I’ve been thinking about this concept for a while, wondering if I should do an individual blog for it, or if I should merge it into my existing blog. However, knowing what it takes to run a blog, I immediately resorted to only focusing on one place to manage blog posts, so voila, it’s finally here!
Ever since I’ve returned to the industry back in March, I’ve been pretty slack on my internet routine, and honestly haven’t blogged since I joined my existing business. Like the saying goes, once a blogger, always a blogger so I knew I needed to stop dwelling over blog posts that I wished I could write, and simply just write!
The Journey
Getting back into this industry has been an exciting experience, which shocks the crap out of me! You see, I had said I would NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER EVER EVER (did I say EVER), get back into this industry again, but little did I know, God would have alternative plans.
Once I said yes, I was filled with so many emotions. Fear, Anxiety, Excitement, Restlessness, Anticipation…… I ran the gamut of emotions throughout the time that I considered getting involved, to the point where I couldn’t sleep for 2 weeks!
Honestly, I had so many different voices in my head saying so many different things, that I was utterly confused on what I wanted to do and I literally didn’t sleep, tossing and turning about making a decision.
Obviously, I finally said yes and it has been a refreshing journey thus far!
That lack of sleep quickly shifted from worry and anxiety to excitement….
To date, I’m nearly 5 months in, and here’s a bit of a reflection that I’ve discovered thus far:
Reflections
“Do what’s best for you!”
During the process of making a decision to re-enter the industry, I shared it with a few people and honestly, it wasn’t all a good experience. I had people tell me “you’re going to ruin your brand”, “I think you’re making a big mistake”, “If you join that company, I won’t respect you!”….
Really???
So tell me when you can cut those checks to cover my bills….
You see, everyone will tend to think they know what’s best for you. And honestly, their advice and insight might be extremely profound. But the reality is, God has a way of taking a situation that looks useless, and turning it into a major blessing in your life.
I can’t lie, I thought the industry of Network Marketing was dead. I talked ill of the industry, made fun of the reps who toted their products around to hotel meetings and home parties, begging others to buy their stuff and I spoke down about the industry all as a whole.
However, the truth was, I was hurt, broken, bitter and clueless about the true power of this industry and how it’s able to help so many people. Yes it’s true, some people never earn a penny, and yes, some people I’ve spoken with have even gotten financially burned in this industry. But my personal experience honestly, has revealed enough greatness about what the industry can do for you as a person in the area of personal development, that I truly do realize and recognize the level of growth that individuals are able to encounter as a result of being plugged in to the world of Network Marketing.
That’s exactly what has happened for me as a result of saying YES, one more time… (and know this isn’t a sales pitch)…
Putting all company content, promo and info aside, I truly do realize that this season back into the industry was an opportunity for God to show me where I’m lacking, and areas of growth that I need to develop in.
There’s a list of areas I can talk about that I’ve personally been forced to grow in, but with this current list already being long, I’ll save that for another blog posts titled “10 Lessons I’ve Learned, Since Coming out of MLM Retirement” (or something like that… so stay tuned!).
Lesson Learned: People will always have opinions about what you should and should not do. At the end of the day, YOU MUST LEARN TO HEAR YOUR VOICE OVER THEIRS… because this is your life and you have to face the consequences for the decisions you make so don’t let their opinions cost you your peace! It’s not worth it… and P.S. Their not sacrificing their life for your opinion over their decisions… (enough said)
“Never say Never…. don’t let the E.G.O. win!”
It’s funny how we get pissed at something, quit it and say “I’m never doing that again!”…. Well, I can’t say I was pissed when I last quit MLM, but I can say I was seriously burned out!
I had tons of money still coming in, and I actually lived off that income for about 4 years before I finally stopped my autoship (so that goes to show, it can truly pay to build an MLM cause you truly can live off the residuals if you build it successfully, for quite some time)….
Back to the point…. I was burned out and in my mind, I was done!
I was also building a lot of success online and was willing to shift all my focus to Internet Marketing with the goal of building my income up to match my Network Marketing income.
Truth is… in just a year or so, I was able to do so, and I don’t regret shifting gears one bit.
BUT…. I never thought I’d get back in the industry again. The very thing that drove me to retire from MLM, also drove me to say YES to Network Marketing once again… that ugly demon is called “BURN OUT”.
I’ve discovered that we can get burned out in every area of our lives, parenting, marriage, work, entrepreneurship… ANYTHING! And in those moments, we are done. We are fed up. And we begin using that 5 letter word that feeds our ego…. “NEVER”…
I let that word into my life many times, but I also have eaten it for breakfast, lunch and dinner on many occasions.
In the end, I’m glad I didn’t let it do so this go round because I realize that this shift was more about me growing as a person, rather than a title I accomplish in any business. It was an opportunity for God to put me in a position of humility where I had to be open for a change, to receive whatever I needed to grow beyond this season in my life!
Lesson Learned: Don’t let your EGO cause you to miss out on an opportunity designed to position you for your next level of success!
P.S. EGO stands for Edging God Out so next time your EGO tries to stop you from taking action, do what you can to kill it off because it can be blocking the blessings that God has for you!
To Be Continued!
AS you can see, I have a lot to say… but I realize I can only keep your attention for so long before I lose you and you’re off searching facebook, periscope, instagram and youtube… so listen up, I’m adding a part 2 to this to speak more in detail about this amazing journey!
I have so much that I want to share about “The Network Marketers Journey” and I’m committed to blogging at least once per week to share insight on what I’m learning along the way, so Stay tuned for Part 2 and I’ll chat with you soon!