Getting Away From the Traditonal Job Mindset
One year ago, I veered off of the path of tradition. My sister approached me again about an opportunity called 5linx. I was familiar with network marketing, and honestly, not too fond of how people would market their opportunity as quick money. For months, I had seen my sister working hard and I was telling myself that this was not something I wanted to do. However, the second time she approached me things were not going well at my job, and I was ready for a change. I told myself that if I got involved in network marketing that I would take the time to understand what the business model is all about and go the route of truly educating people so they understand what they are getting into. At my job, I was a teacher of Personal Finance to high school students. Besides wanting a change from my job, I decided to join because I wanted to build a true retirement fund. I had been a steward of all the financial gurus that said to invest early so that you could have financial freedom later. What they don’t tell you is that the percentage they used for compounding interest is almost none existent in today’s market.
After joining 5linx, I quickly began to study all the products and services. I had a great team that was ready to assist me with any questions. I’d had a good start after I joined. Becoming my own boss started to change my mindset about how I viewed the “traditional” jobs. It opened my eyes to a way to truly achieving wealth. I had seen so many people not ready if they’d lost their job. I wanted the peace of mind of not worrying about relying on my job to provide my only source of income.
Learning about the Cashflow Quadrant
In January, at the National Convention, I ran across a book by Robert Kiyosaki called “The Business Of The 21st Century”. This is a great read about the network marketing business model, and he educates you on what he calls the “Cashflow Quadrant”. Most of us are trained by the education system to be employees (the path of tradition). What the network marketing business model does is allow you to become self-employed (when you are first starting out), build a business organization (just like the other major corporations can do), and build long-term wealth (passive and residual income). The book also gives you some guidelines and questions to think about when you are choosing an opportunity.
Choosing a Business Opportunity
Here’s how 5linx stacks up when I went through the questions:
Who’s running the ship? 5linx is run by three gentlemen that have over 60 years combined in the network marketing industry.
Does the company offer a proven plan of action? Yes, there are step by step documents that teach you how to get your business started.
Does the company embrace both business skills and personal development as a regular part of its educational and training programs? Yes, there is 5linx University which is required to be completed by all active representatives.
Does the company have strong, high-quality, and highly marketable product line that you can be passionate about? Yes, the company consistently provides cutting edge services, which are wealth trends, for their representatives to be successful. We are partnered with major corporations and offer cell phone, cable/satellite, internet, home security, VOIP, healthcare, energy, identity theft and credit score solutions, text marketing, small business solutions, church marketing solutions, realtor marketing solutions, and credit card processing.
I have enjoyed the time that I have been in this business and it has allowed me to grow not only as a person, but as a business owner. I will continue to educate individuals on the business model, as it is important to understand that network marketing is ultimately about building wealth and financial freedom.