Muhammad Yunus, the founder of the Grameen Bank, said recently that he would no longer support non-profit humanitarian efforts. Why? Because the non-profit model of giving is inefficient. The efforts are disjointed and they are constantly having to scramble for money.

HUB represents a new model so desperately needed in the 3rd world especially of “Total Package” giving, covering not just food but also education, clean water, sustainability education, environmental care and microloans for small business. They fund existing programs like Feed the Children and Raincatchers so they can focus on what they already do well. They don’t just give fish, but teach folks how to fish.

HUB is funded by an economic engine of empowerment education and membership in a system dedicated to uplifting each individual to reach their own deepest personal goals. This is a true WIN-WIN-WIN - a beautiful concept from a team of beautiful, creative, brilliant humanitarians and business leaders.

The stellar faculty of HUB University includes Jean Houston, Michael Beckwith, Mark Victor Hanson, Marie Diamond, Marci Shimoff, Chris Atwood, Janet Atwood, Barbara Marx Hubbard and many others.

Take just a few moments to check out the HUB site and see if it resonates with you.

http://hubheaven.hubhub.org

If you like what you see there, watch the longer video at the top of the join page.

AND, if you like that, call me for more info at 683-4905

Hope you can join us in HUB, an earth rocking and empowering movement of global transformation. We all move from “survival to personal empowerment to sustained abundance”.

Come play with us!

Launched March 1st, HUB is creating a new model for humanitarian aid. Helping others while helping ourselves. What a beautiful concept! You can make a positive impact on the world AND, at the same time, make enough money so you can fulfill the purpose for which you were born, and move from “survival to self empowerment to sustained abundance”.

HUB provides the economic engine to drive all this good work using a model of empowerment education with some of the most well respected business and humanitarian leaders of our time, including: Michael Beckwith, Mark Victor Hansen, Marie Diamond, Jean Houston, and many others, offering a dynamic curriculum of personal growth, business development and humanitarian development.

HUB uses the best parts of Network Marketing and leaves the rest behind. This viral marketing model will allow HUB to reach the most people quickly to create “exponential giving”, much more than one person could give on their own.

See http://hubheaven.hubhub.org/

The seven key questions in evaluating home business opportunities are:

1) Is it based on a solid product that would stand on it own even without the business opportunity component? Would folks buy what you have to sell - is it fairly priced for what it offers? In fact, this one must be true for the company to be legal. Has legal council approved the business plan?

2) Is it a relatively new company with great growth potential? The truth is, the real money is made by those who get into a ground floor opportunity while it still IS the ground floor. It may still be good later, but it can be great if you get in during the first few months especially. But make sure it is well funded and based on sound business practices. Many companies do not survive the first 3 years.

3) Is it a fair and equitable compensation plan? Avoid 2-up or binary plans which are complicated to explain and stop many people cold. You want to be able to make money on your very first sale and not pass up any sales to your sponsor. Can you earn money on the sales of everyone you bring into your team, for as long as they are active? A 2 tier program is ideal that pays you for direct sales and also pays you on the sales of those you have brought on to your team. This is leveraging the work of others, which is the key to any successful home business opportunity.

4) Does the company offer all the training you need at no additional cost? Amway and others used to make a ton of extra cash by selling personal growth and how to tapes. You want to get the classes, calls and training for free, once you are in. This can sometimes be worth the cost of the start up fee alone, as internet marketing training especially can cost in the thousands.

5) Does the technology provide 90% automation or greater so you can leverage the power of automated internet systems to do most of the work for you? This is the beauty of information or digital products like eBooks and software using personalized shopping cart systems. They can be sold without any physical products being shipped at minimal effort. All you should concentrate on is advertising and getting folks to visit your site. The System should handle the rest.

6) Does the company provide (at no extra cost) a professional sales staff to call your prospects for you? Many folks do not really like to call and talk on the phone about their business. If you do, great. But if not, have an option for the pros to do it for you and you pay them a small commission. You and your team will all sell more and make more money. It’s a win-win-win situation.

7) Does the company support you well with movies, banners, ad copy, training videos - everything you need to succeed online? You want content proven to work that is simple to replicate by you and those on your team. This is key: what you do will be done by those that follow you in their own home business. If you simply follow a proven system, others will do the same and everyone will benefit. There is always room for personal innovation and improvement but there is no need to reinvent the wheel when there is a perfectly good one to work with.

Conclusion:

There are hundreds of work from home business opportunities but very few satisfy even a couple of these criteria. And, to my knowledge, only one satisfies ALL of the above and is constantly adding value and over delivering to it’s members. That opportunity is Abunza. a unique online business that is targeting the 100 million Spanish speaking users online today.

