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Speaker 1: Welcome to How the Money. I'm Joel and I and Matt,

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Speaker 1: and today we're discussing the broken promises of m l

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Speaker 1: m s, the broken promises of multi level marketing companies. Joel,

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Speaker 1: I feel like that's the perfect name for this episode, because,

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Speaker 1: like we're going to talk about, not all MLMs are bad,

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Speaker 1: you know, like there there definitely are some that are

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Speaker 1: more pyramid scheme ish, but there are also some companies

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Speaker 1: that are pretty legit companies that we've heard of. But

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Speaker 1: what's often the cases that there are a lot of

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Speaker 1: promises made, a lot of you know, people get their

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Speaker 1: hopes up and they think they're going to be able

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Speaker 1: to achieve something that they aren't actually able to achieve.

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Speaker 1: Those are the broken promises. And so that's why we

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Speaker 1: wanted to dedicate an entire episode two MLM's because pause

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Speaker 1: of those broken promises. Yeah, there's a lot to talk

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Speaker 1: about here, that's for sure. And like you said, like

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Speaker 1: some of these companies, some people make money selling product

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Speaker 1: for multi level marketing company, but most people don't. Most

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Speaker 1: people experience the ill effects the the broken promise side

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Speaker 1: of mlm s. And so yeah, we got a lot

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Speaker 1: to talk about today on the show, Matt. Yeah, real

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Speaker 1: quick though, before we get started, I wanted to to

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Speaker 1: share a quick little tip for folks, especially as individuals

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Speaker 1: are working from home more these days. I can't remember

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Speaker 1: if we've talked about this on the show, but have

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Speaker 1: we talked about my noise dot nets? I don't think

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Speaker 1: that's like, so this is the site where I like

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Speaker 1: Matt's noise dot net or my personal noise, But this

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Speaker 1: is a site. This is a tab I keep open

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Speaker 1: all my browser seven like. I use it every single day,

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Speaker 1: and it is a white noise generator. And actually a

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Speaker 1: listener can't remember their name, but someone wrote in and

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Speaker 1: they shared the site with us because we were talking about,

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Speaker 1: you know, finding ways to to keep from being distracted

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Speaker 1: while we're working at home. And here's why I love

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Speaker 1: this one specifically so much, man uh. Specifically, they have

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Speaker 1: this one sound it's called Irish Coast and it has

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Speaker 1: all these different sliders where you can adjust the different

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Speaker 1: sounds on the Irish Coast, so you can adjust the

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Speaker 1: amount of like wind noise, the babbling little water bagpipe rain. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: there's no bagpipe. I guess i'd be the Scottish coast.

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Speaker 1: Maybe that's true. But the Irish Coast made It's so

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Speaker 1: stinking good, and I kind of realized how dependent on

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Speaker 1: it I've become. It's just become so much a part

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Speaker 1: of my day. You know, even when you're down here

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Speaker 1: and we're both working, I just pop them in sometimes,

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Speaker 1: but I don't want to hear you over there, like

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Speaker 1: tapping on your keyboard, you know, double clicking with your

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Speaker 1: mouse tap loudly. I'm sorry about that. I realized that

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Speaker 1: any of those sounds can distract me, and so I

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Speaker 1: don't I wanted to share this with our listeners if

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Speaker 1: they are having a tough time focusing while they're working

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Speaker 1: at home. So you might be able to block out

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Speaker 1: my sounds, but can you block out the faces I'm

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Speaker 1: making at you from across the room. That's why we

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Speaker 1: have a solid partition up between us. That's what you're

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Speaker 1: gonna build next, I'm sure, said the office we're shunning

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Speaker 1: up created barrier exactly. Sometimes it's necessary for me, I'm

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Speaker 1: you know, I get excited and I just want to

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Speaker 1: say hi, yeah, yeah. I wanted to mention that for

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Speaker 1: our listeners. There's this other one I actually discovered two

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Speaker 1: It's called uh seven forty seven I found this one

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Speaker 1: on Amazon Music. You and I we both love Amazon Music.

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Speaker 1: And if you if you google seven forty seven White Noise,

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Speaker 1: it'll pull up this track and you can put it

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Speaker 1: on repeat on loop. It sounds just like you're sitting

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Speaker 1: on an airplane, like flying to the West Coast, you know,

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Speaker 1: or vice versa. That would put me to sleep. That's

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Speaker 1: the problem with some of those. Really. I like how

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Speaker 1: it helps some people and and hopefully some people out

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Speaker 1: there will you listen to your Irish Coast noise and

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Speaker 1: it'll help them be more productive. For me, it would

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Speaker 1: make me want to take a nap. I would I

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Speaker 1: would need to be drinking like some coffee while I'm

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Speaker 1: listening to that and working, because yeah, I would just

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Speaker 1: kind of want to lay down on my keyboard and

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Speaker 1: zonc out for a little bit. I will say, if

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Speaker 1: I had a weighted blanket, you know, I could do

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Speaker 1: the seven forty seven with a weighted blanket for the

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Speaker 1: first fifteen minutes. Because for me, anytime I get on

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Speaker 1: a plane, I always take that that quick power nap

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Speaker 1: at the very beginning, like when you take off, because

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Speaker 1: when you during lifts off, you feel that increased weight

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Speaker 1: and something about that's for me, it's super comforting. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: I pass out during take off and then about fifteen

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Speaker 1: minutes later I always wake up. But but in the

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Speaker 1: same way, I think there's a lot of folks who,

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Speaker 1: you know, when they hear that sound of the seven

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Speaker 1: forty seven jets kind of roaring in the background, it

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Speaker 1: kind of puts them in that business state of mind.

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Speaker 1: A lot of people actually aren't on planes these days,

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Speaker 1: so they might even kind of miss that sound, you know.

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Speaker 1: Good point. Yeah, we'll link to both of those in

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Speaker 1: our show notes, by the way. Alright, cool, cool, alright, Well,

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Speaker 1: let's get onto the beer that we're having on the

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Speaker 1: show today, Matt. This one's called Double Up and it's

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Speaker 1: a West Coast I p a by Monday Night Brewing

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Speaker 1: in conjunction with Cascade Brewing, one of our favorite breweries

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Speaker 1: on the West Coast. Speaking of West Coast, East Coast, exactly.

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Speaker 1: A nice little team up there on this one. We'll

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Speaker 1: give our thoughts on this particular beer at the end

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Speaker 1: of the episode, but for now, Matt, one of the

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Speaker 1: subject at hand. We're talking about the broken promises of

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Speaker 1: MLMs of multi level marketing companies not too long ago, Matt.

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Speaker 1: We had an interesting chat with Ben Carlson about his

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Speaker 1: book on the history of scams, and I feel like

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Speaker 1: he shared some really fascinating stories of some really crazy

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Speaker 1: scams that have happened in the history of our country.

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Speaker 1: But but those rip offs aren't necessarily confined to prior decades.

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Speaker 1: We're seeing a lot of like scams and and pyramid

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Speaker 1: schemes proliferating now, and multi level marketing companies are actually

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Speaker 1: like praying on people, I would say, in more severe

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Speaker 1: ways right now, which means that people are often losing

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Speaker 1: money they can't afford to lose because of a nifty

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Speaker 1: pitch that sounds pretty great, And I feel like the

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Speaker 1: people that are most at risk of signing up to

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Speaker 1: to sell something for an MLM company are the people

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Speaker 1: who oftentimes are financially suffering. Maybe they've lost a job,

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Speaker 1: they've been furloughed, they're looking for ways to make extra income,

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Speaker 1: and the MLM pitch comes along, and it's like, that

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Speaker 1: sounds really nice. Maybe I can make some side income.

