Over the years, my experiences and those of my friends and family had convinced me that any Network Marketing venture was doomed to failure. The promise of MLM success seemed to be no more than persuasive propaganda. Finally drained of time, money and energy, we must have resembled a sea of people floundering around like dying fish in a proverbial cesspool of confusion, disappointment and financial ruin.

As a result, my skepticism had since kept me safely out of the clutches of MLM predators everywhere. To illustrate my resistance, take the following ad, commonly seen in the classified section of every community newspaper available at every corner store in every neighborhood:

• "Earn extra income from home! Be your own boss! Enjoy financial freedom! Call 1-800-GET-RICH."

With my justifiably jaded perception of the MLM industry firmly in place, my mind formed a somewhat altered perception of this claim:

• "Join the exciting world of Network Marketing. Learn to successfully annoy and alienate friends, family and loved ones. Unexpectedly exceed the limits on your credit cards and then master the art of collection agency avoidance. Proudly be able to say: 'Been there, done, that…got the t-shirt…and lost it.' All this for one small investment of the meager remains of your entire life savings. Call 1-800-MLM-SCAM".

As a result of my resistance to such advertising, I became quite satisfied living my life vicariously through the financial suffering of others.

Nevertheless, despite this cynical outlook regarding all things "MLM," I still remained convinced that somehow Network Marketing, in theory, could work (sort of like Communism). The goal became finding a way to create substantial income without expending energy and effort on behalf of someone else's financial gain. I continued to cautiously keep one eye open for a sign of proven success.

Discovering a system that works

One day when I was least expecting it, and through what must have been a preordained set of circumstances, I was introduced to a new way of approaching the MLM industry. Perhaps my limited success in building my business was not because of my product or my marketing methods…perhaps it was not my fault at all. It was explained to me like this:

If you accepted employment with a company, wouldn't you want to read the Employee's Handbook? Wouldn't you want to know about your opportunities for advancement? How about rules and regulations regarding reasons for sudden termination? Wouldn't you want to know about pay raises and benefits? How about retirement policies? Why should your network marketing business be any different?

Read and understand your policies and procedures

Remember, this is your contract with the company and is crucial to the success of your business. A lot of people make poor choices to sign up with a particular company based on emotions but with limited information regarding the company. They don't consider ALL the areas that are critically important from a business perspective.

Simply believing in your product is the absolute wrong reason to get involved with any company. Having a good product is important but product alone doesn't mean you'll make money.

Consider the fact that many network marketing companies are owned and managed by people who have absolutely no experience in the field. They just see MLM as a very lucrative means of distributing their product. MLM is just a means to their end. They have no respect for the people down in the trenches making their company a success. Who do you think loses out if they decide to change company policy for their own financial gain?

Know how to look for red flags intended to cover up a company's hidden agenda. Policies and Procedures should be simple and easy to understand. If a company has hidden some devious trick in its Compensation Plan by means of legal lingo that requires research using a Black's Law Dictionary, don't think they won't use it to take away your downline and steal your check. If they don't plan to use it, why would it be there?

Business models drive the behavior in the field

A company's Compensation Plan and will determine the activities and conduct of its affiliates and sales representatives. For instance, if a company depends on a "recruit, recruit, recruit" mentality for its affiliates to earn substantial backend residual income, the tendency will be to make a list of all your friends, family and every acquaintance you've had since kindergarten, sign everybody up, give them minimal training and then throw them against a wall to see who sticks.

This works out great for the top five percent of an organization, but what about the rest of us? Instead, there must also be a way to earn income on retail sales and there should be ongoing training with upline support.

Questions to ask yourself when evaluating your P&P's and Comp Plan

• How many people will you need in your organization to make $10,000 a month on backend residual income alone, not including bonuses?
• Is it profitable for part-time people? (Remember, about 95% of your organization will be made up of part-time people.)
• Does the compensation plan pay on all volume with NO breakage?

Five qualities your company must have in order for you to be successful

• Company management experience with integrity.
• Timing in the industry and timing in your company.
• A flagship product which is value priced - There must be more than one product and it must be affordable.
• A compensation plan that pays average part-time people.
• A duplicatable proven system with upline support.

If your company is missing just one of these qualities you will have a hard time making your business work and if you're missing more than that it will be almost impossible for you to succeed…your company will be fine with or without you.

Make sure your company isn't working against you

We work hard at building our organization and don't need our company undermining our efforts. Your business from home should be fun, rewarding and profitable. You should have a positive outlook on your chances for success. Relieve yourself of the feelings of regret, failure and an empty bank account. Learn to read and understand your Policies and Procedures. Maybe you can become a reformed skeptic, too.