My experience with a networking marketing company: why I started in one, why I left & my apology

Dearests,

This has been something to write for a long time.

I wanted to share with you about my experience with a network marketing company. Specifically, why I started working with one, why I left, what I learned, and also an apology. Because I’ve been wildly proud of what I’ve been able to create over the last 20 years, and this one feels like my big regret.

I will say – I won’t be able to get into the nitty gritty of details in this for legal reasons. I won’t identify the network marketing company or anyone in it. Please excuse me if I get any of the dates wrong in this as well – I’m trying to look back through my archives, but deleted a bunch of them in a fit of rage at some point.

How it started

I’d never considered network marketing before. I had the same beliefs about it that everyone does. Plus, I’d already created an incredible business which was hugely successful.

And then I went through a bloody awful time.

My business was growing explosively (yay!) but that meant my joyful creative business had become a whole other beast to manage. I hired the wrong people in my business, and I was really struggling with having a large team of 20+ staff. I also experienced narcissistic abuse about the same time which fucked me upppp. As an Autistic person, I was heartbroken at how little I could cope with managing people.

My kids were still tiny, and my husband and I spent most of our days putting out fires in the business. I dreamed about running away from my own business even though it was my DREAM BUSINESS before the crazy busy and big team!

I was also going through a really shit season in my health, and spent 6 months in and out of bed with raging fevers being tested for everything from tuberculosis to lung cancer.

It was kind of the perfect storm really.

I knew I had to streamline my business somehow and make it a joyful place for me to exist in again. And I also had to find a way to somehow get out of the pool of sweat in my bed and recover.

A friend at the time sent me something in the mail to see if it would help with my fucked up health. It was a natural therapy. I want you to know: I was cynical as fuckkkkkk by that point. Nothing had worked. No strong antibiotics. No magic water blessed by alien fairies. Nada. But my friend got on the phone with me, walked me through how to use it and how it had helped her in a similar health situation. And I thought “Fuck it. I have nothing to lose. I’m sick as shit already, and nothing else has helped.”

So I started using the product. And within a couple of days, I could feel a difference. A week later, my symptoms abated. And they didn’t return. I was awestruck.

I returned to the doctor a month or so later.
She reviewed my old blood tests and new ones.
Blanched a little and said:
“Did we not call you after your old blood test?”
“No?”
“We should have hospitalised you! These numbers are awful… if I was to guess, you had a long-lasting Swine Flu. You really were very ill. I’m glad you’ve recovered though. Whatever you are doing, it’s working. Your tests now are so much better.”

I don’t know if it was timing, or if it did help.

It felt nothing less than miraculous. I started doing a deep dive into what else the products could help with, and started trying them out for those things as well. I started telling my mates about how much they had helped.

And because I’m a business nerd, I decided to research how network marketing worked as a business model because I didn’t know much about it apart from the usual preconceptions about MLMs. I started getting curious about whether it did work, how it worked, and why I had some friends who had businesses in them. It was fascinating! I love learning new things!

By that point I’d been blogging for 12 years, selling e-courses for 9 years, running my Academy for 7+ years, grown that part of my business to nearly $3m a year. I’d created about 150 e-courses and dozens of books. As much as I loved it, I was feeling burnt out (especially since having the large team), and I wanted to do business differently. I started wondering: Maybe I want to actually add another income stream to my business? Maybe it would be interesting to learn a different business model? Maybe it would help me learn about business and marketing from a different industry?

I was still suspicious of network marketing though, so I contacted a few business friends who were in network marketing and in that company to ask for their honest advice. They were super positive and encouraging (of course, much later I realised they may not have been able to express their concerns to me, because their sole income was tied to it). I reviewed the company’s systems and appreciated their philanthropic and fair trade focus. I consulted with business advisors and mentors who thought it could be a good idea to try out.

I started thinking that if I DID do it, I would try to do it MY way. Bring over-generosity, creativity + integrity into it. Approach it like I did with the rest of my business, on my own terms with my own spirit. I naively and optimistically thought this kind of energy would be enough to fix any possible issues I did find when working with the company.

I also knew it would only ever be a side-project for me. It was an additional income stream, not my only. I wanted to bring back whatever I learned into my usual teachings. And I knew it would be a short-term project. I thought I would only commit to it for 12 months. I ended up being involved for about 2 years before exiting.

Why did I leave?

I don’t want to talk too much about the details of my network marketing journey when inside. Basically: I committed to doing it completely my own way. I was excited to share about the product that had helped my health so much. I tried to overdeliver with wild generosity by creating lots of helpful free training, coaching and mailing bonus goodies to people who used the product or wanted to grow a business with it.