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Speaker 1: Maybe signing up and selling stuff for this MLM company

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Speaker 1: can actually help me with with some of the missing

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Speaker 1: income from losing my job. Might even say, oh, this

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Speaker 1: is a blessing in disguise. Now I can pursue my

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Speaker 1: MLM dreams building my own business, right, yeah, exactly. And

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Speaker 1: pyramid schemes they've always been bad. They're actually they're illegal, right.

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Speaker 1: But at the same time, there are legitimate mL ms

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Speaker 1: out there, but a lot of these end up taking

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Speaker 1: a lot of your time and money and never actually

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Speaker 1: giving people any sort of real income in return. Mat

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Speaker 1: I think the most fascinating stat that I've ever read

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Speaker 1: about MLMs, the FTC, the Federal Trade Commission, actually reports

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Speaker 1: that less than one percent of MLM participants actually end

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Speaker 1: up making money. And I feel like that says it

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Speaker 1: all right there. If you're looking for the needle in

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Speaker 1: a haystack, if you think you're the only one that

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Speaker 1: can make money in an MLM, maybe it's true, but

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Speaker 1: the chances, the statistics point to the fact that it's highly,

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Speaker 1: highly unlikely. Dang dude. So if anybody is going to

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Speaker 1: turn off the podcast, now you know, don't do that,

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Speaker 1: But do know that you need to be in the

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Speaker 1: one percent if you're gonna you know, make any money

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Speaker 1: at all. Enjoy Like you mentioned, you know, these are

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Speaker 1: companies that we're dealing with now, you know, like we're

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Speaker 1: not just talking about companies from the fifties, you know,

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Speaker 1: like Tupperware back when they used to have their Tupperware parties.

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Speaker 1: A lot of us have have had that pitch from

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Speaker 1: my friend or even you know, a pitch on social

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Speaker 1: media from someone we haven't talked to in years. There

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Speaker 1: has been a recent resurgence of influencers pushing MLMs in

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Speaker 1: a sense they've kind of modernized, you know, along with

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Speaker 1: the technology that we have today. And you also mentioned

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Speaker 1: as well that another reason that we are seeing these

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Speaker 1: on the rise is because people are in more desperate times.

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Speaker 1: You know, when you have lost your job or you're

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Speaker 1: earning a lot less than used to, you're looking for

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Speaker 1: any way to to make additional income. You're looking for

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Speaker 1: ways to replace your income. And if you get an email,

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Speaker 1: you know, saying that hey, if you you know, pitching

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Speaker 1: some money to do this thing, or send this email

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Speaker 1: or send this letter to a bunch of other people,

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Speaker 1: that kind of get your hopes up. And so it's

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Speaker 1: no wonder we've seen the spread. And so that's one

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Speaker 1: of the ways we've seen MLMs grow due to the pandemic.

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Speaker 1: But there have also been false health claims that different

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Speaker 1: companies have made the FDC. They also stand out some

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Speaker 1: letters in April to to tend different MLM companies that

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Speaker 1: were making false claims in regards to how their products

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Speaker 1: were going to protect people against the coronavirus. Right, And

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Speaker 1: so not only is it false statements against how individuals

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Speaker 1: might be able to earn a bunch of money, but

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Speaker 1: they're taking advantage of people when it comes through this

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Speaker 1: health crisis as well. And unfortunately a lot of the

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Speaker 1: folks who we're seeing taken in by these MLM are women.

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Speaker 1: Many MLMs are based around women's clothing and beauty products,

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Speaker 1: you know. And this isn't to say that men don't

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Speaker 1: also lose money through MLM involvements. Pretty Much everyone who

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Speaker 1: is involved in MLM is losing money. And just like

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Speaker 1: you said, one percent of folks are the ones who

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Speaker 1: are making money. That means of individuals who are involved

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Speaker 1: are losing money. And that doesn't even include the amount

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Speaker 1: of time that they're putting towards us as well, just

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Speaker 1: the money. Yeah, and all the extra Lulu Roe pants

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Speaker 1: that are left over in the garage after the fact too. Right,

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Speaker 1: So let's talk about kind of the definitions, But what

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Speaker 1: constitutes an m l M versus a pyramid scheme, because

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Speaker 1: we're gonna kind of be talking about both in this episode.

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Speaker 1: M l M s are our organizations that are focused

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Speaker 1: on selling a legitimate product, but pyramid schemes are actually

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Speaker 1: solely focused on recruiting other members. And so MLMs and

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Speaker 1: pyramid schemes they've got a lot in common. It's actually

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Speaker 1: kind of hard to tell them apart, especially you know,

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Speaker 1: on on their face. So when you're beating pitched something

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Speaker 1: by a friend or a family member or uh, somebody

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Speaker 1: that you used to know back in the day, and

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Speaker 1: they've sent you a Facebook message, it's really hard to

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Speaker 1: know what you're getting into. Are you getting into business

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Speaker 1: with a company that is selling legitimate products or are

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Speaker 1: you getting into a system that forces you to actually

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Speaker 1: recruit more people in order to make the majority of

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Speaker 1: your earnings. And if that's the case, you're involved in

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Speaker 1: a pyramid scheme. And and that's because recruiting in in

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Speaker 1: many of these systems is actually how the big money

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Speaker 1: is made. You might be able to make a little

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Speaker 1: bit of money if you work really really hard selling

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Speaker 1: the product, but you're gonna make way more by recruiting

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Speaker 1: more people to be underneath you, to start paying fees,

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Speaker 1: and to start buying more product. It's important to know

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Speaker 1: that that it's just incredibly hard to tell the difference

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Speaker 1: when you're receiving that pitch. And that's why, you know,

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Speaker 1: we're not fans of either. Obviously, pyramid schemes are illegal,

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Speaker 1: but MLMs are close enough for the most part that

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Speaker 1: we think it's a bad idea to participate in m

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Speaker 1: l m s pretty much altogether too. And so maybe

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Speaker 1: a good question for us to answer, right, uh, is

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Speaker 1: why do people participate in these MLMs. There are some

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Speaker 1: benefits and promises that MLMs make do make them attractive,

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Speaker 1: and one of the biggest promises is huge returns with

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Speaker 1: minimal efforts. I'm a big fan of minimal effort, you know,

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Speaker 1: Like what's more enticing than that just doing nothing and

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Speaker 1: perceiving a lot of money. You know, I'd be all

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Speaker 1: about doing that if if I could. But there was

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Speaker 1: a recent thread in our Facebook group and listener Jill

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Speaker 1: she mentioned that it has been quote seriously, blood, sweat

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Speaker 1: and tears unquote to make an average of two thousand

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Speaker 1: dollars a month. You know, like that's what you don't

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Speaker 1: hear in these different presentations, these these pitches, these videos

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Speaker 1: are are in a chat that you have with a

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Speaker 1: friend who is trying to get you involved. You know,

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Speaker 1: imagine if Jill had taken the standard approach and just

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Speaker 1: tossed up some social media posts, you know, she wouldn't

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Speaker 1: be making any money, which is the case for the

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Speaker 1: vast majority of MLM participants, and she'd probably be in

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Speaker 1: debt too, because typically you gotta buy the stuff up

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Speaker 1: front in hopes that you're gonna sell it right and

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Speaker 1: hopes that you're gonna make some sales and start generating

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Speaker 1: that business, when many people don't exactly. Yeah, that's one

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Speaker 1: of the red flags to look out for. So you know,

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Speaker 1: we're gonna get into a little MLM history and we're

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Speaker 1: gonna cover some of the specific ones to watch out for,

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Speaker 1: and then later on we're we're going to discuss alternatives

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Speaker 1: to m l m's and we'll get to all of

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Speaker 1: that right after the break. All right, Matt, we're back

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Speaker 1: from the break. And I think anybody that's been listening

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Speaker 1: so far can tell that you and I were not

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Speaker 1: a big fans of MLM. We're not, uh and It's

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Speaker 1: something that kind of keeps coming in my mind when

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Speaker 1: I think about MLMs and pyramid schemes. You've seen Garden State,

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Speaker 1: of course, remember that one. It's been a long time,

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Speaker 1: a long time ago, but you know that scene where

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Speaker 1: they go in the store and they see like an

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Speaker 1: old friend from high school and he's like, hey, I

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Speaker 1: would like to talk to you both about a great

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Speaker 1: opportunity you and your loved ones. That's when you run

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Speaker 1: away or when someone says you're a naturally energetic person,

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Speaker 1: I feel like you do great in this small business

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Speaker 1: that I'm a part of, Like I'd love to talk

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Speaker 1: to you about these opportunities available to us. That's when

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Speaker 1: you know you're getting pitched right exactly. And and I

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Speaker 1: can anybody make money in an MLM? Sure, Like I

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Speaker 1: think a small, small, probably one percent of people can

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Speaker 1: make money in an MLM, And especially if you have

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Speaker 1: kind of some natural tendencies, if you've always been a

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Speaker 1: good salesperson or just naturally great at starting up conversations

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Speaker 1: with strangers, you can potentially make money in an MLM.

