Module D1 - The Importance of Leadership.

Long before there was a Vollara, a predecessor company called Alpine Industries was building a network marketing company with a smaller product line and less rewarding compensation plan. We published a chapter on leadership that was quite powerful. Here are some excerpts:

The World's Highest-paying, Most Rewarding Profession—Leadership!

Since humans first banded together in agricultural and trading communities, a single organizational system has prevailed: a system characterized by one Leader, a small number of sub-Leaders, and greater numbers of sub-sub-Leaders, level by level until the command chain reaches every person.

The Bible tells us that angels and clergy are also organized this way. The term hierarchy is used. We also know that governments and militaries, sports teams, businesses, schools and social groups all are hierarchies! The presidents, generals, coaches, directors, principals, bishops, chairpersons, etc. who rule our world are respected and highly rewarded.

But juniors who seek advancement in a hierarchy are likely to find themselves thwarted. There is intense competition for relatively few openings. When openings occur, personality, politics, and other factors are often given more weight than ability or past performance. The coach's son may start as quarterback, while a better athlete warms the bench. A Kennedy, Bush, or Daly may gain high office through name power, not merit. A married man with one child might be promoted over a single mother of two because the man has a wife and family.

The world isn't fair. Despite your performance, there's a good chance that you're not where you deserve to be in your hierarchy. Maybe you don't have the right degree. Maybe your organization has decided to bring in someone from outside. Or you look wrong: height, weight, race. Or you belong to the wrong church. Or you don't socialize with the boss. Many such situations exist.

Maybe you would be a great manager but you're being judged for promotion based on your sales record. You'll miss the promotion even though the managerial job suits you better. The world will never know how great a Leader you are.

This is why Vollara is so intriguing. In our hierarchically-organized, highly competitive, highly political world no playing field is fairer. You may not have the contacts or resources that someone else has, but advancement is under your own control! There are plenty of openings at the top.

Vollara urges you to reach for the gold ring of leadership.

The Nine Elements of Leadership:

As a leader you must:

Are you a person who jumps into action in unexpected situations while other people stand around and watch? Is so, you have some natural born leadership qualities. Vollara will suit you.

But leadership is a science, as well. Certain steps work; others do not. We have broken down this science into components so you will know how to become a better Leader.

We also have news for those who are natural followers rather than natural leaders. You can bypass the need for being a top Leader if you encourage leadership development within your downline. Pay attention to leadership elements #8 and #9.

In Vollara, a poor salesman, poor communicator, poor Leader can succeed through the sales, communications, and leadership skills of people below him. This principle is called leverage.

For the rest of your life you can collect 5% royalties (and matching bonuses) from a hierarchy of Leaders and non-Leaders below you—to infinity. Here's how:

1. Build a following.

What could General Patton have done without an army? Drew Brees, without a team?

Hundreds of Vollara distributors are well aware that they could be great if only they had a ready-made downline. Well, you may be right; but we don't give away downlines or higher leaders off the street. If you are not willing to build your own downline, forget about being a top leader with this company.

Anyone can join. Each new distributor has a fair and equal opportunity to grow. You might even get some spillover benefit in your Placement Tree. We offer the best opportunity in the world and the most lucrative compensation plan in network marketing. Beyond that, it's up to you.

We can't predict how high you will go or how fast you will advance, but our system is network marketing's best. We have scientifically valid products that are good for human health and friendly toward the environment. And our corporate leadership is absolutely committed to make Vollara the biggest and best network marketing company in the world.

If you want to become one of our Leaders—many of whom are very highly paid—carry the Vollara message into your community. Recruit some distributors and sub-Leaders. Don't look back. Build it as big as you can.

2. Believe in what you do.

George Washington believed so strongly in a free America that in the dead of winter he motivated his outnumbered army to cross the icy Delaware River and capture Valley Forge. It is said that Thomas Edison failed a thousand times when trying to invent the light bulb. He never gave up because he knew it would eventually be done. His invention now serves six billion people very day. A Kansas City man, believing people would enjoy moving cartoons, started Walt Disney Corporation, the most inspirational entertainment company in the history of the world. Each of these great achievements relied, in part, on the power of belief.

Each Vollara candidate must determine if s/he believes that air purity and better health through water ionization and natural nutrition are worth pursuing. We don't ask you to be a fanatic. But we ask you to believe in this cause and be proud of your company's leadership in these fields.

We expect you to believe in the honesty, integrity, and uniqueness of our opportunity.

