Mary Kay Changed My Life Forever

I love MLM's (multi level marketing companies) and direct sales.  They are amazing and can do so much for people but regardless of what some may tell you they are not for everyone.  Not everyone will be good at selling candles, or cosmetics or even marital enhancements. It is asinine to think that these opportunities are the right fit for everyone.  This was the case with me and Mary Kay, but Mary Kay Ash changed my life long after she had passed from this life.  

I was so excited to start my business with Mary Kay and I was going to become I millionaire.  (yup I drank that kool aid all in one gulp) It was going to be so simple.  All that I had to do was get people to let me show them how to put on our products and share the great business opportunity and I was going to be rollin in the dough.  The products and the business opportunity sell themselves so it would be easy.  It was not that easy.

I don't fit the part.  I am not a make up wearer 90% of the time.  My hair is awful and no matter how I style it, it looks like crap. (It's ok, I have my own kind of beauty and other redeeming qualities) I am (lets just put it out there) Morbidly obese (medical terms, I prefer chronically fluffy). Now take that picture and ask yourself, would I trust this woman with knowledge of fashion, and beauty?  The truth of the matter is I don't have the time nor the energy to poor into my own looks, but I am very educated in the world of cosmetics and skin care.  Unfortunately everyone judges a book by it's cover  and presentation is everything.  

I have always been an outwardly confident person and able to suppress internal nags of low confidence.  I never had been more demoralized like I was this company.  All to keep from becoming a failure at this business, I risked my family, our finances, and myself.  (the details might be in another blog).  It crushed me, like nothing ever has in my adult life.  I don't fail well.  These negative things I was doing to reach success, were below my personal standards and that only made me feel worse.  I finally submitted to my failure and quit. 

What I gained from Mary Kay was a knowledge of Mary Kay Ash and her thoughts and wisdom.  These carry me through my life, my new business ventures, and interactions with others.  Below is a list of the most important things I learned from Mary Kay Ash.

GOD, FAMILY, CAREER: This is the most important,  I don't remember her exact quote but to paraphrase she said, Put God first, Family second, and career third because any other way it just will not work. 
IT'S NEVER TOO LATE:  Mary Kay Ash started her business after working for others for so many years. You have the power to "shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars" at any age.  Regardless of your past you can still succeed, you just may have to work harder.
A BUMBLE BEE SHOULDN'T FLY: 

"Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumble bee doesn't know it so it goes on flying anyway"  Just because it doesn't seem possible doesn't mean it is impossible.  

BEING OF SERVICE TO OTHERS;

“Before you ever receive the wonderful treasures of a happy life, you must first give. Give of yourself. Be of service to others. Only what you give can be multiplied back into your own life. That is the law of the harvest, the law of the ten-fold return. If you give nothing, even if it is multiplied, you receive nothing.”

HOW TO TREAT OTHERS: “I have learned to imagine an invisible sign around each person’s neck that says, ‘Make me feel important!’'

THE CAN DO SPIRIT: “Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve.”
“Every failure, obstacle or hardship is an opportunity in disguise. Success in many cases is failure turned inside out. The greatest pollution problem we face today is negativity. Eliminate the negative attitude and believe you can do anything. Replace ‘if I can, I hope, maybe’ with ‘I can, I will, I must.’”
“Do you know that within your power lies every step you ever dreamed of stepping, and within your power lies every joy you ever dreamed of seeing? Within yourself lies everything you ever dreamed of being. Become everything that God wants you to be. It is within your reach. Dare to grow into your dreams and claim this as your motto: Let it be me."

"I believe that every person has a capacity for greatness, that God planted the seeds there, and it is up to us to make them blossom forth with patience, guidance and belief. It is up to us to discover the multiple talents that we possess and bring them into fruition.”

 

What might seem like passive quotes to you, have helped me get over the sting of failure.  Shown me what I have done wrong in the past with prioritizing and how to believe in myself and that I can achieve my dreams.   I am now a distributor for a company that sells weight loss and skin care(not cosmetics) products as well as other health supplements.  This time I don't have the appearance issue because I am using the products and they are working for me.  I have learned that I am the person God created and it doesn't matter that my dreams don't match my shape, hair or anything else according to the world view, I still can achieve them.I have confidence and I use Mary Kay Ash's example to run my current business.