The names have been changed to protect the innocent, etc.
I almost got DIVORCED because of Amway!
I was an "Amway Widow"- my husband was out chasing his dreams 3-5 nights a week, while I was home with our two chidden.
My husband and I were so completely opposed on the issue of Amway that it amounted to being the worst fight we ever had, day in day out, for one-and-half years.
Luckily for me, a friend downloaded Anti-Amway information for me from this WEB site, and I believe it was instrumental in getting my husband out of Amway.
I cannot speak of statistics or economics, but I can speak from my heart. I can tell all of you how my husband's involvement with Amway almost destroyed our marriage and family.
Amway usually recruits couples, and I gather most couples work on the business together until they both get disillusioned. My case was different. I was not interested in being involved in Amway, but my husband wanted me to get involved- go to rallies, host plans, wear dresses, throw out "negative" products we already owned, and buy only Amway products whenever possible. The business had a term for people like me- "Negative". There were two plans at my home after my husband signed up. The first was before I really knew what my husband was getting into. The second was after going to a Rally and talking more with my husband's sponsors. Not only was I not home the evening of that second plan (I was at a friend's house with the kids, on a school night), my husband asked me not to come home until 10:00 p.m. so as to not disrupt the Plan.
If I was going to be part of the Plan that evening, I was to wear a dress, smile, play hostess, and get a baby sitter to contain the children upstairs. THAT WAS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! I had heard his sponsors and gone to a Rally, and I thought all these people were crazy. The Rally was what I thought a religious revival must be like. I was scared that my husband was enjoying it, and that he thought nothing strange of it. I think I was the only one there out of thousands of people who did not continually stand up/ sit down/ stand up/ sit down and sign/hold hands/sway to "God Bless America" at the end of the Rally. I kept saying to myself "I'm the only sane person here."
My husband's sponsors fed him books, tapes, and lines like "If people say no, they aren't themselves", and "If you find your lose old friends after being involved in the business, it's just because they can't handle your success-They're jealous!"
I didn't know a lot about Amway, but I insisted I'd heard enough. I begged my husband to get out, but he said that I didn't understand, I didn't have enough information, I should thank and support him for working to provide for our family's financial future. Mind you, before Amway, my husband never mentioned he saw a $100,000 Mercedes and a motor home as symbols of our financial success, but now he had done some test-driving and had brochures laying around the house. We are on "Camping World's" mailing list.
Anyway, I haven't even gotten to the crux of why I decided to put my two cents here: I saw my husband evolved into a man I didn't know anymore, a man whose values changes, a man whose logic was thrown out of the window, a man who spent more time and effort chasing the Amway dreams that nurturing the family and comfortable lifestyle we already had.
I have nothing against trying to earn more money and better our lifestyle, but if "system causes one to completely dehumanize oneself and his family in search of the Almighty Dollar, the cost is just too great.
Our children were 2 years old and 5 years old when Amway first interrupted our lives My husband was a successful lawyer by day, and an Amway fanatic by night. He was out 3-5 nights during the week, plus the monthly Leadership, Seminar, and Rally, plus two long week-ends a year in Utah. If there was a meeting at my child's school at night, I had to get a baby sitter. I was sick (with strep throat) I had to get a baby sitter at night to help me. I fell down some stairs and threw out my back, and guess what? He had a plan that night, and out the door he went. He was in Utah on my birthday; he was out doing Plans the last two Valentine's Day nights.
Concerned friends and relatives hated to bring it up, but asked me if he might be having an affair or had a drug problem.
My oldest, a boy, continually begged me for a new daddy. When my son told my husband he didn't want him to go out so much, my husband told him "I have to work really hard now so that we have a lot of money later on; when you get bigger I will have lots of time to play with you". (Yes, I heard him say this to my son!.
My husband gave me dirty looks if I got home from the market with "negative" salad dressing or "negative" toothpaste. All of a sudden, he was concerned with knowing if we were running low on peanut butter or aluminium foil. He mixed us fresh batches of Dish Drops before the blue & white bottle ever got too low... lest the day come when I think we've run out of dish washing soap and but some at the market.
