I recently read the book Best, Worst, First by Margie Aliprandi. This is a very unique book of short interviews with successful network marketers sharing their best, worst, and first tips.
What I want to do in the paragraphs below is share some of my favorite quotes from the book. Each quote is in bold an italics. After each quote I will share my own two cents. Enjoy.
Top Quotes from Best Worst First
# 1: One of the biggest things we do as leaders in our business is seeing that untapped potential in people, even before they are fully keyed into it themselves.
Our job as leaders is to look for the best in people. It’s our job to identify potential in prospects and team members, and then help people reach their potential by coaching them and encouraging personal development.
# 2: Know also there will be attrition. People you have invested your heart and soul in will leave.
Most people will quit, regardless of what you do to help them. Be prepared for it. In most cases, 80 to 90 percent of your team will quit each year. Don’t take it personal. Instead, focus on the people who stay!
# 3: What you focus on expands.
You become what you think about. Positive attracts and negative repels. The Law of Attraction is always working, either for you or against you. Focus on the positive whenever possible.
# 4: Stay passionate about your goals.
Have a big WHY and keep your goals in front of you at all times. This will help you survive the ups and downs that come with building a business and dealing with people.
# 5: Have realistic and worthy goals.
Set challenging, but realistic goals that make you stretch out of your comfort zone. Don’t set goals you know you cannot achieve. That will only lead to disappointment. Instead, break your big goals into bite sized chunks and take daily steps to accomplish those goals.
# 6: This is a team sport.
No one succeeds in this business all by themselves. Success comes from teamwork. Get plugged in with your successful, plugged in upline and their system. Create a team culture for your team. Make people feel appreciated whenever possible. Take care of and love on your team.
# 7: Learn how to uncover the need or desire that your prospect has.
Show your prospects how to get what they want and they will move heaven and earth to get it. Before you give a presentation, ask questions to figure out the “PROBLEM” your prospect is trying to solve. After you do that, show them how the products or opportunity can be the SOLUTION to their PROBLEM.
# 8: Show your determination to succeed. Let people know that you’re serious, that you’re committed, that you’re going to make this happen.
The speed of the leader is the speed of the team. People want a leader that they can look up to. Your prospects will evaluate you more than they evaluate the business opportunity. Be someone worth joining. Be the sharpest, most motivated, most persistent, and most ambitious person on your team.
# 9: This is a business, not a rescue mission.
It’s not your job to save people or make people successful. You can try to do that, but it will only lead to frustration and disappointment. Don’t make the common mistake of wanting success more for others than they want it for themselves.
# 10: The key to keeping your own belief alive is to remember that your mission is to serve others.
The more people you serve (and the better you do it) the more money you will make in your business. Take your eyes off of yourself and focus on helping others get what they want.
# 11: Build the people, and the people will build the business.
This is a people business, more than anything else. Your job as a leader is to encourage personal development and help people on your team grow (as people). By doing so, some of them will step into a leadership role and take the torch and run with it.
# 12: CEOs plan. Planning is a huge part of succeeding in their business.
Spend time each week to plan your business. Write down your goals. Strategize whenever possible. Don’t let the minutia keep you from seeing the big picture.
# 13: We committed to ongoing learning.
Try to get a little bit better every single day. If you do that for a year or two, you can be 100% better.
# 14: Even if you’re still the only member of your team, behave like a leader.
Act like a leader at all times. Until you adopt this leadership mindset, you will never have a big team. You will go DIAMOND in your head and heart long before it manifests into reality in your business.
# 15: It’s critical to find a few key players right out of the gate.
Find 2-3 serious people as quickly as you can. Do a 90-Day Blitz at the beginning of your business, so you can sponsor 30-50 people in the first few months. From that, you will find 2 or 3 people who really want to build a big business.
# 16: Network marketing is the only profession I know of that levels the playing field for all people. You can come from Yale or you can come from jail.
Although there is no guarantee of success in our industry, it is a level playing field. Anyone CAN become successful, although most people won’t.
# 17: You want a sponsor who is going to tell you like it is.
Look for someone who leads by example and tells you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear. Work with someone who has fruit on their tree and then humble yourself enough to listen to them.
# 18: You want a sponsor who will hold you accountable.
You want to work with someone who will keep it real with you and hold you accountable at all times.
