From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Food for Thought
Date: Fri, 04 Sep 92 20:10:40 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 

In article wpalmer@oasys.dt.navy.mil (William Palmer) writes (edited):

>... It occurs to me that there are many differences between entrepreneurs
>and mlm'ers. As the posted definition stated, entrepreneurs literally
>build a business from the ground up. That's a tough job to do. It takes,
>among other things, knowledge, experience, a good sense of timing, money, 
>lots of spare time, a proven product, a known market, and an efficient 
>distribution method to get the product to the market.
>
>	 You entrepreneurs out there, my hat goes off to you guys. You've
>certainly worked hard and long to get what you've got. Is it possible,
>however, that you did it the hard way? Is it possible that you overlooked
>a vehicle, in the form of network marketing, that provides the knowledge,
>experience, timing, development money, products, markets, and distribution
>method, for you, and all you have to put into the business is your time 
>and effort?


This is an excellent point.

The biggest advantage of network marketing is that it is an excellent vehicle
to produce a willable, residual income, which is a prerequisite for financial
independence.  However, there can be other reasons, usually emotional and
personal, why some people would want to start their own entrepreneurial
business (as defined above) rather than getting involved with network
marketing, an example of a turn-key business (Mr. Friedman pointed this out
in a prior post).  For example, some people have a burning desire to
manufacture a better widget (I have leanings in this direction, btw), and
for them network marketing will not provide an outlet (at least directly) for
fulfilling that burning desire.  Thank heavens there are people in our society
who feel that way, otherwise we network marketers wouldn't have any decent
products to market, would we?  Somebody has to manufacture, and somebody has
to market (sounds almost Ecclesiastical) - you can't have one without the
other, that is, they are dependent on each other for survival.  And, of
course, it is possible to develop a willable, residual income via
manufacturing, at least if the product is in continual demand and that it
is possible to pay others to oversee the production process and take a
percentage of the profits (this is how my wealthy brother derives a lot of
his income).

Thus, what I am trying to say is that the best business vehicle for a person
to focus their efforts on greatly depends on the reasons that person wants to
get into business in the first place.  From my experience of having talked to
well over 500 people over the last four years about this business, it turns
out that the primary reasons that *most* people have for wanting their own
business boils down to the perception that financial and personal independence
is achievable only by being in your own business (which I believe is true
except for a few rare exceptions).  Thus, IMHO, network marketing is the best
vehicle for *most* aspiring business owners.

To illustrate this better, I once actually talked a person out of doing
network marketing after I determined that his life goals and interests would
not be fulfilled in any way via network marketing (it was an interesting
experience to say the least).  However, such cases are very rare indeed.
After all, our primary purpose as network marketers is to help others achieve
their life purpose and goals, and if our vehicle will not do that for them,
we do not have a right to push this business down their throats.

Anyway, my $0.03 worth (inflation, you know).  I look forward to more
discussion on this interesting topic that network marketers do not talk
about much, since the prevailing view is that this business is for 
*everybody*.  I assert that it is for *most, but not all*.

Jon Noring

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