The few times that we actually went out together (non-Amway nights) he would chat with waitresses about their jobs, and ask salesmen if they were happy with what they were doing, etc. I felt like I couldn't even be with him without him prospecting.
He told me he went to malls to make contacts and set up Plans. It scared me to think he was willing to go into the homes of complete strangers.
The two distributors he sponsored directly in those one and a half years had him driving 1200 (yes, twelve hundred ) miles a month to follow up on leads and do Plans and Follow-ups. He was spending at least 80 hours a month on Amway that I knew of. He was spending a couple hundred dollars each month on gas, meals, books, tapes, a separate phone line for business, Amvox, and the Amagram. And for all this, he was grossing $20-$50 a month. A huge expense I didn't yet mention was the thousands of dollars spent on marital counseling, of course at my request. I was lucky he went but I finally decided we should quit therapy because his attitude about Amway remained the same: When asked "Do you realize that if things continued like this, there is a good chance we will wind up divorced?" His answer: "That's the chance I take."
Well, I finally got to the point where I realized that although life wouldn't be easy if I was divorced, it would be better than living like this. There was always so much tension and anger between us. I felt the worst for the children, even though they didn't see him very much anyway. In fact, I thought that with visitation rights, he'd be forced to spend more time with the kids after the divorce that he was willing to now.
I told him that I didn't think our marriage would survive Amway. I showed a wonderful book I had read, " Amway, The Cult of Free Enterprise" and asked him to read it. I think the possibility of an impending divorce got him to read the "negative" material. It just so happened that I had lots and lots of Internet files on Amway printed out and laying in plain sight the day after he read that book.
He spent that entire day reading through all the Anti-Amway Internet materials, and after the kids were asleep for the night, he told me that he was getting out of Amway immediately. Not only did he want his wife and kids back, he also felt that even if some of Internet testimonials were not true, the evidence was so overwhelming that he couldn't be part of system was so unethical. His eyes became watery, and he apologized for making my life so hard for so long.
From his perspective, I know I made his life very difficult. I was an obstacle to his success. He could go Direct with my support in 2 years, but because of my resistance, it would take 5 years.
I was always angry at him. I lost respect for him. I complained about him going out so much. I didn't want to socialize with his new Amway friends. I refused to use SA 8. If we weren't fighting, we were trying to ignore each other. I told him that if he were an alcoholic, I wouldn't pretend to ignore it and offer him a drink. And as far as Amway was concerned, I told him he was obsessed with it and I firmly believed it was a cult, indoctrinating him with ideas that were not in sync with the man I used to know. I couldn't pretend that Amway was okay. I couldn't pretend d that what he was doing was okay. He used to be so good to me; now he had no free time. His family and old friends used to think he was a great guy; now they think he had a cocaine addition or a mistress. He used to enjoy spending time with the children"; now he doesn't have the time. He used to be happy with life; now all he focuses on is how unhappy he'll be until is a multi-millionaire. And then, when the millions are rolling in, and the alimony and support are rolling out, then finally he will be happy.
Luckily for him, the children, and I there was a thread of the man I used to know left, just enough to realize that life with Amway couldn't better than life without his wife and children.
Thank you to everyone who contributed to showing my husband of 10 years what Amway is really all about. Our one-and-one half years in the Amway world was a living hell.
He's been out of Amway for 4 days now, and we're back in the therapist's office, and on the road to recovery.
Postscript (from the ex-Amway husband)--I've have been out of Amway since February, 1996 and have had no regrets about leaving the business. I have my wife and kids back, and my marriage is great. I am indeed a lucky person.
As an ex-Amway distributor, with my marriage and family life intact, I consider myself to be a "winner", not a "loser". I applaud those ex-distributors who decided that a stable marriage and family life is more important that seeking Amway riches.
I was actively involved in Amway for a little less than two years. I read the books, listened to the tapes, purchased the Amway products, attended the seminars and rallies, went to the major functions, and generally tried to build a thriving Amway business. In exchange for my hard work, I:
1. Alienated my wife, family, and friends;
2. Disrupted my family life;
3. Spent little time with my children;
4. Became addicted to motivational tapes;
5. Bought inferior Amway products against the wishes of my wife and;
6. Became a different person.
I did take a sabattical from the business for about four months in 1996 but immediately returned to building the business. My wife, who intially tolerated my Amway business, eventually grew to hate every aspect of the business and in turn hate me.
