Help me Gary, I am willing you will know the answer to Peter's questions. In my opinion, the need to ask the questions indicates little to no experience with MLMs. I will say this, in MLMs "earned" is a relative term because your earnings are often dependent upon the actions of other independent business owners. "Independent" is the operative word here. I assure you, what happened to me was not by my choice. Sheesh, as far as I know, I am still on the companies introduction video. I haven't looked in about a year. The money was not an invested money. I said earned. In this particular business, the invested money was about $500 not counting incidentals.

Hi David: ========================================== You have not loved and lost in an MLM. Those are not the shoes you have walked in. I have. ========================================== First of all, please know that this is not aimed at you directly, okay? I like who you are as a person - and when I saw your family photo, my respect for you grew a lot. I know what it takes to raise a big family, I come from one. One thing I have noticed is that people often develop a skewed perspective after a bad experience. A typical example is a woman whose come out of a bad marriage and hates men. F*ing men this, and f*ing men that. I came close to that. lol. Spending a few years in court battling my ex, his father and a male lawyer when all I wanted was what was mine so I could support my kid had me pretty close to hating males as a whole. But somehow, I realized that my dad and my 2 brothers could not be the "only" good males on earth. lol Then I met Peter, and realized a good man doesn't have to be related to me. lol. What's my point? I see people do this with MLM, too. They have a bad experience with MLM and become bitter to MLM, instead of specifically towards the people that contributed to their bad experience. I think walking away from money is walking away from money. MLM or not. And - for whatever it's worth - one of the companies I walked away from WAS MLM. I lost an income of about $1300 per month. C'est la vie. Even in saying all that - I judge no one. I do believe in the saying "judge not, lest ye be judged." No one leaves anyone or anything until they are ready to. It's like I said. My choice is (f) I walk away - and I only offer my thoughts when asked for them. Those that don't ask aren't ready for them. When the student is ready, the teacher appears. : ) Linda

Hi David, Please do not see this an attack on you I am just asking questions based upon your own words, so that there is a clarity to the points as they were made. What was the $30,000 to $100,000? Was that the promised money? If so then the reality here is that you walked away from $500 plus incidetals. I do understand that you were not referring to invested funds and my point was simply that if I earn any money in a program, I withdraw that money as my earnings. Just for clarity in answer to your point, the need to ask the questions indicates little to no experience with MLMs, that isn't true, I am sure that you realize I ask lots of questions, in order to get answers and to allow others that might be reading to follow along. I will borrow a phrase I think that Gary used before, "I don't have to jump into a Polar Bear pit to know I don't want to." I have done a fair bit of research and sat in on many MLM meetings, I posted that in a previous post. I have not invested in them no, that is true, but then on the other hand, I have not lost any money to them either, and more than likely never will. I also do understand that what happened to you was more than likely not by your choice, as I do understand the belly of the snake. The point that you make is made by many others that have felt the bite of the snake.

Linda, Working for an MLM and working in an MLM are not the same. If you will read earlier, I have already stated that I do not beleive al MLMs are bad. I do believe there are better ways to invest my time and money. Who is the teacher and who is the student? :-)

Hi Peter, Questions are fine. I understand. ================== What was the $30,000 to $100,000? Was that the promised money? If so then the reality here is that you walked away from $500 plus incidetals. ================== Now we are getting to the heart of the difference in my opinion between MLMs and standard business practices, the PROMISES. MLMs sell the promise more than the reality. In my case, the money is there, it is in escrow. I earned it, at least 66% of it. It is a binary. One leg took off. The other even after 100 people would not fire. All it will take to get that money out of "escrow" is one person to take off. ================= Just for clarity in answer to your point, the need to ask the questions indicates little to no experience with MLMs, that isn't true, I am sure that you realize I ask lots of questions, in order to get answers and to allow others that might be reading to follow along. I will borrow a phrase I think that Gary used before, "I don't have to jump into a Polar Bear pit to know I don't want to." ================= The first of this paragraph and the end seem to contradict. Studying MLMs and living MLMs are two different things. I have helped start up MLM companies. I have programmed MLM back ends. I have worked MLMs. Until you have actually worked it, you will never know what it is like. ================ The point that you make is made by many others that have felt the bite of the snake. ================ Nice analogy. For some it is not a snake. Those that have had it work call it the goose that laid the golden egg.