One of the Greatest Things…

About the Direct Selling industry is the ability to offer opportunity and development to those who might never experience the chance otherwise.

Growing up in the Raz family wasn’t likely a totally normal experience; I think we were a family of restless overachievers yet at the same time each of us were and are, in my opinion, fairly normalized people.

For example, at the Raz household for Christmas, one of the annual gifts was ALWAYS ALWAYS a Day-Timer calendar for each person (seven in total) — this is pre ’95, which was the introduction of the Palmpilot which quickly replaced the Day Timer in our family of early adopters, so late 80’s and early 90’s it was Day-Timers all the way around. Even though, in the picture above, the decor actually looks a little late 70’s or early 80’s (so we kept it going about a decade longer). And, odd as it might seem, all of us were quite excited for our annual supply of Day Timers — my younger sisters included, despite the fact that friends of ours were singing Christmas Caroles, dreaming about Santa (which never really existed in our house past the age of four), and opening up gifts of Tony Hawk Skateboards and Atari game systems we somehow settled into a sense of satisfactory existence with the practical and probably peculiar annual family gift. Okay, so some of the kids (see tears below) weren’t always enthusiastic about the Day Timers…but those also weren’t the only gifts mom and dad gave us.

So fast forward a few years, though throughout all these years we received the annual supply of Day Timers, when I was in high school and most of my buddies were out mowing yards for summer jobs and drinking kool aid in the evenings, I yearned for something else — a job or activity that might put to good use my unlimited supply for Day Timers and penchant for calendaring and scheduling and deal-making, a desire to just do something unique…Different. I was seeking adventure, financial opportunity without limits, teamwork, personal development. I wanted to be stretched. I wanted to wear a shirt and tie to work even though I was in high school (though, based on the picture below, I am now cringing at several things about the wardrobe — including the tie clip and too short tie among other things!).

And, alas, I found the opportunity in October of ’91. I was 17, Senior in High School, and saw a sign that said “Part Time Jobs: $9/hour”. So I called, went to the meeting and learned it was for Vector Marketing — a job selling Cutco! And, it was the most influential job of my life. It taught me about leadership, people, personalities, listening, tenacity and perseverance…

As I write about it a flood of memories come back to me, because it wasn’t just a three month gig for me. It actually put me through College where I worked as a Sales Rep for a year, an Assistant Manager for a year, and then led my own office as a Branch Manager when I was 20, and moved up to Sandusky, Ohio (by myself) to do it as my college job.

The point isn’t really what I did or didn’t do with Vector, it was that it served as the PERFECT vehicle to fulfill some of my needs — which weren’t just income (I could have cut lawns too, in fact I did the years before — I just got bored with it more quickly than my buddies) but also personal development, a sense of satisfaction in what I did, a purposeful mission coupled with self development.

What made me think of all this today?

The Wall Street Journal.

Yes, I know, many think it’s all just boring financial blah blah in the Great Grey Lady (WSJ), but it really is a wealth of recycled papers wrapped full of compassionate and compelling stories of human interest and human spirit, in addition to a bunch of boring financial blah blah.

And today the WSJ ran a great article on a young man who is a Vector Marketing (Cutco) sales representative that reminded me of what makes this Direct Selling industry, and also Univera, so outstanding.

We have the opportunity of not just financial success, but also personal development. To develop the skills of time management. Perseverance. Teamwork. Enthusiasm and optimism. Where else can you learn such life-changing and beneficial skills than in this environment?

What I loved about Vector, in looking back, was specifically the personal development and how I was stretched, molded, and developed by the experiences and the people. Sure, I made quite a bit of money, but I could have done that anywhere. Truly, knowing what I know now, I would have done the whole Vector/Cutco thing for FREE just for the experience. It affected and changed me that profoundly. And, so too I think it is with Univera (but you don’t have to do it for free!).

Beyond just the benefits, what I also love is that there’s no filter in our industry. There’s no “ivory tower” or pedigree that’s required to engage or be considered for the role. No matter your situation, your background, your skills, your history, this is the land of alternative opportunity. Just a spirit of willingness and zeal is all that’s required, and sometimes not even in large doses – -for some it’s simply the willingness to “try it out”, though like with anything try should be accompanied with some type of sustained commitment to yield the best benefit.

Our industry is unlike that at any other business environment. For example, when I worked at Johnson and Johnson they required a huge number of hurdles to get in the door and to become hired was a fairly Herculean task. Consequently there’s also a bit of a “mold” that they look for as parameters. If you walked the halls of J&J, I’ll bet I could pretty simply categorize people according to background, MBA, sales/marketing expertise, and the like. Certainly, there’s good reason for this in that environment, but the beauty of the direct selling model is that there is no bias. There is no filter, and there are no prerequisites. Nor is there prior judgment. It’s an open door. It’s so…American…and Canadian…

Are you a doctor? Great, come join us. Dropped out of high school? Fantastic, we’ll see you at Diamond Club in Hawaii. Love a challenge but hate your current job? Start today! What, don’t have a job? Beautiful, we’ve got one for you! Love your job but need a secondary income? Order the 100340 and get your gifting pack, 10, 30, or 60 gifts, and let’s get gifting.

Really, it’s a beautifully unique and compelling model.

I’m not trying to overly simplify this, but rather point out what struck me today as a few of the amazing aspects of our business. Specifically, that anybody can join and do this. And, importantly, that it provides something more than just income. It provides a rich set of experiences with personal and physical transformation, self development, teamwork, patience, and developing skills to work with other people that will help to transform your life — and those of others.

It’s the amazing thing about this industy, and it’s the luster of Univera.

And the WSJ article that prompted all these thoughts is accessible via the link below.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121788532632911239.html

No doubts, take Lasix only as prescribed by your doctor. Levitra is one of the best-known medications of all date. What is the most significant info you must study about levitra vs cialis? Most doctors say the effectiveness of Levitra is well documented. Absolutely, a sexual problem refers to a problem during any phase of the sexual response cycle that prevents the individual from experiencing satisfaction from the sexual life. Whilst sex is not vital for good health, it’s doubtless great for anyone. Why it happen? What kinds of professionals treat sexual diseases in men? A common class of antidepressants, which include Zoloft — can kill the mood in bedroom.