Healthy Business » Business opportunities

Seeking to understand is a lesson in life

wbhawkins — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 00:03:05 +0000

Seek to understand and you will be more effective

It is always surprising to hear people when they don’t want to learn how to do something which will benefit them. Working with technology for the last twelve years has shown me that you have to keep learning and accept that it never stops. You are always learning because the technology keeps changing and improving.

Of course, when you learn, you begin to understand. Understanding means you have to listen. By listening you cut everything else out of your mind and absorb what you are hearing. The Army has a good acronym which is the basis of all of their training: ‘EDIP – Explain, Demonstrate, Impersonate, Practice‘. It’s simple and it works. By practicing, you transfer all of that ’stuff’ that you see and hear into your long term memory. When you do that, you become skilled and things make sense because you have gained experience.

To learn takes effort. To practice takes discipline. When you put the effort in and keep ‘at it’ new perspectives on your subject appear. This is when you ‘get it’. But you have to start with an attitude of seeking to understand. That simple phrase is one of the pillars of being effective in whatever you do in life.

It took me five years to ‘get’ this business. It took that long because I started off not wanting to understand how network marketing works. But, my sister-in-law persisted and I started to see how it works and I was amazed at its simplicity. This simplicity is often an aspect of the business which most people find suspicious about network marketing. Most people seem determined to make a simple plan complicated because they think it sounds better and gives them some sort of comfort.

Network marketing is designed to simple and replicable. Being replicable is what most people in traditional business want to avoid. They want to be unique. Being able to replicate the business is a cornerstone of network marketing. And understanding these and others principles is when you suddenly see how far you can take the business.

However, most people are very wary about network marketing. They have prejudices about it which are founded in activities which were made illegal thirty years ago. This stops people from wanting to understand about the business. They block it out. They think it is a ‘get rich quick scheme‘ when, in fact, with persistence, time and duplication this business is actually a ‘get rich slow business‘.

It’s shame. Because it is an amazing business strategy which can change your life. But, you have to understand it, drop your misinformed opinions and learn. It’s worth it.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

Team building – why people join this business

wbhawkins — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 20:00:35 +0000

Your reason for joining us is important to know!

Another really good person joined my team at Healthy Business this week. She is someone I have known for two years or so through a business we worked in together. She came to a focus group I ran to get people’s feedback about the business and she asked about the business at the event. My new team member joined for a number of reasons which included earning extra money, to meet new people and to reach her full potential, amongst others.

Although I introduced her to the business, I have not done this on my own. My sister-in-law has spent a lot of time with her, talking to her about what she wants to achieve and helping her to make the right decision for her. That’s another aspect of this business which I like. Although I am running my own business, I’m not running it on my own. There is a huge amount of support and team spirit which is unusual in many of the businesses I have worked in over the years.

People join for different reasons which might be for extra income, or the desire to help other people, for example. But, the fact is that the people who do well have their ‘reason why’ instilled in all of their activities. If they are not clear why they are putting in the effort, they will find it more challenging to succeed.

Recently, I wrote a page about why people join this business which, I hope, puts the beauty of this business into perspective of the everyday realities of our daily working lives.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

What it feels like to be in a royalty business

wbhawkins — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:48:32 +0000

Someone keeps writing me cheques

When you start a business you have to do many things to take it from conception to birth to growth to maturity. My business has just gone beyond conception and it has been born. This was marked by the first sales of the business and the first bonus cheque to come into my bank account this month.

It was a small cheque but a significant one. It marked the start of the royalty-based business I have started. Royalties are a fabulous result of people buying your products over and over again. If you are a successful artist, you will know what this feels like. You do something once and well. People continue to buy your product and you keep receiving a royalty. That’s why bands want to release catchy Christmas songs. Every time a shop plays ‘White Christmas’ by Bing Crosby, the person who owns the rights to the song gets a royalty. Year in, year out.

So, running a business which receives royalties from the efforts that you have put in feels great because if you put the effort it, the company keeps rewarding that effort. It’s not like pay which gets paid regularly in most jobs and stays the same no matter how hard you work. Royalties keep on coming in and growing as long as you keep putting the effort in.

But, more importantly, this business feels great because by helping people with either your products or by helping them to grow their business, you get rewarded handsomely. But this is no ‘get rich quick scheme’. No, this is far deeper than that. This is a business which continues to grow even if you continue to work a consistent 10 hours or more a week.

A royalty business is not for everyone but it is for those who understand that royalties keep coming in while you are sleeping, on holiday or helping people.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

Turn your business experience on its head

wbhawkins — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:36:47 +0000

Unthink your experience and look at things differently

“Why doesn’t your company just do a massive deal with Wal-Mart, Tesco or Carrefour and sell tons of its products through them? It would be a lot easier and they would make loads of money.”

