So, why are there still so many network marketers out there acting like secret agents around their friends, family and others in their circle of influence? Why are so many still not sharing the fact that they own and operate a network marketing business? Maybe they feel that they won’t be taken seriously by those closest to them.

But just think…would you spend a lot of money opening up a beautiful restaurant in a prime location, serving the most delicious food and then not tell anyone that it even exists?

I don’t think so. I bet the first people you would tell would be your family and friends. Right?

I know what you think now. “But, my sponsor told me to make a list of friends and family and I did. Then I approached them with my business opportunity and now nobody is talking to me anymore.”

Trust me, I know the feeling, and so do thousands of other successful network marketers. It’s a typical mistake people new to the network marketing industry make.

Here’s what went wrong ….You “approached people with your business opportunity.”

To stick with the above example of the restaurant that would be the same as asking people to partner up with you in the restaurant business.  But they don’t want to buy a restaurant franchise they just want to enjoy great food.

Instead you should have approached the situation this way…

“Hey uncle Marty, I just opened up a new restaurant downtown. If you know anyone that likes a great barbeque would you mind sending them my way?” Uncle Marty might say, “Hey, I like a good barbeque. Where’s your place located?”

Don’t pitch your network marketing business,
ask for the referral instead.

Here’s another example, relating more to a real network marketing business situation. Let’s say you are marketing a natural product that helps people with high cholesterol. The conversation then would go something like this…

“Hey uncle Marty, I started a new business marketing a natural product that helped me lower my cholesterol. By chance would you know anybody who might be interested in lowering their cholesterol?”

This approach takes the pressure off both of you. Uncle Marty doesn’t feel like he’s being pitched so he doesn’t put his guard up. Instead he’s listening and maybe already thinking of people he knows. And you feel more at ease because you are just asking for a referral.

There really is no need to act like a secret agent because of fear of rejection.  As a matter of fact doing so might cost you a great deal of business.

Did you know that every person has a circle of influence of around 250 people?  This is how many people usually attend a wedding or a funeral.

I actually put this number to the test, because I thought, like so many, “There’s no way I know 250 people.” So I sat down one day and started writing down the names of people that I know …and, who knew me by name as well.

I was really surprised when I came up with a list of 265 names right off the bat without even trying.

So I bet you a soda pop, if you sit down and do the same thing you will come up with at least 250 names as well. How many of these people know what you do? Seriously?!

Takeaway: Start working on that list and let everyone know what you do. Tell them that you are running your own network marketing business. However, stop pitching and start asking for referrals instead. You may be surprised about all the business coming your way.

To Your Success,

Ilka Flood
The Enlightened Networker

P.S. May I ask you a small favor? If you enjoyed this article would you be so kind to tweet it and share it with your friends on Facebook? Thank you ever so much!

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If you missed my previous post, you can catch it here, “A Degree in Network Marketing.”

Basically I was writing about Bethany College intending to offer a four year Degree in Marketing with emphasis on Network Marketing.

You can read Len Clements’ full article about it here.
http://www.marketwaveinc.com/viewalert.asp?id=153

You probably have a lot of questions about this like…

What’s the benefit of taking this class when I can find education
and training in Network Marketing out there for free?

What will I learn in this course?

Who is going to teach this class?

How much is it going to cost?

Is there an online version of this course?

You will find most if not all the answers to your questions by listening to this 49 minute interview Len Clements did with David Frost, Assistant Professor of Bethany’s Business & Economics Department who is spearheading their network marketing projects.

http://www.MarketWaveInc.com/RadioShow.asp

This has never been done before in the history of network marketing an industry that is 79 years old. Never before has a fully accredited undergraduate college offered a Degree in Network Marketing. And if Bethany College can pull this off and succeed at this, I’m sure a lot more colleges and universities around the country will follow in their footsteps.

Just think what this can do for our industry.

Please make sure you listen to this interview. I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below.

To Your Success,

Ilka Flood
The Enlightened Networker

P.S. As always, please share this with your friends and followers on Facebook and Twitter and don’t forget to give it a +1 if you found this information valuable. Thank you, I really appreciate you.

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Would having a Degree in Network Marketing make them feel better?

Maybe. At the very least it would lend more validity to the industry. No college in the world would offer a degree in something that wasn’t legitimate.

The business model of Network Marketing, or Multi-Level Marketing isn’t new. It’s been around for at least 50 years and it contributes billions of dollars yearly to the global economy. However, its reputation has only slightly improved in recent years. Mainly because of such celebrities as U.S. President Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Warren Buffet. Just to name a few.

