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July 25, 2006
Cognitive Dissonance in TEAM
By Xanadustc in TEAM
I am still listening to the TEAM tapes that I received a while back. At the time of writing this, I am on the 3rd one for today. I have noticed many little double messages. Today, I would like to comment on two.
Disclaimer
Quixtar Rule 7.5.3: IBOs who choose to sell BSM shall not say, suggest, or imply that the use of any such Materials will guarantee success or that the Corporation requires the use of any BSM. BSM shall contain the following or substantially equivalent language:
While the techniques and approaches suggested have worked for others, no one can guarantee that these techniques and approaches will work for you. We hope, however, that the ideas presented here will assist you in developing a strong and profitable business. These materials have been published independently of the Corporation.
This same message shall also appear in the audio portion of any audiotape BSM or be communicated through a substantially equivalent means.
TEAM does have this at the end of many of their tapes, but there is another one placed right before it:
We hope this recording has been informative and thought provoking. One of the most critical steps for learning more about the business is to seek information from those most qualified to give it. As soon as possible, get back with the person that provided you this material and attend an open meeting in your area. This will give you access to those who have utilized this industry for significant personal success and are qualified to answer your questions.
I have a few problems. First, what about doing neutral research? This disclaimer seems to suggest that the only place to get information about this business that will be useful is to get it from the business itself. While that should not be ignored, I would like to comment that other sources also contain many useful practices. You could start with the FTC to see what they recommend about MLM. How about those well respected business journals like Forbes? It has been my experience that the MLM people will not give you any information that is critical of what they do, but if you look into many other business opportunities, those parts are well spelled out. I know because I read the investor reports of many stock portfolios out there (I have a friend big into stock market).
Next, this disclaimer tells you to go and attend an Open Meeting (a meeting where people go to learn about the business) to find those qualified to give you information, but the Quixtar disclaimer says that no one can guarantee success. The funny part about this is that the tape this was on said directly and unequivocally that the system ALWAYS works if you work it (TOD186) because it is based on proven strategies.
Motivation
Chris Brady (PPS92) was talking about Hummers and that he didn’t need one, but he got one because it is motivational. He makes it very clear that he does not need it, but getting it is motivating. I ask, what is it motivating you to do? If it is just to get a Hummer that you don’t need, why is that motivational? If you need to get motivated to buy a vehicle that you know you don’t need, what is the point?
He talks about “growing”, but in the context, it is growing closer to metaphysical practices and thought reform psychology. If growing is reading those motivational books, no thank you, I would rather not. I accomplish too much in my life already.
These two examples make you want to scratch your head and ask if the people on these tapes see the double standard that they are talking about.
Comments
"Money predator" --I like that. I've always compared Amway/ Quixtar to the lion at the watering hole, waiting for the hapless gazelle to wander off from the protection of the herd.
Does Chris Brady (or was that one of the other ultra-successful TEAM dudes?) still have that Hummer screaming across the banner on his personal website? He's going to have to huckster a lot more motivational BSM's to keep that thing in gas these days.
Come on, number crunchers--How many tapes/CD's does it take to fill a Hummer tank?
After all the System abuse they've allowed, the only way I'd be satisfied was if Amway got that lady voice actor who recorded that disclaimer, stuck her up on stage with Chris at his next function, and had her say a disclaimer after every one of his sentences.
"Chris Brady (PPS92) was talking about Hummers and that he didn’t need one, but he got one because it is motivational."
:)
I'm sorry, but that's funny.
I appreciate your points about the FTC and
Forbes. You may be happy to find out that many teams loan a prospect literature after the plan that has the FTC approved numbers (income) to make sure the prospect is not mislead. If the numbers are approved by the FTC that means they are legit, wouldn't you agree?
Also, Forbes currently ranks the two founders of Alticor as some of the wealthiest families in the country. They also show their other holdings: such as the Orlano Magic Basketball Team, Hatteras Yacht company, and Peter Island (the largest privately owned Carribean Island). This proved two things to me: 1)The business works really well
2)It's credible enough for Forbes to rank them, you don't see people of illegal or immoral wealth ranked in Forbes
The reason that people suggest you get back with someone on the team is that they will show you where to find the facts, and not the opinions.