That’s the question and statement that I hear often when I talk to people about the business I am now in. People just cannot believe that Forever Living does not do this and that it decided that it wanted to give people an opportunity build themselves a rewarding career and to do all the things that they dream about doing through hard work, perseverance and helping other people.

People just don’t believe that this is possible. They don’t believe that a company owned by a billionaire could possibly care enough about the people in its business to help them achieve all that they ever wanted to achieve.

Corporate life conditions you to think that there is only one way and that way offers ‘thin value’ to its employees. The ‘thin value’ is diminishing benefits such as your pension contributions, or an expectation of long hours for no-extra pay, or having to deal with internal politics which stop the business from helping its customers. The economies of the western world have been blown apart and are now heavily subsidised by their governments by billions of pounds because the financial system was allowed to run away with itself in the belief that it was creating value for society overall when, in retrospect, we see clearly that it was not. The system was geared up on greed and self-importance.

So, when this business asks ‘why do you want to do this?‘ to people who are interested in it, one of the answers people regularly give is ‘Because I want to help people‘. Often, though, our society mixes this desire of people with patronage or charity. But this is not the case.

This business is built upon people helping other people. That might be helping them to be all they can be in life. Or helping them with their healthy and well being. It might be helping them to set up their own business. It might be helping them to get rid of their debts.

This way of thinking works. I have been going to a business networking group for several months now. There are several regular members and some people who come as guests. All of them are from different businesses. We do some business amongst ourselves but the group is too small to rely on the individual members to get much business from them. As we have got to know each other, we have all started helping each other out with our expertise. I help someone with knowledge about internet marketing. Someone else helps me with their financial knowledge. Another person helps the group with printing ideas.

By giving our time and helping each other out, we have now started to recommend other people in the group to our own contacts. These referrals are becoming increasingly regular and lucrative. People in the group realise that it takes time to get to know someone but when you do know them you know you can rely on them. This is ‘thick value’ and it is not something which conventional business can handle easily. Everything has to be measured. Nothing is given away.

But some things cannot be measured. How do you measure trust, for example?

Quite often people are surprised when I help them out over the phone or through an email with some ideas. They are not used to it. And that’s what people find unsettling about the Forever Living business. It’s not a pushy business. It’s a helping business. It’s a business which says ‘Just try this. If you don’t like it, bring back the product, even if it’s the empty bottle, within sixty days and we’ll give you your money back. No questions asked‘. It’s business where the leaders and owners are very humble ad approachable. There are no big egos.

To finish off, I really enjoy reading Umair Haque’s blog articles. He talks about ‘thin value’ and ‘thick value’ a lot and this article is typical of his writing: ‘Is Your Business Useless?‘ is a great article which talks about the businesses which are “socially useless” and which have “created a jobless “recovery” and mass unemployment amongst the young“.

Read it and think about what it says. You might turn your conventional thinking on its head.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

My First Recruit

wbhawkins — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:43:06 +0000

It's about who you know, like and trust

It has been about two weeks since I started working on my new business in earnest and I have learnt a lot already. It’s not easy but when it works (and it does work), it is the most satisfying feeling to experience success. My first success has come in the form of my first team member.

My team member is running his own business already and wants to run his Forever Living business in parallel to his vending enterprise. We worked together in a former life and we got on well. He had looked at the business five years ago but had not known anyone in the business to understand what it was really like.

He got in touch with me after I emailed him asking if he knew anyone who was looking for an opportunity to start their own business or to earn some extra income. He called me to catch up and my up-line manager, Cora, and I took him through the details of the business.

This business is really built upon people who know you, like you and trust you. I’m looking forward to working with my new team member again and helping him to reach his goals. This business will enable him to work around his existing commitments while he develops his retail sales and his own team.

I have now planned to run my first ‘product launch’ next week in conjunction with a new, local spa who have offered me their ‘relaxation room’ (which is fabulous) to show people our range of health, nutrition and well being products and presents.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

Who gets network marketing?

wbhawkins — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 23:31:16 +0000

It's a rational business decision.

Building a business is a tough thing to do. You need not only a good idea (which, to be frank, is the easy bit), you need to know how to execute your idea so that people know about it, understand it, feel comfortable with it and ultimately decide that your business idea, service or product is something that they will buy from you. When you have been in business for a while, you get to know what questions to ask about a business before you commit to it.

For instance, some years back I was keen on buying into a franchise which is a yacht brokerage. I was looking at selling other people’s yachts, boats and dinghies. With a franchise, the key commitment that the franchiser is looking for is the fee that you pay to buy into their ‘proven’ system. Before I was going to do that, I did some market research into the ‘area’ which would have been my allocated territory.

