The First Month

So, we are one month in and we have experienced every emotion under the sun.  We jumped into this with the mindset that we would give it one year.  At the end of the year, we would evaluate our situation and go from there.

This month has included a range of thoughts and emotions including:

• Why in the world are we doing this?
• Self-doubt 
• Who do we think we are?
• Patience
• This sounds too good to be true!
• Excitement --- actually almost giddy 
• If others can do it, why not us?
• Frustration
• I'm not a salesperson so how am I going to make this work?
• I never thought I would be doing this!
• Faith
• Do I really have time for this?
• Can you really build a successful business working out of your home and via social networks?
• Self-confidence
• Etc, etc, etc...

And, in a short amount of time we have learned a few things:

• 82.4% of women in the US who make $100,000 or more do it in direct sales.
• Building a successful business is a marathon, not a sprint.
• More millionaires are made in this industry than any other business.
• Healthy skin makes us feel better.
• In this industry, most millionaires are made on the ground floor of new companies.
• Our individual networks are larger than we thought.
• The anti-aging skin care market is a $2.5 BILLION industry (WOW) and growing.
• More people do Direct Marketing than we thought.
• The buddy system, not only makes this easier, but also makes it fun.
• This industry isn't for everyone and that's a good thing, because if it was, the opportunity would be limited. 
• Social media networks are more powerful communication tools than we thought.

The most surprising thing about this adventure so far is the amazing relationships that are starting to develop.  The people in this organization are wonderful, and we have developed some awesome friendships in a short amount of time.  There are stay at home moms, executives, lawyers, teachers, scientists, college educated, high school educated, etc.  Many have replaced their salary and their spouses salary, but it isn't just about the money.  The people I've spoken with are truly happy, nice, ethical and inspirational.  

We still struggle with wrapping our head around the idea that you can be successful outside of Corporate America.  It really is a paradigm shift.  Can you really succeed without putting in 40-80 hours a week?   Can I really be myself and not worry about my HR file, the corporate culture, kissing up to my boss, etc.?  So far, the answer is yes.  But we have eleven more months to go...

Many of my colleagues are making six figures and some are making multiple six figures and they've done it in 6 months to 2 years.  This is mind boggling!!!  It took me seven years in Corporate America to break the six-figure mark, and it took more than time.  It took long hours, compromising time with my family, sleepless nights, a lot of ridiculous conversations, biting my tongue, fitting into a corporate culture, slow decision making, red tape, etc.  Again, we will see where we are in eleven more months but if others have done it, why can't we?

Also, we sold some product, our skin looks and feels amazing, built our team and made some money --- not a ton... but some is better than none.  We have to remember that we are building a business here.  Most businesses take awhile to get established, and our journey has just begun.  Again, it's a marathon, not a sprint.