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Speaker 1: Even if that's the case, though, there's still a lot

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Speaker 1: of downsides too to watch out for, and some things

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Speaker 1: to be wary of before you decide to go the

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Speaker 1: route of an MLM as opposed to a traditional business,

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Speaker 1: because those skills can make you money inside of a

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Speaker 1: traditional job. With those skills in m l M isn't

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Speaker 1: necessarily going to make you more money than you can

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Speaker 1: make elsewhere. But Matt, let's talk about the history of

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Speaker 1: m l m s, and let's talk about some of

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Speaker 1: the more predominant ones that people might hear about or

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Speaker 1: might be asked to join. Maybe right now, all right,

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Speaker 1: time for a little history. Man. You mentioned Ben Carlson

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Speaker 1: at the beginning of the episode our interview with him

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Speaker 1: a few weeks ago. He called Charles Ponzi the godfather

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Speaker 1: of the financial scams genre. In the Ponzi scheme and

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Speaker 1: in pyramid schemes today are incredibly similar. About a hundred

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Speaker 1: years ago, he promised returns on your money in ninety

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Speaker 1: days by investing in foreign stamps. That sounds kind of weird,

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Speaker 1: but you know this was the early nine hundreds, uh,

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Speaker 1: and it was a different time back then. If someone

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Speaker 1: were to pitch me something saying I was gonna make

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Speaker 1: lots of money on postage stamps right now, I look

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Speaker 1: at him like they were crazy because they probably would be,

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Speaker 1: but people believed them, you know. Uh, And ultimately people

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Speaker 1: send him millions of dollars based on these promises alone.

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Speaker 1: And you know what getting involved in that. That scheme

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Speaker 1: of his was open to everyone. He didn't discriminate. Rich

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Speaker 1: politicians and poor immigrants alike lost their money. The Boston

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Speaker 1: Post ended up running the math and they uncovered the

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Speaker 1: impossibility of his claims. And so that's how pyramid schemes

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Speaker 1: got started and how they happened today. Uh, someone promises

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Speaker 1: incredible and impossible returns to unsuspecting victims, and they almost

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Speaker 1: always spend the money to build up their own lavish lifestyle.

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Speaker 1: You know, we're talking about yachts, sports cars, fancy trips,

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Speaker 1: that kind of stuff. Ponzi was no different. You know,

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Speaker 1: he bought a main and as well as the fanciest

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Speaker 1: car of this day. So just because Ponzi was a scam,

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Speaker 1: owners doesn't mean that all MLM offerings are scams. Though.

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Speaker 1: So let's make sure we discuss some of the you know,

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Speaker 1: more popular MLMs that are actually you know, kind of

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Speaker 1: legitimate businesses. Lets do it, yeah, Um and Matt, there

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Speaker 1: are certainly a few that people are familiar with. Although

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Speaker 1: before we get to kind of some of the more

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Speaker 1: popular ones, there's kind of like a scheme playing on

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Speaker 1: some of these principles that's going around right now that

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Speaker 1: people seem to be falling forward. It's called the Susu method.

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Speaker 1: And sometimes the Susu is done with friends or family,

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Speaker 1: and it can be if it's done in a particular way,

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Speaker 1: just kind of this forced method of savings. But it's

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Speaker 1: an odd way to do it. It's where people pull

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Speaker 1: their money and a different group member receives that payout

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Speaker 1: each month. Even when you're doing that with trusted friends

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Speaker 1: and family, I don't think it's a good way to

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Speaker 1: do things. I think there are better ways to save

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Speaker 1: your money. You don't have to pull it trusting that

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Speaker 1: that money is going to come back to you at

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Speaker 1: a future date. Right. But just like so many other MLMs,

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Speaker 1: people are using personal relationships to exploit others for profit.

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Speaker 1: Under the su Su scheme, they're using trust to leverage cash.

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Speaker 1: And and here's kind of how it works. In the

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Speaker 1: more nefarious ways. You put in a set amount of

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Speaker 1: money every month along with maybe like ten to fifteen

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Speaker 1: others in this SUSU group, let's say it's five bucks

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Speaker 1: and you all venmo or PayPal. The ringleader who is

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Speaker 1: promising that you're gonna make a heck of a lot

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Speaker 1: more in returns in the coming months than what you're

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Speaker 1: putting in. You're told that oftentimes it's gonna be eight

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Speaker 1: to ten times your initial investment. And then you see

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Speaker 1: the testimonials those promises, right, the promises that will soon

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Speaker 1: be broken, saying that it's gonna be gravy and you're

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Speaker 1: gonna make good money, and that this is the best

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Speaker 1: method to see a return on your money. And and

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Speaker 1: then it never appears and people are out the money

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Speaker 1: they put in. And yeah, the rising popularity of this

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Speaker 1: one in particular is something that that we wanted to

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Speaker 1: mention because a lot of people are falling for it

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Speaker 1: assuming that because they're invited by a friend or family

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Speaker 1: member that they can't lose money and that everything is

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Speaker 1: gonna be okay, and most people are losing all the

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Speaker 1: money that they put in. Yeah, and and so by

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Speaker 1: that definition, this isn't necessarily MLM. This isn't, you know,

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Speaker 1: multi level marketing company. This is pretty much a Ponzi scheme.

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Speaker 1: You know, this is a pyramid scheme and it's also

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Speaker 1: known as a blessing loom or a gifting circle. But

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Speaker 1: because there are no products involved here, it is straight

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Speaker 1: up something you want to avoid. Yeah, and basically to participate,

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Speaker 1: I feel like you have to suspend your belief in reality, right,

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Speaker 1: that what you put in is going to come out

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Speaker 1: tenfold or something like that. I mean, that's just not

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Speaker 1: how things work. But oftentimes the people that are hurting

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Speaker 1: the most, they want to believe in something like this,

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Speaker 1: and that's why people participate, and that's why some of

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Speaker 1: these schemes are are so bad. Yeah, that's right, And

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Speaker 1: so let's let's talk about an actual MLM. Let's talk

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Speaker 1: about lu La Row. There's a podcast that only talks

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Speaker 1: about MLM is called The Dream and they actually go

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Speaker 1: pretty hard after lu La Row and rightly so. They

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Speaker 1: are a woman's apparel company that is known for colorful

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Speaker 1: patterns and prints. But for women to get started selling

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Speaker 1: lu La Row, you need to come up with closest

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Speaker 1: six thousand dollars in order to buy inventory. You know,

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Speaker 1: there are lawsuits right now, you know, from customers claiming

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Speaker 1: that the clothing is defective and that the returns aren't

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Speaker 1: being accepted. Uh. This is always a warning sign of

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Speaker 1: an unhealthy MLM UH and returning unsold inventory is almost

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Speaker 1: impossible or it comes with some insane fees if you

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Speaker 1: are participating. There are actually quite a few lawsuits pending

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Speaker 1: right now against lu La Row. And so while lu

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Speaker 1: La Row isn't necessarily a pyramid scheme right like, technically

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Speaker 1: it is an MLM because they actually do sell products,

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Speaker 1: but because of the insane fees, the upfront costs involved

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Speaker 1: with purchasing inventory, just the poor business model, it's something

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Speaker 1: that we would completely recommend for folks to stay away from.