Um, mike...
The fact that they have a lot of money means that they have been successful, it says absolutely nothing about how the business is for other people involved. I think that the $115 a month for the average IBO is far more telling than their own personal success. Forbes did not 'pick' them because of some merit, but because they have money.
I said nothing about the business being either legit or a scam. Something can be legit and be a terribile business opp. For an example, I would like you to invest $10,000 so that I can start my own little computer store. It would be legit (not illegal, immoral, unethical), but with the computer market already well saturated, I know for sure that your investment would not give you any return.
Nice try...
Hey Mike,
Could you either link that info or at least give a brochure number? I've never once seen the words "FTC Approved" on any Q* brochure. I'd love to see it.
Mike M writes: "2)It's credible enough for Forbes to rank them, you don't see people of illegal or immoral wealth ranked in Forbes"
CK, picking herself up off the floor after a rousing fit of laughter, responds: You did mean that as a joke, didn't you? Did you hear that Forbes is some kind of bastion of 'legal and moral wealth' on a CD?
This reminds me of that other tapespeak that insinuates that because Quix hired microsoft for some software development,and because Circuit City allows Q to retail through their web portal, somehow this is the same as these companies being 'partners' with Quix.
Actually, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense...the AMOs teach IBOs to cook the books by paying retail for product and counting the diffence as profit. Enron showed ridiculous profit in part by shuttling their losses to bogus corporations created for that purpose.
And Forbes rewarded Enron with it's "Most Innovative Corporation" award.
Six times.
Next.
Mike M> I appreciate your points about the FTC and Forbes. You may be happy to find out that many teams loan a prospect literature after the plan that has the FTC approved numbers (income) to make sure the prospect is not mislead. If the numbers are approved by the FTC that means they are legit, wouldn't you agree?
Joe> When did the FTC approve of quixtar?
It's too bad that there are so many people out there who won't accept responsibility for their inadequacies and deficiencies and must defame and blame others; the world is full of them. When things get tough, they quit and blame someone or something. You can take this any way you like, but in my opinion, and you know what they say about opinions, these people are the biggest losers on the planet. They infect good and decent people with their negative and naysaying attitudes to a point that others start believing it about themselves. They are like a cancer and they are infectious to the decency of man. All people are basically good, but anybody can find negative stuff about anyone or any company. And the media doesn't help because they encourage negativity and bad news, too, because good news doesn't sell; but bad news, gossip and heresay does. Too many people listen to bad advice from those who know nothing about what they are giving advice on and it ends up being their downfall. As for TEAM, regardless of how you interpret their messages, (and everyone interprets things differently) they don't guarantee success if you adhere to their training materials and system, they offer it as a guide for success because many peple have become successful by following it. It really boils down to you. Only you can guarantee success by not giving up on yourself and learning from your failures and moving forward to reach your goal(s). It's too easy for most to just give up when faced with an obstacle or struggle and then lay blame on something other than your lack of drive, inspiration, motivation, desire, or whatever you want to call it to become successful. So look in the mirror the next time you feel discouraged, defeated, persecuted, hopeless, down on your luck, etc. and point the finger of blame right there. And if you decide to quit, then shame on you, and keep it to yourself; but if you decide to suck it up and keep trying and persevering, then you're on the right path to succeeding no matter what your goals may be.
