May 18, 2010 02:13 PM
17609 Views
I am writing this review as I was an Amway member briefly till better sense prevailed on me. I was introduced to Amway through one of my relatives who was quite fanatical about it few years back but has now come out of it fully. I would like to break the Amway myth through the following analysis:
Amway claims financial independence: They claim that in due course of time you will be making so much money that you can afford to leave job and work from home. Now to do that you really need to have pretty solid savings and a guaranteed cash inflow and I am sure to reach that level will take a long time in Amway. Now if you devote the same time to your job and give the same dedication I am sure you will do wonders professionally and will do better financially. In my own case I spent in excess of Rs 10, 000 which included the cost of the starter kit (around Rs 7000 in 2006) and cost of phone calls and attending meetings, I got negligible returns. If you actually do an income vs expenses analysis you find out that you are not actually making much money, by expenses I mean the cost of making phone calls, attending meetings/seminars and above all your time!!!!
Be your own boss: You never really work for yourself in Amway, the people above you will constantly monitor you and push you for sales besides forcing you to attend meetings and seminars. Do you call that independence?? I get better privacy and space while on job. You will also have to sacrifice your personal life for Amway. Now is all this really worth it for some extra income? Do you really value money above everything-your personal life, your relationships, the simple joys of life?
Security & comfort from Amway business: Amway claims that you actually invest for the security and comfort for your future. Now has anybody questioned what would happen if Amway were to close down tomorrow? I do agree its a multi-billion dollar MNC company but then so was Lehman brothers. What would you do then-go back to your job or join another MLM company?
Its a part time job: Now this is the biggest myth which you would realise as soon as you join. Believe me its a cult, you are encouraged to mingle only with Amway members, bring in more members through your social circle. If you are a bachelor you will be encouraged to share house with other bachelor Amway members or be in the neighborhood of your team. If you are married they will encourage you to make your spouse a member which essentially removes any personal conflicts. They also encourage you not to read any newspaper or watch TV which essentially cuts you off from the world and you begin to consider Amway as your entire world believing their each and every claim.Besides they have audio tapes which essentially brain washes you!!! In my own experience I found that I was getting alienated from my family and friends. Some of my friends even started avoiding my calls as I tried to bring them to Amway.
To sum it up, if you really want to make money early in your life and would like to retire early then pls invest in financial instruments like equity, mutual funds etc which will give you far better returns and more importantly peace of mind and the much needed time for your personal life minus all the hassles of selling and coaxing people to join your network.
Joining Amway will surely causes lot of heartache and it is definitely not everybody's cup of tea.