Watch this stunning short video to find out more and take a free test drive:

http://inabunza.com

Take your first step now…

Here’s the shocking and ugly truth. According to Entrepreneur Magazine:

• 90% of all network marketing businesses will fail within the first 5 years.
• Only 1 out of 1000 people in this industry will ever break into a six-figure income.
• 90% of all home business owners make less than $10 a week.

MLM obviously works to sell products and is a multi $Billion industry. But it does NOT often work to make distributors a lot of money. Why do so many fail? And why do the few succeed? Besides good work habits and the right mindset (also key), I believe it comes down to timing and choosing the right program. The owners and early adopters are always the ones that make the good money. Did you know that master investor Warren Buffet is investing in new Network Marketing companies? He is no fool and knows the power of a good network marketing company to make a lot of money. A homerun program in prelaunch phase is a golden opportunity indeed. Keep reading to learn the keys to an effective and lucrative network marketing program.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT PROGRAM

Most folks dive into network marketing programs with emotionally stirred dreams of riches based on a presentation from a friend or something they found online. Not many take the time to rationally evaluate an opportunity to make a really sound decision. As someone who has been involved in everything from Amway to LifePlus vitamins, I have these recommendations for choosing the right network marketing program.

A Solid Product. First, you need a product that is in demand and that would sell even if it were NOT through a business opportunity. Too many companies are in fact selling the dream of prosperity, which is not a bad dream, but the vehicle and the product MUST stand alone. I was once involved in a travel agency program, for example, that turned out to be a money tree scheme that was shut down by the FDA. The product was not a real product and nobody was actually using it. Find a network marketing product that offers true value and that would sell on it’s own.

Digital Delivery. In my experience selling products, I have found it is much easier to sell and promote an information product or membership site. There is no inventory, no shipping, no hard product to have to store in your garage and manage manually. My early days with Amway were a nightmare for this reason. Also, while many do well with vitamin or skin care products, most do not stay on these products, as they tend to be overpriced (to support the distributors) and when folks are not making money but spending $100’s per month, then tend to drop out. Also, ultimately that Noni juice selling for $40 per bottle will show up in Costco for $14 (true story)

Automated sales. Many online programs now offer each member their own website that credits all sales through that site to them. Even better, find a program that will help you build you own email list so you might market other programs to them down the road. A good autoresponder service such as Aweber is essential for automating this process. If someone does not buy right away, they will automatically get a series of messages may sell them later.

Sales Team Included. Most (like me) hate to make phone calls to prospects. If so, find a company that has sales staff on board to make those calls for you. This is KEY! If all you have to do is advertise to send traffic to your website, and the sales staff closes the sales - this simplifies the whole process greatly.

Support and Training. Find a program that will teach you how to run the business and succeed. The membership site should include all the resources you need including ad copy, banner graphics, etc. There should be 1 or 2 training calls per week you can plug into. And ideally, these should be hands on nuts and bolts training from your core group, not just the rah-rah calls that may motivate you for a while but do not really help.

Positioning. Find a relatively young company that is poised for rapid growth. There is a balance here of risk vs rewards. A brand new company will offer much greater returns if it succeeds. But many realistically do not make it. On the other hand, a company that is more than 2 years old will not have the same ground floor opportunity for rapid growth. I recommend finding a young company that is well funded and established and on a clear growth trajectory.

Great Comp Plan. Real money is actually made in higher ticket items and you want a plan that pays you right away on your first sale and not one that asked you to pass your first 2 sales up to your sponsor as Passport to Wealth and other “2-up” programs do. A solid “2 tier” program, while not strictly multi-level, is the most powerful model for direct sales yet. It is so unique that it hardly can be considered MLM or network marketing. But it represents the most powerful aspect of network marketing: leveraging other peoples efforts so you can work smarter, not harder.

In case you are wondering where you might find such a dream program, I DO have an opportunity that satisfies all of the above criteria. It’s called Abunza, it’s currently in prelaunch and growing fast. The first opportunity of it’s kind to market to the 100 million Spanish speaking internet users today. Get the information, watch a short video and get a FREE copy of “The Science of Getting Rich” by Wallace Wattles here:

http://wayne.abunza.com

You then find out how simple it is to get your own such URL, and start profiting asap. Go there and get started NOW! This is one of those once in a lifetime opportunities which will NOT come around again. “Nothing happens until something moves” as Einstein said. So MOVE NOW to claim your place in this history making opportunity. Spanish version of this intro page now available:

http://wayne.abunza.com

Working in a service based business as I have (design and web design) also means trading hours for dollars as surely as if you were punching a clock. And no matter how high your hourly rate gets, there are only so many productive hours in a day. So there is a natural cap on how much you can make.

