People will believe what they want to believe. Corporate America and network marketing both have their pros and cons. It is up to us to decide whether the opportunity is worth pursuing or not.

I was in corporate America for 20 years…part of that time as an executive for a giant network marketing company. I am currently the owner of a traditional “brick and mortar” business…and am also involved in network marketing (Ignite, for one). For me, it works.

My traditional business (in an industry that I love) keeps me busy approximately 60-80 hours a week. During the past 2.5 years that I have had my traditional business, I am sorry to state that I have not been able to devote more than 1 hour / month to the Ignite business. Yet, because of how well the Ignite business works, my monthlies continue to increase, because I have some in my downline that see the possibilities. I truly hope to make 2010 a year in which I am able to devote significantly more time to the Ignite business, as I truly wish to help others. It may be a catch phrase for some, but I am sincere when I state this.

To those who may think this is a scam – you are absolutely entitled to your opinion and, you are correct in that this business is not for you.

To those of you who see the possibilities – you, too, are entitled to your opinion (to which I happen to agree) and, I truly believe that IF YOU PUT IN THE WORK REQUIRED, you can become successful to the degree you desire.

Do YOUR OWN due diligence. I did, and I am happier for it!

Blessings!

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that just because something looks like the shape of a pyramid when you work out the numbers of dollars paid out or recruits brought into a business makes it something diabolical and illegal. Your definition of a pyramid scheme or pyramid is wrong. I am an expert at knowing what pyramid is because I spend much of my life going after them and shutting them down. The true and basic definition of a pyramid scheme is where the principle means for earning income or progressing through the organization is via recruitment. No one at Ignite is paid 1 dime until a service is rendered, i.e., a customer is garnered, an electricity bill is generated, and paid. A service has to be rendered or product has to be sold. We provide a service. We don’t sell products. I find that the price we charge for our service is competitive. We are not in business to compete with price any more than a good car dealer or furniture store. We provide a personal service to people. We educate people and help them along. The fact that Stream can pay $6 – $7.50 of every bill in commissions is a good thing if you imagine what the incumbents have been charging for many years and not paying commissions to agents or rebates to customers, meaning they were keeping all those profits for themselves. Now, our concept not only saves people money, but also helps ordinary people have a business that can add life-changing income to their household.

Not every person in this business is going to make it to the top. Some will drop off, some will just not have the right stuff to get to the top, and some will be content with a certain income stream at a certan level, and all those scenarios are beautiful. This is America. Dreams are made here. For 40 plus years I worked like a slave trading my hours for dollars but never created any wealth. I retired from the military after 25 years of Infantry and worked for corporate America as an Auditor but with all of that no wealth. Excel created 2,000 millionaires. Andrew probably has a problem with that. Ignite/Stream will, in my opinion, create more millionaires than Excel. Not having 100% market share is the state of Texas is not a shame. No company has 100% market share of any business. Please be realistic, but we have the chance to expand to other states and create additional market share and the world and create additional market share.

I have had businesses and websites and paid more in overhead cost than I pay with Ignite/Stream. I pay $24.95 per month for 2 websites. It comes out to about $12.50 per website. Okay so you multiply that over 50,000,000 associates for example and that comes out to $1,250,000,000. Why is there a problem with the company making money on the websites. Do you have a problem with any other company charging for website construction, hosting, and monthly fees? I have paid much more than that for websites. Business is Business! I have everything I need to manage my business within my website. You don’t know the power of our websites because you are not an associate so you can’t see it. For what I can accomplish with these websites, I would have to pay large sums of overhead to people to perform the funtions I have at my fingertips.

Do you think Ray Crock worried about there only being a limited number of people who would eat beef when he started his McDonald’s franchises? Keep opening McDonald’s until you run out of beef eaters. In the meantime a bunch or ordinary people have an opportunity to make some crazy money along the way until that happens. I’m not mad at him. None of you should be. Ma’am if your husband is a trucker and going about all over the nation, tell him to talk to some truckers who want to make an extra income each month. He could build his business just among truckers. The smart man who signed him up probably had in mind that your husband can reach a demographic that could give him a niche. So rather than complain, look at the advantages your husband has. The rest of you have listened to Andrew and did not get into this business because of reading Andrew computations, I feel sorry for you because you missed out on a wonderful opportunity to make a difference in your life and the life of your family. But, as long as that is the case, there will be more money for me and those of us who see this for what it is — business.

