Here are 7 Lessons I have learned in over 34 plus years in this great Shaklee business. Learning lessons is a large part of moving forward in this business. Sometimes people think these lessons demonstrate failure....I have learned to use these experiences to create success.
Lesson 1
Nothing is hard if you're willing to put the time and effort into learning this Shaklee business and then apply what you've learned.
Faye and I have worked hard at Shaklee for over 30 years. It still doesn't feel like work and I think the reason I feel this way is because it is our business and we don't work for someone. Building a strong network marketing business isn't easy for sure. I hope I have never presented it that way. It takes a lot of work and there are many disappointments along the way. But once you know that you know what to do and have trust in the system it does seem to get easier.....NOT EASY.
The biggest difference between Gary and Faye and most people in Shaklee is that we trust the system.....or process. I know it will work at anytime I make a decision to do it. It will always work but I know it isn't easy.
Today my point is, put the time and effort in learning what to do and how to do it, then really trust it to work for you.
I do believe that as we all move along in this great Shaklee business, whether we are very new to Shaklee or "old timers" still chasing the dream, we must learn some lessons about our goals.
Lesson 2
We must personally choose to commit to our goals, over and over for many years. Committing to a dream is NOT a one-time occurrence.
For over 30 years I have seen many highly capable people come into this great business we call Shaklee. I have often wondered why in the world they didn't do what they wanted to do. If I have had one person tell me they were going to be Master Coordinators, I have had at least a few hundred. What the heck happened? They seemed serious. I know that most of them were what I call high potential people and very capable of pulling it off. Why then do most people fall short of their goals?
I believe I know a big part of the answer to the above question. I have been discouraged and very disappointed, many, many times. At one point I wondered if we would EVER be able to have the kind of business that other Shaklee leaders had. I had doubts. I questioned myself as I would drive to do a meeting. This was a frequent mental exercise the first 5 to 7 years. But I did keep doing what I felt was the right things to do in order to build. I didn't care who was President of Shaklee. I didn't care what problems we faced. My commitment was to become a Shaklee Master Coordinator.
Why did I continue? Because I never had one day go by when I didn't think about being at the Master Coordinator rank. I committed to my goals over and over. I wanted to do it. It was a huge challenge and I wasn't willing to give in and quit.
Listen folks, please listen. The one thing I know is that you will have to commit to your goals over and over and over and over again; maybe for years. If you have a dream, commit to it. It is not a one-time occurrence.
This lesson is vital for you to learn to move up to a higher volume or rank.
Lesson 3
You will win or build with inspired people NOT with programs.
I know the people reading this message want their business to grow. What does it really take to get things moving the way you want them to? Is it getting a new program? Is it revisiting an old program? Or is it getting some new people into your organization who are inspired about Shaklee as a future?
The answer is obvious isn't it? I know you know the answer. I have known for many years that if I want to grow our organization I have to get out and do the things I probably don't like to do.....such as prospecting. When I find a person or couple who are excited about Shaklee it really doesn't make a hill of beans difference what program I follow.
I will step up to the plate and tell you what you need. You need to start talking to people about this great company, products and THE OPPORTUNITY. Don't even think about stopping your prospecting until you have 3 to 4 very inspired new people in your group. Your business will change for the better so fast it will make your head swim.
Changing programs every 6 months or so is deadly for an organization. I've seen many leaders do this and their group gets confused and the effort stops. I've never seen a group get confused because they found a few inspired people.
How to find a few inspired people? This is a good question and I feel I have part of the answer. ARE YOU INSPIRED? I know that I am and I will find 3 to 4 inspired people who want Shaklee as their future. I am committed to do this.
It is your responsibility to get yourself motivated or inspired about your future. Once you do this, believe me it becomes easier to keep your business on track for growth.
Lesson 4
The lesson I've learned for today’s message is about NEW EXPERIENCES.
New experiences always seem to be a challenge for me. I'm not a real social butterfly so I've found it rather difficult at times to put myself in environments where I know I'll be uncomfortable. It's sometimes easier just not to go. And I often didn't.
I can remember deciding that if I really wanted to move forward building a Shaklee business I would have to learn to do some things I don't like doing. So what I am saying is that for many, including myself, Shaklee will require personal growth.
I found the following statement in a book I read a few years ago:
New Experiences: Nothing in life causes more stress, yet at the same time provides more opportunity for growth, than new experiences.
When a person comes into this business the chances are great that they have never done anything like what we suggest they do. Making calls, getting appointments, giving a presentation, talking about a sales plan with all the numbers, following up, standing on our feet and talking in front of a group, talking to people about buying our products, hearing objections to ideas, inviting people to a meeting (what if it's a bad one?), these are all new experiences for many, many people who come into our great business.