From a kind, involved husband, father, and friend, I mutated into an Amway monster, only concerned with dreams of material wealth (cars and vacations) and getting my next fix of standing order tapes. My wife tried to reason with me without success. The only real emotional contact we had were frequent, emotionally charged arguments.
Instead of turning to me for emotional support, my wife relied on her parents and friends. We tried counseling, but I was not willing to compromise on Amway nor acknowledge its harmful influence on my life.
To proect herself form my Amway madness, my wife turned away from me and prepared for a life after divorce. In February, 1996, our lives were only connected by our children. Just before my wife was going to ask me to move out, she gave a book on Amway entitled "Amway, The Cult Of Free Enterprise", by Steven Butterfield. That book, along with some information on the "real" money in Amway (sale of tapes and books) convinced me that the Amway business and way of life was not for me. I gave up my Amway business that day without any regrets.
I thank my wife for standing up to me and taking drastic action to save our marriage.
Now that I have been away from the Amway business for over a year, I can offer the following suggestions on anyone interested or currently involved in Amway:
1. Read the pro-Amway and anti-Amway sites on the Internet;
2. Talk to current and ex-Amway distributors about their experiences;
3. Do price comparisons on the Amway products;
4. Listen to several motivational tapes to see if you like the emphasis on religion and material wealth;
5. Ask your potential sponsor or current upline how much "net income" they made in 1996 and the first six months of 1997 (if they refuse, wonder why), how much money they spend per month on tools, how much time they spend per week on the business, and for a written list of pros and cons on operating an Amway business; and
6. Listen to the concerns and comments of your spouse, family and friends.
I would like to comment on some of the issues on your web page and some of the e-mail responses. I am an Amway distributor and I have been since 1990. I have lost a lot of money over these years. The money I lost was due to my believing my upline. I will not go through all the things that they said because you know them all. Never at one time did they try to cheat me out of money due to shady practices. I have not had the opportunity to read all the e-mail (their is a lot of them) but I feel that I can make some comments about Amway. All the points that you have made both positive and negative are true. I only have One thing to say. At the end of all the evaluation on the pros and cons and all the good and bad publicity surrounding Amway and all affiliates of Amway (different lines of sponsorship), the thing I have to say is: Is there anything out in the world that costs as little as Amway to start up and offer the kind of lifestyle that it can offer? and if you don't do something different with your life to make more money (because that's the reason for getting involved in a business isn't it?) aren't you at the same spot as when you got involved? You have made the assuption (I'm quite sure) that I still believe Amway is the only opportunity out there to acheive your goals and dreams. I never did blame my upline for my failure in Amway, it was my fault that I did not accomplish the things that I would have liked. My upline supported me throughout my waffling Amway career. I think that the fundamental problem with Amway is the mis-information that lines of sponsorships tell there downlines. I agree that you have to use the brain that God gave you and to use it wisely not only in Amway but in any business or job that you are involved with. You must question things or you don't learn anything new and you become cows walking to slaughter house (not knowing where they are going or what they are doing). I believe that you should question your upline about certain things and that if you do invest money into your business, you deserve an answer. Should you follow your upline blindly? Yes and No. Do you listen to people who bash and bad mouth Amway without finding the other side of the story? OF COURSE NOT!!!!!! I have had bad experiences in Amway, but that does not make the whole experience bad. I have had far more good experiences than I have had bad. Should you do everything that your upline tells you to do even if you feel morally that it is wrong? OF COURSE NOT!!!!!! At one time my upline told my wife to prospect people at work (she works for a retail chain) and to prospect customers that come in to shop! We talked it over and, using our brains, decided that this was a bad idea and my wife would probably get fired because we were sure that someone would complain to her boss and she would be toast. We also came to the conclusion that we could find prospects elsewhere. I think what happens a lot of the time is that you get people involved, they don't listen to their upline Direct or above ( because people who get invovled know nothing about the business and shouldn't give advise on what to do to their new people) and they do their own thing, and it doesn't work and they quit. This I believe is the number one compaint of Amway. "I got in, did some things for a few weeks, it didn't work, so I quit. That Amway thing is a bogus and it doesn't work". This compaint (or something close to this) is the compaint of most (not all) people who get in Amway. Let me tell you another storey. When I first started I showed the plan to my cousin. "No thanks, not interested". I never showed her the plan again or talked about it because I new her answer already, NO. One day I get a phone call from her "guess what, I'm in Amway". I cetainly was surprised, but I wished her all the success that I know Amway can provide. One month later she tells me she quit. "Why?" I asked, she tells me that she had two big "in home" meetings, no one got in, so she figured that it must not work so I'll quit. At this point I will wrap up by saying "Amway works, this has been proven all over the world and Amway fails, this to has been proven all over the world. The only question you have to ask yourself is this: Amway works, but only if I work Amway, am I willing to put in the time and the effort to get the results that I want?" Amway is like any other business in the world, It is not a gravey train, you must work and work hard to achieve your goals and dreams and if you think that Amway is the only company in the world that has bad press and has disgruntled people in it than you need to do some research on other companies around the world.