# 19: Sponsor with the end in mind, not just for instant gratification. Build relationships early and develop a successful business locally first.
Build in your own backyard before you try to build out-of-state or out of country. Start with the people you know before you venture into the cold market.
# 20: It’s going to take three to five years to build a solid foundation that will allow for sustainable growth going forward. Don’t over-estimate what you can do in a year or underestimate what’s possible within five years.
It takes time to build a successful business, folks, especially if you are doing it part-time. Rome wasn’t built in a day. Have some patience and take the long-term view.
# 21: Comparing your progress with someone else’s story will rob you of the joy of your own journey.
Never compare yourself with others. If you’re going to compare anything, compare what you are currently doing in the business with what you are capable of doing.
# 22: Go to as many events as you can – company events, generic events, conference calls.
Attend all events and get your team members to events. We are an event driven business. The more team members you have at events, of any kind, the quicker your business will grow.
# 23: Ultimately people don’t buy based on facts. They buy on emotion.
We are all emotional creatures. We make emotional decisions and then justify it with logic. Appeal to people’s emotions if you want to recruit more people or get more sales.
# 24: If you knew that you could set yourself up financially for life in the next 12 to 24, months, how hard would you go at it? Massive action is the key to being a success in network marketing.
One of the biggest reasons people don’t take their network marketing business seriously is they don’t believe THEY can be successful. What’s neat about our industry is you CAN change your life in a year or two, if you do what most people aren’t willing to do.
# 25: The biggest challenge that we have is that it’s too easy and too inexpensive to get started in network marketing.
Most people won’t treat their business seriously because they don’t have much money invested in it. I encourage everyone I meet to act as if they have $1 million invested in their business and they only have one year to earn it back. Have a sense of urgency.
# 26: It’s much easier to go from $1,000 a month to $2,000 a month than it is to get from 0 to $1,000.
Once you get a small team going, it’s pretty easy to keep it going and growing. Building your business is like launching a space ship. Most of the fuel is consumed in the beginning, during takeoff. However, once the spaceship is in orbit, it doesn’t require as much fuel to continue moving.
# 27: You never know when the timing is going to be right for someone.
Stay in touch with everyone you talk to. Remember that every prospect is a prospect for life. Keep a database of EVERYONE you talk with about the products and business and stay in touch with them every 45 to 90-days until they buy, die, or ask you not to. If you do this daily, you can build up a good database of several thousand names within a few short years.
# 28: Pick a company that will last.
If you want long-term residual income, you must work with the right network marketing company. You want a company with sound financial backing, great corporate leadership, and a product or service that is valued in the marketplace.
# 29: Building a successful sales organization requires at least three to five years.
Have patience and be consistent with your business. Don’t have the mindset that you will try it for 90 days. Don’t keep switching companies every few months, either. Plant your flag with ONE company and give it a five year commitment. That’s what it takes to succeed.
# 30: Is the product something you would use even if there was no business opportunity attached to it?
The product must present a good value for the end-user, the retail customer. Without customers, there is no long-term, legitimate business.
# 31: Most of the sales volume is made up of distributors who quit the business but they don’t quit the products.
Most people who start out as a distributor will eventually stop building the business and just revert to being a customer.
# 32: Focus on building at home until you have a stable income.
Build locally first. Don’t spread yourself too thin and try to build nationally or internationally until you have a small team going in your local area, and you are profitable.
# 33: Be the person who attracts others.
Be someone worth joining. Be the type of person you want to sponsor. Be the type of sponsor you wish you had.
# 34: The secret is in giving people time to warm up to you and the idea of network marketing.
Most prospects you talk with will not join right away. Have patience and do not pressure people. The average person will need seven to 20 follow ups before they make a buying decision. Keep planting seeds, keep following up, keep adding people to your pipeline, and good things will happen.
# 35: Remove the option to quit.
Get rid of your exit strategy and be all in. Don’t have the “I’ll try it for 90-days mentality.” No one builds a successful business with that mentality.
# 36: This is a business. You need to treat it like a business. It needs consistent effort. At the beginning you’re going to work really hard for very little so that later you can work very little for a lot.