The fact remains though, if you truly want what Shaklee offers you will have to make a quality decision to start doing some things you aren't very comfortable doing. You won't be the first one to do this believe me. Ask your upline if they ever did anything they didn't like doing.
I do know this, for those of you willing to gain personal growth by having new experiences, you will never regret it. You will grow beyond your wildest expectations and set a terrific example for the many people who will be coming into your Shaklee organization. Go for it.
Do something every week that you haven't done in a while. You'll experience this personal growth we all hear about.
This lesson really helped me to better understand prospecting and the process for finding people who truly wanted a better future.
Lesson 5
My job is to create interest, not to find people who already have an interest.
In my opinion this is more of an attitude than anything else. When we have our prospecting mindset in place and we've made up our mind to GROW our business, it helps to know what we really must do is learn how to create interest.
I hear people tell me they "can't find anyone interested in Shaklee." I have heard this for years. I don't believe that for a second. There are millions of people who want a better future, better health, more income, freedom, control of time. I could go on and on.
How might we create interest? When talking with people talk about THEM. Ask questions. Learn what's on their mind. When you hear something that Shaklee has a solution for, address it to the person.
"If I could show you how to earn _________ would you be willing to take 30 to 40 minutes to see the basics of what we do?"
"If I could show you how to build a great income that would pay you _________ year after year, would you take 30 minutes to look at it?"
"If I could show you a way to build a great income that would pay you when you're not there, or not working, would you take a look at it?"
Show current examples of success. Show 1099's. Talk about the future. Give people hope for their future. Talk to them about making hope become a reality for them. When talking like this to prospects, I know you will be creating interest.
Then it's up to you to have a simple overview of the Shaklee opportunity to show, and while doing this continue to talk about their future, their hope, and here is a vehicle that will help get you there.
I learned this lesson early. It all comes down to work ethic.
Lesson 6
You must take life as it happens, but you should try to make it happen the way you want to take it.
Make it happen. How do you want your life or Shaklee business to be? That is a great question and based on this lesson, it is entirely up to YOU the individual for the end result. Our success, yours and mine, is NOT up to the company, it’s NOT the products, it’s NOT your upline, and it’s NOT your downline. All of the above certainly can help make a difference, but the bottom line means that our future success is up to each person to make it happen the way the way you want it to be.
This certainly describes our Shaklee opportunity. Shaklee is designed to reward people for what they do. Rewards in Shaklee will come to you based on, your attitude, your belief in the products, how many product and opportunity presentations you give, how many people you personally sponsor and recruit, how many in-home meetings you conduct, the example you personally set, and how many people you help do all of the above.
This business takes work and it's not always an easy business. Working hard is THE MAJOR KEY. How is your personal work ethic? Do you handle disappointments and adversity in a healthy manner? Do you really understand that obstacles are stepping stones and not reasons to quit?
Think about it friends. What are your goals? Don't have any written down? Write out some Shaklee business goals today.......how many hours per week will you commit to YOUR FUTURE? How many people will you approach each and every week? What is your target for monthly product volume? How many first levels will you sponsor in the next week? The next 30 days? The next 90 days?
Ask yourself some good, hard questions. Think it through. Make a quality decision on how you want your Shaklee business to be. Then get busy and work hard to make it happen. You'll never regret working hard and building a great future for yourself and others. I guarantee it.
This lesson helped to clarify for me what I should be doing to build a large Shaklee organization.
Lesson 7
It is easier to get a new audience than get a new talk.
What this is saying to me is it is much easier to find a new person who responds to my presentation than it is trying to have a different presentation for every person.
So many people want to design a talk for every situation or type of person. In my opinion that would be the most difficult way to build an organization. It is also a way to complicate this very simple business. I will do whatever I can to simplify this business because simplicity will attract, whereas complexity will only impress. Our job is NOT to impress prospects, it is to give a simple presentation which will attract them into the business.
Have a presentation you are comfortable with, then learn how to show it to people in a very simple way. The more frequently you present, the better you will become. After 10 to 15 presentations you will begin to fine tune your presentation, plus you will be become more comfortable with it, your confidence will be there and I believe you will start experiencing better results in your sponsoring.
If you are constantly changing presentations, and heaven forbid, teaching the people in your organization a new presentation every 4 to 6 months, you will confuse and overwhelm them and you will not see growth in your business.
Have a simple, straight forward presentation, be excited about the future for you and your prospect, and you will make progress.
— Gary Burke