My research showed me that the market was not for yachts and boats in the centre where they suggested was the best spot, but was, in fact, the inland waterways. Inland waterways are a totally different market to yachts and so, I concluded, I would be better off starting my own business selling barges, cruisers and narrow boats rather than investing and borrowing £90,000 to get into the franchise for yacht sales.

A few years later, I started my own business in live, online learning training IT professionals around the world through the internet. In short, everyone thought the idea was great, but the business struggled and I ran out of money to be able to carry on with it. I lost quite a lot of money in the process but I learned many lessons.

When it comes to starting a network marketing business, I could immediately see that the idea is good, the business is proven, there is a ready and untapped market in the UK, there is no franchise fee to worry about, I believe in the products, I have all the right skills and experience to be able to make it work and I can start it part-time and work it around my other commitments.

This week I spoke with an old business friend of mine about the business with the help of Cora, my sister-in-law, and presented the business over the internet. My contact was very open about the business and was keen to understand the details. He had come across the Forever Living business five years ago but had not pursued it because, amongst one or two other reasons, he had not known anyone in the business to understand why people were so positive about it.

Furthermore, he had spent several years working in the food industry marketing health food products, so he understood the market well. His main enthusiasm from our presentation was the fact that over half of the business’s revenue comes from one aloe vera drink. As a businessman, he understood the business model and knew that the business model is not some wacky scheme but that network marketing is a proven business strategy. His enthusiasm for the opportunity was based on rational thinking and experience.

The plain fact is that people understand and enthuse about this networking business for different reasons. Many because they believe in the products. Some because they can also see the opportunity. Others because they see how it can help them achieve what they want to achieve in their lives which ordinary jobs can never provide on their own.

All of them see it for what it is, which is an unconventional business which helps people. It is honest, non-pushy, high quality and enables those who want to change their lives change them for the better. If you don’t believe it, then that’s fine.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

How network marketing works

wbhawkins — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:23:36 +0000

Network marketing is about knowing, liking and trusting people

Networking is part of my being. It is part of most people’s way of life but they often fail to realise this because they just do it everyday. When you work with someone for a number of years, you get to know them. When you go to school with someone, you spend six to eight hours, at least, with them every day and you soon get to know them and they get to know you too. Over a period of time, you understand their habits, their passions and dislikes, their taste in music, fashion, food and friends. It’s natural.

Every week, I attend a business networking breakfast at a hotel where a group of us get together and talk about our businesses. One of the group gets up each week and gives presentation about their business and how they can help people. In addition, one person gives a quick ‘learning point’ about something they believe will be applicable to everyone around the table in their businesses. There is time to chat over our breakfast with whomever you are sitting next to and to hear their news. The group is diverse. There are solicitors, health and safety experts, accountants, web specialists, printers, financial experts, HR specialists and sales training experts.

I have been going to this for over six months and it has been interesting to see how many people in the group stick with the networking group and how many drop out. Most have stayed the course but some have dropped out. Those that have dropped out of the group left because they were not getting any business from it, as far as they could see. But, the funny thing is that after a few months of slow business, the group has started to increase the amount of business beig carried out.

The reason is clear. It is down to the simple fact that we are starting to get to know, like and trust each other. Those that have persisted with the early mornings have started to gain from it. The level of humour and noise has increased as people have begun to understand each other. People have done business amongst themselves and they have seen how professional they have been with them and so they now feel comfortable to refer them to their own contacts.

Some people that come to the group expecting instant business have totally missed how networking works. They think that they need to sell to everyone around the table. But the opportunity for business is not immediately at the table. The opportunity is with the contacts of the people at the table. The hard earned contacts of the people at the table will not be easily handed over without that person knowing that you are a trustworthy person.

When you are known, liked and trusted then you will find that your persistence with networking will bring you business which is profitable, sustainable and strong. And that is why people who have good reputations and who have good contacts and networks do well in companies like Forever Living. They succeed because they contribute to their network by helping people first and foremost. They don’t push their products or services onto people. They listen to people and understand people’s circumstances and recommend people who can help them if they cannot. Network marketers are in it for the long term and not just for a quick buck.

So, when someone approaches you with their network marketing business, it is probably someone you know well and you probably like and trust them. So don’t dismiss them as just someone trying to sell you something. They are doing something which is far deeper than that. They are paying you a great compliment because they know, like and trust you and would never approach you with something which they did not believe was anything but the best.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

What type of people start network marketing businesses?

wbhawkins — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 10:23:22 +0000

All types of people succeed in Forever

It never ceases to amaze me how many different types of people start network marketing businesses. I first really understood just how diverse the backgrounds of the successful people in Forever Living are when I went to a ‘Success Day’ in Leeds recently. (A ‘Success Day’, by the way is a monthly event in different locations around the country where the company recognises the achievements of its people).

At the event, I made a point of being introduced to as many people as I could who are already in the business and who are doing well. I met one inspirational woman who had been a doctor in a hospital but had left the profession to pursue developing her Forever Living business which she was doing very successfully.

