Success Story
Stand In The Power of Truth - Geri Cvitanovich-Dubie of Herbalife
After six years of college, Geri expected to find success as a teacher, but the Los Angeles City Schools system didn't have much to offer. Neither did her second job as a grocery store checker. Working in dangerous neighborhoods, overcrowded classrooms, and poor air quality, Geri was getting stressed and depressed. Then a newspaper ad caught her eye...
 Since my employers were paying me just enough to keep me from quitting, I was inspired to work only enough not to be fired. At school, I found myself controlling behavior rather than educating.
I started looking in the newspaper for different opportunities and read an ad that said, "Prisoner, are you tied to a desk? Are you tired of punching a clock?" I said, "This is me!"
I saw that the security and prosperity I wanted couldn't be found working in traditional jobs. I was consumed with fear and kept asking myself, "What if I get sick? What if I get fired? I walked a tightrope between survival and financial failure, so I answered the ad.
My first challenge was the opportunity meeting where I learned about the industry! Mark Hughes, president and founder of Herbalife International, was at the front of a garage-sized room with a flip chart that said, "Welcome to My Family!" Mark was only 23 at the time, so it initially didn't look like it was going to be successful at all.
During his presentation of the marketing plan, I noticed that the guests were leaving one at a time. I thought, "Gee, they must be going to the bathroom or going to get a tape recorder." But it became evident they weren't coming back, and I was the only one remaining. I wondered why.
Then Mark looked me in the eye and said, "We're a brand new company. All I can tell you is that for your life to change, you have to change. For your life to get better, and for you to have something different, you have to get better. We are going to get rich, these products are incredible, and it doesn't matter what skill level you are."
Nobody had ever talked to me that way. He was such an honest and good-hearted person that I felt this was a company that would show me whatever I needed to know. And he said he would. I thought, "Wow, this looks like something I can do!" The company and the industry gave me hope when I was in a desperate place.
I didn't know what my potential was. All I knew was that Mark had a dream, and I needed a dream. I needed to lose weight. I had no social life. I was insecure. I had low self-esteem, no money. Here was a person giving me a dream, and he didn't even look like he was going to make it! That was a pretty big obstacle.
Another obstacle was that I had only about ten hours a week that I was able to work the business. The obstacles were myself, mainly. I was my own challenge. I didn't have the courage, confidence, or self-esteem. Fortunately, Network Marketing doesn't rely on skill so much as desire. I had plenty of desire. If I hadn't found Network Marketing, I would have been doomed.
My greatest asset was that I was teachable and willing to do whatever I was told to do to make it work. I also had direction and encouragement from the company. Mark told me, from day one, that in this business your personal growth is more important than anything. Do the things you fear; then you get the courage.
I had to take action and work through my fears. When I finally went full-time, I had to talk to 20 people a day -- that was my job. Whether they said yes or no, I had to talk to ten about the products and ten about the opportunity.
I talked to people with enthusiasm even though I was scared; with confidence even though I was nervous. I acted successful even though I felt like a failure. All that practice eventually increased my skills and my results. I overcame obstacles by being willing to start.
The company trains the skills and attitude. I learned what it meant to have a strong work ethic and commitment. I learned to talk about the future with certainty even though I felt uncertain. I learned how to project a Network Marketing image instead of the dramas going on in my life. It was all a process.
I released fear associated with being in business for myself. I learned how to help people reach their highest goals. I learned how to offer people hope like it had been offered to me. As I got more involved and started seeing results, I gained more faith in it.
The products were the first key to my success. I went down five dress sizes in six weeks. I lost 16 pounds. I got energy. The products were the biggest confidence-builders. I don't think anyone can do well if they lie. I was taught to stand in the power of truth, even if I was scared, because the truth would overcome the fear. When I got results, all I had to do was stand in the power of truth and tell that story. By my second month, it paid off.
My excitement made others excited. I motivated others and myself by staying in action. I learned that the biggest achievements come one step, one day at a time. I was learning how to empower myself by being active.
The powerful question I kept asking myself was, "What am I becoming?" It isn't what you get that makes you valuable, it's what you become along the way. The key is setting the kinds of goals that will make you a better person as you achieve them.
My success philosophy is that I have the power to manifest my own destiny, and I should never underestimate the power of my own self-discipline and will. Our lives are affected by the price and the promise. It is very hard to pay the price if you can't see the promise. Once you can envision and feel that promise for your future, you'll be willing to pay any price. If you can keep your goal in mind, the way to get there always reveals itself. Don't wish for fewer problems; wish for more skills.
I love this industry. You don't have to be an expert, you just need to have a willingness to work. I work right from my home to run a global business. I don't have to be the reason for success, I just have to introduce people to the ideas. What more can you ask for in a career than to help people manifest their dreams?
It seems like only yesterday that I wasn't a millionaire, so I totally know what it's like for people. When someone sees life as more disappointment than adventure, I can show them -- through Network Marketing -- how all their dreams can come true.
Geri Cvitanovich-Dubie has been with Herbalife International for nearly 20 years. She is the only person to reach the rank of Co-founder, the company's highest level. Herbalife markets herbal nutrition products. Geri lives in Hawaii with her husband Daniel.
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Reprinted with permission from Upline, Cvitanovich-Dubie Profile - January 2000, 888-UPLINE-1, http://www.upline.com
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