It was a misty Sunday evening in the month of May when my wife Victoria and I followed Mark and Denise Hall, our upline sponsors, into their motel room in Eugene, Oregon. Mark, a full-time evangelist, had just concluded a speaking engagement for a local congregation. Accompanying our party was Millie Hooper, a well-known gospel singer, and Don and Melissa Griffin, close personal friends of ours. We all pushed into the small, but attractively decorated, room only to quickly discover a lack of seating. We opted for the adjoining bed.
As soon as Mark closed the door, he focused his gaze towards me. Then, and very much the same way that he would open a sermon, he threw his arms outright and began to exclaim. "Phil, you must become a Direct Distributor before September! Don't get me wrong. You're doing a great job, but you are going to have to sponsor a lot more people into this business if you want to make it! Lester Canon wants you to be the guest speaker at his convention this fall. There will probably be over 15,000 people present. Can you imagine that? As an author, just think of all the money you'll make selling your books! You will need a semi trailer full of books to accommodate this crowd!" (Not until much later did I realize the full impact of his emphasis on selling books.)
Our eyes remained riveted on Mark as he stormed back and forth across the room delivering his message.
"Phil, you have to be there I You won't believe this mob. They are the wildest and most excited group of people you will ever witness in your entire life. When Lester stands up and commands them to go to the back of the room and buy books, they obey! It's crazy, but it's fool proof. It's simple. You'll walk out of that convention with a suitcase full of money!"
By now Mark was in a complete frenzy of excitement, walking briskly around the room waving his arms descriptively through the air. "Man, they'll fill their arms full with books. They'll buy them by the case and run home to give them to their friends, downlines and anyone even remotely interested in this business." Mark never let up. He pressed on. Now leaning across the bed, gesturing with his right hand, he continued. "Listen to me, Phil I Last year I walked out of Lester's convention with two briefcases full of money from selling motivational books. I made over $100,000 in cash in one night. We're talking about megabucks. "You can do the same thing. I'm counting on you now. You have to break 'Direct' before September."
Mark turned towards Miss Hooper. "And Millie, if you were to get into this fabulous organization, I'm sure that with your notoriety as a singer, Lester would invite you, too. Just think of all the albums you could selling". Millie looked at Mark with a big questioning expression, probably because she had absolutely no idea what the Amway business was all about. However, her reply reflected her deep and sincere faith in God. "Albums, Mark? You really believe that the only reason I would attend a function of that size is to sell albums? Only one thing would thrill my heart--seeing souls saved for the kingdom." Mark's face registered embarrassment.
I myself felt rather ashamed participating in this conversation, especially since only an hour before we were in a service together giving praise to God. Subsequent experiences, such as the one this evening, would continually shed more light on the perceived motives of Amway's top distributors. I had not realized until that night that the money the really big money could be made in selling books, records, tapes and other items, not directly associated with Amway. Mark Hall, who is now an Emerald Direct, is sponsored directly under Lester Canon, Crown Direct who in the past has sat on the Board of the prestigious Amway Distributors' Association. This is a separate unincorporated organization, which works in conjunction with the Amway Corporation.
Mark was always telling me much about Lester Canon. He wanted to make it clear in my mind how important and influential this man is. As far as he was concerned, I was not to forget it!
Lester is considered legendary among his Amway distributors and has become to the masses a symbol of accomplishment, achievement and ultimate success. Here was a commoner who pulled himself up by his own bootstraps to become a self-matearistocrat. His vast accumulation of wealth today is not a privilege or birthright.
Canon is well known for his incredible ability to organize some of the largest and noisiest Amway meetings in the nation. These are fully supercharged, highly motivating events with attendance often running in excess of 15,000 distributors.
Mark himself has become widely known in Amway circles. He and Lester are constantly flying back and forth across the country to address their disciples at these large functions.
Prior to this meeting in the motel room, we had been in the business about five months, and already there were certain business practices and philosophical viewpoints with, which my wife and l did not agree. One of the practices which Lester always instructed, but annoyed me the most, was never to reveal the name of the company until after you had the prospect go through an "opportunity" meeting. This was called the curiosity approach. Another favorite viewpoint frequently expressed by various leaders is that the wife should never interfere with the husband's decisions in this business. It is said that this philosophy is Biblical, and supposedly, one is not expected to flinch when it was screamed at meetings, "Wives, keep your mouths shut!" Clearly, the Bible says, "Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church, and wives submit yourselves unto your husbands as unto Christ." So far as we were concerned, there were abuses expressed here in the area of wives' submitting to their husbands. Sure, it's important for the wife to submit to her husband, but voluntarily! It should be an act of love.
But somehow, somewhere along the line, many of the leaders of this organization went beyond just selling soap. They wanted to control the lives of their downlines--even the most personal aspects. It's a well-known fact that many of Amway's leaders are very chauvinistic. This philosophy has become common among certain lines of sponsorship.