I have been researching Amway for about a year now, I found your article to be imformative and accurate.. My sister and her husband have been involved in this cult for about 4 years now, and since their involvement have had no time for their family at all.. When my sister approached me with a buisness opp. I told her that I was not interested at all and since then she will not communicate with me. I have sent her several articles that concered me and she has an answer to everything.. We alway's shared a close realtionship throughout the years but she seem to have memory fade where that is concerned.. I read the letters that other brainwashed amway fans sent you and had to laugh at how each letter they send say's the same thing, like it is rehearsed and isn't really being spoken from the heart or their own minds.. I have heard every slogan that amway has to offer from my sister. I keep telling her to talk to me with her own mind but doesn't seem to have any effect.. Well just wanted to share my experience and God Bless you for your hard work, Keep it up.. Those amway people wouldn't be barking so loud if they didn't believe what you were saying as truth...
Thanks for the quick reply.. Any thing is worth a try right now.. Things couldn't be any worse then they are right now.. She and I alway's were so close, and it makes me furious that this so called business is so destructive.. I could never sacrafice money for family but then I have never been a material minded person.. All I ever here is how they will be financialy free one day and how much time they will spend with there children then.. Well I figure the way they are going they will be in that position when the children are grown and have no desire to spend that time with them.. Her children are teens 14, and 16, and see very little of them. There evenings are spent sucking people into a business that they don't want to be in.. And another favorite is how "God" sent them this opprutunity.. They even went to a meeting on their sons birthday, and made the rationalization that he wouldn't mind as long as they did something for him on the weekend. Pretty sad. Well thankyou again and keep up the good work.. Take care and God Bless!!
Very enlightening info. on the pork Amway received in the budget deal. I can still remember our upline's starry-eyed wife telling us over and over that "Bill Britt had a private meeting with Newt Gingrich...did I tell you that Bill Britt met privately with Newt Gingrich...did I mention that..."
So what the hell does that prove? Answer: Amway can't compete in the marketplace on its own merits and must resort to begging for corporate welfare from sleazy politicians who are sympathetic to Amway's extremist politcal agenda. By the way, distributors, I'm a fiscally conservative Republican, so don't bother saying "oh, you must just be a stupid liberal." Far from it. Interestingly, in spite of Amway's cronyism, Amway Japan and Amway Asia are trading near their 52-week lows, while both P&G's and Gillette's stock continue to climb steadily. Looks like the market can see through the smokescreen without too much trouble.
Question for you, Charles--did Clinton's line-item veto wipe out this tax break? I know that some of what he struck down was labeled as pork for companies with foreign interests, but I don't know whether the Amway loophole was included. Any additional info. would be appreciated...
This is great!
Here is a document that I created to convince my mother and father, both retirees without much financial savvy or support, that Amway was not an easy path to worry-free retirement.
There may be things in it that are worded badly or do not conform exactly to Amway company policy. You would know more about that than I do.
Incidentally, I chose Toyota as my example solely for my father's
benefit. He's a Toyota fanatic; I pointed out to him that he had spent
aproximately one hundred times as much time researching his new car than
he did researching Amway.
Anyway, he cut his losses ( about $300.00 ) and got out. His upline
still calls him, but he's resisted so far.
