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March 31, 2006
Woodward's TEAM Un-Wiki-Fied
By QBlog in TEAM
The famous Wikipedia added Orrin Woodward's Team to it's vast listings last November but now that article seems to have vanished. Could it be connected to the Wikimedia subpoena? Or maybe the Wikipedians just decided Team doesn't deserve to be included in the world's largest encyclopedia?
Pay For Training
By QBlog in A/QMOs
I'm trying to understand something and maybe you can help me out. Why do so many Quixtar IBOs seem willing to spend their own money on training? The Quixtar Business Reference Guide (pdf) requires uplines to train their downlines for free.
Yet many IBOs feel excited about shelling out personal funds to attend the latest seminar or buy the next great CD. Is this common in other types of business? Don't most businesses pay for training where the money comes from business funds, not personal checking accounts?
Even if you own your own business, isn't it important to keep your personal spending separate from your business spending? I'm not the brightest bulb in the chandelier so I'd appreciate any help figuring this out.
Or maybe I should clarify where I'm coming from. Call me old-fashioned but if you recruit me to be an Independent Business Owner and you're convinced that your success is dependent upon my success then you better be paying for my training. That's an investment in ME. But, even if you convince me that as a business owner I should be paying for training, I'm not going to write a check from my personal checking account. Hell no. I'm going to write that check from my business account which has been funded by either an investment of some sort, a loan or revenue from my business.
Am I crazy or does that make a lot of sense? How then does a Quixtar IBO start thinking that it's a good idea to shell out $3-5,000 a year on a training system that has only anecdotally proven its success? What am I missing? And what other businesses out there require participants to pay for their own training?
I just don't get it. I really don't. Lil' help?
March 17, 2006
Quixtar Wiki Needs YOU!
By QBlog in Blog News
Yes, it's true. I started the Quixtar Wiki. But as with any wiki, it requires a community of dedicated contributors to grow. Many thanks to Mevi for his tireless efforts to nuture the Quixtar Wiki. It's a great start.
Now the Quixtar Wiki needs you. That's right, this is a call to action. We need you to join the Quixtar Wiki and add your contribution. The more people who participate, the better the wiki becomes.
Is it hard?
Editing a wiki is easy. The Quixtar Wiki uses the same software that powers the wonderful Wikipedia so if you're familiar with that, then you know how to edit the Quixtar Wiki. If you have any questions just email Mevi and he'll be glad to help.
But I don't know what to say!
Don't worry. Just say what you know. Let's say you know a little bit about XS Energy drinks. You do a search for XS and if no page is returned, click the "create an article with this title" link. Then type in what you know and you're done. It's that easy.
I just like to read, not write.
Well now is the time to write, just a little. We really want to the Quixtar Wiki to be the most comprehensive source of Quixtar information in the world. But we need you to help.
This sounds like you're begging for help!
We are! But seriously, it's not too difficult and you might find that you really enjoy the wiki experience. I mean, a wiki is what the web was always intended to be - a collaborative effort to provide valuable information that anyone can contribute to. That's pretty cool.
So get off your duff and get over to the Quixtar Wiki and show us what you got.
QBlog Status Report
By QBlog in Blog News
The new site template is coming along but it's been delayed because I've been extremely busy. But it will be implemented sooner rather than later.
While I haven't been posting much here I have been putting up a podcast every week at QBlog Radio. That whole thing is actually growing and I recently implemented a message service.
If you want to call in and leave some comments for QBlog Radio call 312-884-7737. There's a two minute limit on each message so if you want to talk more than two minutes, just call right back. So far we've heard from Rocket, Michael (a fellow podcaster), David Robison and someone named Ryan.
What should you talk about? Anything you like. Don't be shy, just call 312-884-7737 and get yourself on QBlog Radio. It's as easy as dialing a phone.
March 11, 2006
Odd Isn't It?
By QBlog in Miscellaneous
How did Amway get its name? According to the Amway website, the name is short for "American Way." Today this "American Way" multilevel marketing business provides an opportunity for people to sell exclusive products and recruit others to do the same.
What is this "American Way" opportunity called in America? Quixtar.
Isn't it odd that the business opportunity has a different name within the namesake country? Wonder why that is?
March 10, 2006
Quixtar Chatter - March 10, 2006
By QBlog in Quixtar Chatter
- One prospect discovers that Quixtar is more expensive than other vendors and warns others to beware of "charismatic diamond leaders"
- A Minnesota mom is fascinated with the bizarre Quixtar debates
- "Saw a Mini-Cooper with a QXTAR2 license plate. The driver was scary"
- A pretty good idea from a Dick DeVos critic: "Why doesn't Dick promise to give each and every Michigander a Quixtar starter kit..."
