For the nth time, what is network marketing? Some would say it’s about promoting your business, products, services and the opportunity itself. Some would even say it’s about building relationships. Is it really?

Most people in the MLM industry concentrate on the money making aspect and they seem to forget that network means a system made up of people. Networkers are so focused on the comp plan, lead generation and article writing that they forget the human element. Prospects, leads, reps, up line and down line – they’re all made up of people. They write articles to drive traffic to their websites. Shouldn’t they really mean “attract people to their websites”?

It’s not working. Even with the new automated lead generation systems, it’s still the same. Those cutting age systems didn’t change anything – same attrition rate, same retention rate – nothing’s changed except that the newfangled systems made networking more mechanical. They have just successfully taken more of the human element out of network marketing.

It’s even worse with Web 2.0. What should have been the perfect platform for relationship building? What we got is a bunch of MLM business owners sending adverts to each other. What happened to “Hi! How are you doing these days?”

Put yourself in these persons’ shoes. Would you do business with a total stranger just because he writes helpful and informative articles? A con artist can do articles too, and probably even write better. Yours could be the best company or opportunity in the World Wide Web but if people don’t really know you, your business won’t move an inch. Personally I’d rather keep my money in the bank than embark on a business venture with a person I hardly know.

If you take the time to learn about the people you come across with, know their likes and dislikes, their fears and desires and the reasons why they’re looking for an alternative source of income they will see genuine concern. They would trust the person who shows real interest in them as people – not prospects – and who would truly be willing to help them address their needs.

Try it for a change. Focus on the people around you. Talk to them and find out about them and not if they’d buy your product. Write some personal e-mails. Instead of adverts, share photos of your kids and ask about theirs. Build relationships and bring back the people part of network marketing. Slow down and enjoy the interaction. A simple change in pace could be the ticket to ultimate success for your business.

Bill McMahon

Follow me on Twitter:  http://twitter.com/joinbillmcmahon

What is leadership? A simple explanation would be leadership is the influence that drives individuals into groups to effect improvement, whether for personal, for their endeavors, or for universal benefit.

Leadership, like all abilities, can be taught. There is no shortage in educational data and programs. The real question is – can it be learned? There are no clear answers. As one of the least durable and most insufficient elements of human capital, leadership is not learned easily or well.

Human history has focused our attention solely on the concepts advocated, the actions taken, and the conclusions engendered by people in positions of power. Today, impressions and judgment of leadership are more egalitarian.

Leadership itself is a mutual task; the leader and the led are observed as in a potentially cooperative relationship. And authority and impression are a function of that relationship rather than of a status.

To a great extent, leadership education is devoted to teaching methods. Much of what is instructed is, in fact, management and not leadership. It is completely possible to learn and even practice what is inculcated in management and still be unsuccessful at being a good leader. The necessary mechanisms of leadership – intelligence, insight, instinct, vision, communication, discipline, courage, constancy – have remained constant.

Everything can be studied repeatedly. However, the capability to excel in leadership doctrines and customs does not mean that one has learned leadership. The curriculum does not necessarily help candidates learn the fundamentals. Comprehending is quite different from performing.

The focal point of a course on leadership should be on helping aspirants develop the human characteristics and aptitude required for leading in practically any undertaking. These characteristics should form the base requirements of what leadership candidates should possess. Let’s identify the most crucial of these abilities:

• First and foremost, should be the capacity to think – Leaders must know how to collect and organize data, and then associate it in manner to generate intelligence. Nowadays, it is easy to confuse being informed with being intelligent.
• The ability to see – Leadership necessitates vision. Forming a vision requires the ability to see. To be able to look back and see clearly what has transpired. To look around and see what is presently happening. To look to the future and see what trials there are to confront.
• The ability to listen – everyone can hear but how many really pay attention. A good many only listen to themselves. A leader’s mind should be attuned to his ears. Listening to the voice of history in order to learn past mistakes and triumphs is as important as listening to today’s infinite concerns. His senses must also penetrate the ominous silence foretelling the future.
• Ability to speak- The defining faculty in leadership is undeniably communication. Information, unity, motivation and direction – critical areas of organization – depend on it. The potentials of information and persuasion in winning the battles for hearts and minds are indisputable.
• Endurance- Physical, mental and moral fortitude are indispensable in carrying the burden of leadership through a long and hard journey.

Leadership is what it takes to make it big in this industry.

We all know that deep down. We know we will have to work on ourselves to be a person that others will gladly follow. But what does it mean to be a leader? Well, lots of things. But it can be summed up like this.

A leader has TRUE value to offer others.

If you have real value to offer people, they will come to you to get it. Everyone wants to know how to do things better, be better, and achieve more success. And they look to people who have learned in some way what that is, and can share it with them.

