A story....written by my hubby

In the latter part of 2008 a recession occurred that put the global economy on notice. The subsequent fallout of this economic downturn is still apparent today, as evidenced by high unemployment, low consumer confidence, a decline in home values, and rising food and gas prices, just to name a few things. Additionally, retirement nest eggs on average have yet to approach their pre-collapse balance and [even responsible] elderly individuals who would otherwise be comfortably retired at the present time are now working well-into their latter years out of sheer necessity. On top of all of this, we as United States’ citizens continue to tread anxiously forward in life while watching irresponsible congressional spending send us further and further into a federal debt crisis, leaving the rational ones among us to ask the inevitable question: What’s possibly around the next corner? The whole thing is unsustainable as it currently stands. It’s a ticking time bomb. Your financial standing and ability to endure what’s to come when it predictably occurs is quite literally up to you as an individual. On a personal note [by the Grace of God] I’m currently doing fine financially, but know in my heart of hearts that I am not immune to the consequences of what’s described above, as I’m already beginning to see benefits of the above-average salary I once enjoyed being taken away one by one. It seems as if every week that I go in to work there’s another cutback here, there, or somewhere. All of this leads me to the conclusion that if I’m presently as uncomfortable with my job security as an otherwise in-demand healthcare worker with a Master’s degree and an income that currently falls somewhere within the top 5% of incomes nationally, then I’m quite sure the anxiety induced and sustained by this slump is nondiscriminatory with regards to other defining qualities of individuals, be it income, education, degree, title, trade, religious background, race, gender, and/or sexual orientation. What I mean is that I’m sure we are all feeling it in one way or another. Every month that passes a friend and/or neighbor is losing his/her job and/or having to sell his/her house through no fault of their own really, just a casualty of ever-present economic stagnation in the aftermath of an economic crisis that happens to be well-into its fourth year. I would otherwise be stricken with worry about the above if not for the income that my wife’s presently bringing-in as a STAY-AT-HOME-MOM. Yes, you read that correctly. About a year and a half ago she began earning money in increasing amounts to the point that this year in taxes, instead of getting a rather large refund like in the past, for the first time we’ll probably actually owe Uncle Sam (trust me when I say that this is a nice problem to have). In fact, her current income will soon rival and eventually surpass mine (probably within the year), one that you’ll remember from above falls within the top 5% of wage earners in the country. But… We have a dirty little secret: Psst... It’s multi-level-marketing [wink]. Some call it “pyramid”… Others call it network marketing; but, in an economy that’s essentially circling the drain, I call it “cha-ching!” Now, being totally transparent and honest, a year and a half ago I was completely against this venture she’d undertaken and even mocked her for having done so. I shared with her how in the past I was subjected to Amway with offers from “friends” to “Come over to the house for ‘drinks’ while we discuss an ‘offer you can’t refuse’” only to show up and find the host dressed in a suit and tie holding a briefcase, eventually giving me and any other dupes that were present the awkward presentation of the “business”. It’d be an understatement to say it put a bad taste in my mouth. The company she began multi-level-marketing with a year and a half ago is called Plexus Worldwide. They make a weight loss supplement called Plexus Slim, an all-natural weight-loss product that she’d been taking for a couple of months with great results. At first she was just a customer, but around November of 2010 so many people were interested in what she was doing to lose weight that she figured out she could sign-up with the company and essentially make “a few extra dollars” for the referrals – an idea that I initially scoffed at. However, in January of 2011 I, myself, had gotten up to 228#’s and was desperate to lose some weight. At exactly six feet tall and active, I’d always enjoyed the luxury of eating anything and everything that I wanted well-up into my mid-30’s. For anyone that might think I’m exaggerating, let me explain that at one point during this time I was actually asked by “management” to leave a buffet. Well, after the age of 35 these eating habits began to catch-up with me and I started slowly putting on the pounds... From about 190#’s to 228#’s, a net gain of about 38#’s over approximately three years. On January 1st of 2011, at the suggestion of my wife, I reluctantly started taking the Plexus Worldwide product Plexus-Slim with the goal that I’d be able to fit comfortably into my sport-coat/slacks that I’d worn ten years prior and to essentially wear one of those suits to my 20-year high school reunion. Over the course of the seven months leading up to the reunion I really didn’t consciously change any of my eating habits and actually exercised less than I had before. Very-much like my wife before me, people began noticing me losing the weight