Rest For Our Souls.

Rest For Our Souls. by Laurie Jackson: 2/15/2012

I’m only blogging today because I told myself that I wanted to write at least one blog a month. Last month I exceeded this and put up three blogs. I usually go off total inspiration though so I’m not sure if this will take or not. I thought I would just start typing and something would inspire me and then I could pay-it-forward.

I heard God today. For some of you this sounds weird for others it sounds wow and for those that hear God often, it just sounds normal. Well, I haven’t been ignoring God but I have been distracted with worry and fear lately. I’ve finally calmed down and heard God tell me to be child-like again and just believe what He’s taught me. This gave me an immediate restful feeling in my heart. Then this morning I heard Him tell me this again in more detail. I’m not going to blog about what He told me but what is beginning to inspire me to blog now, is the fact that we can all hear the God of the universe and depending on what you think of Him this could make you happy, sad or even mad and or scared to death. For me, because I know that He is good and loving, I was happy to hear Him this morning. It took many years of my life, to even trust that God was a good and loving God. He had to prove this to me over and over and I found out that He was happy to heal my heart from fear and distrust over and over again. He is indeed patient and knows why a person would think bad of Him. He gets it, so don’t worry about being angry at Him. Just talk to Him about this or yell to Him about it like I did for years. He can handle us. We don’t scare Him one bit.

I realized that hearing Him only requires me to soften my heart toward Him. A Softened heart, makes me think of a trusting child-like person. So because my heart was able to hear Him, I did. I think it’s easy to soften our hearts. We can actually pray that God will help us soften our hearts. By the time I pray this, I’m usually already participating in humbling my heart before Him anyway. I’m thinking that we get distracted and this can make our hearts forget His amazing presence and help in our lives. It’s easy for me to be distracted with worry. New worry, stuff that is new to my life, like new challenges or old ones I haven’t dealt with for a long time.

Now that I’m restful, I’m realizing how God himself brought me here. Once He gets you to know Him and trust Him a little, our hearts have a natural longing to stay in this restful place. We crave it! When this place of rest gets disturb we notice it. Sometimes it takes me awhile to notice, but eventually I get tired of being tired.

I’m not sure if I’ve communicated to anyone but at least I wrote a February blog. This verse comes to mind as well. What I think it means by the word “religion” in this verse, is when we get “none relational with God” so I go about my life kinda ignoring Him and or avoiding Him because hearing Him, requires me to soften my heart and believe like a child that He is very real and present. This requires me to not be so heady about life or try to figure it all out by myself. Matthew 11:28 I love it from the Message version so here is what I’ll end this blog with:

28“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? (“none relational with God”) Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. 29Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. 30Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Amazing parallel!

Amazing parallel! By Laurie Jackson 1/21/2012

So do we want bondage or freedom? Do we want the real thing or will we settle for the counterfeit?

I see the young lady with skinny pin legs, barely able to stand as she laboriously climbs the stair master with two sweat shirts, a cinched hood around her head and all I can do is cringe in my heart knowing that I’m watching her commit a slow suicide day after as I observe her upon entering the club each morning.

Similar when I see….

The Religious Zealot ranting about God or Jesus living a laboriously, boring, lifeless life, as fear motivates his every move to do the right thing, live by the law, save souls and hand-out tracks warning others of hell. His heart is full of fear, empty of joy and void of life! He forces himself to read his bible and hates every minute of it.

Romans 1:20 American Standard Version: For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse.

Romans 1:20 The Message: By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse.

So in other words, Gods creation can point us to wisdom and truth that relate to other facets of life’s wisdom and truth.

Today I was overwhelmingly amazed by the Parallel of a life lived by the Spirit and a life lived physically healthy. Spiritual health and physical health have been two areas I’ve searched out for the sake of my own freedom. Having great bondage in both realms helped me relate to the depravation that deception in both of these areas can manifest.

For many years I knew “about” God, sure, I would pray but I barely knew Him and didn’t quite believe He was real. This changed when after much earnest searching for the truth, I was found and touch by the Spirit of the living God. I felt like my whole world changed and all I could say is how real God was. This changed how I read the bible, how I prayed and my entire relationship with God became vibrant, very alive and full of joy!

A similar ramification happened to me when I finally received the truth about my own physical body, after many years of living in deception as an anorexic and believing in every fad diet out there. The information that I had learned little by little over many years that was true, finally turned into a healthy relationship with my body or temple so to speak. The anorexic and the obese person have the same problem. They both have control issues. The anorexic feels out of control and tries very hard to overcompensate for this feeling. The obese person feels out of control only to allow defeat, despair and ultimately surrender their control and give into this feeling. There is a better way. Truth about a thing can help us feel a sense of control. Truth brings freedom always! Knowledge gives us empowerment.