Keep in mind that in any real estate brokerage, accounting firm, law firm, etc., there is a pyramid-type structure. The partners are at the top of the food chain and make most of the money, and as you walk the stairway down to the bottom rung you find the lower paid people there. You and can spend your whole career in a firm and never become partner or manager, but you can still earn some pretty decent money trading hours for dollars. Also, I have never met a CEO that wanted to do all the work himself, so he has to clone him/herself with many layers of people in order to accomplish the mission. J Paul Getty said he would rather have 100 people each doing 1% of the work than to have 1 person doing all the work. So, every business model uses MLM to various degrees. I have audited every type of business model there is so I know firsthand.

If you get into this business and build out each store (if you will allow me to use store) you will make money. Not everyone on your team in each store is going to share your work ethic, drive, and motivation, but even if you are able to make the models work to some percentage of the ideal, you will have residuals for your life that would require you to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in a CD in order to obtain. Just to have a $260 per month lifetime residual that can be accomplished at your 3rd level with 39 associates on your team, you would have to invest over $300,000 with a bank and leave it there, at today’s interest rates. I invested $329 on time and I now have a residual far greater than $260 per month and I didn’t have to give anyone bank or stockbroker $300,000 to hold indefinitely, yet my residual in excess of $260 is indefinite. So, for all of you who listened to Andrew, you have allowed Andrew to rob you of a chance to change your life. I grew picking cotton. Everyone I knew picked cotton. For me to invest $329 and be able to make the money I am making is utterly amazing. I am still hungry so I am going for more.

For all of you who are with Ignite/Stream and are working hard, I say see you at the top or as close to it as I can get. See you in other states. See you in other parts of the world. To all the naysayers, I hope you have great and wealthy children who will take care of you in your old age. I have great kids, but relying on them to take care of me is a scary thought.

People, go to a credible source if you want to know about Ignite or Stream Energy.
IE: Texas PUC – BBB. Not theses internet lawyers.
If you are going to let someone that has no clue of what they are talking about take your dream away. I would not want you in my business nor would anyone else.
If you would like the Truth, fine an Ignite Associate let them show you our PLAN.
If we were a scam why are the TX / Georgia Government switching our Customers?

What you are hearing are other Energy Companies in TX & GA saying all of this to keep you away from us. (Ignite)

Ignite is a Business, you have to work it, if not shut up and get on with your life. We are here to make money.

Wealthbuilder & David B You got it going on. I’ll see you at the TOP.

Tag TEAM killeen

Your math on the matter of Ignite/Stream is meticulous. I am so glad to hear from a person who is not a zombie member of this “club.”
My husband of 25 years plus has been body snatched by this organization. About 90% of what he talks about is Ignite/Stream. He has pestered our children, our next door neighbors until it’s embarassing. He was trying to recruit me into this endeavor, but automatically, after hearing some of his “presentation” I smelled a rat. Ponzi scheme/pyramid immediately came to mind. We have not agreed on this for over a year, and counting. He paid $300 for the privilege of being a representative. From what I can figure, he’s received an $11 return from his investment. in one year’s time.
That’s sad enough, but dig this! My husband is a long haul truck driver, and we live in a mid-Atlantic state. Once in awhile, he passes through Texas or Georgia, where Ignite/Stream operates. He has NO WAY to recruit customers or other reps due to his job, geographics. The ass that recruited him KNEW this, but promised my husband that he would build his business for him. This never happened! Yet, my husband continues to believe that this pyramid scheme is the greatest thing ever. My husband is now trying to convince me that moving to Texas from our home on the East Coast is the wisest thing to do, very necessary to his “important calling.” No, my husband is not some wuss or idiot, despite his obsession. He’s a retired military man, very strong-minded, and a real leader. I know he’s still there somewhere, under the Ignite BS. How could someone like my husband be taken in by this bunkum? What do they do with folks to convince them to be a part of this organization? Brainwash them? It would seem so. I will show him your figures about Ignite/Stream, and hope that your info will get through to him. Thank you for writing your views.