I helped other people build an extra income stream that supported them when they needed it most. I donated a portion of my cheque every month to a children’s orphanage in Kenya – about $45,000 all up. (I ended up learning later that orphanages are problematic in themselves and started donating to other organisations instead. This really was the time of me learning things the hard way!) I ended up breaking that company’s record for building to their highest rank in the fastest time possible.

Along the way, I started seeing more and more cracks. Each time, I’d raise it with head office. Each time, I didn’t get a helpful response. Things got worse on so many levels. I met with an expert business advisor, and I paid him $1,000 an hour to help me craft a 5 page document outlining all the systematic and company culture issues I saw. The head honcho of the network marketing company flew in to meet with me & my advisor. We presented the report. They promised to do better. And I never heard from them again.

So that chapter ended. I wasn’t able to make change. I’d done my best, and it wasn’t the right place for me to continue. I was no longer happy putting my name beside something which wasn’t what it said it was.

I always knew it wasn’t going to be a life-long passion for me.

Creating is that for me. I regard that as a momentary side-quest where I learned big lessons.

It’s been about 4 years or so since I’ve been involved with the network marketing company. It was always a side project outside of my usual business. I’m still creating books and courses, and trying to follow that voice inside me of how I can help people next.

I do want to be transparent that I still receive passive income from that company, despite not being involved for 4 years. I regard it as backpay, as network marketing is cumulative payments not a once-off. And I like that I can funnel some of that cash into other philanthropic projects to transform it into something positive. I get that this might still feel icky for some of you because I’m still somehow connected. I’m happy to answer any questions you might have about this.

Do I regret it?

It’s hard to say it was a complete mistake. I have compassion and understanding for why my younger self chose it. I was so burnt out and physically ill, and it helped me with those things. I still use the products pretty much daily, and even my farmer dad is a convert.

Trying the networking marketing model did give me a broader perspective of business and marketing which I found useful. I’m grateful I was able to do whatever good I could while I was in there. I’m grateful that the side project helped me take a break to try something new so I could return to creating and teaching enthusiastically again.

At the end of the day, I would have preferred to have learned all these lessons without having to go through the hard thing!

What I do deeply regret, and want to apologise for is that I know many people felt turned off by my decision to try network marketing at the time. I completely understand that ick factor. I also know that I was hyperfixated by the product, and I’ve never met a hyperfixation that I haven’t wanted to talk endlessly about. A lot of my free content at the time probably became about the product, and that would have been soooooo fucking annoying for anyone who didn’t like the product or business model or wanting me to go back to only original Leonie-style content!

I’m so sorry if I disappointed or hurt you when I took that side adventure. I think as well, because I haven’t talked about it publicly for so long, many of you might be wondering what the resolution of that side adventure is. I hope this post will in some way give you clarity or understanding.

Would I still recommend doing a network marketing company?

This one’s a hard one to answer.

If you were thinking of doing it as your solo income stream, I advise against it and have always advised against it. I’ve always told everyone in sight to have multiple income streams, and don’t link your income to one company only.

If you’ve already got a business or income stream and want to add an extra one in, you could consider it. Sometimes the products are a complimentary fit for your business. It’s ALWAYS important to research the company before you begin however, and decide what you will do and what you WON’T do. With network marketing companies, there are often a huge amount of unwritten expectations of what you SHOULD be doing if you’re selling for them. I highly recommend you keep your boundaries and do what works for YOU, your business and your people!

Further reading:

Predatory behaviours of MLMs to be aware of. LulaRich documentary was fascinating. I didn’t see that level of WTF in the company I was with, but I think it’s important to be aware of the levels of shittery it can get to.Sustainability issues of essential oils

I don’t want to throw judgment at anyone who does network marketing and is committed for life. I still have friends and clients who do it, adore it, and do it in a way that is in integrity for them. I’m supportive of any soul making informed decisions for themselves!

The business coach makes a mistake!

It would be freaking MAGICAL if I could tell you that over my 20-ish year career of teaching and selling online, I’ve made no mistakes. I would JIZZ IN MY PANTS RIGHT NOW if that was possible. But unfortunately, it’s not the truth. I’m a human. I’m fallible. I make mistakes. I wish I hadn’t, and yet it’s an impossible endeavour. Humans and businesses make mistakes. The only thing we can do is learn from them, and hope to do better next time.

I hope this has helped bring a deeper level of understanding. If you’ve got more questions, please let me know.

I’m here. I love you. I am grateful. I am sorry.

Love,