We want you to set a goal which, for you and your family, is worth believing in. Just as George and Thomas and Walt did, a believer can work through obstacles and disappointments and carry his followers through times when they have doubts.

3. Set a good personal example.

What young golfer can have cynical thoughts when Jack Nicklaus steps up on a stage and talks about what golf has done for him and his family. A top leader in any profession must live up to the high standards of his profession. In Vollara, we are inspired by people who (1) get off to a fast and proper start, (2) use Vollara products throughout their home, (3) cooperate with company and upline systems, (4) have a positive, cooperative, and helpful attitude, (5) have a inspirational work ethic, (6) show a sincere and caring interest in their people, and also manage to (7) keep their lives and businesses in balance.

4. Delegate.

Everyone know that a leader must delegate, but it's important not to delegate too soon or to the wrong people. You can't delegate leadership responsibilities to people who aren't leaders.

A new person's knowledge of Vollara products and systems is limited. As your knowledge grows, you will forget how little you knew in the beginning. You will be amazed by the simple things new people don't know.

Until a leadership hierarchy takes form, you have to reach down (Over the Shoulder) and treat every new person as if they have no leader but you. Point each person to this Blueprint Training and track their progress. Some people are not readers. They will not like this at all. Maybe they will do better by listening to conference calls and media training. Or by attending meetings. When people need individual help, give what you can.

When a group starts growing really fast, this is a big job. You have to spot the natural leaders in your group and start farming out some of the responsibilities to them. This is delegation. As a rule, you will need 1 leader for each 10 active trainees.

Hence, delegation and leader development is a never-ending process.

Not everyone has what it takes to be a leader. Not everyone has a Servant's Heart. Not everyone has high goals. If you delegate responsibilities to the wrong person, the new people further down might get isolated and lost.

Do your best to sort through your people—all levels—to  determine which ones have what it takes to be the important sub-leaders your group must have. Delegate and teach leadership concepts to those people.

5. Communicate and teach.

A leader must be constantly mindful of his responsibilities as a communicator and teacher. He need not always do the communicating himself but he must see that it gets done.

With respect to communications, each active distributor should be "meaningfully touched" at least twice each week. Very important people deserve many more than 2 touches, but try not to Span your people. The touch may be:

Modern technologies allow us to touch hundreds of people every day. In the snail mail days I used to try to send 20 letters (or copies of letters) every day. Through electronic media I try to touch 200 people per day.

People learn by example, by doing, by being taught, and by self study. A good teacher/communicator will be constantly aware of these learning modalities and try to use all four!

6. Keep learning.

How long could Microsoft founder Bill Gates stay atop the computer world if he (and his company) stopped thinking ahead and learning? Leaders in all fields must become students of their craft. Great chess players know all the great championship matches by heart—move by move. Generals study historically important battles dating back thousands of years to learn how each campaign was won and why some of the greatest leaders were eventually defeated.

The same modalities you apply as a teacher also apply to you as a learner. You learn by example, by doing, by being taught, and by self study. Listen to powerful talks to learn the techniques the speaker uses. Stay active as a doer. Attend meetings and seminars. Read.

The "doer" part of learning is especially important because there is an amazing overlap of skill applications. When you write a newsletter, the same words find their way into your talks. When you give conference calls and have to stick to a time schedule, the same discipline will make your meetings better. Everything is interconnected. Everything overlaps. As you teach the compensation plan, you also learn more about the compensation plan.

7. Know when to say no.

The great equalizer in business is time. Each of us has 24 hours per day, no more, no less.

One of the great burglars of time in network marketing is the downliner who constantly asks his upline leader to do work which he should be doing himself.

But there is somewhat of a paradox here. Sometimes it is wise to say yes to an unreasonable request. You may be helping someone who is precariously close to failure. Or your work might benefit someone in the upline more than the guy who is making the inappropriate request. It may not be wise to say no and rock the boat just yet.

Here's an example of an unreasonable request. You've driven 125 miles to speak to a group of distributors but hardly any new prospects. The host says, "Bob, when are you coming back to do another meeting for us?"

You can dodge the question and say you'll be back soon...without really meaning it. In your heart, you might be thinking your day could have been more productive in a different city with a different group. A good answer might be, "John, let me know when leaders in this room have conducted 10 meetings in their own homes—10 different homes. This assignment could be completed within 3 weeks or 3 months. That's when I want to come back. I came her tonight to help you make money, not just to entertain you with my jokes. Now it's time for you to get off the pot."