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Speaker 1: And historically we've seen a lot of their customers be

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Speaker 1: like homemakers, a lot of military wives as well are

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Speaker 1: or used to be at least big into lu La Row. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: lu La Row one of the worst. Uh. Matt Mary

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Speaker 1: Kay is another big name in the MLM world. It's

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Speaker 1: actually the sixth largest MLM company out there. And Pink

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Speaker 1: Cadillacs were kind of their calling card. They kind of

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Speaker 1: bond a generation of people who got interested in selling

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Speaker 1: makeup from their home. That to me, that just sounds

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Speaker 1: like the nineties. I remember just like riding around in

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Speaker 1: the car with my parents you know, and Augusta and

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Speaker 1: there's like, you know, these pink little Cadillacs driving around

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Speaker 1: or you know, big Cadillac spement and you know what

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Speaker 1: those people are up to. Those beauty consultants were making

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Speaker 1: money selling products to their friends and neighbors and as

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Speaker 1: well as as they're making a cut of the sales

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Speaker 1: from their recruits. So has these elements of direct sales,

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Speaker 1: but also this element of recruiting in order to make

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Speaker 1: profit too. Again, whether people were successful or whether people

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Speaker 1: got burnt in a big way, it's really easy to

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Speaker 1: find people writing or making YouTube videos about their experience,

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Speaker 1: and that makes Mary Kay similar to so many other

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Speaker 1: mlm s. People are willing to publicize their involvement and

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Speaker 1: how it went down. Of course, some people did make money.

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Speaker 1: I got a sweet pink Cadillac out of the deal,

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Speaker 1: but that was essentially at the cost of so many

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Speaker 1: other people going into debt and similar to Lulu Row,

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Speaker 1: with a ton of inventory on hand that they couldn't

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Speaker 1: get rid of. But Mary Kay is is just such

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Speaker 1: a high profile example of an MLM. But it's not

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Speaker 1: really all that different in regards to how it functions

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Speaker 1: or in regards to to the results that people have experienced. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: Herbal Life that they are another major MLM. They actually

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Speaker 1: had to mail checks Toto individuals as a result of

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Speaker 1: a settlements with the FTC that was part of a

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Speaker 1: two million dollar fine, And essentially they had to do

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Speaker 1: this because they were considered basically a pyramid scheme in

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Speaker 1: which participants made far more money recruiting than actually selling product.

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Speaker 1: You know, this is another example of having to buy

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Speaker 1: thousands of dollars of inventory upfronts, which should be a

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Speaker 1: red flag to a lot of individuals. Norwix they're another example.

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Speaker 1: Technically they're not a pyramid scheme because they do sell products,

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Speaker 1: but they do rely heavily on recruiting. And that's unfortunately

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Speaker 1: when things start to sour a little bit, because recruiting

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Speaker 1: like that is the essence, like that is the core

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Speaker 1: of a pyramid scheme, and MLM's basically like they're they're

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Speaker 1: taking aspects of a pyramid scheme like that recruiting aspect, uh,

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Speaker 1: And when it becomes more and more a part of

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Speaker 1: their business model, like that's when they start getting in

429
00:20:10,680 --> 00:20:13,000
Speaker 1: trouble with the FTC. Yeah, Matt, And that goes back

430
00:20:13,040 --> 00:20:15,000
Speaker 1: to kind of something we discussed right at the beginning,

431
00:20:15,280 --> 00:20:16,919
Speaker 1: is is that it can be hard to this cipher

432
00:20:17,240 --> 00:20:19,359
Speaker 1: whether a company is an m l M or whether

433
00:20:19,480 --> 00:20:21,560
Speaker 1: it's more of a pyramid scheme. And some of these

434
00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:26,560
Speaker 1: companies that claim that they're legitimately multi level marketing, well

435
00:20:26,680 --> 00:20:29,399
Speaker 1: sometimes it doesn't stay that way, and companies find themselves

436
00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:31,840
Speaker 1: in big trouble and the people that we're working for

437
00:20:32,040 --> 00:20:35,520
Speaker 1: that MLM find themselves in dire straits. So I think

438
00:20:35,560 --> 00:20:37,440
Speaker 1: this brings up to Matt, what if you have a

439
00:20:37,520 --> 00:20:39,639
Speaker 1: friend who's working for an MLM, what should you say

440
00:20:39,680 --> 00:20:41,399
Speaker 1: to them? How should you react? And I think that

441
00:20:41,440 --> 00:20:43,439
Speaker 1: can be a hard question, you know, depending on how

442
00:20:43,520 --> 00:20:44,920
Speaker 1: well you know the person. If it's someone kind of

443
00:20:44,960 --> 00:20:46,680
Speaker 1: out of the blue, it's easier just to kind of

444
00:20:46,760 --> 00:20:50,080
Speaker 1: ignore that Facebook message or politely decline the phone call.

445
00:20:50,280 --> 00:20:51,840
Speaker 1: But if you see them in person, it can be

446
00:20:52,040 --> 00:20:54,200
Speaker 1: really difficult rite and they might try to sell you

447
00:20:54,280 --> 00:20:56,240
Speaker 1: something or bring you on board. And I think it's

448
00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:58,920
Speaker 1: probably important for people to know that they can and

449
00:20:59,000 --> 00:21:02,360
Speaker 1: should take like a actful but firm approach to any

450
00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:04,520
Speaker 1: sort of pitch that they received from from somebody who

451
00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:07,040
Speaker 1: is involved in MLMs, and in particular when it comes

452
00:21:07,119 --> 00:21:09,600
Speaker 1: to coming under them as a recruit or working for

453
00:21:09,720 --> 00:21:12,359
Speaker 1: the company and putting some of your hard earned dollars

454
00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:15,680
Speaker 1: into starting in the MLM space. There are so many

455
00:21:15,760 --> 00:21:17,920
Speaker 1: ways to say, Hey, I'm glad you're doing well in

456
00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:19,840
Speaker 1: this business, but I've just got a lot going on

457
00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,280
Speaker 1: right now. I'm too busy to participate. Thank you for

458
00:21:22,440 --> 00:21:25,000
Speaker 1: asking me. Just kind of sidestep that bowl, kind of

459
00:21:25,080 --> 00:21:28,160
Speaker 1: rushing towards you, exactly, Yeah, a little bit of tacked exactly,

460
00:21:28,520 --> 00:21:30,720
Speaker 1: h can go a long way and then maybe change

461
00:21:30,760 --> 00:21:32,480
Speaker 1: the subject quickly. What else are you up to? How

462
00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:33,959
Speaker 1: are your kids? You know, I mean, so many other

463
00:21:34,040 --> 00:21:36,439
Speaker 1: questions you could ask, but especially as these pitches are

464
00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:38,840
Speaker 1: on the rise, it's it's important to know how to

465
00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:41,440
Speaker 1: say no and to actually do so when you're presented

466
00:21:41,520 --> 00:21:43,840
Speaker 1: with that, you know, some sort of MLM recruitment pitch.

467
00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:45,640
Speaker 1: That's true, man. You know, we don't want to get

468
00:21:45,680 --> 00:21:49,399
Speaker 1: caught up and become a recruit to where we're working

469
00:21:49,440 --> 00:21:51,440
Speaker 1: out thousands and we've got a bunch of the line

470
00:21:51,720 --> 00:21:53,200
Speaker 1: in order to make sure that we don't just lose

471
00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:54,960
Speaker 1: that money, and so obviously you don't want to do that.