Rick-you clearly listened to too many tapes. First of all, How long have you been involved w/team. I would guess not long at all. I felt the same way until one day I woke up at a seminar. You can only listen to the same speach for so long. You know them: If you quit, your admitting failure, your giving up on yourself, admitting defeat. Translation: Your taking money out of my pocket stick w/it. Even if it takes you 2,3,10,15 years to be profitable. By the way profitable to them is $2,000-$3,000 mth. Dont forget to figure in your "motivational materials". I am successful w/out the buisness. I dont need someone every week at an open telling me the same story and charging me $5.00 to get in. Let me ask you a question: Havent you noticed at the open meetings the speaker never mentions Quixtar. Dont you wonder why that is? After all, with out quixtar team would not exist. They dont like to admit that, but its a fact. So renew your monthly ditto for energy drinks and bars. Eat and Drink yourself to wealth.LOL. Why dont you just invest into your education,not into your uplines pocket. Best of luck. I will keep checking Quixtars Diamond board for your name. Team sure is producing alot of them. LOL
Hmmm...last time I checked, Randy Haugen (IBOAI board member) and the entire Legacy organization just joined the TEAM. But, what does Randy Haugen know? He's only a little ol' Double Diamond with one of the biggest Quixtar organizations with 30+ diamonds.
People fail to realize that the TEAM builds using the TEAM APPROACH business model (approved by Quixtar) which is far, FAR superior to the traditional "Me, you, 6, 4, 2" spider-ball method and has the fairest compensation plan of any Quixtar organization, AND has arguably the best system out there. But hey, why don't we just nit-pick a lot and take some audio out of context and try to shoot down the TEAM, the fastest growing organization for the past eight years. Sounds like a smashing good time, don't you think?
how much time can you spend listening to, picking apart and then whinning about what someone else has done or said? Nothing I have read here (in this post) has helped me in my thoughts or my life, in fact, it has been a waste of time bigger than watching a soap opera on TV. You people have too much time, and too little worthwhile things to do.
In reply to Xanadustc:
Are you kidding me? "Motivational" books? "How to Win Friends and Influence People", "How I Raised Myself From Failure to Success in Selling", and "The Magic of Thinking Big" are "motivational" books? I have personally been told by folks like Stephen Covey, Jack Welch, Mark Victor Hansen, Hiram Smith, Fred Smith, and Zig Ziglar they wouldn't be where they are today, and now that they have accomplished what they have they need these caliber of books even more and are on a regular diet of them. As to listening to audios certainly you have heard Chris Brady and others say that "to know and not to do is not to know". In other words if you listen to the information and do not build the business (if you're getting results you're building the business, otherwise, you are probably doing just enough not to make it and you aren't accountable, truly accountable with a willingness to change, to someone with at least a six figure income in the business), if you aren't building the business you really don't understand what you are listening to. I have met many people who claim to have shown 15 plans a month for a year or more who didn't get results but when they have been willing to really have a conversation about none of them were truly building the business. I can tell you that before I ever became profitable in the business I went from $40,000/year to well over $150,000/year on my job, met the woman I've been married to for several years now, and made more genuine friends than in all my previous years of living. And, oh, I found a relationship with Jesus Christ that to quote George W. "He changed my heart". All while watching many around me "try real hard". I don't say this to puff myself up but simply to demontstrate a very important distinction and crystaliize why you can study these blogs and look all day at what looks like credible research and not understand where the speakers on the audios are really coming from. Understand that I have previously been in Amway, and experienced other organizations before TEAM. TEAM is truly different. We will go beyond a million people and become the largest corporation in the world, and we will do it with a business that is very different from Quixtar. Nothing bad to say about Quixtar, it's just that they have grown too big to relate to the brand new person making $42,000 a year household income or less. For someone with my income yeah, I love the quality of the products, but they are out of reach for the masses rushing to Walmart. Anyway, the point of my response is to simply ask, although you have the right to write anything you'd like (as long as you're broke and no one wants to sue you, but that's another topic), why do you feel you are qualified to write it?
For pete's sake will someone just say, "I make money by selling kits to people!!!!" You people always throw that smoke screen up and it annoys the crap out of me!!
"Chris Brady (PPS92) was talking about Hummers and that he didn’t need one, but he got one because it is motivational."
Jeez, that sounds an awful lot like IBO's when they speak of status.
You know, buying things you don't want with money you don't have to impress people you don't even like.
Yet another conflicting message courtesy of your friendly neighborhood money predator.
Posted by: rocket | July 25, 2006 9:05 PM