When you start a new business of any kind, you normally work for less than minimum wage, at first. That’s because it takes time, money, and hard work to start and grow a successful business. However, as your business grows, your pay increases and you can eventually earn MUCH MORE than the amount of hours you actually work.
# 37: Find a “running partner.”
Find one to three serious people as quickly as possible and run with them. Lock arms and work together. Encourage each other. Support each other. Match each other’s efforts. This is a great way to explode your business.
# 38: Working directly with your sponsor is going to be a major key to your success.
Work closely with your sponsor and stay in the trenches with them. If your sponsor is inactive or unqualified to help you, work with your plugged in upline .
# 39: The worst thing you can do is to let time go by without action and productivity in your first 30, 60, and 90 days.
Get off to a good start in your business. Help your team members do the same thing. Strike while the iron is hot.
# 40: All the people who were winning recruitment contests weren’t the big income earners.
This is a leadership and team building business, not a recruiting business. Yes, you must recruit some people personally. But the real money comes from duplication. It’s about helping your team members recruit and duplicate your efforts that matters most.
# 41: They know how to create community and culture and team spirit.
Good leaders create a strong team culture without hype, pressure, or drama. The culture is the “community” in their team. Having a strong culture where everyone feels welcomed and appreciated is extremely important to your success in the business.
# 42: The better person you become, the better the people you’re going to start attracting into your life.
You attract more of what you already are. The easiest way to attract “better” prospects is to become a “better” distributor and sponsor.
# 43: Worrying never improves anything.
Focus on what you can control and don’t worry about things you can’t control.
# 44: Target successful professionals. The ideal candidates are already in sales in some way.
Your best prospects are people who are already successful in life. Look for professionals. Look for entrepreneurs. Look for people who work on commission. They understand hard work and merit based pay and are typically open minded about additional ways of making money.
# 45: Make it your goal to hear as many no’s as you possibly can as fast as you can.
Go for NO and you will get more YESs. Make it a goal to get five or ten NOs per day.
# 46: The reason most people don’t succeed in this profession is because they’re not decision-driven.
You have to follow through what you start if you want to succeed. We have a lot of starters in our industry. However, it’s the finishers that make it to the top. It’s what you do after you initial excitement fades that determines if you will succeed long-term in the business.
# 47: 80% of recruitment is non-verbal.
People join people. Your prospect is watching you. Be someone worth joining.
# 48: I’ve routinely asked for two-year commitments.
Get a commitment from your new person as quickly as possible. Make sure they understand it takes time and hard work to grow a successful business.
# 49: Go to your top three friends.
Everyone can sponsor their top three friends. If everyone on your team did that, your team would explode.
# 50: When you recruit new people, set initial goals that will require them to stretch a little bit, but not overwhelm them.
Give your new people tasks and goals to aim for. Just make sure those goals and tasks are realistic, based upon the person’s skills and time commitment.
# 51: Choose your sponsor carefully.
The person you partner up with is just as important as the company you join.
# 52: We’re driving a lot of amazing people out of the business by shoving leadership activity down their throats.
Never pressure your team members to do more than they are willing to do. Most people do not want to step into a leadership role. Most people do not want to do presentations or have their own meetings. Don’t force or pressure people to do that, or they will most likely quit.
# 53: Give them the time they need to grow at their own pace.
Love on people and meet them where they are at. People will grow and develop at different times and paces. Your primary objective is to KEEP PEOPLE IN THE BUSINESS UNTIL they are ready to start working.
# 54: During your first year in network marketing you need to be recruiting like crazy.
Recruit as many people as you can until you find your five serious people. Try to sponsor 100+ people your first year in business. This will lay a solid foundation for your future success.
# 55: Build your organization to the point where you have at least four well-developed lines in your downline chasing you.
Build four good legs as quickly as possible. This will lead to a long-term, stable income.
# 56: Recruiting is a process; it’s not an event.
Recruiting takes time. You must walk your prospect through a series of steps. And keep in mind, the average prospect needs 7 to 20 exposures before they make a buying decision.
# 57: Your upline wants to see by your actions that you’re serious about your business.
Treat your business seriously and your upline will seek you out. The fastest way to get your upline’s attention is to start doing what they taught you to do.
# 58: Success comes when you focus on helping others get what they want.
Help other people reach their goals and you will reach your goals.