472
00:21:55,040 --> 00:21:56,520
Speaker 1: But what about, like, what are your thoughts then on

473
00:21:56,640 --> 00:21:58,520
Speaker 1: on actually buying product, you know, because if I had

474
00:21:58,560 --> 00:22:01,280
Speaker 1: a friend come to me, like I might consider actually

475
00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:05,119
Speaker 1: purchasing some of whatever stuff they're selling to support them.

476
00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:07,720
Speaker 1: But also obviously if I only needed that product, cause

477
00:22:07,720 --> 00:22:09,440
Speaker 1: I'm not going to buy something I don't need, but

478
00:22:09,560 --> 00:22:11,840
Speaker 1: if I did need to maybe buy some of that

479
00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:14,359
Speaker 1: stuff anyway, like I might kind of support them just

480
00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:16,920
Speaker 1: to I don't know, not to just completely destroy that

481
00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:20,439
Speaker 1: relationship because after that, I'm gonna feel so awkward if

482
00:22:20,480 --> 00:22:22,080
Speaker 1: I knew that they spent a lot of money on it,

483
00:22:22,160 --> 00:22:23,760
Speaker 1: and you know, I wasn't there to kind of be

484
00:22:23,840 --> 00:22:25,200
Speaker 1: a part of it. I think so much of it

485
00:22:25,359 --> 00:22:27,879
Speaker 1: comes down to what it is that they're selling, and

486
00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:30,480
Speaker 1: and so much of the time another problem with m

487
00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:33,840
Speaker 1: l M is that the product is inferior. The product

488
00:22:34,000 --> 00:22:36,040
Speaker 1: isn't something as good as you'd be able to get

489
00:22:36,119 --> 00:22:38,359
Speaker 1: on the store or online or at a small business,

490
00:22:38,720 --> 00:22:40,600
Speaker 1: and so people that work for that m l M

491
00:22:40,680 --> 00:22:43,320
Speaker 1: have to resort to kind of a hard pitch mentality.

492
00:22:43,680 --> 00:22:45,520
Speaker 1: And because of that, I am more likely to say no,

493
00:22:46,000 --> 00:22:49,080
Speaker 1: because I would rather spend money on a proven product,

494
00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:50,879
Speaker 1: something that I can read the reviews on, something that

495
00:22:51,000 --> 00:22:52,760
Speaker 1: has you know, more of a history or that I'm

496
00:22:52,800 --> 00:22:55,679
Speaker 1: familiar with. So, yeah, most products being sold by an

497
00:22:55,760 --> 00:22:57,760
Speaker 1: M l M. When you look at the reviews to

498
00:22:57,920 --> 00:22:59,520
Speaker 1: like lou Le Row, apparently they were good in the

499
00:22:59,720 --> 00:23:02,520
Speaker 1: in the getting maybe, but then they resorted to stuff

500
00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:05,800
Speaker 1: got cheap. Yeah, stuff got really cheap and people started

501
00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:08,280
Speaker 1: complaining about the quality, and yeah, I'm just not gonna

502
00:23:08,480 --> 00:23:11,120
Speaker 1: spend my money on something that is is not really

503
00:23:11,240 --> 00:23:13,000
Speaker 1: up to snuff. And you can start by pretending you

504
00:23:13,040 --> 00:23:15,520
Speaker 1: didn't hear them ask that question. It's like glad I

505
00:23:15,520 --> 00:23:18,760
Speaker 1: didn't hear you. Uh, you know, and say, while MLM's

506
00:23:18,760 --> 00:23:21,840
Speaker 1: promised a great life, those fancif vacations, more time and

507
00:23:21,960 --> 00:23:23,639
Speaker 1: the ability to to do whatever it is that you

508
00:23:23,680 --> 00:23:25,879
Speaker 1: want to do, you know, more income than you've ever

509
00:23:25,960 --> 00:23:28,960
Speaker 1: had before, most people that sign up find the opposite

510
00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:31,719
Speaker 1: is true, you know. And so let's talk about essentially,

511
00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:34,720
Speaker 1: you know, the antidote to MLMs and how to make

512
00:23:34,840 --> 00:23:37,639
Speaker 1: decent money while having a more flexible lifestyle. We'll get

513
00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:48,959
Speaker 1: to that right after the break. All right, Matt, we're

514
00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:51,560
Speaker 1: back from the break and we have ripped MLM is

515
00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:55,399
Speaker 1: a new one. I think they're not that great, that

516
00:23:55,520 --> 00:23:57,680
Speaker 1: kind of stuck. Yeah, and that's really I mean, in

517
00:23:57,840 --> 00:24:01,440
Speaker 1: in large part because it's an unsustainable business model in

518
00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:04,480
Speaker 1: so many ways. And when the products that you're selling

519
00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:07,440
Speaker 1: our subpar and you have to recruit more people in

520
00:24:07,560 --> 00:24:09,800
Speaker 1: order to make any money, well, at some point you

521
00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:12,560
Speaker 1: run out of people and uh and willing people to

522
00:24:12,600 --> 00:24:14,680
Speaker 1: sign up and participate. Yeah, and again just kind of

523
00:24:14,720 --> 00:24:16,600
Speaker 1: going back to the statistics, you know, it's it's not

524
00:24:16,680 --> 00:24:20,120
Speaker 1: even just the business model. But when for people something

525
00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:24,200
Speaker 1: is terrible and for one percent it's decent, well, I'm

526
00:24:24,240 --> 00:24:25,960
Speaker 1: not gonna say that like, oh, that's a good thing

527
00:24:26,000 --> 00:24:28,560
Speaker 1: you should consider, you know, And so for the vast

528
00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:30,600
Speaker 1: majority of folks, when it is something that they need

529
00:24:30,680 --> 00:24:33,480
Speaker 1: to completely avoid, I mean, we we're gonna have to

530
00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:37,040
Speaker 1: side with exactly. So let's talk about alternatives right now, Matt.

531
00:24:37,320 --> 00:24:39,359
Speaker 1: For people that either you know, have heard an MLM

532
00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:42,600
Speaker 1: pitch recently or they've been lucky enough not to have

533
00:24:42,760 --> 00:24:46,840
Speaker 1: one hit their inbox recently, there are better opportunities for

534
00:24:47,080 --> 00:24:49,600
Speaker 1: you if you're struggling right now, or if you're looking

535
00:24:49,640 --> 00:24:51,679
Speaker 1: for a way to make side income. If you are

536
00:24:51,760 --> 00:24:54,440
Speaker 1: currently employed, we would say do whatever you can to

537
00:24:54,760 --> 00:24:57,440
Speaker 1: essentially level up at your current job, Like, do you

538
00:24:57,560 --> 00:25:00,800
Speaker 1: need another gig, do you need an opportunity quote unquote

539
00:25:00,840 --> 00:25:03,760
Speaker 1: selling something on the side, or should you just put

540
00:25:03,920 --> 00:25:07,040
Speaker 1: more emphasis on the job that you currently have your

541
00:25:07,119 --> 00:25:10,640
Speaker 1: day job. Paying particular attention to how you can advance,

542
00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:13,040
Speaker 1: how you can make more over time, um, and how

543
00:25:13,119 --> 00:25:15,240
Speaker 1: you can take on more responsibility at the job that

544
00:25:15,280 --> 00:25:18,399
Speaker 1: you currently have is a much better path for so

545
00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:21,720
Speaker 1: many people than signing up for an MLM side hustle. Right,

546
00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:23,800
Speaker 1: that's full of all these lofty promises that are all

547
00:25:23,840 --> 00:25:26,199
Speaker 1: likelihood won't be realized. I mean, if you're hired by

548
00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:28,600
Speaker 1: a certain company to begin with, like, chances are you've

549
00:25:28,640 --> 00:25:30,680
Speaker 1: got some skill, you've got some talent, you know when

550
00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:33,280
Speaker 1: it comes to that industry, and so even though you