Leadership starts with the intention that YOU WILL BE A LEADER.

That doesn’t mean you need to be some fiery, well spoken, image of a typical leader….all it means is that you have real value to share with others, and you know how to teach it to them. When you begin the process of educating yourself, you begin to build your own value. And the more value you have, the more value you can offer to other people. Hence the more people will be inclined to follow you. And once you have reached an influential point where others respect you for what is between your head and will listen…. you create enormous network marketing organizations.

Don’t you think it’s pretty important to work on yourself all the time? Don’t you think it’s important to build YOUR OWN value, so you have more value to offer other people?

A BASIC marketing concept:

I want to let you in on a little secret today, something that’s really changed the way I approach my business on the internet. You see, if you want to succeed in business, you need to understand MARKETING. And one very BASIC principle of marketing is to always GIVE your TARGET MARKET exactly what it is they are looking for.

Please…read that over a couple of times and really understands what that means.

You see, when you go out into the marketplace and start prospecting and sharing your products and opportunity with anything that breathes…well, you might as well walk around with a huge billboard that screams AMATEUR!”

The secret to success in this industry is to GIVE YOUR PROSPECTS EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT.

You know, all of us are leaders, even if we’re not aware of it. We are leading every day – maybe your child, maybe a co-worker, maybe fellow entrepreneurs. We just need to raise our consciousness and bring it to the forefront! Here are several ways:

a) Work to know yourself.

Where do you come from? What do you want your loved ones to write on your epitaph? Would you like others to respect you? Who do you love most in this world? Why? What is your purpose in life? In order to become the leader you desire, you must first know who you are. Imagine driving to the Oregon coast if you have no idea where you are! If you can answer these questions, you are 2/3 of the way to becoming a leader and making your dreams a reality!

b) Set clear goals and follow well defined action plans.

Next, you have to know where you are going before you can develop a plan to get there. To improve your leadership skills, first set specific goals with appropriate timelines. Design your goals though summary plans and then break the plan down into baby steps. Move backwards from the accomplishment of your goal (include how you will feel) to the present day. Then, formulate action plans (baby steps) you can commit. Make sure that your steps are always leading to your end goal.

c) Live according to your principles and ideals.

People can “feel” if you do not follow your principles. I’m sure you have spoken with someone who seemed very phony. Did you trust them? Making choices and following your principles and ideals will lead to trust and will make it simple for others to respect your opinion and leadership. Your leadership abilities will grow through believing in yourself.

d) Realize that you already have strengths and gifts.

You have unique talents that you were born with and personal abilities that you’ve developed from your childhood until now. Realizing and using these abilities will assist you in being an incredible leader.

e) Preserve a positive attitude.

No one respects a person who continually looks for the negatives. You probably know or remember someone from work that was always unhappy. Wasn’t he also often ill? With a positive attitude you ignore depression, do not dwell on “what’s wrong”, and thus enable yourself to find solutions much more easily! People are naturally attracted to you when you have a positive attitude. By being positive, you will lead a happier life, be healthier, magnetically attract other positive people and become a true leader.

f) Improve communication skills.

Being a great leader includes being able to clearly communicate your goals, intentions, and expectations to others. This includes being able to listen to what other people are consciously or unconsciously communicating. To become a great leader, you must also continually endeavor to improve your verbal, nonverbal, and listening skills. Many courses, trainings, you-tube videos and simply listening to leaders will help you improve.

g) Lead others with kindness.

The greatest leaders are those who recognize each person’s greatest value, no matter their status in the organization. To be one of these leaders, look beyond the obvious. Many of history’s greatest leaders have admitted that they achieved greatness because another leader recognized their abilities and helped then achieve their potential. There is never a valid reason to be cruel to anyone.

h) Motivate others to greatness.

A leader is only successful when his team is successful. As Zig Ziglar says, “You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.” As a leader, you will want to assist others in recognizing and utilizing their strengths, gifts, and potential. Motivating others to greatness will improve the group energy and move you toward achieving your own greatness.

i) Be willing to admit and learn from failures and weaknesses.

Everyone has made a mistake or two in their lives! The most successful leaders know that the key to success is not in avoiding falling or failing, but to learn from their mistakes. In addition, as one of my leader friends says, “I also learn from the mistakes of others. I don’t have time to make them all.” Allow your team to learn from your errors and also learn that you are human. By communicating your weaknesses to your team, your team excels by realizing that their errors will not keep them from success.

j) Continue to educate and improve yourself.

Great leaders never cease to gain additional knowledge. The person who thinks he is an expert and has nothing to learn soon falls from leadership. Never stop learning. Be receptive to everyone’s perceptions and information. Think of how much your children have taught you!