and wanted to know what exactly I was doing, so in April of 2011 I jump on board the bandwagon with selling the product under my wife to make “a few extra dollars” of my own. Eventually on August 1st, 2011 I was 193#’s, 35#’s less than what I was on New Year’s Day, and able to comfortably fit into one of my suits for my 20-year reunion later in the week. Since that time her income (and mine to a slightly lesser degree) with this company from this product has skyrocketed to a level that, quite frankly, if you had even suggested it were possible a year and a half ago when all of this started I’d have spit-out my drink all over you while laughing uncontrollably in your face. Unfortunately for me, this has all personally come at a price: I’m the butt of many good-natured jokes at work from some of my friends/coworkers who know we’re a part of this “pyramid scheme”… And trust me when I say that I’m laughing all the way to the bank. Many of them have actually purchased and taken the product and done (or are doing) quite well. A few have even signed-up under me and are supplementing their incomes with “a few extra dollars” of their own; but still others just don’t get it and are content with what they make at their regular job, whether doing fine financially or struggling to make ends meet. To be honest, I don’t even mention the opportunity to people anymore because it invariably leads to the “pyramid” reference, and they’d evidently rather work a “real job” in order to make any money that they have because there’s apparently more “honor” in that whole process. I’ve literally had people look me in the eye and ask me to pray about the financial situation they are in, yet in nearly the same breath sneer or show agitated indifference to any suggestion I offer related to the multi-level-marketing opportunity that my wife and I are involved in. As for the “pyramid” reference, let’s briefly take a closer look at a “real job” in order to clear things up a bit: CEO PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT MIDDLE MANAGEMENT HARD WORKING EMPLOYEES No Thanks – Looks Like a Pyramid Scheme For anyone that is skeptical, that’s fine. So was I in the beginning, but here’s what I’d like you to know now about truly attaining wealth: Without question, network marketing gives individuals opportunities where maybe there hadn’t been any before, and all with little to no start-up costs. Anything else that you try or do for a living is going to have quite a bit of start-up cost combined with required effort of varying degrees. A trade? You generally have to pay for the education to learn it. Real estate? You have to purchase it first and possibly pay to renovate it in order to eventually make a profit. A franchise? Depending on which one, you’re probably looking at upwards of $100,000. A restaurant? A lot of money, very hard work, and risk; but good luck. Any business endeavor undertaken by an individual or the decision to go to school to learn a trade is going to have an inherent risk of failure, whether it’s a “real world / real job”, real estate, opening a restaurant, or perhaps even network marketing. Across the board, those committed to finding ways around or through the inevitable obstacles that get in the way will generally succeed where others might’ve failed. It’s called the game of life in that whatever you choose to do you will either make an excuse or make money in order to be profitable. Also, performing hard work now and perhaps slowing down in the future to take advantage of any distribution set-up through a network marketing business isn’t much different than entrepreneurs early in life that sit back and live off residual income in the form of franchise fees, rent payments, and royalties. What I’m saying is, despite what you may hear, there isn’t any shame in doing so. To recap everything: My wife and I are apparently chumps. We both got duped into this Plexus Worldwide network marketing thing to earn “a few extra dollars” while getting healthier. In the process this whole thing has taken on a life of its own and now we are looking at the potential of making more money than I do currently while utilizing my graduate degree in the operating room. Did we work our tails off to get to this point? Well, not really. We drank a drink that tastes like Crystal Light once a day and lost weight while telling others that asked us “how so?” about the product. To my wife’s credit, she has taken it upon herself to help “educate” everyone that she signs up to sell the product… Maybe that’s why she’s doing so well? Who knows? What I do know is that if you want to lose weight, this may be the product for you. If it works for you, like my wife and I, without a doubt you will have people ask “how and where?” they can get the same product. When this happens, if you’d like, you can simply refer them to me… That would be outstanding. What would be better, however, is if you could supplement your-own income by your referrals. That would be cool. A recent national survey I encountered showed that if households that filed for bankruptcy had only brought-in an extra $200 per month, the majority of them over time would have made ends meet and avoided impoverishment. $200 extra a month? For many people an opportunity like this could be life-changing. If you have any specific questions about the product and/or the company, we can be reached at 985.290.3009 or you can check out the website at www.plexusslim.com/58466 Thanks for your time in reading this…