How to Get Unstuck and Get Your MLM Business Moving

Last night I was talking to one of my downline team members who joined us about a year ago.

He has a desire now to get his MLM business moving. He is struggling though because for a year he put off doing anything and kept thinking he would get started “soon” when the timing was better.

He is caught in the common trap I call “paralysis by analysis” – he has spent so much time thinking about what he wanted to do, that he never got around to taking steps to do anything. If you’ve ever been in this position, you know how frustrating and discouraging it is. You want to make something happen, but just freeze up and feel a sense of confusion and hesitation.

I’ve been in that position myself, so as we continued talking, I offered a solution that worked for me when I needed it.

First, I asked if he was really sure he was ready to go. I emphasized that the desire had to be there, and that it was up to him.

His response was something like “I know what I should be doing. I started this business with good intentions but just let it slip as time went along. Now I feel like I’m stuck in a rut and don’t know how to get out!”

So, the next thing we worked on was redefining his reasons for starting his business in the first place. This included talking about goals and dreams and what was driving him to get moving.

I then asked if these goals and dreams were still as powerful as they were a year ago. He said not only as powerful, but even more so. Some things had changed in his job situation. He had survived a company cutback but had to take reduced pay to stay on. This had squeezed him hard financially. He was still doing okay, but knew he had little security and virtually no future in his position.

Once we were done, I recommended some action steps to help him get unstuck and start getting some prospects and making some money. A similar routine worked well for me when I was in this dilemma.

1) Write out your dreams, goals, and “why” for your business. Make sure they are clear and have emotional impact on you.

2) Write out a list of 100 people you can connect with about your business this month (this is a dreaded step that many skip, but if you approach the people using warm market notification it can be quite pleasant and productive).

3) Schedule time each day to contact at least 5 people on that list. If they are not interested at this time, ask for referrals (both for products and for the network marketing business opportunity) and add them to your list.

4) At the end of the month, you should have a few customers and at least 3-5 new downline team members (and several more that are interested and considering it). Just remember that some will not be interested now, just stay in touch. Lives and circumstances change (as they did with your job) and some who are not interested now may be in a few months.

I recommended this particular routine for two reasons.

1) to give him some actions that are simple and doable

2) to stress and emphasize daily action, to create a positive habit

If you find yourself with the “want-to’s” but feel paralyzed by inaction, take steps like this to get out and break the pattern. Keep it simple, doable, and focused on the key action – introducing people to your MLM business.

Trying to get unstuck by attempting to do too much at once will not work well for most people. Stick to the basics and take it one step, one action, at a time.