I got my initial information from your site, so thank you.
================================================================
Toyota Distributor Agreement, as written by the Amway Corporation of
America
Congratulations! You have just joined ToyotaWay, the most successful
independent distributor network in the world. Thousands of people just like
you have found financial independence through the ToyotaWay system, the
most successful marketing and motivational program ever devised.
Toyota automobiles are the greatest vehicles on the road today. They are
more powerful, get better mileage, and cost substantially less than
competing brands. Rigorous testing in Toyota?s own labs have proved all
this. In the accompanying Toyota-provided literature, you can clearly see
that almost four of any other brand of automobile would be required to
provide the value of just one Toyota!
Almost 2.6 million people have joined the ToyotaWay program, with hundreds
and hundreds already being Diamonds. Think of that! Almost one percent of
one percent of the men and women in the organization are already living the
dream, with hundreds of thousands more (that?s almost 3% ) well on their
way to joining them!
How do you become a successful, affluent Diamond? It?s so easy! Just put
7500km on your Toyota each and every month, or have 6 people in your
downline put 2500 km on their Toyotas every month, and that?s it! Or, you
can distribute accessories and household products from all sorts of major
manufacturers, all of which have point values equivalent to mileage, to as
many people as you can sign up! What could be easier?
Of course, you must pay all costs for fuel, oil, maintenance, etc., but
these are provided at up to 50% less than any competing brand, and it all
goes directly to your Plan as well, so you are actually saving tons of
money! After all, you?d have to buy all that stuff anyway, and from
anywhere else it could cost you up to 50% more!
In addition, you must convince 10 different people each and every month, to
purchase products from The Toyota Corporation. But, that?s not difficult,
is it? Almost everybody already owns a car, and it needs gas, oil,
accessories, etc. anyway! And, you are able to provide hundreds of these
products at substantial savings over their usual suppliers! And it all
contributes to your Plan!
Once you are established, you may want to assist others in becoming Toyota
Distributors themselves. You will provide them with everything they need to
get started. You will ensure that they conform to ToyotaWay?s high
standards.
We encourage you to approach everyone you can about joining ToyotaWay. We
will not tell you how many other people have already approached them, nor
will we give you and sort of territorial protection, like other franchise
operations do. We do not provide financial assistance, case histories,
audited financial statements or legal advice. All of that is up to you and
your upline, whose continued success depends on you. If you want to keep
being successful, you?ll have to work harder than the other Distributors in
your area ( How many? We don?t provide those figures) since you?re all
competing for the same available dollars.
We do not release the numerical results of any of our tests. Instead, we
provide the opinions of many satisfied Toyota owners, all of whom are
Toyota distributors themselves! Who would know better just how superior our
cars are than people whose financial future depends on selling them?
ToyotaWay is not an illegal pyramid scheme. This was proved by an FTC
decision in 1989 which states that, because of the Ten-Customer Rule,
ToyotaWay is perfectly legal. As long as you faithfully sell Toyota
products to ten different people, or sell an equivalent amount to a couple
of people other than yourself each and every month, you are not violating
any laws. Of course, should you not accomplish this, then, according to
literature published by ToyotaWay itself, you are a member of an illegal
pyramid scheme. So, make sure to make those sales happen, since they are
the one and only thing keeping ToyotaWay from being declared illegal by the
FTC.
You may not use anything other than Toyota-approved literature to advertise
or generate sales of our products. This includes any so-called
?independent? tests, reviews, comparisons, magazine reviews, newspaper
articles, etc. These ? independent? tests are actually being provided by
people or companies that do not understand the Toyota Way and want to keep
you from succeeding as a Toyota Distributor.
You can be a Toyota distributor without buying the Sales Tools or the
Motivational Aids. They are optional. But then, so is success as a Toyota
Distributor. ALMOST NO-ONE WHO DOES NOT LISTEN TO OUR TAPES AND ATTEND OUR
MEETINGS AND FUNCTIONS EVER OWNS THEIR OWN TOYOTA.
