December 3, 2010
College | Community Abundance
Many people around the world are struggling to be able to afford the things they want, or need. Tight knit communities, as well as nuclear families, often have 2 parents working just to be able to pay for their homes, electricity, water, and phone bills. In the United States, most people are in debt and working diligently to get out of it. Whether it be from student loans for college, credit card debt, or mortgage payments, many families in the US are struggling. In many countries fathers must leave the family to work in a country with a stronger currency to be able to offer their children the things that they feel they need. Why?
Humans have created a condition that is a downward spiraling consumer culture, we have become addicted to things, hypnotized by our creations. We have focused so much on what we can make that we have neglected to notice the destruction in our path. The suffering of humans stems from this addiction, as well as a lack of knowledge. When studying what different classes of people buy, wisdom can be achieved and a solution can be found. Studies have shown that on payday, the poor by stuff, things that eventually loose value, break, and turn to trash. This is not to say that the other socio-economic classes don’t buy things as well, but that it is the majority of the percentage bought by the poor. The middle class is not much better off when it comes to what they buy, they by liabilities; cars, homes, loans, credit card purchases that they have to pay off, and so on. This keeps them indentured to having to pay off interest rates and trapped in a rat race where they can not become wealthy. Also, the middle class represent themselves in the workplace, which means they work, generally, for someone else. All they get paid on is their own work and the absolute maximum that they can be paid is 24 hours worth of work. What then do the wealthy buy? The class of people who control most of the resources, buy assets; things that increase in value or pay them a residual income, i.e. stocks, real estate, businesses, etc. Also, one of the things that they do is they hire other people to work for them to achieve more productivity than they could do alone.
So, how does knowing that help in achieving abundance for oneself and community? This knowledge can be a gem of wisdom that inspires what one buys and can guide toward buying things that are sustainable; able to produce or at the least maintain themselves. This is the first step to becoming abundant, learning to live with less and buying those things that will generate rather than deteriorate. Whether that be, stocks, land from which one can grow food, seeds, a business, organic products (environmental sustainability), CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) shares, an animal that produces something or investments in community spaces. This alone will not create wealth, but it will reduce debt.
So, then how do we create financial abundance? The answer to this is simple and yet profound. We work together to achieve our needs. In our rural Costa Rican pueblo that means, whenever there is a need for something, lets say the road needs to be repaired (here the government isn’t responsible for fixing many of the roads), the community will throw a party, with a cover, provide entertainment, sell goods, take a long horse ride and all proceeds go toward the road. Everyone, from the elder grandma to the newborn baby are there, all supporting their community. Every town, village, and city in Costa Rica has a community center for events and this is where they hold their fund-raising functions. Survival of the most cooperative.
To take this to the next level and generate wealth, there is a business model that has been created for this. It is a model that not only provides anyone the opportunity to create wealth, it generates cooperation and group success, while, in some cases, deeply educating people about things that genuinely benefit their health. Too good to be true, it exists. Lets explore a bit more to get really clear. Above, we learned that the wealthy hire other people to get more work done, this way they can double, triple, quadruple their productivity. The down fall with hiring employees is that they are getting paid, not for their productivity, but rather on a wage. This can be dangerous for the employer, as if their employee isn’t very productive, the company can lose money. So, a solution is to pay an employee commission, i.e. for their productivity.
An example of this is the real estate industry, there are brokers who train agents, and both get paid a percentage of the house they sell. The broker, who has the experience or training, puts his time and energy into training an agent and they both benefit from the sale. If a broker wants to make more money, or increase his productivity, then that person will train another agent, the more agents that broker has the more money is made. The problem with this model is that one day one of the agents may decide that they want to earn more money and become a broker as well. Now that agent turned broker, who knows all the tricks of the person who trained them, becomes the original broker’s competition. This is not a cooperative model. What if that broker wanted to encourage the agent from day one to become a broker, and benefits from the agent becoming a broker, than we have created a cooperative situation that encourages each person to fulfill their highest potential.