8. Develop a hierarchy of sub-Leaders.

As was pointed out earlier, all people structures are hierarchies. Even random groups such as children on a playground or witnesses to an accident tend to quickly evolve toward organization. Individuals with natural leader skills emerge as information gatherers, helpers, and communicators.

Some people are excellent lower echelon leaders but they refuse to take the top spot. In emergency situations, these individuals tend to move fast and eventually choose the ultimate leader. Somehow they know how to spot the individual who can best handle the top spot. Lower echelon types and ultimate types both make excellent network marketers.

Many ultimate types are not available to be recruited because they are business and successful in other careers. They own businesses. They have corporate positions. They hold high political office. They head churches, universities, and other institutions. But by no means have all of America's ultimates found their calling. Millions of men and women have natural leader qualities and the potential to be great leaders. They've been held back for various reasons...but many are ripe for Vollara.

Likewise, there is a huge pool of lower echelon leader types. These men and women have served as assistants or secretaries and in some cases have seen their bosses get rich. They work 50-hour weeks and will probably work even after so-called retirement. These, too, can be excellent Vollara leaders. Why would these people not want to earn $390,000 or $780,000 per year?

A networker who wants to build a large and secure organization must constantly search for leaders. For starters, try to recruit leader types. More importantly, sort through your downline for leaders. By the time your group grows to 10 people there is an excellent chance 1 or 2 natural leaders are already on board. Find these people and try to engage them. Chances are, they do not realize the potential of what they have.

9. Recognize and reward your followers.

Can you imagine hearing the University of Florida's football coach talking to the press about how good a coach he is? Even if you are Vollara's greatest leader, it's not your job to talk about yourself! It's your job to point out the strengths and achievements of your downliners.

"Fred, I'm proud of the job you and Wilma do with your downline."

"The Vollara we know and love today wouldn't be here were it not for the pioneering work of Keith Jones, Ev Nelson, Leia Ryan, and Wayne Zimmermann. We thank these early leaders for the foundation they helped create."

"Margaret, you handled that crisis about as well as anyone could. The customer is happy and so is the distributor, even though he lost a sale."

"Thank you, Anita, for your hard work in setting up that meeting. Folks, you'd be amazed to know how much work Anita and Ed did to prepare for this meeting. They certainly made my trip worthwhile."
 

Becoming More Qualified...

We hope you will think of this training module as a discovery worth recommending to your "civilian" friends as well as to your new distributors.

You probably realized, as you read, that the role of leadership has never been a secret. But you may not have given it much thought. Perhaps you should.

By thinking more about leadership, you can increase your influence in the theater of life! Leadership is a part of every social, business and organizational activity. Just by being aware of this, your upward mobility should be improved.

But not automatically...

Knowledge alone does not make a person strong, successful, or rich. Only through the clever application of knowledge will you be able to gain those much desired goals.

Even then it's still not a free ride. The world of leadership is constantly competitive!

Module D2 - Setting a Good Personal Example.

Everything you do is an example...because everyone around you is always watching. Even when they are not consciously watching, still they are aware—amazingly aware—of what you say, what you do, what attitudes you project, and how you respond to situations. Your example can be good, bad, or neutral. You get to decide.

Let's consider a house painter. One job might bid out at $5,000. If things go right, he can net $1,500 in a week. Five long days of work. Then he is out of business until he sells another job. This type of businessman has to do good work; that goes without saying. But to get the best referrals, he should also be polite, neat, and punctual. If he sees something extra that has to be done—a small repair—he should do it. Ideally, the customer will tell his friends. "This guy was fantastic. He did a great job, finished on time, didn't damage my plants, and fixed a problem under my eaves."

In Vollara, we have a much bigger audience. A Vollara leader who says and does the right things will impress 50 people or even 500, not just one client at a time. And you get to decide. From the very beginning, you create your personal story. You shape your own image.

What starter pack did you choose? Did you jump in with confidence? Did you stretch a little—take a little risk—in order to be off to the strongest possible start?

I've been telling that story for 15 years and it will still be effective 15 years from now.

As a newcomer to Vollara, you have a clean slate when it comes to personal example. Even people who were in EcoQuest before...you have a fresh opportunity to plant your flag and say to the world,

"Okay, world, here I am, this is what I am going to do,

watch my smoke, and hold me accountable."

Set the best personal example you can. Everything matters. Here are some significant areas where you can prove yourself:

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Becoming More Qualified...

Module D3 - Effective Communications.

Becoming More Qualified...

Module D7 - A Winner's Attitude.

Becoming More Qualified...