Seminars and meetings, which are entirely optional, will be attended only by people who already drive and sell Toyotas or who are planning to be Toyota owners themselves. You must pay to attend these important events. People who are satisfied to drive other brands of automobile are to be discouraged from attending, as are those who wanted to be Toyota owners but were unable to do the work required to succeed. We can learn nothing from those who have failed.
We do not release figures that actually show how many Toyotas each Diamond owns, how long it took them to become Diamonds or what it actually cost them to achieve this. Instead, we publish all sorts of literature, which you must buy, that shows .0012% of our distributors actually going on fabulous trips and seminars which they don?t even have to pay for! Why? Because people like you, who haven?t yet become Diamonds, pay their way as well as their own! Think of the day when You finally break out and have those beneath you pay your way to these fabulous events!
Trust your upline and the people above them. They are always right because they have money, material possessions, and Toyotas of their own. Ignore those who say that over 99% of the people in ToyotaWay never succeed, even though a careful analysis of our own annual results ( which the FDA forces us to publish ) proves this to be true. These people didn?t have what it takes, and you do. Trust your upline, listen to the tapes, attend the meetings, and before you know it, you?ll be a Diamond!
After just a few short years at this pinnacle of success, it?ll be time to retire, secure in the knowledge that a shiny new Toyota will be parked in your driveway for life. Just remember, you?ve worked very, very hard for this. You must continue to put 7500 km on it each and every month, or sell an equivalent value in products,or you will lose it. If you are unable to do so, someone you have legally designated must drive it for you. If they are unable to do so, you must, regardless of your health or mental condition, drive your Toyota 7500 km, or the Corporation will take it back and give you nothing in return.
This document was created using literature and statistics provided by solely by The Amway Corporation of America. Wherever possible, I have used phrases and references directly from Amway?s own advertising.
I noticed, except for the official amway site, that all of the pro-amway sites are gone. The World Wide Dream Builder's leg has a site "www.wwdb.com"; however, it is username and password protected. Have you or do you know of anyone who has had access to this site? My wife and I joined amway about a year and a half ago. We were recruited by her cousin. I got out a couple of months later. Couldn't stand someone pressuring me about listening to tapes that tell me nothing but how great the system is and how important it is to listen to a tape a day. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize the tapes aren't amway tapes, but tapes made, copied and sold by the higher pins in the WWDB leg. I went to a function a couple of weekends ago with my wife. She and her cousin begged me to go. I was told how much the system has changed and how much fun I would have. We arrived at 5:30PM. There were about 500-600 people there at $17.00 a pop. For 2 1/2 hours I listened to various speakers preach about how everyone needs to "BE A GO-GETTER", "JOIN THE TAPE BUDDY SYSTEM" and "LISTEN TO A TAPE A DAY". The speakers also kept referring to the next "VACATION" in Atlanta, GA. I never knew people were so weak-minded. I couldn't listen to anymore. I told my wife I had heard enough garbage and was leaving. I left without her. The time was approximately 8:00pm. I was told it went on until 11:30PM. I'll give the wife a couple of months to come to back to reality, before I put an end to this nonsense. I got off track because these pyramids really tick me off. What I want to find out is whether the Dream Builders site give specifics on what distributors should or should not do. By the way, your site is great! It is very informative.
Keep up the great work!
Wow, it seems that you have devoted a long time researching. Im glad that there are people like you in this world to help make decissions for people like me. However, it makes me wonder how you TRUST everyting in the WEB. After all its the place where you find rapists and delincuents trying to find prays (such as young children) in order to rape them, this i say from personal experience with my friends children as they where approached by e-mail and chat rooms by Internet veterans.
Not all that you hear is true, and yet you cant be totally ignorant about it. However, for ANY company to survive 30+ years and still do it, there is got to be a GOOD and positive reason. (before i searched your site i said to myself :"THERE IS NO WAY in the world that this would not be true"). All major corporations including Microsoft, Apple, IBM etc etc etc have positive and negative histories. and if you tend to place more weigh in the negative side it would seem very unfair. Furthermore, what is wrong with politicians and or democrats, republicans, martians, blacks, dominicans, chinese, canadians and everyone else trying to make and extra buck through free enterprise? What is wrong with overseas markets making it big, isnt IBM and Microsoft, Apple, also making a huge presense overseas? I dont know about MLMs much but i know that if i start an oganization that expands oveseas and MAKES ME MONEY then may God bless THE USA! I kinda like the idea of a business opportunity to be expanding overseas, it makes me feel like i have a better chance to make it. Thanks for your input in this, i didnt know that amway was growing that big overseas, and i didnt believe the person who apprached me about the opportunity here; i mean if the majority of the business is overseas then i can only see greener pastures in the future!