When you look at it with an open mind, it’s actually quite a brilliant business model. One that allows ordinary people start their own business, often just for a few hundred dollars start-up cost, and potentially go on and achieve extraordinary success. More millionaires have been made in this industry then in any other. But still it has a bad name because of a few rotten apples.

Bethany College to be the first to offer degree in Network Marketing

LINDSBORG, Kan.— Bethany College will add a new network marketing curriculum in fall 2011. The program was created through Bethany’s new Center for Servant Leadership that promotes the awareness, understanding, and practice of servant leadership by individuals and organizations.

This is a major step forward towards the acceptance of the Network Marketing business model and one that is in my opinion long overdue.

Robert Carlson, the chair of the business program said this in a statement, “Entrepreneurs have not been taught how to correctly use network marketing. This has led to many using unethical, unsustainable, and nonproductive network marketing business models. We want to fill the education gap and teach students how to use the foundations of servant leadership to successfully and honorably operate a network marketing business.”

I love it! It’s about time and I hope this is only the first of many colleges out there to offer a Degree in Network Marketing to their students.

You can read more of the article here: Bethany College to be the first to offer degree in Network Marketing

Also please read MLMWatchDog.com’s article on the same subject HERE.

A Degree in Network Marketing – We’ve Come a Long Way, Baby!

I don’t know about you, but I am getting tired of the looks I sometimes get from friends and family when I tell them what I do. It’s time for our industry to be treated with the respect it deserves. I feel (and that’s just my opinion) the success rate in our industry would rise significantly if newcomers to the industry will be taught correctly.

Here’ s looking forward to a bright future where we can all hold our heads up high and proudly proclaim…

“I am a Network Marketer and darn proud of it!…And by the way, did you know, you can even get a College Degree in Network Marketing  now?”

We’ve come a long way baby, and it’s only getting better.

To Your Success,

Ilka Flood
The Enlightened Networker

P.S. What are your thoughts about this? You know I always appreciate your feedback in the comments below. Please don’t miss the “Follow up on A Degree in Network Marketing” I wrote after Len Clements Founder & CEO of MarketWave,Inc, left me some links with more information in the comments below. You don’t want to miss this!

P.P.S. And as always I would really appreciated if you could share this article with your friends and followers….And…Don’t forget to give it your vote of approval by clicking the Google +1 button in the Sharebar. Thank You! I truly appreciate you!

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1. Are You Still Acting Like a Secret Agent in Your Network Marketing Business?

Success in Network Marketing

Absolutely! If you like it or not your daily activities or lack thereof, greatly influence whether you will have success in network marketing or not. If you are falling short on your goals maybe you should take a closer look and evaluate the reasons why.

Are your daily habits leading to success or failure?

It is very tempting to hop out of bed, firing up your laptop and see if “you’ve got mail.” But starting out your day by checking your email first thing in the morning might not be a good idea. At least this holds true for me.  If I don’t absolutely watch it, I find myself following this link and that link and before I know it it’s two hours later.

What is even worse is that this behavior sets the tone for my entire day. I will be out of focus and procrastinating the rest of the day. I then go to bed at night totally mad and very disappointed in myself because I know better.

Sounds familiar? Not a good thing, is it?

But even if you shoud have some really bad habits, like me, it’s never too late to drop them and develop some new and positive ones.

Here are 6 tips on how you can develop some good habits to help you have success in network marketing…

• Don’t start your day out disorganized and with no real focus and direction.
  Instead make a “To Do List” of your tasks the night before. Organize it by importance, which means the most important task you need to do the next day should be on top. And the least important task should be at the bottom on your list.
• Make it a happy day.
  You’ll get a lot more done if you have a positive mindset instead of being grumpy or in a lousy mood. I know it’s not always possible to jump out of bed with a smile on your face just excited about the new day. So if you happen to have got out of bed on the wrong food, not all is lost yet. Go for a walk. The fresh air will clear your mind and stimulate positive thoughts. Listen to some uplifting music or watch a short inspiring video.
• Don’t procrastinate.
  I know it’s easy to put things off that we dislike doing. But having them ‘hang over our head’ can really cripple our productivity. It’s best to get them out of the way as fast as possible. Brian Tracy recommends to “Eat that Frog.”  