One friend who is still in the business commented on this subject of abusive submission in this fashion. "These people know exactly what they're doing. Surely, you don't think they want the wives opening up their husbands' blind eyes, do you?"
Many questions and doubts kept coming to our minds. Was this business really for us? Could we be as successful as we were led to believe--with hard work, of course? Why weren't we allowed to build our own business the way we saw best--by emphasizing the retail selling of products? It seemed that we were always subjected to the unquestioned direction of our upline sponsors. This was not only true for myself, but it was widely known through certain lines of sponsorship in the Amway Empire--that you are to be completely loyal to your upline. Somehow I never could feel comfortable reporting to a single sovereign authority like Lester Canon. From the very beginning, I struggled with these powers to be.
During our drive home after our visit with Mark and Denise that night, my wife and I began to reflection the evening's events and how we had gotten caught up into this fast moving, fast talking business. We were beginning to get a better understanding of something very important: How the really big money was made. I had sponsored so many of our closest friends and relatives during the last several months, but we were continually hearing a common complaint from most of them--the high cost of participating in this business. There was, at rallies and meetings, a constant emphasis on the purchase of non-Amway produced motivational tools such as books and tapes. In addition, the monthly expenditures for rallies were outrageous.
Up until this evening I had dismissed these grumblings simply as misunderstandings. Mark had assured me that these books, tapes and rallies were, in fact, valuable tools needed to build the business. I believed as I had been taught--that my downlines needed to trust me the way I trusted Mark and Lester. Never before had it occurred to me that those at the top may have had an ulterior motive for our purchasing these non-Amway produced items, many of which are downplayed and described simply as motivational tools.
I trusted my sponsor Mark explicitly. He had assisted me in a previous business venture, which proved to be more than successful. "Undoubtedly he could also instruct me in how to build a successful business like his," I thought. "After all, Lester had said many times, 'Success breeds success.'"
Before, it was the unquestioning faith and loyalty to a friend. But now that was all beginning to change. There were questions and doubts coming to my mind. I needed answers.
I pulled the car into our driveway and turned off the ignition. All I could hear was the patter of rain droplets hitting the metal and glass of my Ford. I reached over and pulled my wife closer to me. Quietly we sat together, reflecting on what we had seen and heard. We now realized that there was a darker side to this business. We looked back on how it all began--the first time I met Lester Canon!
The place was Chicago, Illinois, and it was a stormy and dark winter day in December. The roads were covered with black ice, and the rain would freeze as it fell. Mark picked me up at the airport, and together, in his big Cadillac sedan, we slid cautiously and quietly across the ice. Never before had I been to Mark's home. It was a massive and impressive split-level, nestled in a park like setting.
"Phil, look, I've got to get dressed. You go on into the den and find something to read. Okay? I have a friend coming over whom I would like you to meet. His name is Lester Canon!"
Well, Lester did not arrive that evening. I did not get a chance to meet him until the following morning. I had no idea who this man was nor what his affiliation was with Mark.
I remember the doorbell ringing and Mark exclaiming excitedly, "That must be Les and Sherry!" Mark grabbed my arm and together we walked to the door while he quietly murmured under his breath, "Phil, this guy is a multi-millionaire. He's stinking rich, and he's got important friends in government and big business all over the country. "Mark was really trying to impress me with this man's wealth and influence. When the door opened, there stood before us a rather cheerful looking fellow, tall and strong in stature, with a strikingly attractive blonde on his arm.
"Come on in, Sherry. Come on in, Lester." Mark closed the door behind them and made the introductions. "Sherry, Les, this is Phil Kerns. He's the fellow I have told you all about. We're going to be doing great things together, Phil and I." Mark motioned us on ahead. "Let's all go to the kitchen. The girls can drum us up some breakfast." Mark's kitchen was really cramped, but that was okay. We just crowded around the small dinette set. I surmised we were not eating in the formal dining room in order to spare the cleaning later. Together Lester and I pulled the small table away from the wall. He smiled and sat down.
Here I was sitting across the table from a man whom I had never laid eyes on before, and Mark was standing before me giving a long dissertation on the wealth, riches and influence of this person. Mark never let him get a word in edgewise. At the time I thought it was all crazy. Mark went on to tell me that Lester, whom I could have reached over and touched, was worth more than 80 million dollars! He owned not just one, but rather an entire fleet of RolIs Royces, a bank, and a home with over 10,000 square feet.