Does this sound familiar? This is the structure of the Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) or Network Marketing industry. The vision that inspired this industry to exist was to generate abundance for the people who enjoy they products they use, by spending the marketing budget on the consumers rather than traditional methods. So, if MLM is so great, than why does it have such a bad reputation? This is a simple answer, it is because the people who market the products, often called distributors, have little training. Because the distributors are average people, who didn’t necessarily have a background in marketing, two unfortunate things tend to happen. One is that they get really enthusiastic and go out pressuring people and connecting with people for the sole purpose of selling them things and the other person feels cheapened by the experience. And two, is that they don’t know what to do, don’t feel capable or supported, buy the products with the vision of making money, but don’t activate their business and end up “loosing money,” they then become disenchanted and stop Network Marketing. Often, in a legitimate MLM, the person got something out of the experience, products, and if they value those products they really didn’t lose much money, but the hope for an income and that disappointment can make them feel that there was a loss.
Many people who had very little opportunity in the traditional business world have become wealthy from MLM. People, like you and me, who had good training, people skills, and determination have made millions of dollars while supporting the financial abundance of thousands of people. Communication is something that is learned, abundance stems from cooperation, and each person holds their destiny in their own hands by the choices they make throughout their lives. What choices will you make that will determine how you live and whether or not your community can generate abundance? Each of us is given the chance to be great, if we hear the call and act on that, we can achieve all our dreams, if we ignore it or tell ourselves we can not do it, than we will remain stuck in whatever blocks we have created in our lives. Make the change, however you can, you are powerful.
Alana Bliss.
Return to Educational Resources
Trackback uri
http://www.educationalreferences.com/education-articles/college-community-abundance/trackback/
7 Comments on College | Community Abundance »
April 19, 2011
Casey Forrest @ 6:55 pm:
It would be easier to comment if you actually had told us exactly what bill you were referring to – I don't remember Democrats ever being against subsidizing anything.
But really – there are no significant differences between the parties.
April 27, 2011
lindasbusiness @ 5:06 am:
Andrew-I agree with you…most of the negative about network marketing comes from people who don't know what it is, or who themselves did not succeed. The amazing thing is that right now, in the midst of this economy, many wonderful network marketing businesses are thriving because they give people a chance to fill the gap between income they don't have and income they need.
May 28, 2011
Susan Maphis @ 6:26 am:
Four stars.
For those struggling in today's economy, the promise of a career in network marketing might seem too good to be true. In his book, The Secrets to Succeeding in Network Marketing Offline and Online: How to Achieve Financial Success Selling Network Marketing Products & Services, Jonathan T. Street outlines the steps necessary for one to get into legitimate network marketing. He delineates the differences between pyramid schemes and true, legal network marketing in terms that the average person can understand.
Street notes that the dawn of the Internet has changed network marketing in staggering ways. “Network marketing and MLM (multi-level marketing) have their roots in the oldest type of sales, direct, face-to-face selling,” he says. “In fact, most business transactions throughout history have resulted from this type of selling.” That has changed due to the Internet, however. As Street describes, “The face-to-face aspect of network marketing has been replaced by screen-to-screen selling…Efficiency and targeted marketing has replaced the older methods of advertising in newspapers, flyers, by word of mouth, and through direct mailing programs.”
Street's book includes direct quotes from the General Counsel for the United States Federal
Trade Commission, Debra A. Valentine, describing the differences between legitimate network marketing and illegal pyramid, or Ponzi, schemes. She notes that, unlike Ponzi or pyramid schemes, network marketing or MLM have a real, valid product to sell. Street lists network marketing success stories, such as Amway and Mary Kay, and points out to the reader the qualifications necessary for success in network marketing, including the 70% rule, buy back policy, and 10 retail customer policy.
However, in the next part of Street's book, he gets into website building, domain names, and what seems like too much information for one book. It would have been better to make the first half of Street's book, on network marketing, the entire focus of this book, and leave the rest of the chapters concerning website building, domain names, self-publishing, and blogging, for another tome. In this way, there wouldn't be too much overwhelming information thrown at the reader.
All in all, Street's book is a detailed explanation of the ins and outs of network marketing. It could be improved, however, by breaking down the sections about how to use the Internet in one network marketing business into a book of its own.
June 13, 2011
Pascal Perry @ 3:26 am:
Dear Party,
Such a question should be better submitted in the section Homework Help at
Anyways, you're forgiven because here's my answer to it.
