Is Network Marketing (aka Multi Level Marketing or MLM) The Right Business For You?

Look folks, you don’t need me to tell you how bad the general economy is today. My heart breaks for anyone who faces uncertain times as a result of our crumbling corporate structure. I really believe this is a pivotal time in our history. A time where many people will turn to the home based business industry as a means of taking control of their own financial future. You may be wondering if starting a business of your own is the right move to make. This article is the third in a series which addresses network marketing as a home based business option.

Before we dig into whether or not a network marketing business is right for you, the broader and far more important question that needs to be answered first is this: is entrepreneurialism right for you? Not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur. Building a business from the ground up requires a skill set not typically found in the average employee. You have to ask yourself if you’re ready to rely upon yourself for all of life’s necessities. Do you NEED the security of a paycheck? Are you ready to take on the responsibility of providing healthcare for yourself and family? Are you stuck on having your two weeks of paid vacation a year plus a fistful of paid sick days? If answering these questions made you at all uncomfortable then chances are good that the “risks” inherent in entrepreneurialism are probably more than you can bear.

You have to be living under a rock today to not see the horrid state our economy is in. So many companies are going out of business, thousands of people are losing their jobs and entire retirement nest eggs are being wiped out. A true entrepreneur recognizes that the real risk is in working for someone else and being beholden to a paycheck. They understand that the potential rewards far outweigh putting their financial wellbeing into somebody else’s hands.

So, where do you fall? Do you need that monkey trap known as a J.O.B. or do you have a bigger vision and a bigger goal for yourself? I really think that there are many people today who are going through a fundamental shift in their thinking. These folks are realizing that this is a new world we live in; one that requires self-reliance to achieve the good life. Most people will resist this new shift in thinking and will keep themselves stuck on a paycheck. You see, most people are wired to just survive whereas a true entrepreneur wants to thrive. And, I really believe that today’s economic fallout will result in a wave of new, home based business owners who understand the shift we’re going through.

The remainder of this article will make the assumption that you have the entrepreneurial spirit to thrive, not the employee mentality to merely survive. So let’s then answer the question of whether or not network marketing is the right business for you.

First of all, network marketing will afford you the opportunity of building a leveraged income business. What this means is that you’ll be building a business that will pay you whether or not you’re actively involved in the day to day operations. For example, a typical employee trades their time doing a J.O.B. in exchange for a paycheck. Once they stop producing for their boss, the paycheck stops. A network marketing entrepreneur works towards leveraged income so even when they stop producing, the checks continue to roll in because they’ve built a business organization. The great John Paul Getty said it like this: I would rather get paid 1% each on the effort of 100 people rather than get paid for 100% of my own effort.

There are many attractive aspects of operating a network marketing business. I’ll touch on only a few of them here. Firstly, you can get into business for a pretty modest initial investment. Yes, this is a business and yes, all businesses require an initial investment of some kind.

This is a business that can easily be operated from a home office. No fancy overhead or high profile location is required.

One of the scariest things an entrepreneur will face is having to go something alone. In network marketing, you’ll receive a tremendous amount of support to help you succeed. Your network marketing colleagues are ready, willing and able to assist your efforts. This is a pure “people helping people” business.

And of course there’s the freedom which having leveraged income can provide. Just think about how sweet life would be if you had the time and money you need to do the things you want to do when you want to do them.

There is much more I’d like to give you as food for thought in deciding on whether or not a network marketing business is right for you but will have to save it for the next article.

This is the third in a series of articles on the MLM / social marketing / network marketing industry. In the next article I’ll give you some additional self examination steps to go through to help you determine if multi level marketing is right for you. If you’d like to ensure that you don’t miss out on any installments in this series, I’d be happy to send past and future articles directly to you. Just shoot me an email and I’ll include you on my direct distribution list.