REVIEWS AND RECOMMENDS

Dare to Dream and Work to Win

Understanding the Dollars and Sense of Success in Network Marketing

 By Tom Barrett

Dare to Dream is a great book-- one of the best Network Marketing how-to books I've read in a while, in fact, and definitely the best how-to I've come across for helping traditional-professionals-turned-Networkers make the adjustment. With two masters degrees and a Ph.D. in psychology, Tom Barrett can hold his own with any professional reader you may refer to this book. While the intellectually insecure tend to brashly dismiss the achievement implicit in such advanced degrees, Barrett's book brings the ignorance of the "piled higher and deeper" assertion into sharp relief. Dare to Dream offers the subtleties of observation, clarity, insights and delivery that few without such a commitment to learning can provide.

I recommend this book for committed beginners with a reasonable attention span; those who have been building for a while (a year or more) but are not yet seeing the results they expected; and leaders who may be forgetting what it's like to be a beginner and as a result are having trouble relating to those still struggling. Barrett builds a rapport with the reader right away by recalling his own doubts about his decision to get involved in Network Marketing, while speaking from the perspective of sticking with it and succeeding. He presents the business in its simplest, truest form (warning against the arrogant instinct some professionals suffer from to "reinvent the wheel"), while addressing the very real psychological issues of the business in fluff-free terms. The final chapter, "The Power of Leadership in Network Marketing," is one that even established leaders will learn from and be challenged by.

Dare to Dream is a book you'll return to again and again, and probably get addicted to sharing with others. Definitely on my industry Top 10 list.

-- UO

Available through Upline.

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Unstoppable

By Cynthia Kersey

Network Marketing is an industry of stories: triumph in the face of adversity; tenacity winning out over myriad setbacks; rags to riches. Unstoppable offers personal development via a collection of moving, inspiring accounts of real people. Each story supports a character lesson for success. By the end of the book, you will have met powerful people while becoming one of them yourself.

Since "purpose ignites the spirit," read how single ideas have unleashed the forces of creativity and commitment. Then do the end-of-the-chapter exercises to define your own passion and purpose. You may surprise yourself.

A passion-fired spirit brings energy with it. Challenges will fuel your determination instead of exhausting you. Just look at Stephen J. Cannell, who overcame a learning disability and years of education-system failure through his passion for story-telling. If you've watched his television shows (from Adam 12 to The Rockford Files to The Commish) and wondered how he has kept the ideas flowing for over 30 years, now you can read the answer. Then you can apply it to your own life through the Energizing Your Passion exercise that follows Stephen's story.

Through the ups and downs, "belief sustains the journey." You know that Network Marketing is your ticket up from debt and time frustrations. Can anything stop you when your belief is in place? Hardly! You draw energy for the next phone call from the knowledge that leaders are out there waiting to hear from you. Unstoppable tells of others who did the same thing-- achieving what they knew was possible instead of listening to limitations. Their tales make a great pick-me-up read any time you feel a bit less than bullet-proof.

In a very short time of delightful reading and thoughtful exercises, you can build a foundation of preparation for your business, establish a strong Networking team, and persevere in tapping your unconscious resources. -- TH

 

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Rediscovering American Values

 By Dick DeVos

Even if it wasn't your introduction to the Network Marketing industry, most of you have heard of the company which goes with the DeVos name-- Amway. The author, son of company co-founder Rich DeVos, seeks to share the values he learned from his father, values both men claim are fundamental for business and personal success.

DeVos lists a range of characteristics under each of three sections: Upholding Freedom, Becoming Free, and Preserving Freedom. He views the sections and values as interlocking, each vital to the others. If you are not fair (Value 3) and honest (Value 1), how can you be reliable (Value 2)? DeVos sees reliability as honesty in action, and his prime example is Cal Ripken, Jr. By giving his best, his honest effort, to show up and play well for every game, Ripken established himself as reliable. In Rediscovering American Values terms, that's fair to the fans who paid to see the players play baseball, so it's part of doing what is right, key to Upholding Freedom.

The next step, Becoming Free ("Doing What We Want as Long as It's the Right Thing to Do") involves optimism, commitment, work, and cooperation. All are part of being self-reliant-- free from dependence on others. Note that cooperation with others is still in the mix; we are not isolated from relationships or people. DeVos argues that optimism is taking a clear-eyed view of what can and cannot be changed in one's life. From there, a self-reliant person puts all his or her fair, reliable, compassionate commitment into perseverance and work on the former without worrying about the latter.

By far the most Networking-values section, however, is Preserving Freedom: Helping Others to Do the Same. Sounds like duplication! Education, service, and leadership fall into this section, along with mentorship and encouragement. He concludes with an America-as-promised-land paean to freedom and prosperity for all which sounds like a broader variation on the theme of Networking as economic salvation.

Rediscovering American Values is an easy read wrapped around ideals DeVos would like to see spread as far as the Amway empire. -- TH

 

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Tracking My Business Profit

By TRW Consulting Services

The financial details of running a home based business can be very confusing for people who are new entrepreneurs. Tom Willett, of TRW Consulting Services, specializes in untangling the mistakes novice Networkers make, so he put together Tracking My Business Profit, a workbook for beginning entrepreneurs.

Although it opens with written instruction on the five points of "Starting Right," from Open a Business Checking Account to Prepare Monthly Profit and Loss Statements, the great value of this booklet lies in the examples and forms. Willett shows how to do what he advises, from filling out tax forms (and he tells you which ones you need) to regularly tracking income and expenses.

Once he has explained which forms to complete with which information, Willett provides a series of blank forms. Everything-- from explanation to sample to practice sheets-- is bound into one thin book. Beginners, who may be struggling with move from pay stubs and Form W-2, can take comfort in the thorough explanations and step-by-step financial forms. Seasoned Networkers will find it useful in simplifying their new-representative training. -- TH

Available through TRW Consulting Services: www.trwconsulting.com; e-mail: trw@jadeinc.com

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