# 59: You’ve got to listen.
Listen more than you talk. You will learn 100x more by listening than by talking.
# 60: When we really know what other people’s pains and needs are, we will then know what specific solutions we have to offer them.
Find out what other people want and show them how to get it. Our job is to offer solutions to people’s problems.
# 61: Don’t listen to people who don’t have what you want or who are not going where you’re going.
Only take advice from people who are qualified to give it. Don’t take advice about your business from people not involved in the industry, or people not successful in the company. Listen to your plugged in, successful upline.
# 62: You don’t try a marriage with the idea of trying it for 18 days and then quitting when it gets too hard.
Take the long-term view and realize that everything in the business will not go exactly as planned. There will be ups and downs, setbacks, and disappointments. Learning to manage your emotions and expectations is vital to your long-term success in the industry.
# 63: Connect deeply with others.
Build friendships with everyone on your team. Treat people well. Find out what makes other tick. It’s true, people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
# 64: If you’re not sharing your opportunity with everyone you know, that’s an indication that you’re still split.
Start out by contacting your warm market first. If you don’t feel comfortable doing that, the likelihood of you succeeding via the cold market is almost zero.
# 65: You have to be all in.
You can’t be wishy-washy and succeed. You must be all-in. Be part-time with a full-time attitude.
# 66: In network marketing, you succeed by helping others succeed.
The only way to get what you want is to help others get what they want. No one makes it to the top of their company’s compensation plan without the help of others.
# 67: You are the leader of your own tribe.
You must build your own team and lead them, if you want to succeed in the business.
# 68: Dedicate 90% of your time to learning the business.
Few people come into our industry with the right skills, attitude, and mindset. You must commit to learning and mastering these things before you will have big success in the business.
# 69: Your success is determined by your daily agenda.
We are all a creature of our habits. It’s the little daily disciplines that make the difference. Show me your daily routine and work schedule and I can 100% predict whether you will succeed in the business, or not.
# 70: It’s like building a skyscraper. Things are going to be happening underground for a while before you see the building pop up.
Typically, your first two to three years in this business are getting your foundation built (finding your serious people). You don’t always see much money during that time. However, once it’s built, the business can grow quite rapidly.
# 71: I learned what truly grows and bonds a team was leading with compassion, leading with love.
Build rock solid relationships with your team if you want long-term success. Always treat people well, regardless of their performance.
# 72: No compensation plan, product, or sponsor will get you there. Ultimately it’s going to be you who has to get you there.
It’s not your sponsor’s job to make you successful. Look at the person looking back at you when you look in the mirror. You are the X factor.
# 73: Stop trying to get out of the work. Do the work. When you look at who is successful, they’ve all put in the work.
Roll up your sleeves, get to work, and never look back. It takes an INCREDIBLE amount of work to launch a new business and make it successful.
# 74: The harder you fight for something, the more you’ll value it once you achieve it.
Anything worth accomplishing requires a big sacrifice. The greater the challenge the greater the reward.
# 75: The big stories are great. But the smaller stories will get you further.
Most people would be very content with an extra $200 to $500 per month. Instead of only talking about the big money our industry offers, focus on the little money. Show people how they can earn an extra $500 to $1,000 per month with their business, as a side hustle.
# 76: When you’re meeting with anyone, take the time to find out what it is that they want more of in life.
Find out what other people want and then show them how the business or products will help them get what they want.
# 77: People make money. But systems generate wealth.
Make your business system dependent not people dependent. Develop systems for your team (and yourself) to use.
# 78: It’s going to take you at least the first full year just to figure out the business and learn your company’s products.
It takes time to build up a successful business. The first year is a learning year. Make it a point to be a student of your business, especially during the first 12-months. Learn everything you can.
# 79: Get rid of excuses. Take responsibility.
Your success is 100% up to you. No one is going to save you. No one wants success more for you than you want it for yourself.
# 80: If you are going to be successful, you have to take ownership of your commitment to succeed.
I’ve never met a successful victim. Take 100% responsibility for your life and business. That is the key to success.
# 81: All the money is in prospecting.
Prospecting and recruiting new people will solve all of your money and business problems.
# 82: Unless you’re fully committed to network marketing and what it offers you in terms of future rewards, it’s just a wish. Not a dream. A mere wish.