The only way to blast through that ceiling is to take advantage of the concept of leverage. Folks talk about OPM - other peoples money – and that is a form of financial leverage. I want to talk about OPW – other peoples work – as a way to leverage the work and efforts of others.

I recently discovered (and about time too!) the beauty of outsourcing some of my consulting work. I found through a service called Rent a Coder a very talented and hungry programmer in Ukraine that does amazingly great work for very little money (in US dollars anyway).

Instead of banging my head against the wall to learn Action Script, I can now hire Opal in the Ukraine to do the work and still charge my client a fair hourly rate. I am now manager and creative director and no longer the worker bee. Yippee! I just gave myself a huge promotion and a big raise.

And I am leveraging the expertise and labor of Opal to accomplish the job needed, offering a great service to my client, giving interesting and challenging work to Oleh and with both of us making money. It’s a win-win-win and I cannot imagine why it took me so long to learn how to do this. My [tag]home based business[/tag] is now able to leverage other people far away from my home office.

I am now hiring a part time assistant in India who is trained in all the aspects of search marketing, to do the tedious postings and submissions that I do not care to do or have time to do. But that $400 per month I spend on this assistant I can leverage into thousands of dollars in revenues per month.

Outsourcing is a science and art in itself and beyond the scope of this article. For a great all around outsourcing service, see Sylvia Fortin’s Workaholics For Hire. The key, as Sylvia will tell you, is not to hire some individual out on his own somewhere, but to hire a project manager that can in turn delegate to the right person, the particular task you require.

Another form of leverage is in working 2 tier or multi level marketing businesses. Now, MLM has a tainted reputation for good reason: much of it is crap and based on inflated prices of some not so great product so that the founders and early adopters can make money. However the concept of multi level marketing is sound and there are good companies and good opportunities out there. And it is a good example of leveraging the efforts of others to accomplish your goals.

“I’d rather have 1% of 100 people’s efforts than 100 of my own”
That’s the beauty of leverage: you work to sell your program and build your team, then collect residuals from the work that THEY do, while you are off on your next project, or perhaps relaxing on the beach in Fuji.

I have been though many such programs, have seen the value but not made any money. Now, I am making money in a program that is not really multi-level but is simply 2-tier. That is, I make money on all the sales of my front line, but not beyond that. But in this case, that is fine because I earn $200 on each sale of my front line and $600 on each of my own direct sales. And it is 90% automated and not so too hard to do. I made my first sale last week and deposited $800 directly into my checking account.

The company is called Abunza and is now in pre-launch so is riding the wave of energy of what is certain to be a huge company in the early stages. You can learn more about this opportunity on this web page, which is pretty much exactly the same web page you will also get to promote, complete with killer video and your very own list building opt-in form. You just do your own article writing and advertising. Just do it and go there now!: http://wayne.abunza.com

Happy home based business leveraging!

If you sign up below for John Reese’s new service BlogRush it WILL drive lots of traffic to your blog and the sooner you jump in, the more you will get. Kinda like MLM for traffic but it cost you nothing to join. It’s absolutely brilliant!

In my stats today, I only got 5 view credits from MY OWN blog but 150 from the others I referred. This will only increase as others come in under the folks I referred etc. Now to just get folks to click on my blog title. Did you?

Get BlogRush here, it’s completely free.

All you have to do is put a little widget on your blog that your readers will like, and all of a sudden a link to your blog will start showing up on other people’s blog that are related to yours. See the little widget to the lower right of this post? That’s it! A very elegant, simple concept and it really works.

John Reese is a genius and is making internet history with this product.

Get Yours Now

And if you do not have your own Squidoo lens, you should. It’s easy and fast and great for search engine optimization.

http://www.squidoo.com/workfromhomesuccess

AND also, check out:

http://www.squidoo.com/abunza

Both of these lenses are in the top 100 in the Business category and a Google search for “Abunza Business” shows my Squidoo page as #1! Excellent. Try it

Without the right mindset, you can have the best product and all the best resources and still fail. Most folks have a self imposed income cap that limits what they feel they can make that is tied to self worth. Do you have a millionaire mind that really knows you are capable and worthy of riches? Cultivating the right mindset is key.

Stay positive. Do not let the naysayers and bozos drag you down, and there WILL be those around, perhaps even in your own family. Develop the tough skin needed to stay on course and you may even need to change friends or even separate from certain family members. Regardless of what anyone may say, know that many DO succeed and if you follow the right practices and cultivate the right skills, thoughts and attitude, you will also succeed.

Read something inspiring every day. I recommend you start with “The Science of Getting Rich” by Wallace Wattles. And use motivational and personal growth support systems such as Success University. See below for the links to these resources with free access to both.

