Blessed wrote a post today (on Pink Truth) that while long and at times confusing was still characteristically unbalanced and blown out of proportion. Here is a breakdown…
6 paragraphs… “if only my wife were more like me”
1 transition… “but then life would be boring”
2 paragraphs… “actually we complete each other and I love how different we are”
1 paragraph… “what attracted us to Mary Kay in the first place”
And then this…
“You know the rest. The irony is the MK tragedies suffered by so many different families have such common themes.”
I will insert here, “No, we don’t know the rest”.
1 paragraph… we disagreed about whether MK was good or not and I became viewed as the enemy
1 paragraph… people in MK are no different than those on PT????
2 paragraphs… I objected to MK until my wife agreed with me, but she came to this conclusion partially on her own as well?
And then this…
If you’re a husband still struggling with this curse, strive for convergence. Seek convergence more than some type of victory. Continue to object but do so with compassion and empathy. Ensure your objections are supportive, but continuous. Avoid expressions of anger in favor of sharing your observations objectively, calmly.
As near as I can tell the biggest complaints offered by anyone on PT are still:
- Front-loading consultants
- Deceptive practices (claiming better income, fake it til you make it, etc)
- Actual earnings vs promoted earnings
- Buying prizes
- Buying levels (directorship, maintaining directorship,
- Complaints about product quality
- Mixing God with business
Now, I am sure that I am missing some here, but at the very least it has been demonstrated that there are consultants and directors (PynkMyst, Shades of Pink, My Pink Truth and others) who are making money, do like the product, were not deceived and do not deceive others. I (and many of my readers) have spoken here about their experience being an overall positive experience. Pink Truth and Blessed (and others) continuously ignore these crucial pieces of testimony and jump straight to blanket statements like “still struggling with this curse” and “this company which purports to “enrich women’s lives” actually exploits women with an unyielding fervor.”
Plain and simple, they have yet to produce any solid evidence that the company exploits women (the entire company as they claim, not parts of the company).
It is clear that SOME people IN the company have exploited other women. It even sounds like some of the people on PT were in the business of exploiting. But the all encompassing accusations that PT has leveled (perpetuated by the likes of Blessed) against Mary Kay are laughably far from proven.
Blessed, in case there is ANY confusion, I have not “poofed” you. I am still waiting for you to tell your story here. What were the specific problems you had in Mary Kay? Why do you feel so adamantly that people can not make money in this business legitimately? I am not interested in your recommended techniques for husbands that want to get their wives out. There is a place for that, and it will certainly gain a place here on my site… eventually. But for now, I am trying to establish valid experiences and evidence or success or failure in Mary Kay.
I wish that Pink Truth would invest the energy they currently give to their hatred of all things Mary Kay in creating a solution to the problems they love pointing out.
The reason I find this post (and others like it) disturbing is that the general assumption given to the reader is that everything he (or others) talk about are supported with hard evidence elsewhere on the site. I know that it might seem ridiculous to invest energy in pointing these things out to the few people that care, but for those people that will benefit from an experience with Mary Kay, I think it is worth it.
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I have been in the MK business since summer and I am truly struggling with the things that I have witnessed by member of my unit and the bad feelings that I am having as a result. I finally, after consciously avoiding it, read EVERYTHING on PT (I couldn't stop reading), and oh my gosh, these women were relating what I have seen and what I have been feeling in story after story! I am NOT anti-MK. I really hope to continue (emotionally) as a consultant.
ReplyDeleteI began my business with a 3600 inventory order. Ultimately, yes, it was my choice to buy this much inventory. However, when I was so very "excited" to begin my business and it was "explained" to me that I couldn't "sell from an empty wagon" and I never want to seem incompetent, I did what my director suggest I do - start with a full store. From what I have read on others' sites, this is called "frontloading" (benefits directors financially.) My ability to book SCCs didn't justify such a large order. End of each month since this initial order, Team Leader has asked for more "help" for Car and now DIQ. Hindsight - start with a small inventory and build up. (New product colors, shapes, compacts etc are being introduced in December - what do I do with all of that "old" inventory??)
Also, my team leader added quite a few long-time customers and family members as personal-use consultants to finish car qualification. This appears to be common practice with soooo many out there. It's called "find a way-make a way."
A senior director mailed everyone in the unit a credit card offer that she had received (and she was sooo excited...)
Mind you, these are very nice and seemingly caring women. But I think that they are caught up in what many, many former consultants call the "pink fog" and that they truly believe that they must do whatever it takes. It's all just a set up for failure, in my opinion. I do not attend meetings anymore, just to stay clear-headed, because, even though my sales are slow, I do enjoy being a consultant. And I want to remain a consultant (it's fun and I would like to earn a little extra money-I already own another business and it is fairly successful); I don't want to climb that ladder of success-not anymore.
I'm not pro-PT and I'm not anti-MK, but I do believe there is much truth in PT. Read the stories (no, I haven't written any of them!!) What I take from them, at this particular point, is to keep my eyes wide open... from now on.
David, I don't think it's fair that you call for proof from Blessed and everyone else to PROVE that something wrong happened. The Pro MKers don't have to prove their statements that all is going well in their business. They have yet to back up their statements of money making with any evidence to that.