I another woman who was doing very well and had reached a senior level within the business after leaving university and being introduced to the business by her mother. One of the presenters in the day had been a ’shelf stacker’ in a supermarket and is now one of the leading people in the business. Another speaker had been in a band in the 1960’s with a hit that reached number seven in the charts above The Beatles, who then went into academia and had decided to leave to pursue his Forever Living business full time.

My sister-in-law, Cora, also introduced me to the managing director of the business, Bob Parker, who still runs his own Forever Living business, who was a very approachable man which is typical of the type of people within the business. Unlike many people in traditional companies, the people in Forever Living are happy to share their expertise in being successful in the business. In addition, their are no ‘big egos’ which makes for a more inclusive feeling in the business. This is part of the ethos.

So, you can probably see that there many people in the business from all types of backgrounds that succeed in this business. You don’t need to be a brain surgeon or a sales superstar to do well. Everyone who succeeds in the business follows a simple marketing plan and follows three principles of network marketing. I will explain these principles in my next blog entry.

An article I read today about the personality of some network marketers makes for interesting readers. It’s by Dr Robin Rushlo. I am not sure it is entirely true but it gives an insight into how energetic some people are in network marketing.

Shared Post

Sphere: Related Content

In the Beginning There Was A Box

wbhawkins — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:34:29 +0000

The box of delights from Forever Living

Today, my new business started in earnest. Like all businesses, you need to do a lot of preparation to make sure you are ready to ‘trade’. You need to do all the boring but important bits like set up your accounts, set up your customer database and marketing system, get yourself a simple web site and make sure your communications work. That must be done to make sure you can spend more time on doing business and not running the business.

But, the real fun started this week. I had my first planning meeting with Cora, my sister-in-law where we worked out the foundations of how far I can take this business in the next two years and beyond which are my goals. Without knowing why you are putting the effort into the business, it is easy to get distracted with other less important things.

The great beauty of this business is its simplicity. It is very clear what you have to do. The plan has been honed over 31 years by Forever Living and it makes it crystal clear what you have to do to get going, to get to the first level of achievement and then the following levels. There is no ambiguity. “You do this amount of work, and you get this”. As the advertisement says “simples”.

Although the business is your own, you are not on your own. Cora made it very clear what I needed to do and how to do it. Ultimately, the business is about selling health and nutritional products. But there is no pushy selling, or persuading people to buy products they don’t want.

As Cora said, when presenting the business or products to people, Forever Living distributors are actively encouraged to “let go of the outcome” at a one to one meeting or presentation. There’s no mentality of ’closing the deal‘ which is normal is old fashioned sales techniques. Lord, no. It’s much more about showing the people who have taken the time to come and see you and your products and clearly stating that the business opportunity or products may or may not be for them, and that’s fine. When was the last time you heard that in conventional sales of consumer products? That is so refreshing.

The last thing that I received today was my ‘new distributor box’ which is the basis of starting in this business. It’s about £200 and it is full of products guides, leaflets, handbooks, order forms and useful information, as well. Most importantly, it has Forever Living products in it and what’s known as a ‘PUPP’ box which is set of samples which you ask people to have for a couple of days to try the products.

So, what’s next? It’s now time to profile my contact list and to start talking to people about my business. And the beauty of doing all the boring stuff first is that I now have a contact list is a simple system which will enable me to be organised from the start.

How good is that? I have products, I have people, I have processes and I have goals and I have only invested £200 to get going. Nothing can stop me.

Shared Post

Free Wordpress Links Exchange at Shareaddress.com

Sphere: Related Content

Just doing it

wbhawkins — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 10:22:15 +0000

Just getting on with it is liberating

I have procrastinated for far too long. Five years, in fact. I have watched, listened and spoken with my sister-in-law about her business for so long that I just got to the point where I could not see why I should not join her in the business.

My sister-in-law, Cora McKeown, has steadily and steadfastly developed her business from almost nothing into a full-time business which is set to make her very wealthy in more ways than just financially. Cora has developed from being a highly qualified and experienced nurse into a highly motivated businesswoman and leader in five years.

Her business is based around two aspects: a) health and nutrition/wellness industry b) coaching and leadership. It’s a business which is part of a larger organisation, Forever Living, that is growing enormously and which has an utterly different way of doing business than the ‘traditional businesses’ where many of us work today.

Over the next few weeks, I am going to write about this business and my part in it. It’s going to be tough. I am going to have to unlearn lots of things that traditional businesses do as the norm and which I do a second nature which will not be relevant in this business.

I am excited and apprehensive as I have ever been about this and I will share why over the coming weeks.

Shared Post

Free Wordpress Links Exchange at Shareaddress.com

Sphere: Related Content