What is your recruiting mindset?

When I got involved in party plan 20 plus years ago, we were taught that there were four basic reasons people got started in the business:

Money - and I want to work from home, flexibly!

Social - I want to make new friends & I love parties!

Recognition - I just LOVE to walk across stage!

Product - I LOVE everything in the catalog!

Mission driven - I LOVE how this company improves people's lives!

To that list I would add a sixth reason (my reason for joining):
Need a life - HELP! I'm home with my kids - I love them, but I'm pretty sure my `grown-up' mind has left my body!

Truth be told - reason number 5 is probably just a variation on reasons number two and three. BUT, the bottom line was that I got involved with my company to sell product - nothing more, nothing less. That first year that I was in business I wore a recruiting blindfold.

I sold product like crazy - and loved every minute of it. “But”, I told my recruiter/manager, “don't even TALK to me about the `R' word. I don't want to `do' that to anyone.”

An interesting attitude, wouldn't you agree? It was birthed from an unpleasant experience with an overly ambitious consultant from another party plan company who - in her attempts to sign me - did lots of talking, very little listening and was more interested in advancing her status in her company than being sensitive to my needs and concerns. I had vowed never to be that party plan lady. I didn't want people to duck when they saw me coming.

However, in hindsight, I realize that there were many who crossed my path that first year who were genuinely interested in joining me in the business. As I replay conversations with different individuals in my mind - I realize they were asking all the right questions and I was giving all the right answers. I never took it a step further and asked them if I could share business information with them. Because, you see, I didn't do that part of the business.

Shawna's Note: It's so easy to worry about getting everything right with your presentation or just selling to make income. Your first year in the business is probably your most passionte and the easiest to recruit others. In my first 3 months I recruited 10 people personally and the team has continued to build from them and myself since. But never was it easier than recruiting those first 10 believe me ;)