  “Procrastination is attitude’s natural assassin. There is nothing so fatiguing as an uncompleted task.” William James

• Grow your knowledge.
  Successful network marketers always feed their minds. They are constantly learning new things, methods, strategies and so on. So make it a habit to learn something new every day, even if it is just a new word. Just think, within a year you will have broadened your vocabulary by 365 new words.
• Grow your network.
  Your success in network marketing can only be as large as your network. So make it a habit to grow it every day. Make the aquaintence of somebody new each day. Connect on Facebook or grow your Twitter account. Reach out to someone and lend a helping hand. Build those all-important relationships of know, like and trust.
• Avoid or limit time wasters.
  Email and social networks can really suck your time. So be sure to set a time limit for those activities. 10 to 15 minutes at a time should be sufficient enough to check your inbox, update your status and reply to messages. If you don’t get it all done in that time, carry it over to your next scheduled time slot for those tasks.

Developing these good habits should send you well on your way to reaching “success in network marketing”. What do you think? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.

I’m off to the next task on my list…

To Your Success,

Ilka Flood
The Enlightened Networker

P.S. You certainly don’t have to, but it would be really awesome if you would re-tweet and share this post on Facebook. Thank You!

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I have known Mavis for about a year now and have learned a great deal from her about blogging and marketing online. Giving must be her middle name, because she always provides great value without asking for anything in return. A true Go-Giver!

So I dedicate today’s blog post to my good friend Mavis Nong. It is with great gratitude that I thank her for all she has been doing and continues to do for me as well as many others around the world.

Whether she knows it or not she has been a tremendous blessing to me over the past and especially during the past view weeks as I have learned a lot from her about improving my blog and how to reach higher rankings in search engines.

With this, I would like thank Mavis by giving back to her, as well as introduce her to those of my readers who may not know her yet.

Mavis is THE authority as far as optimizing your blog for the search engines. On her blog “Attraction Marketing Online” you can find tons of information about online marketing strategies, and amazing blogging tips to help you build a successful business online.

And that’s not all …Mavis also just started a new series called “Ask Mavis” where you can ask her any burning questions you may have about blogging and she will answer them for you. How cool is that? I tried that just the other day and Mavis answered my question about how to get indexed by Google.

With things constantly changing on the worldwide web it’s hard to keep up. Mavis however, seems to be always on top of things.

So be sure to head over to “Attraction Marketing Online” and bookmark it as I’m sure you will not want to miss any of the great information there.

Trust me, Mavis Nong’s blog is a very valuable resource and if you follow her suggestions you will be well on your way of having a successful blog yourself.

Mavis, a heartfelt thanks for all you have done! You are a true inspiration and I am very blessed to have you as my friend. Wishing you a bright and successful future!

Be blessed,

Ilka
The Enlightened Networker

P.S. Please tweet, bookmark and share this. Thank You!

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1. Enlightened Networker Taking a Break | Guest Post on Attraction Marketing Online
2. A Heartfelt Thank You to September’s Top Commentators
3. Are You Still Acting Like a Secret Agent in Your Network Marketing Business?

So what’s the difference?

Let me ask the same question a different way. Would you rather get paid for your own time and efforts or receive a share of other people’s time and efforts?

Let’s look at a couple of LINEAR income examples first:

If you have a job and get paid hourly wages, that’s called linear income. You put in your time and you get paid for the hours you work. If you have a day off or you are sick you don’t get paid. Doctors, lawyers or anyone who is self-employed earns a linear income as well. If a doctor doesn’t see patients or goes on vacation, he doesn’t get paid.

Now let’s take a look at some examples of RESIDUAL income:

Elvis made a lot of records during his lifetime.  Although he’s been dead for a long time now, every time one of his songs plays on the radio his family still receives “royalties.”

The same goes for movie stars. Regardless of how long ago they made the movie, every time it plays on TV or is sold on a DVD they receive royalties for it. Just like Elvis, they get paid over and over for it forever.

You may ask, …”Well how does earning residual income
vs linear income relate to me??”

If you have a MLM home based business you are creating a “royalty income” aka “residual income” of your own. You do something once, like acquiring a new customer for your company, and you will get paid on that customer as long as he or she stays with you. Every time that customer places an order, you get paid a percentage.

You can also leverage your time and efforts by inviting people to join your team and teach them to do the same … acquiring new customers for your company. Then you also get paid a percentage on their efforts.

Residual income happens when this royalty income starts to grow. Let’s say your customers love your products so much they start telling their family and friends and they all become your customers too. And then they in turn tell all of their friends as well. That’s kind of like how AOL grew so big so fast. Word of mouth is the fastest and most cost effective way of acquiring new customers.

Once this happens, things take on a life of their own. You can’t stop your business from growing, even if you tried.  When you’re sick or on vacation your business just keeps growing as one happy customer tells another.

Now, that’s the difference between trading time for money like with linear income, where you work a certain number of hours and get paid for those hours. And residual income where you do something once and get paid for it over and over again and also where you leverage your time with others.