- Farhana is a Malaysian woman who seems to like the effect Amway is having on her boyfriend
- More Dick DeVos hating: "Just what Michigan needs: more bored housewives hawking vitamins and soap"
- If the Absolute Michigan News Blog, Detroit Wonk and the Michigan Liberal blog had been reading the QBlog then they would have already known about some of the DeVos domains
- And finally, some positive perspectives on being an IBO: "Being a business owner means you are stepping away from the crowd. You will need the CD’s and books to help you have the confidence to go the opposite direction of 95% of people in this country."
The Pissing Match
By QBlog in Quixtar
"The lady doth protest too much, methinks."
-- From Hamlet (III, ii, 239)
I'm not interested in engaging in a pissing match with Billy Florence or his son Rich who, according to the RSS feed, is the real author of the Quixtar News: Billy Florence blog. A post from March 9 claims that I have "been publicly disseminating false information about Billy Florence, Rich Florence and the Qrush blog." Such accusations are false, misleading and inaccurate. Here's why:
- The referenced post (which was never linked for context) very clearly states that I've heard unverified rumors and that I have "no way to verify the veracity" of those rumors. That's a far cry from disseminating false information. There's an entire industry of rumor sites like Think Secret and Gawker that routinely speculate and discuss various theories, opinions and rumors about related topics.
- The post mentions that I made no effort to contact Billy Florence until March 6. How does he know that? Did he ask me? Nope. He's speculating. I actually exerted a lot of effort and was unable to find any contact information for Rich Florence. So I contacted his dad instead.
- Since I made no accusations I need not offer any retractions. It's very possible that Billy Florence is lying and that he's personally running the Qrush blog. Hell, I could be running the Qrush blog. Or Rich DeVos could be behind it for all we know. We simply do not know though some of us have some guesses.
- Show me where I made a factual error and I'll correct it promptly. Did I hear rumors? Yep. Is there reader feedback on the AmQuix site calling Rich a "high school dropout?" Yep. Did I explain that the rumors could be total bullcrap? Yep. So where are the factual errors? I'm not finding them. Can you help me out?
I replied to Billy's response asking him if his son is responsible for the Billy Florence blog. I haven't heard back and don't really care if I do hear back. Like I said, I'm not interested in a pissing match. If a Quixtar Diamond wants to mislead and mischaracterize what I've done then I won't stand in his way. The record is pretty clear. No secrets here. You read both posts and make up your own mind about who's right.
Apologies
And I just have to add this. What's with the Diamond fixation with apologies (see the Scott Larsen apology drama)? I never really cared for them myself. An apology is just words, I prefer actions. If you do me wrong, don't apologize, just quit doing me wrong.
What Others Are Saying
March 7, 2006
Die Mike Furir
By QBlog in Blog NewsBlog News
There seems to be an aggressive comment spam campaign hitting lots of blogs right now. My Wordpress blog is getting slammed and of course this one (running Movable Type) is under attack. The name used in each comment is Mike Furir followed by some random number. I'm not sure how this spam is dodging my spam filter but it is and it's really annoying.
Maybe it's time to switch on the authentication?
UPDATE: I won't be implementing authentication right now but it looks like I'm not the only person being attacked by "Mike Furir." Check out the Google results for "Mike Furir". That's some spam baby.
UPDATE II: Jake Ludington hates Mike Furir too. Die Mike Die!
UPDATE III: Not sure if this helps anything but here's a sample comment from Mike Furir.
name:Mike Furir 80
email: test@t26test.com
url: http://t26est.com
comment: Mike Furir Mike 26
UPDATE IV: I just discovered that I can control Mike Furir spam in Movable Type 3.2 by going to settings/plugins and then SpamLookup - Keyword Filter "Show Settings." Cool!
Other Sites That Hate Mike Furir
- Miss Zoot
- It's a Soul Thing
- Mike Furir Needs To Die
- Mike Furir is a big f**king idiot
- They Never Learn
- Killing Spam
March 1, 2006
Orrin Woodward's Team in News
By QBlog in TEAM
The Free Times, "Ohio's premier news, arts and entertainment weekly," has published an article about Orrin Woodward's Team (formerly Team of Destiny) that takes a very critical look at one of Quixtar's most beloved organizations.
The article, written by reporter James Renner, describes several aspects of Woodward's Team. Here are a few selected quotes:
"You will make two to three thousand a month if you put the energy into this system," he says. "It's only going to cost you around $250. The worst that can happen is you get a 25 percent rebate on everything you buy."
Actually, it can get worse...
...Technically, TEAM is not a pyramid scheme, according to federal and state guidelines. Robin Luymes, manager of PR for Quixtar, explains: "A pyramid scheme is based on the exchange of money without products. No money is exchanged in our business until products are purchased. Your income is purely derived from the movement of product."
Still, Woodward admits to having found a loophole to speed things up...
...Cleveland, he says, is on the verge of being taken over by TEAM. "It has exploded here. That's all I can tell you. There were six people in my first meeting, now there are sometimes a hundred. It works because it's so duplicatable."
But that's not really a word.
"Yeah, technically," he replies. "But 'ain't' wasn't a word either. Is now."
Check out the article and be sure to send James Renner an email to let him know what you think of it.