One of the things I struggled with early on (and still struggle with if you want to know the truth) is explaining what Robin does--exactly.  When I first talked to my parents about Robin, I told them he was in network marketing.  Of course, they didn't know what that was (and neither did I). 

Over time, Robin has used various ways to describe what he does.  When we first met, one of his favorite lines was "I teach people how to make money."  Really descriptive and specific, I know.  Or "I give people a chance to make residual income."  I find that a lot of people don't even know what residual income is much less why they would want it.

So, what is it?  Well, like all good networkers Robin is a teacher, a mentor, a researcher.  He is a good listener.  He is a problem solver.  But if I were to pick out one trait that a good network marketer must have (at least in my opinion), it would be that you really, really have to like and care about people and love to NETWORK (i.e., talk, write, communicate) with them!

So, here is my version of what Robin does.  In one sentence, he helps people understand a new way of thinking about their value.  That may still seem a little cryptic, but I think that is what networking marketing is really ultimately all about.  If you understand how valuable you are as a person--you can understand how you can be even more valuable to others.  By being valuable to others, you increase your own value.  This can translate into money of course, but it is so much more.  Robin may get excited about a great deal or having lots of people sign up, but he gets absolutely the most excited when someone that he has mentored and has been working really hard is finally successful--whatever that person's definition of success might be.  When was the last time you got excited at your job?  When was the last time anyone got excited about you???

Network marketing really forces you to look at who you are, where you are, and where you want to be.  So, how valuable are you?  What are you willing to do to find out?

I don't know the answers. I'm still working on those questions myself.  I don't think I ever want to say that I know the answers and that I'm there.  After all, there is always room for improvement, always something else to try, and always someone else out there to help.  That is what life is all about!

Thanks for reading!

P.S. If any of you have your own definition of network marketing that you would like to share, write a comment.  I'm sure others would like to see various definitions as well.