Bo Short Archive
October 30, 2003
Passport Memo From Bo Short
Posted by QBlog
On October 20, 2003, I received a copy of the following memo from an anonymous source. The memo was sent out to Passport Associates by Passport Founder and resigned Quixtar Diamond, Bo Short. I'm including the memo in its entirety, without any edits or modifications. The memo primarily addresses Bo Short's interview with Dateline NBC for the upcoming story about Quixtar.
Date: 10/11/03
To: Passport Independent Associates
From: Bo Short
Re: Upcoming Dateline NBC Show
Hello Everyone,
For those of you that are unaware, I had qualified once and attained the level of diamond in 1995 in the Amway business. Having been made of aware of issues in 2000, and having unsuccessfully attempted to cause change, I chose to resign my income and business as an Amway/Quixtar distributor in 2001. I did so as I could not represent a business to be something that I no longer believed it was. Unfortunately, over the course of my Amway/Quixtar career many of us were taught and subsequently
passed on things that turned out not to be true. I have tapes that were made of a number of my speeches that reflect this.
As many of you know, Dateline NBC will be airing a show discussing the Amway/Quixtar business. I do not know the details of the show but I wanted to let you know about my role in it.
The shows producer, wanting to discuss my experiences, attempted to make contact with me on numerous occasions. After a great deal of deliberation I decided to return one of his telephone calls. Following in-depth discussions with my family and after consulting with law enforcement personnel to discuss the safety and well being of my family, I made the decision to discuss my experiences on air.
The reason I believed that meeting with law enforcement personnel was important stems back to an alleged comment that was made in the year 2000 by a senior, tenured diamond who inadvertently discovered that a small group of us were discussing leaving our upline and working directly with the corporation. He allegedly said about us, “I will put a bullet in the back of their heads.” It was this alleged statement that has heightened my awareness to the possible repercussions involved in challenging the hierarchy of their “business support materials” business. While many people may perceive this as dramatic I would suggest that the “wholesomeness” that is presented on stage is not always what it appears to be. Additionally, the potential loss of millions of dollars of income for a small group of people may cause some to react in ways that would be excessive.
I was asked what I thought the corporation or their senior distributors would say regarding my statements. Fortunately, I have copies of notes (not just mine) from meetings, contracts, and memos to support my statements. In my opinion, their reaction will most probably be to assail my character. This is a common political move designed to divert one’s attention from the truth. I would expect them to make inaccurate and misleading statements similar to the following that they posed in response to my resignation.
In September of 2001, I chose not to renew my Amway/Quixtar business and to no longer receive compensation. When contacted by
Quixtar I was told that was insufficient. I insisted that I was through. They countered with a demand that I produce a resignation letter. I find it quite interesting that the business compendium that I used and the one that was published later address this issue differently. To avoid further conflict I sent one that they claim was never received. I then sent another that they finally acknowledged in November 2001. I have never received compensation from them since the end of September 2001 when I told them I was through.
In mid-to-late October I launched Passport as a solution to address what I perceived were very complex problems in this industry. I later read in a letter written June 25, 2002 to an acquaintance of mine, attributed to Gary Vander Ven (Quixtar’s Manager of Global Business Conduct and Rules) in which he said, “Bo Short was not forced to resign. He voluntarily quit when faced with complaints from other IBOs that he violated Quixtar’s Rule 4.14.” I find this to be very offensive and typical Quixtar “spin”.
In my opinion, I believe that they purposely prolonged acknowledging my departure to set the stage for comments such as these. However, they know the truth as to why I resigned. In my opinion, Mr. Vander Ven’s letter is a convenient way to avoid the truth. I believe it is easier for some of them to avoid telling the truth than dealing with the ramifications of it.
The ultimate reason I decided to participate in the upcoming Dateline NBC program was no different than the reason I resigned my income and business in Amway/Quixtar; it was the only right thing to do. Having served as the Corporate Liaison of the group that was challenging the BSM hierarchy in the year 2000, I was privy to private meetings with corporate officials and IBOAI board members (this is the distributor board that supposedly represents the best interest of the distributor base) in
which I heard and learned things that shocked me. While I made some of this information public approximately 2 years ago, the depth of what I learned was never released.
As well, the BSM group (Team In Focus) I was associated with was started as a way to “fix” what we perceived as wrong with that business and create an ethical, equitable program. Unfortunately, financial improprieties amongst a couple members of the TIF leadership created an intolerable situation. I could not be associated with people that would betray the trust of the people they were supposedly leading as well as working with. Having lost faith in the leaders in the “field” as well as the
“corporation” I had no alternative but to resign.
I was asked why I would expose my experiences and findings in the public forum now. The answer is three-fold. First and not to overdramatize the situation; I believe that public knowledge offers my family more safety than my knowing something that remains in the shadows. Secondly, I believe this information can protect people from falling victim to, what is in my opinion, abhorrent behavior at best. And thirdly, I have a beautiful daughter whom I love with all my heart. I believe that I have a responsibility to teach her that doing the right thing is not always easy…but it is always necessary.
I do not know how much of my interview will be used in the show. The taping encompassed several hours. I was very forthcoming and told only the truth as I know and experienced it. I was never asked to embellish any part of my story. I did tell the producer that it was my opinion that the overwhelming majority of the distributors were good, kind, pursuers of the American dream and unaware of the complexity of the situation. I did not even learn the depth of this myself until the year 2000.
I am available to answer your questions. I am so proud of what you are doing in your business, powered by Passport. I would encourage you, as always, to have fun, and tell the truth. I believe more than ever that we have an opportunity to do something great together. People are looking for the truth. They do not want to do something that delays gratification for a lifetime…they simply want something that will work the way it is presented. Our true test as a company will be to provide just that.
I am proud to know you.
Always Lead,
Bo
July 19, 2003
Is the "Bo Short" name marketable?
Posted by QBlog
Do a Google search for Quixtar. Go ahead, I'll be here when you get back.
Ok, welcome back. Did you notice all the Passport ads on the right side of the page? Did it look like this? My question, to no one in particular, is why do they advertise the Bo Short name? It's almost like it's not the Passport business, but the Bo Short business and I think that's potentially bad business for a couple of reasons.
First of all, when you so closely associate your business with an individual and their name (Martha Stewart for instance) then your success or failure is (in part) tied to the individual. What if, God forbid, Bo Short gets caught smoking crack or something. Then the ad, with Bo Short's name attached, becomes an instant liability.
Secondly, on a philosophical level, I believe that a bit of Bo Short worship could develop. I stress "could." I see it in Quixtar. I see people almost worship some of the Diamonds and mindlessly follow every command. It happens with Dexter Yager in the group I was involved with. Now, my concern is that Bo Short gets set up as a sort of Passport version of Dexter Yager. I'm not saying that Bo is anything like Dexter, but my point should be obvious.
And then there's the last point I guess. Who is Bo Short? Do people really know who he is? Maybe his name is widely known in MLMs but I'd never heard of him before my troubles with our upline (read the archives).
Anyway, just thoughts on a Saturday morning while sipping my coffee. Happy weekend.
February 25, 2003
Who is Bo Short?
Posted by QBlog
Found this about a guy named Bo Short. I don't know if any of this is true but apprently he is a real guy who really quit Quixtar. I'm sure Quixtar has an explanation about why he left and I don't even know if this is really his explanation but it is a good read nonetheless. I just wonder who is Bo Short? And does anyone know the Quixtar version of why he left?