Again, the question … would you rather earn residual income or linear income?

If you answered RESIDUAL INCOME than I would suggest you start working on that. Start today! You can do it part-time while you are still earning a linear income from your job.  Commit a certain amount of hours to work your network marketing business every week.  Set realistic goals. Remember, you eat an elephant one bite at a time. Be consistent. Be patient. And never, ever give up.

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In fact, we all love heroes so much that we wanted to be heroes ourselves! Not a remote thing to really think about when you’re a little child, especially if you’ve become so enamored with the powers that one could possess – power to zap enemies and make them vanish right before your very eyes, power to fly (a favorite!), power to carry and lift heavy objects like buildings, power to stop objects from its tracks, the power of heightened senses (sight and hearing).

As we grow old, we lose sight of what it takes to be a hero anymore and as we fall into the daily humdrum of everyday life, we don’t see ourselves as someone extraordinary  -  so un-hero-like.

But, here’s the catch: in our seeming ordinary life, we just might have what it takes to be a hero.

1. CALL. Heroes don’t start out strong. They are just as ordinary as all of us. In most movies, becoming a hero begins with a call to do something, a mission. At which, you begin a journey.
2. TRIALS. Tasks will be thrown at the hero in progressing levels of difficulty until one is considered worthy to move on to other tasks. In this stage, however, one shouldn’t ignore signs of help and guidance from unlikely people who could provide the necessary wisdom to help the hero proceed. These “helpers” may just provide the right weapons to help a hero succeed in a quest.
3. INSIGHTS. Alas, all trials have been successfully hurdled and the hero is empowered, emboldened, and transformed. New insights gained, powers and capabilities discovered. And, with this renewed strength and knowledge, the hero proceeds.
4. RETURN. The first journey was a journey towards self-discovery as to what it really takes to be a hero. Now, a new journey begins. Equipped with the right mindset and an awakened version of one’s self, the hero is now ready to return and go on another journey to fulfill your lifelong mission or task.

In MLM as with any other business, we are all embarking on a journey towards success. We are here because of a call, we‘ve encountered trials that could have weakened our spirits but thankfully, because of wise mentors and great advice from colleagues, we’ve moved on and on. We are now better and enlightened networkers, and we are empowered online entrepreneurs because of these trials that shaped us into who we are now. We have transformed.

And just like a hero, we are moving on to another journey of transformation – that of the people who count on us, building them up to be the best in their business.
That’s all it takes to be a hero in the MLM business world.

Do you have what it takes to be a hero? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below. If you enjoyed this post, don’t forget to share, retweet, reblog, or bookmark! Thank you!

To your success,

Elmar
EmpoweredOnlineEntrepreneurs.com

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If you are a regular visitor of The Enlightened Networker then you know that at the beginning of every month I highlight my Top Commentators for the previous month.

Guess what? It’s this time again. Time to say “Thank You” and appreciate some of the great people who through sharing their valuable input and thoughts make this blog the success it has been enjoying over the past year or so.

I am so very thankful to all of you who visit and please know that I deeply appreciate every single one of you.

So once again, it is with great gratitude that I announce the Top Commentators of The Enlightened Networker for February. Please make sure if you have not already done so, to go visit their blogs as they all share excellent content on a continuous basis.

Oliver Tausend … is not only a fellow German, but also a network marketer and blogger who shares great insights on his blog about personal development, MLM success secrets and financial intelligence.

Oliver’s latest blog post:  MLM Success Secrets – What Secrets? Pt. 1

Volker Schäfer …my friend from Austria is an internet  marketer. You can either visit his website OnlineBizNow.com or his German Blog where he shares his great insights. He has also created some killer “How to…” videos about Twitter and Facebook.

Volker’s latest blog post: Setzen Sie Ihre Standards – 2BeKnown hat recht

Marcus Baker …also one of my Top Commentators for December is an internet network marketer . He also runs a very insightful blog focusing on personal development as well as running a successful network marketing internet business.

Marcus’ latest blog post: How to Install Your People System in Five Simple Steps

Who will be the Top 3 next month? Will you be among them?

All you need to do is visit my blog and leave your thoughts in the comment box. If you are one of the top 3 commentators you will be featured next month with a link back to your blog. (Please make sure you use Gravatar so I can include your image.)

Again, congratulations to my Top Commentators for February and thank you very much for your continued support!

To Your Success,

Ilka Flood
The EnlightenedNetworker

P.S. Sharing is caring! Make sure you re-tweet and share this post if you enjoyed it. Thank You!

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Before I go on and answer this, let me ask another question…

What is a team?