Thank you very much for your input. one mure thing though, what company do you recomend to start a business? Im sure with all your research you have found some out. Unless of course you have only tried to find negative rap about amway. I am a web site author and have my own web site creation company, this is why Im sure you have spent much more time and money setting up this site than what you spent in amway and im sure that since you dont charge for your valuable information your income is also less than that you made in amway. I just hope that you are not just doing this as a gripe towards that company because im going to take your comments seriously before my decission!
Once again thank you and God bless.
Recently I was going over your "COOL" web site. I mean for real. I am asian and was contacted for several people to show the plan. Finally I succumbed after four years. They did exactly what you reffered in your web site. But, the reason I joined was not for money but just to see exactly hoe these people make money. My sponsorer is DD. Not once but several thousand times have a asked him wether he or upline diamond make money of tapes and functions. But all in his answer he has declined. The information on your site and the letters from the Silevers share a good light on these matters. Also about the relifion, it is more like cult then of Christanity. I am in Britt worldwide, in this organisation, Britt hold place next to God for all these people. Though they tried to put so called +ve stuff in me butu I believe it has done very less. Having a mass on sunday during the function is cool, but trying to put this Scanway business through my religion, using a Emrald was the biggest joke I have ever attended. I am in business presently, hopefully not long, to find some more answers.
By the way you all mentioned about their movemnet of tapes as illegal. How can we challenge such activity to FTC.
Hoping to hear more on your web site, keep it up. Also " I AM FIRED UP" because of your web site. (HAHA)
Peace
I was hit up by a Amway representative last night, and was quite interested in seeing your site. (I tagged along to a meeting for the anthropological experience). I was practically at the meeting before "Amway" was used, they are selling the plan and treading really close to the pyramid law.
Your site and several others, plus a quick analysis of the business plan clearly indicate that not only is it a pyramid scheme with an interesting twist that keeps the founders out of trouble, but the operation does not make business sense even as a wholesale club (which was my hope, albeit a small one). I suspected that there was a lot of money in "The Plan" but had no idea how much. The original top people are pretty smart, if a little less than entirely forthcoming.
Thanks for saving me a lot of time and energy.
I just wanted thank you for the time and effort you put through developing your informative site. To me, it meant that you are concerned, considered and very responsible. I wish we had more of your type on this planet.
I was forced by a friend to join although I never believed and saw the scam right from the begining. I basically lost the membership fee and couple of rally tickets which is fine and I don't regret. I learned alot about human minds and phsycology. I feel much stronger since I met those who spent 8 hours listening to Dimonds and living in their dream. Concluding that there many opportunities out there for those who can think.
Who makes those speaches? I am confident the speaches are pre-written and has past inspecttions of some groups of phscologists.
Math formula for speaches: (X1+X2+...+Xn+1)-(y1+y2+...+yn+1)=Dimond
X1 worked seven days a week
y1 Don't be shy, call 1000 times
X2 drove all night
y2 Don't listen to anyones advice
Xn+1 never considered others comments
yn+1 Never give of hope of being milman
(In my language we have a very old and iteresting expression "listening to a joyful event gives you at least half of the joy, dream on".
I know a story you may want to include onto your site:
There was once an old woman who goes to market and buys 10 eggs and puts them into her basket and carries them on top of her head. Somone asks, what did you buy all those eggs for? She says: I have a chicken at home who is ready to inqubate, so in about a month I will have ten chicks and in six month every one of the chicks will have another ten (120) and six months later * 10 each.... so in about two years I will be able to sell all the chickens and go to Mecca (muslim tradition). When I return everyone will respect me and they will all bend (bring down their head to respect) and will say hello Maaaaam. As she was giving a demonstration of her dream, she also bring her head down (to demonstrate) and the result was ten brocken egg instantly.
Well, thank you again and good luck.