ReplyDeleteI really like this site. I enjoy coming and putting in my two cents. But just like I think that your wife and others are having a good time in MK I think you should accept the fact that some are not enjoying it and did get the short end on the deal.
I read Blessed comment on PT and thought it was a beautiful sentiment to his wife.
Stuck, I'm sorry that your experience has not been the best, and many of us have admitted that there are some in Mary Kay who do not work for the good of the whole, but for the good of the individual. It's human nature, I suppose, and to be expected that there will be some greedy and/or unethical individuals in any organization. You have done exactly what I advise all to do and that is look around, pay attention and make your own decision on what is best for you. In the end, your statement about keeping your eyes open is fantastic advice and the same advice I would give ANYONE in ANY situation, especially business--not just in Mary Kay. The problem that I (and many others) have with PT and its supporters is they blame the company, not the individuals. David's statement under another topic that they are (or were) commiting fraud against MK the company is EXACTLY right! Yet they do not take responsibility for doing so. I applaud you for making your own decision.
ReplyDeleteJudi, it is difficult in this blog/internet world to reveal too much of ourselves due to stalking psychopaths like Tracy (my opinion in calling her that, but there is proof all over the place that she is). There is no way I am going to throw my Schedule C or 1099 out there for all the world to see. But the fact that I have been associated with the company for 20 years and still get on here to defend it must lend credence to what I say. Many others who post on these blogs have been involved with MK for long periods of time as well and have accomplished much more than I have.
The issues addressed by Tracy and her (very few, now) readers boil down to one thing an that is personal responsibility. If they are as smart as they purport to be, why didn't they, like "Stuck" above" decide on their own what to do instead of buying prizes, lying to their team members and all the other things about which they complain?
Judi,
ReplyDeleteI don't normally have time in the morning to comment like this, but I wanted to jot a quick note of explanation.
I am NOT asking Blessed or anyone for proof of their experience.
I am asking for two things.
One is a description of their experience. Like you and 'stuck' have done, I just want a description of what went wrong. What were they told. What did they expect. My problem with Blessed here is that any reference to actual complaints are very vague. I can't help new consultants or those considering the opportunity avoid pitfalls if people don't express what the potential pitfalls are.
The second thing I am asking him to provide is as a result of this refusal to describe what specific things he disliked or had a problem with. Because he insists on a very broad, sweeping, generalization that all of MK is bad (despite sites like this and others mentioned) and because he directly accuses MKC of being culpable in all of this, I have asked him for evidence.
Your story, and the others on here are more than adequate! I have told you before and will do so here again, "Thank you for contributing to the conversation here". It is greatly appreciated. Thanks to 'stuck' as well! Welcome!
When I ask for evidence, it is not evidence of someone's story, it is evidence to back up an accusation that they have made.
I hope that clears things up!
Thanks again for chiming in. It really helps me make sure that I am expressing myself as clearly as possible!
Stuck,
ReplyDeleteI think you are right (and wise) to keep your eyes wide open with this and any opportunity.
It seems like there are stories of people that had really bad experiences and those that are having really good experiences.
I want this site to help resolve this problem.
Can anyone suggest a way that we can recommend certain directors and suggest directors to avoid? I know that this is not an easy question. I understand that accusing a specific director of being unethical or deceptive is worse than vaguely referring to "many directors are..."
I don't know how, but it is a fairly moot point for me to point out the problems in MK without offering a solution. I want this site to do more than point out the pros and cons of MK. I want it to be a resource for things to do and not do in order to avoid running into problems.
Any suggestions?
Dave,
ReplyDeleteSorry I’ve not added any comments lately. I’ve been slammed; still am. Kinda neat, though, to see such attention given to my little ol’ article. Great to see you, “Me,” and others are still such regular readers of PT. Keep reading! I jsut wsih I cuold laren how to spel!!! ;-) Later.
Blessed
A.K.A.: Blessedone
Hi David!
ReplyDeleteI understand your desire to sort good directors from bad, and I also appreciate the difficulties in doing so on the Internet.
One way to go about it would be to only give certain information, such as city, level in the company etc, but there's always a risk of going too far.
The best thing I think would be to work out a small set of questions that any potential recruit (or new consultant) can ask their SD (or other recruiter) and expect certain direct, truthful answers to.
I don't know yet what these questions would be, but they should be designed to make sure the SD or recruiter really has the prospect's best interest in mind.
I will try to think of a few questions, and if anyone here thinks it's a good idea, I'd be interested in seeing suggestions from you as well!
Matilda,
ReplyDeleteI think that you are right. Being armed with a good set of questions is always a good way to make sure that you get what you are expecting.
Like going to the mechanic. If he says, "Oh, you are going to have to replace this entire ________" you want to be able to ask intelligent questions that will help you ascertain whether that is really necessary, and if his price is reasonable.
You may find out that particular part doesn't actually do anything. It is just for aesthetics, and you can just pull it off. (You may still want to replace it, but now you know that if you don't have the money, you are not risking further damage to your car.) Additionally, you may (by going to another garage) find that what he told you would cost $1,000 + cost of the part is in fact a $100 fix.
In the same way, it would be really good for us (the ones concerned about making sure people know what they are getting into) to create a list of questions that they can ask before getting involved with MK. I will probably add this thought to the main page so that everyone can get a chance to make suggestions. I am sure that this list will become a featured item on this site.
Thanks for the great idea