Starting again in MLM: why you aren’t starting from zero

When you say you are starting to build a team again, you will hear:

• From zero again?
• You still have the energy for that?
• But you’ve already built something once.

I understand. From the outside it really does look that way.

But starting again in MLM doesn’t mean starting from zero. It means starting from experience. And that is a completely different start.

Why do people in MLM start again?

People in MLM most often start again because the company, its rules or its leadership changed, or because they themselves changed and are looking for an environment that suits them better. It isn’t a failure, it’s a decision.

The reasons vary:

• The company changed its conditions and they no longer make sense to you.
• You disagree with the direction or with how people are treated.
• You want more room for your own leadership style.
• You are looking for a project that is ready to grow beyond borders too.

Whatever the reason, leaving decently is just as important as starting well.

What do you carry with you when you decide to start again in MLM?

When you decide to start again in MLM, you mainly carry experience: you know how to approach people, what a good newcomer looks like, where a team most often cracks and what costs you the most energy. That is a head start a beginner doesn’t have.

A complete beginner and someone starting again in MLM

Area	Complete beginner	Starting again
Approaching people	Learns what to say and how.	Knows what works and what puts people off.
Choosing partners	Takes anyone who shows interest.	Can tell who is serious.
System for newcomers	Is still looking for one.	Knows what a newcomer needs in the first weeks.
Difficult moments	They come as a surprise.	Knows they will come and is prepared.
Own energy	Often overestimates it.	Knows where the limits are.

You can’t learn this from a book. You have to go through it.

What mistakes should you avoid when starting again in MLM?

The most common mistake at a new start in MLM is carrying old habits into the new environment, above all haste and pressure on the people around you. The second mistake is speaking badly about where you are leaving.

1. Don’t pull people along with you. Everyone has to decide for themselves. Anyone who comes only because of you will leave at the first crisis.
2. Don’t speak badly of your former company or its people. Respect for the past builds trust in the future.
3. Don’t rush the results. The pressure to prove to everyone that you can do it leads to shortcuts.
4. Don’t repeat old mistakes in the system. Write down what didn’t work last time and build it differently.
5. Don’t promise more than you can deliver. Network marketing is a business and the results depend on your own work.

How do you start again in MLM step by step?

It pays to start again in MLM in five steps: clarify why, leave decently, choose a company with care, write down the lessons from last time and start with a small number of people. The order matters, because each step builds on the previous one.

1. Clarify why you are leaving and what you are looking for. Write it on paper. If you can’t write it clearly, you haven’t decided yet.
2. Leave decently. Keep your commitments, read your contract and part without bitterness. The world of network marketing is smaller than it seems.
3. Choose a company with care. Go through it using the questions in the article How to choose an MLM company, not by the emotions from one presentation.
4. Write down the lessons from last time. Three things you want to do the same way and three you want to do differently.
5. Start with a few people. Better three reliable people than thirty curious ones. You will build everything else on them.

Who am I looking for when I build again?

When I build again, I’m not looking for as many people as possible, but for a few leaders who want to build with me, not under me. People who aren’t afraid of work, can laugh at themselves and want a team around them that they can rely on.

I don’t mind whether you have already built something or are only looking for where to start. What matters more is whether you are serious.

I describe how to build such a team in the article Building a team in MLM. And if you are choosing where to go right now, the article How to choose an MLM company will help you.

Frequently asked questions

Is it embarrassing to start again in MLM?

Starting again in MLM is nothing to be ashamed of. People change companies and fields all the time, and network marketing is no different. The only shameful things are leaving badly or promising people things that can’t be delivered. A new start shows that you take business seriously.

Can I take my team to a new company?

You don’t own the people in your team, each of them decides for themselves. At the same time, read the rules and the contract of your current company, because some forbid poaching partners. The decent approach is to inform, not to persuade, and to leave the decision to each person.

How long does a new start take?

How long a new start takes depends on the time you put into it and on the people you find. Experience helps you avoid mistakes, but a team is built gradually the second time too. Count on months and years rather than weeks.

How do I know it’s time to leave?

You know it’s time to leave when you have long disagreed with the values of the company or its leadership and a change is beyond your power. Decide calmly, not in the heat of emotion, and first be clear about where you want to go and why.

What do I say to people who ask why I left?

To people who ask why you left, say briefly and truthfully what you are looking for, rather than what bothered you. “I was looking for an environment that suits me better” is a better answer than a list of grievances. Whoever wants to know more will ask.

Do I have the energy for it?

I do. And I’m looking forward to it.

I just already know where not to dig.

If you are facing a new beginning too, get in touch. I’ll gladly show you what I’m building with.

Tom