1. Direct marketing is continuing to become more ________ oriented.
> online (email + web)
2. Which of the following is NOT a reason that direct-mail marketing drives approximately one third of all U.S. direct marketing sales?
a. less expensive than TV and magazine ads
> b. high target market selectivity
c. ability to be personalized
d. measurable results
e. flexibility
3. What characteristic of niche sites makes the medium MOST appealing to marketers?
> Responsiveness, because segmentation drives better results, significantly, but needs more work from marketers
4. Neal Murphy sells his company's unique gift items on television programs broadcast on a channel that is entirely dedicated to selling goods and services. Neal is using ________.
> home shopping channel marketing
5. ABC Company sells directly to final consumers and avoids intermediaries, while catering to a broad group of demographic segments. This marketer falls under which online marketing domain
> business-to-consumers (B2C)
6. Which of the following is a factor that is likely to push a company to decide NOT to enter international markets?
a. The company's home market is stagnant.
> b. The company would have to redesign its products.
c. The company needs to counterattack international competitors in their home markets.
d. Foreign markets present higher profit opportunities.
e. Global competitors have offered similar products at lower prices.
RATIONALE: b) The company would have to redesign its products. Because it's a cost (that could be significant) that the company has to pay upfront to enter the market. a) and d) are favorable reasons to enter international market. c) could be perceived as an hindrance to enter other national markets, but of a lesser extent because the company in its own country is probably already competing with those competitors, so doing the same outside its national market doesn't really make any difference. e) is an stronger hindrance to entering other national markets, but not as much because products can be sold at slightly higher price since there's always a place for better quality products. Anyways, the company will still have the choice to adjust its prices to match competition.
7. Which of the following is a sociocultural factor that a company should consider before deciding to enter an international market?
a) political stability
b) population density
c) education
d) income distribution
> e) consumer lifestyles, beliefs, and values
RATIONALE: e) consumer lifestyles, beliefs, and values. First because this one is driven by or includes all the other factors. Second, it's the highest factor in the socialcultural scale.
8. An international company that takes a(n) ________ view takes into account the entire global supply chain and marketing channel, forging an effective global value delivery network.
> 360-degree view
9. Coca-Cola markets internationally by ________ bottlers around the world for a fee or royalty and then supplying them with the syrups needed to produce Coke products
> charging
10. To maximize the toothpaste market in China, Crest needs to convince more of the Chinese population to brush their teeth. Which of the following would Crest be most likely to use to accomplish this?
> (forgot to provide alternatives)
11. A long-standing charge against intermediaries is that they mark up prices beyond the ________.
> reasonable, acceptable
12. Large marketing companies can use patents and heavy promotion spending to ________.
> outshadow competitors and hamper new players from entering the market.
13. Environmentalists assert that the marketing system's goal should be to maximize ________.
> consciousness
14. Companies emphasizing ________ are developing "green marketing" programs that develop ecologically safer products, recyclable and biodegradable packaging, more energy-efficient operations, and better pollution controls.
> sustainability
15. The American Marketing Association (AMA) has created a code of ethics that includes all of the following ethical values EXCEPT which one?
a. honesty
b. fairness
> c. citizenship
d. competitiveness
e. responsibility
—Pascal Perry
Online Findability and SEO Strategist
August 13, 2011
marketing-blogs - Twitter Search @ 6:06 pm:
Lindt Chocolate RSVP Business Strategy That Even a New Lindt Chocolate RSVP Distributor Can Use –
August 21, 2011
CMass Stan @ 5:34 am:
You're on the right track.
Those out-of-market games listed on those alternate/overflow RSN channels not in your region are only viewable by purchasing either MLB Extra Innings for cable/satellite or MLB.TV for the internet.
So, for instance, I live in New England. I have DirecTV. I can see the alt channel for Comcast Sports Net Chicago for a Cubs game on my receiver's schedule page. However, I can watch the Cubs game only if I purchased MLB Extra Innings.
November 4, 2011
Bookmarklet @ 1:00 am:
Cool post – Network Marketing Success: Brian Fanale Is A Copywriting Machine