The Long And Winding Network Marketing Road

In the mountains of West Cork, a short drive from where I live, there is an old gravel road that winds through the hills for miles like a gigantic snake before coming to a long-forgotten lake the size of a small village. We canoe there in the Spring, swim there in the Summer and camp there if the weather is fine in Autumn. In the Winter we walk the dogs.

We have christened this place 'The Long And Winding Network Marketing Road' and I'll explain why...

I take our three dogs here once a week with the family to blow out a few cobwebs, drag myself away from the social media drug I seem increasingly addicted to and give my wife and three children a few hours of family time with dad (whether they want it or not!)...

The dogs love it. It's wild and rugged with all kinds of distractions along the way and plenty to sniff, smell, roll in and occasionally consume and at the end there is the lake; blue and deep and free for all to take their share.

The dogs know this place well by now of course. They have seen the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and drank from the lake, swam in it and chased geese across it in the Summer and when we take our walk each week they have the same choices to make.

They can race towards the lake, head down, forcing anyone in their way to either run for cover or follow their frantic lead.
Or..
They can take their time, enjoy what the jorney has to offer them, maybe even see if they can make a few good friends along the way or learn something no other dogs know.

Hey..

They can think about the size of the lake and wonder if there will be anything left for them to drink when they finally get there, racing headlong towards it.
Or..
They can tell a few good friends where the lake is and what a great and wonderful place it is. Maybe there are other lakes and rivers they might find along the way, who knows?

If you hadn't guessed I'll tell you what they do. They stroll, play, roll in the long grass and meander on and off the road like three old friends returning home after a long night on the black stuff. They enjoy each and every second of their journey along 'The Long And Winding Network Marketing Road' and when they reach the lake they take what they need and leave the rest behind, after all there is more than enough to go around.

And every week with every walk I notice how much pleasure they take from the journey. You can race towards the lake, leaving your family and friends wondering where you have gone and who you are or you can take your time, focus on the end but enjoy the ride along the way. Swim in the ocean when you get there but don't forget to dip your toes in the river along the way.

How To Lead Your Social Media Marketing Tribe

If you're using social media such as facebook, myspace and YouTube to build your business and wondering how to grow your downline then maybe you should take a closer look in the playground next time you walk past the local kindergarten...

Danny McDermott was a small boy with a square head, buck teeth and ears that turned red in Winter. He was one of those kids who found school tough going. Even so, Danny was the first leader I had ever known.

He was the youngest of three brothers from Belfast who came to our school just before Christmas and took the place by storm. I was six at the time but I can remember it like it was yesterday...

You see Danny had a unique gift which he used to amuse, entertain and intrigue his followers with in the school yard. He could hold a ball on his foot for hours, catch it on the back of his neck and balance it on the end of his nose like a seal to the amusement of all who followed him. Danny was one of the greatest soccer players I have ever seen.

But Danny wasn't naturally gifted, in fact I'd say he was clumsy at most things, but what made him special was his dedication to learning new skills and practising them until they seemed second nature.

Only nobody ever realised this.

He would practise each and every day for hours, improving his knowledge of how the ball should be worked, how to recognise his strengths and focus on them and how to teach others to master the same tricks that had made him popular, so that they could feel good about themselves and not foolish.

Then one day, for no reason, Danny picked up the ball and placed it beneath his arm. Then he began to run. And a strange thing happened...

His followers ran too...

One by one at first, then quickly in small groups racing behind one another like middle distance runners. Within minutes Danny had the whole playground, seventy or eighty kids in total, running behind him while he charged ahead smiling like he'd never smiled before.

Danny's tribe of followers smiled too and you know even today I can remember their faces. They believed in him see and he could have ran out the school yard and away through the fields and they would have ran too, each and every one of them without question, following Danny wherever he went.

Stop trying to work out which marketing system will work for you and start to understand how the tribe works and maybe one day you can run like Danny McDermott.