Focus on the WHY. The how will manifest if you keep a clear focus on your WHY. Why do you want money? What will you do with it? What good would it give you? Write down your dreams and do not be afraid to dream BIG. Create a vision board with pictures of your dream house or car or relationship or whatever it is that you deeply want. Look it over daily to remind yourself where you are going and why.

Life Balance. This is one not many talk about but is critical. Success is not just about money, though that is a significant part. Nurture your relationships and friendships and health or the rest will soon not matter. A fit, healthy body will serve you with the energy levels to propel you forward in life. A health and energy tip that has worked wonders for me: drink lots of water, starting with first thing in the morning and do some form of exercise upon waking each day even if just 10 minutes of jumping or walking. This kick starts the day, giving you greater energy for all that you do.

Take Action. Reading all this without taking action will not do much for you but if you follow these principles and take action, I guarantee you WILL succeed where others fail. Many folks online are in a constant state of overwhelm and in endless state of preparing to do something. I have spent too long in that mode myself. Yes, continue to learn as there is a lot to learn, but do not hesitate to take action as you go along. You know enough already. Now, as Nike says, JUST DO IT.

Continued in Choosing the Right Program

However, the majority of network marketing, direct sales, affiliate sales and other home business efforts do NOT succeed. Why not? After 10 years running my own business from home, “failing forward” a few times, and creating successful residual income streams, I understand the basics of what works and does not work.

The three pillars of work from home success are:

1) Developing the right work habits
2) Cultivating the right mindset.
3) Choosing the right program

The Right Work Habits

Most employees are used to being told what to do and so have not developed the right discipline to keep a home business going long enough to succeed. Here are the key elements:

Treat it like a business. Treat this like a hobby and you’ll make what a hobby makes – nothing! Treat it like a business and you can make what a business can make – lots! Take this seriously if you want serious results.

Schedule Your Work. Even if it is only 1 hour a day, set aside time to work your business, and stick to a schedule. The more focused energy you can give it the faster it will grow.

Create a productive work space. Create a quiet space where you can focus for that hour or whatever time you can give. Shut the door, turn off the phone, and eliminate all distractions so you can be productive.

Stay focused. Take a look at your short and long range goals every day and make sure what you are doing is moving towards those goals. It’s no good to stay busy if you are not moving in the right direction. Do not allow yourself to be distracted by the thousand other things you might be doing.

Set aside an ad budget. Even with a 95% automated system, which I highly recommend, you still have to drive traffic to your website. You can do this with eZines, banner ads, coop advertising and many other sources. Make sure you are getting a positive return and track your results. As long as you are at least breaking even or making some money on the front end, you will be reaping the residual rewards later.

(continued in Part 2 and 3)

However, less than 95% of the people who joined a network marketing company are able to build a sustainable and profitable business. Here are the three most common mistakes that new network marketing distributors made that prevent them from achieving the level of success they want.

1. Duplicate failure instead of success

Most reputable network marketing companies offered comprehensive business-building training and tools to all the new distributors. These training tools include business building plan, scripts for cold calling, recruitment DVD and many others. Regular training conference calls are held each week or each month to teach distributors how to build their business. However, many new distributors do not take action to learn the correct way to harness these tools. A fair number of them even adopt a wait and see attitude and hope that they will profit from the spillover from their upline.

Ultimately, these new distributors will not be able to teach and support their new team members if they managed to sponsor any of them. Their new members are likely to follow the same path to failure since they did not received proper guidance from their upline.

2. Selling the dream of getting rich instead of the product

Most new distributors promote their network marketing business solely from the angle of “Getting Rich” or “Financial Independence”. As such, they focus on promoting their business to other business opportunity seekers. While there is nothing wrong with this approach, it is not very effective when building a long term residual income. Many of the business opportunity seekers are looking for a quick return on their investment. If they do not see substantial result in a short period of time, they are likely to quit and move on to other business opportunities. A better approach will be to promote the product first. If the product is related to weight loss, then the target audience will be those people who are obese. If these people like the product, they are likely to re order the products again. This is where long term residual income comes from. In addition, it is easier to convert these loyal product users to business partners as they have already experienced the benefits from the consumption of the products.

3. Not Knowing Your Business Matrices

Since many new distributors do not have business experience, they generally do not have any idea what is the cost of acquiring a new lead, the lifetime value of a customer or return on investment. As such, they have no idea if the money they spent is an investment or an expense. Most of the time, they do not care at all.

They will continue to spend money to advertise heavily and hope to sponsor a large number of people in a short period of time. Very soon, they will go broke before they achieve their financial freedom.

To achieve success in a network marketing business, or any business for that matter, one must be ready to put time and effort to learn the correct way to build a business. Each mistake made is an opportunity to learn something new. By learning from the lesson behind each mistake you made as well as from the mistakes made by others, you can have a very profitable business that you call your own sooner than you think.