Attitude Check (kind of long and rambling...)

I've mentioned before that I've now become an independent distributor for a direct sales jewelry company (I'm still a little unsure what their internet policy is and how to interpret it, so I apologize if this comes across a little vague). Up until last night I had a semi-skeptical attitude towards my new role. Honestly, I was a little embarrassed to tell people that I'm going to go into people's houses to hock my jewelry to them. But last night I had an attitude check - a much needed one, at that. I've decided I need to have a more positive outlook on my jewelry business.

I think my skepticism stemmed from the fact that I was afraid I wouldn't be any good. My mindset was that if I was sarcastic and snarky when I talked about my business, and I fail, it's not as hard to bear. Truth be told, I'm still afraid I won't be any good, but I'm not doing myself any favors by defeating myself before I even start. From now on I'm trying to have a vastly different, more positive attitude about what I'm doing.

Last night I had a new jeweler orientation and I left feeling SO encouraged. My biggest weakness is asking people if they want to have parties. I'm SO afraid of being that-pushy-jewelry-lady-who-people-avoid-and-hate that I didn't ask anyone if they want to have parties. My trainer pointed out that not only is it hurting my business, it's unfair to the guests at the party. Yes, I benefit when someone holds a party, but so does the hostess. Our Hostess Plan is AMAZING! The amount of free and discounted jewelry is unbelievable, and holding a party is so simple, that I really should be sharing it with everyone (in a non-threatening, non-pushy way).

For example, my aunt held a party last week that was below average in sales. To be exact, she had $338 in sales, when an average party is between $400 and $500. However, she was surprised at how much jewelry she received as hostess! First, she received 30% of her sales in free jewelry, so $101. Then, she earned 3 out of the 4 hostess bonuses, which are $25 in free jewelry each. So that brought her free jewelry total to $176. She also earned 6 half-off items because her party was over $300 in sales. She chose to purchase four items half off, which totaled roughly $70. The $70 that she spent was added back to her sales total, and she was given an additional 30% in free jewelry from the $70, so another $21, bringing the grand total to $197 FREE! When all was said and done, after tax and shipping, she paid about $96, and received over $340 in free jewelry, which was 10 pieces. And that was for a BELOW AVERAGE party! She was surprised, and honestly, so was I. It just goes to show that not every party has to rake in tons of sales for it to be beneficial to the hostess and to me.

I didn't mean for this to sound like a sales pitch, but I guess it kind of does. My apologies. I guess I just wanted to share my newfound enthusiasm for my new business development. I would LOVE to do a party with you and help you get lots of free jewlery for yourself or as gifts for others, so please contact me if this is something you'd like! I promise not to go psycho on you - but I'm definitely open to bringing/mailing you a catalog and chatting : )

I think I'm permitted to post pictures, so keep an eye out for some pics of my favorite pieces once I figure out a way to get them uploaded!