You must be all in to make it to the top. You must be part-time with a full-time attitude. You will not succeed in a big way if you dabble or do the business only when it is convenient.
# 83: Telling stories is a much more effective approach than merely sharing a typical business presentation of data and facts.
Facts tell, but stories sell. People remember stories, not numbers or facts. One of the quickest ways to skyrocket your income is to become a good storyteller.
# 84: If someone doesn’t want to be a customer or distributor, keep in touch with them anyway.
People’s situation in life will change. Treat everyone well and stay in touch. Many people who tell you NO today will be on your team five years from now if you treat them well and stay in touch.
# 85: Whoever recruits the most frontline people wins.
Sponsor as many people as you can and let the cream rise to the top. You cannot fail using that strategy.
# 86: If I have six to seven people on each team, my group will be a success. For every three people I talk to, one will want to see the business. For every three people who see the business, one will get in. For every three people who want to get in, one will do something with the business.
This is simply a business of numbers. Work the numbers and the numbers will take care of themselves.
# 87: You have to stay emotionally detached from everyone until they start demonstrating that they will be with you. Don’t place your success in anyone else’ hands.
Expect nothing from everyone you sponsor, but hope they will do something. That way you are never disappointed.
# 88: Running a business in network marketing is a lot like flipping a well-shuffled deck (or multiple decks) of cards. Every time we introduce our opportunity to a new person, we’re flipping another card, looking for the aces. If we flip enough cards, we are going to find the aces.
There are four aces in every deck. You never know when they will show up. You just have to keep flipping cards and eventually you will find the right people.
# 89: A no today can be a yes at some point down the road.
Everyone is a good prospect at some point in their life, even if they aren’t ready today. This is why it’s vital to stay in touch with people, and circle back from time-to-time.
# 90: Our business is not for everyone in the corporate world. Not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur.
Remember this and keep in mind EVERYONE is a consumer. Everyone buys stuff. This is a good reason to lead with the products.
# 91: I’m looking for people who are looking for something more.
At the end of the day you are looking for people with a big, burning desire to change their lives. You are looking for people who are sick and tired of being sick and tired.
# 92: Roadblocks will ultimately benefit you and improve your skills as a business leader.
Every trial and tribulation you go through makes you stronger. Every setback is an opportunity for a comeback. You learn very little from your successes, but you learn an incredible amount when you fail, or things don’t go your way.
# 93: This profession isn’t about pressure, it’s about service.
Treat others well and focus on serving others. The more people you serve, and the better you do it, the more money you will make.
# 94: Love people where they are. Be patient with them and be a good example.
Don’t pressure people to do more with the business than they are ready to. Just meet people where they are at and keep encouraging them.
# 95: This is not a product business, it’s about helping people build their dreams.
Build up the people and the product volume will take care of itself. People are our REAL PRODUCT.
# 96: People work harder for praises than they will for raises.
People crave recognition and appreciation more than money. Find ways to recognize people, especially for the small things.
# 97: Build rapport with questions. Ask questions.
Do more listening than you do talking. Give people your undivided attention. You have two ears and one mouth for a reason. Use them in that proportion.
# 98: During the first month they’re in the business, I don’t want them talking to anyone about joining the organization.
Get your people trained before you throw them to the wolves. Teach new people some basic skills so they have a fair chance at success.
# 99: The leaders who develop the fastest are the ones who delegate.
Don’t try to do everything yourself. Empower others as much as possible. If everything relies on you, you will either max out or burn out.
# 100: Influence is about being authentic and heart-centered.
Lead with your heart. Lead with your passion. Remain humble. Do not let success go to your head and do not let failure go to your heart.
# 101: The way to go about creating authentic relationships online is to be who you would be offline.
Be yourself, whether you are online or offline.
# 102: Every single person who goes online looking for business also has a warm market.
Always start out with your warm market. That is your best source of prospects.
# 103: People who come to you through advertisements are still cold leads. Paying for advertising isn’t very duplicable either.
Keep the business as simple as possible and don’t reinvent the wheel. Start with your warm market before you venture into cold market prospecting.
# 104: Use social media to expand locally. If I were to move to a new town today, I’d start with Meetup, and then LinkedIn, and Facebook.
These are great resources to meet new people in any location. You can search for people in your local area and connect with them.