551
00:25:33,840 --> 00:25:36,320
Speaker 1: know that job might be feeling kind of stale these days,

552
00:25:36,560 --> 00:25:38,840
Speaker 1: individuals need to look at different ways to take on

553
00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:41,760
Speaker 1: more responsibility and to step it up. So aside from

554
00:25:41,800 --> 00:25:44,040
Speaker 1: your main job, look to side hustles as well. It's

555
00:25:44,160 --> 00:25:47,480
Speaker 1: definitely another way to avoid getting sucked into the you know,

556
00:25:47,560 --> 00:25:51,160
Speaker 1: the additional income that MLM's promise. Uh. Specifically, we would

557
00:25:51,200 --> 00:25:53,480
Speaker 1: recommend for folks to check out sites like side hustle

558
00:25:53,640 --> 00:25:58,359
Speaker 1: dot com where they review and rate difference online earning platforms,

559
00:25:58,800 --> 00:26:00,680
Speaker 1: different places that you can work, or you can even

560
00:26:00,680 --> 00:26:04,159
Speaker 1: consider posting, you know, your specific skills or services on

561
00:26:04,240 --> 00:26:06,760
Speaker 1: a site like fiber dot com. Both of those are

562
00:26:06,800 --> 00:26:09,600
Speaker 1: going to be better alternatives. Uh. You know, like you're

563
00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:13,360
Speaker 1: not gonna necessarily make as much money as that MLM promises,

564
00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:16,159
Speaker 1: but remember those promises are empty, so instead look to

565
00:26:16,200 --> 00:26:19,080
Speaker 1: the specific skills and the talents that you have. Yeah.

566
00:26:19,119 --> 00:26:22,760
Speaker 1: I'd rather take a more realistic projection, right, Uh and

567
00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:25,920
Speaker 1: and have that be firm than somebody that's like promises

568
00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:28,000
Speaker 1: me the world, but in reality I end up getting

569
00:26:28,200 --> 00:26:31,359
Speaker 1: nothing right right. Uh And so yeah, side hustles are

570
00:26:31,400 --> 00:26:33,760
Speaker 1: great work from home jobs too, if you if you

571
00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:36,640
Speaker 1: need the flexibility that an MLM promises to provide, which

572
00:26:36,720 --> 00:26:39,800
Speaker 1: is always part of the pitch. It's like flexibility your

573
00:26:39,800 --> 00:26:42,920
Speaker 1: own boss. Yeah, it worked like you want to work exactly. Yeah,

574
00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:45,640
Speaker 1: but work from home actually gives you some of that opportunity.

575
00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:47,879
Speaker 1: And of course work from home jobs are kind of

576
00:26:48,000 --> 00:26:50,000
Speaker 1: the standard. Right now, you're going to see more of

577
00:26:50,080 --> 00:26:52,920
Speaker 1: those listings. Flex Jobs is a is a great site

578
00:26:52,960 --> 00:26:55,720
Speaker 1: to look at for legit work from home opportunities to

579
00:26:55,840 --> 00:26:58,040
Speaker 1: make sure to check that out. By the way, on

580
00:26:58,359 --> 00:27:00,719
Speaker 1: the note of work from home, there are work from

581
00:27:00,760 --> 00:27:03,000
Speaker 1: home scams out there too when you're looking for jobs,

582
00:27:03,160 --> 00:27:07,680
Speaker 1: and often those scams will involve promises similar to MLM promises,

583
00:27:07,920 --> 00:27:10,920
Speaker 1: while at the same time requesting money upfront from you.

584
00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:13,280
Speaker 1: So when you're looking for a legitimate work from home job,

585
00:27:13,600 --> 00:27:16,000
Speaker 1: the only thing you should ever pay upfront is for

586
00:27:16,160 --> 00:27:19,240
Speaker 1: a potential background check that's typically fifty dollars or less.

587
00:27:19,640 --> 00:27:21,639
Speaker 1: So if someone says I've got this great work from

588
00:27:21,680 --> 00:27:23,720
Speaker 1: home job for you and you can make tons of money,

589
00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:24,960
Speaker 1: all you got to do is pay me five or

590
00:27:24,960 --> 00:27:28,840
Speaker 1: six dollars up front, runaway, because that is a work

591
00:27:28,880 --> 00:27:31,280
Speaker 1: from home scam, which is different than the MLM but

592
00:27:31,560 --> 00:27:34,600
Speaker 1: just as nefarious. Yeah, and Joel. In addition to side hustles,

593
00:27:34,640 --> 00:27:36,560
Speaker 1: you know, and just working from home like jobs that

594
00:27:36,640 --> 00:27:40,119
Speaker 1: give you flexibility. Essentially, the ultimate, like the culmination of

595
00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:42,159
Speaker 1: what MLMs are offering, is for you to own your

596
00:27:42,200 --> 00:27:45,960
Speaker 1: own business. But you know, if you love solving problems

597
00:27:46,119 --> 00:27:48,640
Speaker 1: and having a creative outlet, you know, if you are

598
00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,240
Speaker 1: ambitious and kind of have some of the entrepreneurial spirit,

599
00:27:51,440 --> 00:27:54,280
Speaker 1: then hanging your own shingle could actually be perfect for you.

600
00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:57,200
Speaker 1: Owning your own business is maybe what you need to consider,

601
00:27:57,640 --> 00:27:59,679
Speaker 1: and in most cases, it doesn't actually take as much

602
00:28:00,040 --> 00:28:01,680
Speaker 1: art up money as you might think. It might even

603
00:28:01,760 --> 00:28:04,120
Speaker 1: cost you less to to kind of start your own

604
00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:06,040
Speaker 1: business than it would be to to get started with

605
00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:08,720
Speaker 1: a starter pack of leggings or even a few cases

606
00:28:08,800 --> 00:28:11,520
Speaker 1: of protein shakes. If you haven't already, we'd recommend for

607
00:28:11,560 --> 00:28:13,959
Speaker 1: folks to listen back to episode two forty seven. That's

608
00:28:14,000 --> 00:28:17,480
Speaker 1: where we talked with Alan donnegan about starting a business

609
00:28:17,960 --> 00:28:20,760
Speaker 1: with zero dollars. It's inspiring to think that you don't

610
00:28:20,840 --> 00:28:23,639
Speaker 1: need an MLM to get started, that the sky's the

611
00:28:23,720 --> 00:28:27,159
Speaker 1: limit when you are creating your own business and instead

612
00:28:27,160 --> 00:28:29,280
Speaker 1: of hawking someone else's junk, you know, like just some

613
00:28:29,440 --> 00:28:32,760
Speaker 1: product that's maybe not made very well, you actually get

614
00:28:32,800 --> 00:28:37,000
Speaker 1: to decide the product or the service that your community needs. Yeah,

615
00:28:37,040 --> 00:28:39,400
Speaker 1: I think MLM's and the pitches that you're going to receive,

616
00:28:39,480 --> 00:28:42,280
Speaker 1: they're going to typically target those pain points, those uh

617
00:28:42,440 --> 00:28:46,400
Speaker 1: that desire for flexibility, for increased income for owning your

618
00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:49,200
Speaker 1: own business. But these other things that we've outlined here

619
00:28:49,240 --> 00:28:51,560
Speaker 1: are going to give you a better opportunity for those

620
00:28:51,640 --> 00:28:55,800
Speaker 1: things the opportunity to actually make something that's sustainable, long lasting,

621
00:28:56,200 --> 00:28:59,440
Speaker 1: and produces a real income over years, as opposed to

622
00:28:59,480 --> 00:29:02,200
Speaker 1: the promises of quick riches, which is what a lot

623
00:29:02,280 --> 00:29:04,160
Speaker 1: of the m l m s are kind of posing

624
00:29:04,240 --> 00:29:06,000
Speaker 1: to people. Hey, you can make a lot of money

625
00:29:06,040 --> 00:29:07,920
Speaker 1: in very little time if you come over here and