A team consists of a group of individuals with different strength and weaknesses, working together to achieve a common goal. Each member also brings with them a different set of skills, experiences and ideas.

You will find, that good teams, those who have the most success are made up of people who are self-less, giving individuals who share value freely and without an agenda. There’s absolutely no room for people who are egoistical or selfish or for people who operate from a mindset of scarcity and who are afraid to share something that has worked well for them out of fear that you could compete against or outperform them. Good teams are made out of Go-Givers.

Why is teamwork important?

Because it combines different skills from many people and maximizes strengths bringing out the best in each team member. Working together as a team will help you achieve success quicker and easier than if you were trying to do it all by yourself. Members of a team are pulling each other up, supporting each other and brainstorming new ideas together.

Teamwork encourages discipline and holds you accountable.

It promotes a sense of achievement. Team members encourage each other and create a feeling of connection and belonging. Together we’re strong!

A good team will always outperform an individual as the synergy builds momentum and propels everyone forward together.

I have seen this in action in a former company. A new distributor came in and built a team that outperformed leaders who were already established within the company. He shared what worked for him and created a duplicatable system for his team. Not only that, he shared his system with the whole company which lifted everyone up. Now that in my eyes is a LEADER.

So, if teamwork is important for your network marketing success shouldn’t it be one of the key factors to consider when looking for a network marketing business to join?

Absolutely! Besides finding a good and supportive sponsor joining the right team is absolutely crucial yet so many people don’t even think about this.

Can you see why teamwork is important?

But even if you were not lucky enough to land on a great team, maybe there is a group in your company that you could join. Or you could simply step up as the leader (within you) and start looking for people just like yourself. Think about your values, your skills and start attracting leaders just like you or those who compliment your values and skills and create the team you wish you had joined.

Granted, this may take a while, but it will be well worth it.

So, why is teamwork important?

Because …”Teamwork makes the Dream work.” And because… “United we stand, but divided we fall.”
(Don’t forget to click on the link above or you will miss out on a great little movie about what we can learn about teamwork from geese.)

To Your Success,

Ilka Flood
The Enlightened Networker

P.S. I always love to hear your feedback so please leave your thoughts in the comments below.

P.P.S. If you found value in this post please re-tweet and share it with your friends. Thank You!

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Not everyone joining the network marketing industry will make it to the top. Newcomers are often lured in with the promise …Oh, it’s easy. Anyone can do it. But to have success in network marketing it really takes a special kind of person. So, what traits do all “Successful Network Marketers” have in common?

Let’s take a look…

Successful network marketers lead by example. They are totally plugged in. You can find them on every conference or training call as well as company events. They are constantly improving themselves through reading books, listening to audio or watching video courses or attending seminars.

Mike Dillard, the founder of Magnetic Sponsoring puts it this way…“Every single successful entrepreneur I know has studied and accumulated information on their industry that is the equivalent of a Master`s or PHD”.

The network marketing industry is no different. There are strategies and skills to be learned and the learning curve is quite steep. But this learning curve can be cut in half or more with the proper network marketing training.

Successful network marketers also continually sharpen their skills. They know nothing stays constant and things are changing all the time and very rapidly, especially in the online world. So they always keep on top of the latest marketing tactics and techniques.

Successful network marketers have high work ethics. There’s no playing around or treating a business like a hobby. Successful network marketers are extremely disciplined, hard-working individuals.

A positive attitude is another trait of the successful network marketer. There’s no I can’t. Only I CAN and I WILL succeed. They know that even failure is nothing more than another opportunity to succeed.

They are excellent problem solvers as well. Rather than making excuses when confronted with a difficult situation they will make every effort to find a solution. They are humble enough to put their ego aside and ask for help when needed. You will find that many successful network marketers have mentors and consult with them on a regular basis. They are also team players and know that without their team they won’t be successful.

Successful network marketers are visionaries. They have the ability to envision success long before reaching it. They know exactly where they want to be in 2, 3 or five years. They have a clear picture in their mind of what their business will look like, and are constantly working towards that vision.

Successful network marketers set goals and follow a carefully thought out road map making adjustments when needed. They also have patience and know that everything worth having is worth waiting for. So they never lose focus of their ultimate goal.

Successful network marketers never quit! They know that there will be peaks and valleys and that the road to success is not always smooth. They are driven and determined to do whatever it takes to reach their vision, their ultimate goal of the lifestyle they desire.

To Your Success!

Ilka Flood
The Enlightened Networker

P.S.  I know I haven’t listed all of the characteristics of successful network marketers. So if you can think of any, please leave your feedback below in the comments.

P.P.S. If you found value in this article, please re-tweet it and share it with others. Thank You!

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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