# 105: Focus only on your successes.
Everyone goes through temporary defeat. Focus on what is going right in your business, not what is going wrong.
# 106: Professionals get paid; amateurs don’t get paid.
Decide that you will be a professional. Think of your business as anything but a small business.
# 107: Expose, present, validate, enroll, and support. Exposure is the money step. This is a numbers game.
Work the numbers and then build relationships with the people you do bring into the business. And keep in mind, the more people you approach the more people you will sponsor.
# 108: Your warm market is any group of people who will warm up to you when they find out you have something in common.
This is the best group of people to focus on in your business. It might not include your immediate friends and family, but there are plenty of other people you come in contact with and have things in common with. Focus on these folks.
# 109: The pace you set in your first 90 days foreshadows your long-term successes.
How you start your business is a good indication of how it will end up. Have a sense of urgency when you get started and do not dabble with it.
# 110: Present to partners together.
If you are sharing the business with someone who is married or has a partner, make sure you share it with both of them at the same time. It’s the right thing to do.
# 111: Think of your business in terms of 90-day micro-bursts.
Do 90-day challenges whenever possible. This will build some momentum, excitement, and explosive growth in your business.
# 112: The very nature of starting any business is messy.
The goal for the first year in any new business is simply to learn and survive. If you earn a profit, great. Just don’t expect it.
About the Book
Best, Worst, First was first published in November 2013. It has 326-pages. The publisher is Martha Finney. The ISBN is 978-1939927675. It is available anywhere books are sold.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, I give Best Worst First a 9 of 10 stars and consider it a must read. What do you think about all these great quotes? Which one is your favorite? Leave a comment below to let me know what you think. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Chuck Holmes
Network Marketing Professional (21+ years)
Top Recruiter & Top Rep
mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
This sounds like a great book. I really enjoyed your quotes. It’s neat that they interviewed so many network marketers and they all shared their best, worst, and first advice. Thanks for the write up.
If only people understand how critical it is to get advice right from the horse’s mouth. You see my biggest takeaway from the book was ” It’s a team sport”.
While it’s true for almost all businesses and industries, MLM holds this reality in the highest regard.
Yes, our industry is a team sport. However, everything starts by being a good CAPTAIN. If you cannot lead and inspire others, the odds of you building a big team are zero.
I really enjoyed this book. I like that it had a bunch of interviews from different experts in the MLM Industry, and that they each shared their best, worst, and first tip. Every networker should read this book. Study it. Apply what you learn in your business and never look back.
Yes, this is a great book and should be in every network marketers library. I’ve read it a few times now and learn something new each time I re-read it.
I think every beginner in this industry needs to read this book. There are a lot of things to learn in this book. I enjoyed the quotes and they also motivated me not only that, it has shaped me on what to expect in the industry. Rome wasn’t built in a day. My favorite quote from the book is “The pace you set in your first 90 days foreshadows your long-term successes.”
This quote says it all. The first 90 days can say a lot about the future of any business.
Yes, this is definitely a must read book.
And yes, the first 90 days in any new business are critical. How you start can play a big role in determining if your business is even around three months later.
The quotes are great, I really like them. It is a great insight into business and very good for beginners and even for the experts. It reminds us to keep an eye on the goal, be realistic and stay passionate about them, have a team, and have a determination and desire to lead that team into success. After that, keep going and last a long time. I also like quotes like “Focus on building at home until you have a stable income”. It is a constant reminder that we first need to start thinking locally and then expand to global market.
I think the hardest thing for most people in our industry is to be persistent and consistent, in one company, for five to ten years. Most people struggle to do that even for 90 days. Success in our industry is about focused and being persistent for a sustained period of time. The longer you can do those two things the higher the likelihood you will eventually succeed.
I think the system she used to develop this book was great. By interviewing network marketers, we all can learn from their successes and failures. You put together a great list of quotes here Chuck. I was reading them, and there were some that grabbed me. Like:
#9-Sometimes we get too caught up in trying to save others, we neglect ourselves and our business.
#25-This is so true…if we had to invest more into starting the business, we wouldn’t be quick to quit or give up.
#59-Listening is so important, because many people will give you the answer if you let them talk.
All the other quotes are great too. This sounds like a great book.
This is one of my favorite books about the industry.