This past week I met with one of my newest team members, Renee. She asked such a great question, I felt it was worth sharing- How do you find team members??? I don't know that there is any "right" or "wrong" way to go about building your team, but I do think it helps to get your bearings yourself first. Building a team requires a lot of leading and teaching, and if you are just getting started yourself, it can be hard to do that. When I first joined Barefoot, the person I joined under admitted that she was just getting started, and suggested I join her leader's team, and I'm so glad I did that. Although everyone is responsible for their own success (or lack thereof), having the right Team Leader can really impact your Barefoot experience and overall happiness with the program. A great leader can help you avoid some poor choices with events and inventory, and might even be willing to loan you some books when you need them.
Personally, I was not very successful in building my team my first year. I was a little unsure, didn't mention the program to many people, and really just focused on my selling and learning the ropes. After my first year, I noticed that a lot of people were joining my team through my profile. Many of them were in other states, which has never been an issue thanks to email and phone calls! I do believe very strongly in the "build it and they will come" philosophy of Field of Dreams. When you are enjoying yourself, confident, and know what you are doing, it really does radiate. Plus, it takes a bit to get comfortable explaining the compensation program to people, even though it is not very complicated.
I had an interesting experience this weekend at a homeschooling conference I have been doing for three years. Sales weren't that great, so I decided to start telling people about the opportunity, in hopes that I might be able to get some new team members and make it all worthwhile. I mentioned it to two women who were both in great situations to start selling our books. One teaches music classes with babies and toddlers, and the other already sells books for several other publishers. I was very open and honest with them. I did have information on hand to give them, and I do plan on following up with them later this week. But it's amazing what happens when you put your mind to something. Allison Diehl, a fellow leader in Tucson, said she always mentions the Barefoot opportunity to her customers, suggesting that if they have friends or family that would enjoy selling these books, that they have them contact her. I love that she doesn't direct it right to the customer, but more to their friends and family, because just hearing it, they ARE included, and it just might make them think, "Hey! I want to do this myself!"
I have known some Ambassadors who put ads on Craig's List for the opportunity. I'm not sure how that turned out, but I'm a little leary. I have a pretty big team under me, but only about 25% of them are active. There are many, many, many people who sign up, and never place an order. There are even less that actually create a successful business after signing up. So, for me, I want to be sure that someone is REALLY interested before they join my team. I'd trade 10 people who only ever place one order, for one go-getter. It's more fun to work with people who are making things happen. I get inspired by their energy and it helps keep me going. It makes me wonder why some people join and never do anything more. I'd love to ask them why they did it but never followed through, if I could get them to return one of my calls or emails. ;)
So the moral is, I guess, that you will know when you are ready for the responsibility of leading a team. You'll just know. And, your confidence will be high, and you will attract people that are excited about starting their own business because of your energy. I know, it's not a magic answer...but it's an honest one! :)