626
00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:09,960
Speaker 1: do this, and that's just far from the truth for

627
00:29:10,080 --> 00:29:12,480
Speaker 1: most people that that give it a go. Yeah, they

628
00:29:12,520 --> 00:29:14,160
Speaker 1: promised to make it quick and easy, you know, like

629
00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:15,760
Speaker 1: that's the biggest thing. They want it to be easy

630
00:29:15,840 --> 00:29:17,680
Speaker 1: for you to make this extra money. But I mean,

631
00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:19,920
Speaker 1: I think all the alternatives that we gave like they

632
00:29:19,960 --> 00:29:22,000
Speaker 1: are probably going to be a little bit harder, but

633
00:29:22,120 --> 00:29:23,920
Speaker 1: in the end it will definitely be more worth it,

634
00:29:24,360 --> 00:29:26,800
Speaker 1: Yeah for sure. And then I think too, it's important

635
00:29:26,880 --> 00:29:29,400
Speaker 1: to to separate the people who are involved in an

636
00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:32,680
Speaker 1: MLM from the business model itself. I think part of

637
00:29:32,720 --> 00:29:35,080
Speaker 1: the reason that we wanted to create this episode was

638
00:29:35,160 --> 00:29:38,320
Speaker 1: because a listener in our Facebook group she asked whether

639
00:29:38,440 --> 00:29:39,920
Speaker 1: or not she should buy a product from a friend

640
00:29:39,960 --> 00:29:42,240
Speaker 1: who's involved in an MLM to support them, which is

641
00:29:42,320 --> 00:29:44,920
Speaker 1: something we touched on a little bit, and most of

642
00:29:45,000 --> 00:29:48,280
Speaker 1: the advice that other listeners were giving centered around the

643
00:29:48,360 --> 00:29:51,160
Speaker 1: fact that they shouldn't feel obligated, but only make a

644
00:29:51,200 --> 00:29:53,760
Speaker 1: purchase if they actually like the products. I agree, Right,

645
00:29:53,800 --> 00:29:55,440
Speaker 1: if there is a good product that a friend who

646
00:29:55,720 --> 00:29:59,120
Speaker 1: is uh, you know, running an MLM business is selling,

647
00:29:59,200 --> 00:30:01,320
Speaker 1: and I think it's a good product, i'd consider it.

648
00:30:01,880 --> 00:30:05,800
Speaker 1: But it's also important to note that MLM's prey on people. Right,

649
00:30:05,880 --> 00:30:09,479
Speaker 1: the business model itself borders on predatory in most cases,

650
00:30:09,960 --> 00:30:12,720
Speaker 1: and for other MLM companies, praying on people is the

651
00:30:12,960 --> 00:30:15,440
Speaker 1: entire business model, depending on which one it is. But

652
00:30:15,720 --> 00:30:18,840
Speaker 1: many of the lower level people like your sister's cousin

653
00:30:19,240 --> 00:30:22,280
Speaker 1: or whatever, who are involved, they're not in it to

654
00:30:22,360 --> 00:30:24,920
Speaker 1: that degree or with that intention, and they probably don't

655
00:30:24,960 --> 00:30:28,360
Speaker 1: even fully realize exactly what's happening. They're trying something out

656
00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:31,160
Speaker 1: in order to make a decent income to support their family.

657
00:30:31,520 --> 00:30:33,240
Speaker 1: So it's important when you are getting that pitch to

658
00:30:33,320 --> 00:30:36,000
Speaker 1: recognize that the person giving that pitch probably doesn't actually

659
00:30:36,080 --> 00:30:39,920
Speaker 1: realize exactly what they've signed up for and exactly what's happening,

660
00:30:40,280 --> 00:30:42,479
Speaker 1: because if they did, if they knew the whole truth upfront,

661
00:30:42,800 --> 00:30:44,560
Speaker 1: they likely would have said no from the get go

662
00:30:44,720 --> 00:30:47,760
Speaker 1: to Yeah, that's that's true. Man, and and so it's

663
00:30:47,800 --> 00:30:50,520
Speaker 1: important to remember that while in m l M has

664
00:30:50,640 --> 00:30:53,040
Speaker 1: the small chance of making you money, you're gonna have

665
00:30:53,120 --> 00:30:55,240
Speaker 1: to work your butt off to get there, and on

666
00:30:55,360 --> 00:30:57,600
Speaker 1: top of that, you might actually burn some some relational

667
00:30:57,720 --> 00:31:00,480
Speaker 1: bridges along the way. If you're considering one of these things,

668
00:31:00,560 --> 00:31:03,000
Speaker 1: it's important to to ask yourself, you know, like, can

669
00:31:03,040 --> 00:31:06,080
Speaker 1: you afford the risk of the initial money as well

670
00:31:06,120 --> 00:31:08,960
Speaker 1: as the time that's required to try and build your

671
00:31:09,040 --> 00:31:12,040
Speaker 1: business this way? Don't buy into the hype from a

672
00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:14,560
Speaker 1: post on social media or from a friend who claims

673
00:31:14,600 --> 00:31:17,360
Speaker 1: to be making real money. Instead, we'd recommend for you

674
00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:20,280
Speaker 1: to do your research and to know the odds of success.

675
00:31:20,440 --> 00:31:23,719
Speaker 1: You know. Again, according to the FDC, people who get

676
00:31:23,760 --> 00:31:27,520
Speaker 1: involved in an MLM they end up losing money. And

677
00:31:27,600 --> 00:31:29,480
Speaker 1: so instead of joining up, we would recommend that you

678
00:31:29,560 --> 00:31:32,120
Speaker 1: try creating your own business instead, or at the very

679
00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:33,960
Speaker 1: least just kind of level up a little bit at

680
00:31:34,000 --> 00:31:36,240
Speaker 1: your current job or take on a side hustle. Yeah,

681
00:31:36,280 --> 00:31:38,800
Speaker 1: the likelihood of you seeing a pitch getting pitched by

682
00:31:38,800 --> 00:31:41,080
Speaker 1: a friend has increased. M l m s are on

683
00:31:41,120 --> 00:31:43,640
Speaker 1: the rise right now, but they're basically bad news for

684
00:31:43,880 --> 00:31:46,800
Speaker 1: for pretty much everybody. So Hopefully this episode gave you

685
00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:50,240
Speaker 1: some important information to know before you get that next

686
00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:52,520
Speaker 1: pitch from a friend or family member who wants to

687
00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:54,959
Speaker 1: sell you on the fact that your skills can make

688
00:31:55,040 --> 00:31:58,600
Speaker 1: you uh super sweet income in very little time through

689
00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:02,560
Speaker 1: participating in your own business, which means participating in an

690
00:32:02,640 --> 00:32:04,680
Speaker 1: m l M with them. Yeah, that actually made me

691
00:32:04,720 --> 00:32:07,240
Speaker 1: think of maybe another way to think about MLM droll, Like,

692
00:32:07,360 --> 00:32:10,760
Speaker 1: when you are the product, that's when you should run away.

693
00:32:10,960 --> 00:32:13,760
Speaker 1: It's one thing to sell products, but if you yourself

694
00:32:13,800 --> 00:32:16,240
Speaker 1: are the product and you're getting involved into this network

695
00:32:16,360 --> 00:32:18,960
Speaker 1: or the system, then that is something you definitely want

696
00:32:18,960 --> 00:32:21,160
Speaker 1: to avoid. And I think that's when people begin to

697
00:32:21,200 --> 00:32:25,000
Speaker 1: feel used in the process. Yeah, exactly, it's because like, no, no, no,

698
00:32:25,440 --> 00:32:28,520
Speaker 1: I have to sell you so hard on your ability

699
00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:31,520
Speaker 1: to do this, because if you don't say yes, then

700
00:32:31,640 --> 00:32:34,760
Speaker 1: my business isn't gonna flourish because I need more people

701
00:32:35,080 --> 00:32:37,880
Speaker 1: essentially to sell underneath me. Our friendship is now gone,

702
00:32:38,080 --> 00:32:40,640
Speaker 1: exactly And and and friendship can't exist in that climate.

