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March 26, 2003
Lies, damn lies and statistics
By QBlog in
According to Mark Twain, Benjamin Disraeli was commenting on statistical analysis and said, "there are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies and statistics." Brilliant. True. Brilliantly true. This is one reason I have avoided posting statistics on this site. It's one reason that I have rarely been impressed when hearing "impressive" statistics rattled off about "the business."
However, what I really want to talk about is lies in general. I can honestly say that I don't believe anyone in this business (Quixtar) ever lied to me directly. I believe that some facts were conveniently omitted and some questions were purposely unanswered but I can't say that anyone lied to me.
Yet, I was misled. Just like a newlywed who gets excited about the "invitation" in the mail for "special prizes," only to discover it's a 3 hour sales pitch for kitchenware with some "valuable" coupons as compensation, I feel misled.
I know, this is a business. A serious business that takes a lot of time, energy and money. But if someone had told me on the front end that to be successful I'd need to spend roughly 10-15% of my combined (married) gross income on this business with no guarantee of any return this year I'd have walked away and STRONGLY encouraged my wife to do the same. We don't have that kind of money. We are making monthly credit card payments on tools, trips and tickets. I know that wasn't smart but it's reality.
Nobody forced us to spend that money and I know this business does work. Yet, when framed in the context of annual expenses it's hard to get really excited about something that has very little guarantees. Business is a risk. Most businesses fail. Yet my main complaint is that Quixtar is sold on the premise that it's built with spare money, during spare time and with spare energy. This, I'm convinced, is just not true.
My point is that I wish people had been more candid on the front end. I wish they'd said that this business was costly, that we may be deeply in the hole the first couple of years and that it would require a lot of time. I think that if my wife had decided to stick it out she may have begun to turn things around in a couple of years but she decided this was not worth the risk for her own reasons. This is one of the reasons I've been so adamant about knowing the negative statistics regarding success in this business. If I was going to participate I'd want people to understand that not everyone is going to make it and to exercise caution and thrift when spending money on tools, tapes, seminars and trips.
Comments
Sarah - instead of posting this here, tell her about it. They offer a refund.. Quixtar's return policy is excellent.
If she's a friend you certainly aren't helping that relationship by not talking to her about it and secondly whining about her behind her back.
Be a winner and get the issue cleared up. All IBO's aren't accountants, she probably made a mistake on her figures.
I mean really, who counts the cents it costs to do laundry? If you like it, buy it. If not, don't. :) No big deal.
I just stumbled apon this website ..and at first I was like "aww another person bashing Quixtar" but I was wrong..I liked what was said and I am in agreement and yes I am an IBO currently building the business and I have come to the same relization of the cost and time you must invest in your business to eventually benefit..But at the end we disagree I do feel it is worth the risk if you have FAith and do what needs to be done it can and will work for anyone..but like anything in life you get out what you put in its not a get rich quik scheme and the statistics are against people succeeding in anything in life...but in the end result "residual income" is better than "active income" no matter how you cut it..After awhile the money invested will be recouped many times over,because its a matter of time before your network spirals out of your control.. it may take me 2-5 years or even 10yrs to build this thing ..but thats better than working for 40yrs and ending up broke or barely making it.....but John I have to applaud you on your honesty on this website, and wish you the best at whatever you are now doing
I just bought some detergent from a Quixtar representative at my work. I was told that it would come out to approx. $0.20 a load per wash. When I got the detergent and the bill--it was $43.00 and it does 135 loads. This is almost $0.32 a load. This is nearly twice as much as what I'm paying for my All detergent. I pay about $0.15 right now. I'm furious that I was blatantly lied to! This is a woman I work with! This is just very upsetting. I am also incredulous about the fact that their Artistry make-up is more expensive--if not just comparable to department store brands.--And I see nothing exceptional about these products. All I wish is that I wasn't harassed about these products on a regular basis. These reps. go after you relentlessly--it's like some sort of religious conversion or something. Anyhow, I'm very angry that I've been lied to, by someone I consider a friend. I think this is a good way to lose a LOT of friends.
Posted by: Sarah Shoemaker | July 11, 2004 6:08 PM