Background story first, then I’ll explain my quick analogy with Multiple Sclerosis and Success in Network Marketing.
Saturday, 11 April 2009 – Good Samaritan Day! I was out doing our regular weekend shop at the local fruit and vegetable markets – Rusty’s Markets, based here in
Drew, 17, came with me – his favourite pass time doing the veg n fruit shop…not!! We completed our rounds and he reminded me that we needed to go to the second hand book store just up the road in
On our way back we stopped to get our usual home made muffin and fruit smoothies. The lady that owns this business loves Drew – Drew is profoundly deaf, Drew and I sign about what we want, I know she finds it fascinating like lots of others – great benefit for us - he gets ‘free’ banana n choc chip’ muffin and a large drink, I only pay for 2 small drinks and 1 muffin – hence why we be repeat customers – perfect!
As we were organising ourselves to sit and eat our fare, this woman bumped into me, I turned round, she apologised – she was in a wheel chair, not just any chair a motorised one that she drove with her chin, oxygen on board, shopping the lot. I discovered afterwards that she did this deliberately; I sat down, she was right in my line of vision, she hadn’t actually moved at all, I smiled at her as you do – I scanned the area looking to see if someone was with her. This was when she asked me a favour. She needed to eat, drink and take her medication. So for the next half hour we chatted attended to her needs. Turns out she has Multiple Sclerosis, incredibly debilitating, no family living locally – she has to place her trust and judgement of face value looking - in strangers’ hands – literally!
She has help come in from 8pm at night till 8am. They get her up at 5.30am so they can leave on time. During the day she fends for herself. She ‘imposes’ herself on the likes of me – what else can she do. She has to TRUST in human nature – I suppose initially people will take ‘pity’ and help, not take advantage. This woman doesn’t need pity, she just needs people that understand and won’t / don’t have an issue helping. I had no problem with this at all, in fact I felt honoured to have been of service.
She thanked me and drove off. The first thing Drew said to me was “how sad”, “lady has no arms, legs – stuck in chair all day”. He became concerned about where she had gone and what she would do. We discussed how lucky he was to be ‘just deaf’. Now there are a lot of people that would think differently, but neither Drew, nor his family do.
Now, Network Marketing and Multiple Sclerosis the co-relation is easy from the point of view that network marketers have to learn to TRUST too. It’s very hard when you have been ripped off, signed up for things that haven’t lived up to their advertised expectations. In some cases, there are networkers that have lost thousands of dollars, for nothing in return. Somewhere along the line if you have done your due diligence, perhaps have started to get know someone, albeit through reading their profile on Facebook, Blogger, Twitter wherever; you have to take that leap of faith, TRUST that this person will help you.
Of course once that leap of faith has been taken, most Mentors and Coaches require from you in return your commitment to;
- Listen and learn; therefore be coachable
- Participate in their training program – not try to, but do
- Want Success deep down inside and know that you deserve success
- Want financial freedom for yourselves and for others
When you commit to this then your door will open to the people that you need in your life that will help you and others become the Network Marketing Success that you are entitled too.
Imagine if you had to live your life like this woman for the rest of your lives, TRUSTING someone on the internet that may well become a good friend doesn’t really seem to be such a leap of faith to me anymore after today.
Julie McClelland