703
00:32:40,880 --> 00:32:42,640
Speaker 1: And that's part of the issue with mL ms. And

704
00:32:42,680 --> 00:32:45,680
Speaker 1: of course a lot of relationships get completely broken in

705
00:32:45,760 --> 00:32:48,640
Speaker 1: the process of of doing an m l M together

706
00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:51,920
Speaker 1: because of that dynamic, So stay away at all costs.

707
00:32:52,200 --> 00:32:54,120
Speaker 1: That's what we would advise. All right, Now, let's get

708
00:32:54,160 --> 00:32:55,920
Speaker 1: back to the beer that we had on the show today.

709
00:32:56,120 --> 00:32:59,520
Speaker 1: This one's called Double Up. It's a double West Coast

710
00:32:59,600 --> 00:33:01,440
Speaker 1: I p A from our friends over at Monday Night

711
00:33:01,720 --> 00:33:04,720
Speaker 1: and Cascade brewing a little collab beer here. What were

712
00:33:04,720 --> 00:33:07,040
Speaker 1: your thoughts on this one? Man? This was a good one. Man.

713
00:33:07,160 --> 00:33:09,600
Speaker 1: This is one that I will say, I think Kate,

714
00:33:09,720 --> 00:33:12,400
Speaker 1: my wife, would really love because she's all about West Coast.

715
00:33:12,480 --> 00:33:14,120
Speaker 1: I p A is they're a little more typically, a

716
00:33:14,120 --> 00:33:16,600
Speaker 1: little more uh piny, a little more resony, a little

717
00:33:16,600 --> 00:33:18,920
Speaker 1: more bitter. That being said, though, I will say, because

718
00:33:18,960 --> 00:33:20,680
Speaker 1: it was a collab with Monday Night, I felt like

719
00:33:20,720 --> 00:33:22,560
Speaker 1: it was pretty fruity, you know. I had a lot

720
00:33:22,640 --> 00:33:25,200
Speaker 1: of tropical notes, had a lot of melon going on.

721
00:33:26,000 --> 00:33:27,920
Speaker 1: It was a little bit sweet, but then because of

722
00:33:27,960 --> 00:33:30,520
Speaker 1: that West Coast bitterness, it kind of balanced out. So

723
00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:33,240
Speaker 1: I feel like it started out sweet and tropically, but

724
00:33:33,280 --> 00:33:34,920
Speaker 1: then it kind of mellowed out and kind of switched

725
00:33:34,960 --> 00:33:37,120
Speaker 1: gears to the bitter notes. This one was really good, man.

726
00:33:37,160 --> 00:33:38,640
Speaker 1: I was excited to see our friends over at Monday

727
00:33:38,720 --> 00:33:42,040
Speaker 1: Night team up with Cascade who, by the way, makes

728
00:33:42,040 --> 00:33:45,520
Speaker 1: amazing sours that I mean sours that Cascade makes I

729
00:33:45,560 --> 00:33:47,760
Speaker 1: will drink any day of the week, you know. Yeah,

730
00:33:47,840 --> 00:33:51,000
Speaker 1: they're incredible. They're they're incredibly expensive, but they're worth it

731
00:33:51,400 --> 00:33:54,680
Speaker 1: because they're like just aged four months and months and months,

732
00:33:54,720 --> 00:33:57,800
Speaker 1: sometimes years with different fruits and stuff like that. Man,

733
00:33:57,920 --> 00:34:00,560
Speaker 1: every hour I've had from Cascade has been excellent. But

734
00:34:00,640 --> 00:34:02,480
Speaker 1: this isn't a sour, this is an I p A. Yeah,

735
00:34:02,760 --> 00:34:04,680
Speaker 1: what were your thoughts on I really liked it, man, Yeah,

736
00:34:04,680 --> 00:34:06,920
Speaker 1: I thought it was more bitter than the I p

737
00:34:07,040 --> 00:34:08,800
Speaker 1: A s I'm used to drinking these days because it

738
00:34:08,960 --> 00:34:11,399
Speaker 1: was in the West Coast style. It had a touch

739
00:34:11,480 --> 00:34:13,880
Speaker 1: of watermelon. Yeah. I feel like there were just a

740
00:34:13,920 --> 00:34:15,960
Speaker 1: lot of melon notes going on in this one, Like

741
00:34:16,400 --> 00:34:20,160
Speaker 1: not fruity in like the citrus vibe necessarily, but just

742
00:34:20,640 --> 00:34:23,640
Speaker 1: kind of more of that rounded melon flavor. Yeah, exactly.

743
00:34:24,000 --> 00:34:26,920
Speaker 1: So I really enjoyed it. Even though it's not the

744
00:34:27,000 --> 00:34:30,160
Speaker 1: style that I gravitate towards these days, it's fun to

745
00:34:30,280 --> 00:34:32,480
Speaker 1: change it up and drink a West Coast style and

746
00:34:32,560 --> 00:34:35,640
Speaker 1: it's not as harsh or bitter as a traditional West

747
00:34:35,680 --> 00:34:38,680
Speaker 1: Coast ones that are just incredibly abrasive. This one took

748
00:34:38,719 --> 00:34:40,440
Speaker 1: like a middle ground approach to a West Coast I

749
00:34:40,520 --> 00:34:42,680
Speaker 1: p A and I really enjoyed it totally. And because

750
00:34:42,719 --> 00:34:45,040
Speaker 1: it wasn't a New England style when we poured, it

751
00:34:45,200 --> 00:34:47,840
Speaker 1: was nice and clear, which is clear and kind of

752
00:34:47,880 --> 00:34:50,440
Speaker 1: like a burnt orange, right exactly. Yeah, unlike a lot

753
00:34:50,480 --> 00:34:52,879
Speaker 1: of the IPAs were drinking these days, which basically look

754
00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:55,040
Speaker 1: like orange juice. Yeah, but yeah, man, I'm glad you

755
00:34:55,120 --> 00:34:56,560
Speaker 1: and I got to share this one today on the

756
00:34:56,600 --> 00:34:59,360
Speaker 1: episode while we talked about MLMs and that's gonna be it, man.

757
00:34:59,360 --> 00:35:01,160
Speaker 1: Our listeners can find our show notes up on our

758
00:35:01,160 --> 00:35:03,839
Speaker 1: website at how It's money dot com. Up there, we'll

759
00:35:03,840 --> 00:35:05,719
Speaker 1: put some links to some of the different resources that

760
00:35:05,800 --> 00:35:09,680
Speaker 1: we mentioned as alternatives to MLM, some different places that

761
00:35:09,760 --> 00:35:13,800
Speaker 1: you can make extra money without necessarily harassing your friends.

762
00:35:15,239 --> 00:35:17,480
Speaker 1: Yeah exactly. And if you've been listening for a while

763
00:35:17,560 --> 00:35:19,440
Speaker 1: and you haven't yet left review, well, Matt and I

764
00:35:19,560 --> 00:35:22,040
Speaker 1: would really appreciate it if you let other people know

765
00:35:22,200 --> 00:35:24,760
Speaker 1: what you think about the podcast, and your good review

766
00:35:24,800 --> 00:35:27,040
Speaker 1: helps spread the word about the show that we're creating

767
00:35:27,239 --> 00:35:29,480
Speaker 1: to let other people know where they can find help

768
00:35:29,560 --> 00:35:31,320
Speaker 1: with their money. All right, that's gonna do it for

769
00:35:31,560 --> 00:35:34,919
Speaker 1: this episode, Matt, until next time. Best Friends Out, best

770
00:35:35,040 --> 00:35:35,719
Speaker 1: Friends Out,