I began to wonder if Mark was embarrassing this man. I watched Mark as he walked back and forth through the kitchen explaining how Lester had made his fortune selling SOAP! Mark roared in laugher. It was an absolutely nutty scenario. Was this really happening? I peered over my shoulder behind me. Sherry and Denise were frying and eating bits and pieces out of the pan. In front of me strolled Mark, now shouting the praises of this man, intermittently stuffing raisin toast into his mouth. "Why was it so important for me to know of this man's wealth?" I thought. My thoughts immediately were expressed in a somewhat watered down question: "Mark, why are you telling me all of this?" "It's simple, Phil," Mark replied. "I believe you could be a smashing success in this business. You're an articulate speaker. You have thousands of friends who love you. You're an author of a best seller.
Look at what this soap business has done for the Canons! They're rolling in the dough!" Mark gestured towards Lester. "Show him your bank roll, Les," Mark began laughing all over again. I was certain that mark had now devastated this man with his embarrassing request. Lester rolled his head back and forth, hesitated slightly, and then with what appeared to be some sort of reluctance, he replied, "Well, okay Mark." Mark took the liberty and reached down by Lester's belt. From a small leather case sitting on the chair next to Lester's side, he pulled out a thick stack of $100 bills. There were several packets of crisp new mint fresh bills with $5,000 bands around them. I couldn't believe it! I'm sure my astonishment was apparent. Mark goaded me on "Look Phil, over $50,000 in CASH! Do you want to touch it? Go ahead. it's real--really--real. Do you get to carry spending money like that around back home? I'll bet your property management business doesn't allow you that luxury, does it?" Mark continued with his laughter as he removed a couple of the bands. He spread the $100 bills all over the table in an apparent effort to emphasize the huge amount of money before us. He threw some of the bills in the air, and his laughter continued. Finally Lester spoke. "Phil, what Mark is trying to tell you is that we would like to make you a millionaire!" "He wanted to make me a what?" I thought. "Okay, explain it, Mark. I want to hear how you are going to make me into a millionaire!" I exclaimed. Now I was laughing, mostly in disbelief. My thoughts continued, "Is he going to write me a check? Is that how he is going to make me a millionaire?" Mark quit laughing and quieted down. Lester then took charge. "Phil, I'll do the explaining, all right?" Lester's tone had changed. I could see he was serious. He meant business. Lester gave me a brief history of the company and its yearly success--from its birth in 1959 to the present.
He told me he grew up very poor and was just looking for an opportunity like this in order to buy the things he so desperately wanted for his family. He motioned to his wife, who sat down next to him. He took her hand and gently pulled it out in front of me so I could seethe enormous diamond set in white gold. If I remember correctly, he said that it was worth over $100,000. I couldn't believe the size of it. He then reached out to her slender neck and cupped his hand under the huge diamond that hung there in a manner of proud display. He went on to tell me that he could buy anything he wanted in the world. It didn't matter what the price was. He said it was like a dream come true. His wife, interrupting, told a story to emphasize what her husband was saying. A few weeks earlier she had left a $20,000 diamond ring in a restroom while washing her hands. Only after they had left the restaurant and were driving down the road did she miss it. They turned around and drove back, but the ring was gone. "Oh, well," Sherry said, "we will just buy another one." "And listen, Phil," Lester went on, "this same kind of opportunity is yours. You could have anything you want in the world. The choice is yours." When I looked up, I realized that everyone was now seated. All were looking at me expectantly. Quiet but anxious looks were on their faces. Each face was waiting for my decision. I was stunned. This was all happening so fast. Never in my life had I been offered the opportunity to live in the seven digit realm. "Well, okay, I'll do it." I replied hesitantly. "But what do I have to do?" Mark sprang to his feet. "Whoopee, Phil, you'll never regret it. We're on our way!" "On our way? I don't even know how the business works!" I shouted back. "Don't worry about a thing, Phil," Lester reassured me. "I'm going to call one of my associates in Miami, Florida. He'll beat you home this coming Monday night. You just make sure you have a house full of people there. Okay? He will explain everything."
That same afternoon I was the guest of the Canons and the Halis for lunch. Then, that evening, I attended my first rally with Lester and Mark, who were the guest speakers. The following morning I flew home. The moment I stepped off the plane I began rambling to my wife a hundred miles an hour about this wonderful and crazy soap business we were getting into. I presented her with the small gift I had purchased from a concession at Lester's and Mark's rally. It was nothing extravagant--a small diamond encircled with a cluster of emeralds, They explained to me that bringing in wholesale jewelers to these events was a courtesy service and a common practice. "Honey, I think we're onto something big! You know how I have always wanted to get away from this property management business and have some freedom. I think this might be it!" Here she expressed a mixture of joy and apprehension. I could not answer her questions. That didn't matter much, though. Gene Williams, an associate of Lester's, was coming to our home on Monday night to explain the whole plan. The only thing that I really understood was that we had to make up a "success" list. This was a potential recruiting list of individuals we would invite over to our home--everyone we knew who uses soap. My wife seemed more than willing to assist by making some telephone calls. Besides I had already won her over with my small token of love and my enthusiastic description of the possibility of financial independence.
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