I’ve been busy April 4, 2007

  Things have been a bit crazy around here for the last week or so. I finally had a fishbowl that paid off! I have added 15 new names to my PCP list, and yesterday I booked 2 facials and 3 classes for the next two weeks. I still have around 30 names to call, so I’m hoping to have a FULL book for the rest of the month. I have a friend that I am talking to today about possibly joining, and a former consultant that I am calling tomorrow because she said she was thinking about restarting her business. Things are definitely on a roll. I hope to be able to post more, but it doesn’t seem likely. I hope I am absolutely crazy busy for the next two months. I would really love nothing more than to be able to pick and choose exactly when I am working, but for the moment, I don’t have that luxury. I want and need to build this up as much as possible before my son gets out of school for the summer. I want to be able to truly enjoy the summer with my children for the first time ever, but if I don’t get this to where I want it to be by then, I will still be working like crazy. So, there’s my goal and my “why” for the moment.

I hope everyone is doing well. Believe me when I say, if I can do this, anyone can do this!

This May Shock Some Of Ya’ll March 21, 2007

(There I go again, showing my southern roots!)

After the past week, I have made a HUGE decision. Everything seems to be snowballing for me, and that is definitely a good thing! There are moments when it is a bit overwhelming, because as I have said before, I am really the type that is most comfortable taking the slow and steady route. This is all just so fun and exciting that I just can’t help but embrace the spirit of it all.

I have mentioned in passing that my director has decided to have a guest event on Friday. Since I don’t have another job,  I have been helping her with it A LOT! I absolutely love party planning, so this has been tons of fun for me, especially since it’s one of two big events I am planning for the week. (I know, it’s a lot for one person to take on, but I think just the fact that I have so much to do has given me more motivation than anything else could have.) Anyway, my director and I were discussing some of the details on Monday afternoon, when she made a suggestion that floored me. She said I needed to push to be a director. My immediate response was, “But I don’t even have 1 recruit yet.” She said she really just wanted me to think about it, because she felt like I would be a good leader. Well, not to sound full of myself or anything, but I’ve always enjoyed being in leadership positions and felt that I did well in them. I was captain of my high school softball team, editor of the yearbook, and SGA VP. I was also an assistant manager at one of the restaurants I worked at and the only certified trainer at another restaurant. I do have a love of helping other people to reach their own goals. I decided to think about it some more, and told her I would let her know before Friday.

Well, to sum up this long story….. after easily adding 7 more people to my guest list for Friday night (I now have a total of 10) in only 2 hours, I realized that this is something I could actually do. I have decided to set my sights on directorship! Wow! I told my director last night, and obviously she is excited. A part of me can’t believe that I have committed to something this big, but I really think I can do this.

For those of you who might be concerned about my unending excitement, I want to assure you that I will be doing this the right way. I am not a high pressure person. I would never push anyone to do anything they don’t want to do, or that is not good for them personally. I want team members who would truly get something from this. I want to help them be all the things they have dreamed they could be. I know this sounds cheesy, but it really is how I feel. I want to make sure that everyone I recruit, and even all of the people I simply share this with, come away with a positive view of the company and of me. I am determined not to ruin anyone’s perception of MK or me.

So, does anyone out there have any great words of wisdom? My director is great, and is also pretty low on the pressure scale, but it always helps to have some other input. Let me know what you all think!

Quote of the week 3/18/07 March 18, 2007

We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.

Frank Tibolt

How true!

Is there a difference between being pushy and being persistent? March 13, 2007

Yes! There is a difference! Being persistent means being determined, unrelenting, and enduring through the tough times. Being pushy? Well, as we all know, means stepping beyond acceptable boundaries. So, how do we know where to draw the line? Is there a clearly defined way of knowing when we are going too far?

Unfortunately, there is no clear answer on this one. We cannot always know when we are pushing that fine line. Very few people, especially women, will come right out and tell you that you are driving them bonkers! We have to learn to interpret, and accept the subtle signs that our customer/potential customer simply is not interested. Is she avoiding eye contact with you when you cross paths at the grocery store? Has she not returned your calls? Does she turn and run the other direction if she sees you walking down the street? (Okay, maybe that last one isn’t so subtle, but I think you get my point.)

I think the bigger question here is what is it that we are doing to make them feel like this? What do we need to do to avoid this altogether? My personal opinion; make a conscious effort to make every encounter with every person we meet as pleasant for them as possible. Mary Kay said “Everyone has an invisible sign hanging from their neck saying ‘Make me feel important.’” Notice, that sign does not say “Make me want to buy something.”

When I see people that I know, especially if they know that I am an IBC, I make sure that the conversation does not begin with MK. If the conversation graduates to that subject, it’s great. If it doesn’t, so what! I’ve just had a nice conversation with a friend. My sister told me when I started that she was not interested in anything MK. I respected that, and didn’t mention it at all to her. However, when she comes by my house, she always looks at the random things that may be lying around. She has purchased two things from me in the last week, and is thinking about a third. The cashier at the gas station had told me that she didn’t have time for a makeover. No big deal. Tonight, as soon as I walked in the door, she asked me how much the eye shadow was, because she had tried the original sample I had given her, and she loved it. I told her how much it was, and that she could get one for free if she would be a model for my portfolio. She’s coming over next week. Imagine that….I have two customers who were not intially interested, and without another word about it from me, they are now wanting more. Was I pushy? Of course not! Was I persistent? Yes, but not about MK. I was persistent in the context of being personable and respecting limits.

