is precisely what Amway offers to its prospects. No money, just good feelings.