The Hedge of a Lifetime! | DiamondJul's Personal Blog

This past summer while enjoying a cold beverage in the shade of the backyard, my friend made a remark that I have thought about ever since. We were talking about business things and in a break in the conversation he made the statement, “there’s a LOT of MLM in this town.”

Without hesitation I replied, “It’s not a sign of the town it’s a sign of the times.”

Having been in my home town for just a couple of years from Toronto, he came to his conclusion honestly. We invest a great deal of time engaged at the heart of our entrepreneurial, small business community so we often find ourselves in the company of those that are aligned with various entities in the Multi-Level Marketing sector. The industry has been around for 70 years, there’s enough long-term experience to see patterns in its development so we know that in the toughest of times, the entire “MLM” industry grows faster and remains stronger after each growth spurt. I have witnessed some of the greatest expansion in the last 3 or 4 years.

I am a proud, professional Network Marketer, it is my passion and my calling. I chose it as a back-up career path in June of 1995 while happily employed on the rungs of corporate Canada, having already been “groomed” for 15 years. It didn’t take too long before I realized I would make my back-up career my main one. It was one of the best commitments I’ve ever made.

I assured my friend that what he was observing around him is not really Network Marketing, however, the activity he is witnessing is more of a “Direct Sales” model. Both business models fall under the “MLM” umbrella and they are distinctly different in their operation. I have done both, my preference for authentic Network Marketing is all about the differences, especially around “lifestyle” and leadership. In fact, if someone is really good at being a Network Marketer, you probably won’t even know they are doing it – unless you know them well.

As employment opportunities continue to become both less desirable and less available, many are turning to other avenues to generate income. The globe’s economy has moved on, it won’t be back in some of the familiar ways we’ve been used to. The upside to this is huge if one is focused on finding solutions. The world is recreating itself in some fabulous new and exciting ways, we are being called on to rise to a humanitarian shift unlike we’ve experienced before in our known history, venturing “outside the box” has become more critical than ever.

Traditional models for what used to work for “doing life” have been subtly and assertively crumbling and pressure mounts under a rapidly expanding desire for more happiness, better health, prosperity and the freedom to live life on one’s own terms, and as the collective desire grows, so grows the tsunami of opportunity. For those willing to paddle out to greet the great wave of transition, the rewards are positively tremendous!

Did you know?

More people became millionaires during The Great Depression than any other time in our history – over 82,000. The estimations for going forward from now are staggering!

Some of us are already playing the delicious game of “leverage” with a whole new set of tools and support than has ever been available before. The playing fields have been leveled and anyone can master the new games. I’ve learned first-hand that Network Marketing is not for everyone, “everyone” doesn’t qualify. I do believe that for the majority though, it is an equal opportunity with few if any prerequisites.

I wasn’t always an MLM evangelist, you’ll hear more about that in another posting. I discovered the long, hard way around that it is good to “know” before I say “no”, and that all the knowledge in the world is useless if I am unable to observe another applying it.

MLM is not a one-size fits all solution, but it is a real solution that’s getting bigger and better fast as more of the business world and everyday consumers catch on to how it works. As a result there are more choices than ever, so many that one often gets overwhelmed and confused about what is the best choice.

So who do you listen to? How do you assess whether an opportunity is the right one for you and yours?

Ask…and it is given every single time.

I want to leave you with a great audio I hope you’ll enjoy as much as I did! This interview is not about Network Marketing; however it does have some very relevant nuggets of wisdom for how to proceed in a world that is re-inventing itself on the fly!

This is 50 minutes with Seth Godin. I’ve been following Seth since he released his first book, he is fun and entertaining, a modern day visionary and thought leader in the world of business, marketing and art.