Quote of the Week 3/11/07 March 11, 2007

Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Willing is not enough; we must do.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I think this sums it all up…. February 27, 2007

Making the Most of Life

The path to wisdom and success

is not for kings alone; it is

open to you and me.

You may not succeed at first,

but the failure of you efforts may be

the needed preparation for your final triumph.

If there are a hundred steps in your

path to success

and you have not reached it in ninety-nine

of them,

do not conclude that the journey is a failure.

Press on and up…

the prizes are generally at the end

of an effort, not at its beginning…

and not to go on

is to miss them.

Be valiant…have faith in yourself

Success belongs to him

who dares to win it.

- George S Forest

 

Why settle for a hamburger when you can have filet mignon? February 26, 2007

 

First, I must be honest, I am sick today, (think I have some kind of stomach virus or something) and since I rarely get sick, and it drives me crazy to just sit at home all day, the combination of the two has put me in a not so good mood. After making several phone calls this morning and getting nowhere (apparently everyone on my list for the day actually went to work), I decided to do a little searching on the PT website. Yes, I was looking for something to set me off. Sorry. It took me quite a while to find something that really bothered me. There is so much on there that most of it I can just ignore because I know MY TRUTH, and on days like today, it is almost amusing to read some of it because it makes me realize that at least I’m not bitter. I don’t hold grudges, never could, thank goodness. I finally found a quote that made me think. The poster was referring to directors when she said…

….they’re like pimps…promising a better life….’just work a little more, a little harder’.

My first thought was that it was simply ridiculous, but for some reason, the second half of the line made me think. What is so wrong with working a little more, a little harder? Maybe it’s just my personality, but no matter what I have accomplished in my life, I’ve always been willing to work more and work harder. I’m never satisfied with the status quo. Why should I be? I don’t see that there is anything wrong with wanting more. If someone gave me the choice of a hamburger or filet mignon, why would I choose the hamburger? I may have to work a little harder for it, but it would be worth it.

I guess it has to do with the way I was brought up. I remember being told as a child that a “B” was good, but an “A” was better, and of course, an “A+” was best. For as far back as I can remember, I was always willing to put in the effort to do the best I could. I knew my parents would be proud of me, but most importantly, I would be proud of myself. (For those that are wondering, I graduated high school with a 3.95 GPA.)

Does anyone reading this see anything wrong with working “a little more, a little harder”? I don’t.

 For now, we’ll just ignore the rest of the quote.

Quote of the Week 2-25-07 February 25, 2007

“Those who discourage your dreams likely have abandoned their own.”

I think that we are all aware there are always going to be people that choose to negative about the choices others make. Just last night, I was told “I just think it’s going to be hard for you to do well at selling Mary Kay.” Now, if I was a negative person, I probably would have continued the conversation with all of the things that ARE hard about this. Luckily, I’m not that type of person.

No one said this would be easy, at least not to me. The best things in life are rarely easy. If all the good things were easy to accomplish, everyone would have them. Sometimes you have to actually WORK (gasp) to accomplish the things you want most out of life. My opinion, if you have to work for it, you appreciate it more when you have it.

I think just about anyone who is reading this is aware of the negativity that some feel for Mary Kay. Is it justified? In their minds it is, so who are we to bash them for how they feel? It works both ways. If we enjoy being in our “Pink Bubble” we don’t want them bursting it. If they are thankful their bubble was popped, good for them. We shouldn’t let it bring us down. Negativity can be contagious, if you CHOOSE to let it be. I choose to not let it get to me. I choose to turn a negative into a positive. I choose to dream big. These are my choices, no one else can make them for me. What do you choose?

Think I’m going to Debut February 25, 2007

Last night, while I was cleaning my house, I started thinking about having my business debut. I realize that most consultants that have these do them relatively quickly after becoming a consultant. I didn’t originally want to have one, but I have changed my mind. I think it would be a great chance for me to learn some things from my director. She has offered to do this for me, and I’ve never really given her a firm yes or no, but I’m going to email her today and let her know that I have decided to do this. I think I’m going to plan it for the weekend after Career Conference. I figure I’ll be on a pretty good “pink high” at that point, so I think it will be good timing. I’m not exactly sure what all will go into it, and unitnet is down right now, so I can’t look there, but I really want to plan this well. Has anyone reading this had a debut? Any ideas on what works and what doesn’t? I want this to be HUGE! I figure since I have a month to plan it, I have the time to do as much as possible. Any tips?

Turning it around today… February 24, 2007

Well, the lady that was supposed to host my only class today called to cancel this morning. I feel guilty because I am upset about it, but it truly is beyond her control, so, I must go on. I am going to pick up a catalog and some orders from a silent hostess I had this week. I hope she did well. She was so excited about doing it. My goal for this morning is to get 5 new contacts. I only have about half the day to accomplish this, because we are supposed to have some really bad weather this evening. I have set new goals for me to reach before Career Conference, and if I’m gonna make them, I have to work HARD! That’s never stopped me before, so I don’t intend to let it stop me now. I will list all of those later in a separate post, but for now, I’ve got to hit the road. I won’t accomplish anything sitting here typing….