What Can We Learn From Madoff – Lessons on Greed And Trust
Some of you may have been reading the Bernard Madoff Ponzi scandal story play out over the last few months.
A former chairman of the NASDAQ and creator of the biggest discovered ponzi investment scheme that ran for decades, Madoff abused the trust he instilled in friends and investors to the tune of 50 to 60 billion.
Although when the dust settles, it’ll probably be a lot less than that since many earlier investors actually made more than they ever put in.
Sources say how he came across as genuine, trustworthy, caring, etc. The kind of qualities usually reserved for the deceased. You know, how most everyone is held up as more wonderful than they really were when they were still alive.
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As Attraction Marketers, building Trust is paramount to any lasting success in this industry. For the unscrupulous, it can be tempting to abuse it once gained. Social proof and pictures of cash and checks and results can go a long way into getting people to think you are a nice guy and one to be a business partner or team mate with.
You can never really know someone. Even ‘business associates’ can be duped by others and by association, can damage their own reputation and integrity.
If you’re in this business long enough, you will experience your share of bullshit companies, charlatans and the like, the lure of ‘leveraged wealth’ attracts more than the average amount of wolves wearing sheep’s threads.
Any marketer who knowingly promotes a bad opportunity or tool is guilty of the worse offense – like Madoff. . . which is abusing the trust you’ve built in your peers/teammates for your own selfish gain… it borders on sociopathy.
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But I am not here to try and discourage you. I am saying, don’t become blind to hype or greed or giveup your power to a guru or cultish company.
Don’t put all your efforts into one income source. As an internet marketer, don’t just rely on one program or company – programs go stale, companies change comp plans or go under.
Be more well rounded – direct sales, network marketing, affiliate marketing all have their advantages and if you do it right, they can compliment each other synergistically.
Also, don’t be overly eager to hype someone else up who you don’t personally have a pre-existing relationship with. Affiliate marketing gurus like Mike Dillard and Frank Kern are probably safe, but lesser knowns or unknowns, I would use caution and reservation until you feel comfortable with their reputation. Because your reputation is based in large part by the company you keep.