Ten Parallels:
1.
I learned that my body was for me and not against me.
I learned that God loved me and had my best interests in mind.
2.
I learned about Nutrient dense food opposed to empty calories.
I learned that I could hear God directly opposed to empty words on a page.
3.
I learned how to enjoy food and not obsess over calories and just relax.
I learned that The Holy Spirit is doing the work and I can relax now.
4.
I learned that my body wants and indeed enjoys much movement.
I learned that Gods Spirit lives, moves and breathes in me.
5.
I learned that my body was created to run and not grow weary during the day.
I learned that living day after day in the Spirit would fill you with such delight and joy that you can’t contain it.
6.
I learned that there is strength being built when you feel weak after the last set of your weight lifting.
I’m learning that in times of trials, my faith in Gods good character and love for me is getting ever stronger.
7.
I’ve learned that my body needs enough calories each day to thrive and be strong.
I’ve learned that I cannot be joyful and loving without receiving all of this, first from Gods Spirit each day.
8.
I’ve learned what my body needs, wants, craves and thrives on.
I’m learning what my heart and spirit need, want, craves and thrives on.
9.
I’ve learned what I love doing most for exercise, my favorites.
I’ve come to know my hearts desire is Gods presence.

10.
I learned that most American life-styles lived today are not even normal.
I’m learning to inquire with God Himself in regard to my life’s direction and not compare it to other believers.

New Normal’s…

Just has our Creator wants us to really know Him personally we can have a healthy relationship, based on biological, scientific truth with our physical health as well as our spiritual health.

A person that listens to the life giving Spirit of God on a regular basis and indeed has a good, healthy relationship with God has fruit that is full of life, joy, peace, love and maturity.

A truly healthy person is easy to spot too. They look good, have consistent energy and can walk, climb and move without hurting themselves. You won’t see them obsessing about calories or doing the next fad diet. They are strong and enjoy their nutrient dense food. They drink water and don’t need it to be masked with dye or splenda. Most of them do not live in America. ☺

What is normal?

Leave me some more parallels here in the comment section if you have some good ones. It’s so much easier to see the truth when there is an analogy to go with it. I suppose that’s why Jesus taught this way often.

Enjoying the Journey together, Laurie

My toxic friend.. and maybe a little Gossip.? By Laurie Jackson 1/10/2012

My toxic friend.. and maybe a little Gossip.? By Laurie Jackson 1/10/2012

I’ve known this friend for years. I think I met her when I was about 7 years old when we lived in a town called Birchwood. I hung out with her all the time even though she made me feel terrible and full of anxiety. She was the most annoying friend I knew. I look back and wonder why I hung out with her so much and for so many years. I still see her once in awhile. I always ask myself why she was my friend. Sometime later in life I got smarter so when she’d call I’d check the caller i.d to make sure it wasn’t her and if it was her, I wouldn’t answer it. I always felt such a relief when she didn’t knock on my door or call me. I didn’t know about healthy boundaries or any of that stuff back then.

I think I figured out why I hung out with her a lot. When we were together I felt empowered and almost in control of anything but when she would leave, I swear after every visit, I felt like crap. When I first met her, like I said, around 7 yrs old she would force me to play this game in my bedroom. I would be in there cleaning and organizing my stuff and someone would knock on my door. She would tell me to get really nervous and protective about my stuff that was perfectly organized. My family members, especially my sister, would pick up on the game and try to play it with us. She would take one of my knick-knacks and move it just slightly. My friend told me to freak out on her and move the knick-knack back immediately. I always wanted to play the game but it wasn’t fun at all. It made me feel extremely aggravated and almost to tears when we’d play this stupid ass game. Sometimes she would come over and notice that the house was a little messy and convince me to clean the whole house so my mom would be happy. I would spend hours making everything perfect. I even remember sweeping the dirt by the door so it would be noticeably clean and neat. Every time she left my house, I felt exhausted, aggravated and very depressed. When I got older in my teen years she would come over and play these games, leave and then come right back over during my depressed episode, but she wouldn’t try to get me out of the depression she would suggest another game called binge eating. One time we had an entire pie from the store right out of the box. I hated myself when we played that game. She was right there agreeing with how lousy I was too. She suggested we play the starve yourself game just after that. Sometimes I would play that game with her all day and maybe the next. I started to try to avoid her but felt so controlled for so long I had become a victim of her stupid little games. She was extremely overbearing!

I forgot to tell you her name. Meet my most toxic friend, “Extreme.” Yes her name is Extreme. Isn’t that a weird name? Extreme, I’d say.

When I was in my early twenties, I moved into a cute little apartment complex with my new husband off Meadow Street. I became pregnant about 6 months after we moved there. I also met another friend. Her name? Wisdom. She was the coolest friend I ever met. I didn’t see her often enough. She would call a lot but I usually waited to be with her on my good days. When we hung out I felt so peaceful and she would make me laugh at myself. She was very fun to be around. Now, when she left I felt sad but she always left me with something that made me think all day long. I started calling her a lot more and she was always willing to come over for coffee or tea. She had some great advice about my diet during my pregnancy. We talked a lot about this, 10 months or so and I did just about everything she told me to do. I drank water, exercised moderately and tried to eat lots of fruits and veggies. I never felt better. After I had our first child, we still hung out a lot but sometimes Extreme would call and I would pick up the phone and actually invite her over! My friend wisdom would try and call me when she saw Extremes’ car parked in our carport but I rarely took her call.

When I was in my later 20’s, Extreme and I hung out a lot and she would always bring the alcohol. After this one episode of me throwing up in the toilet and practically dying from alcohol consumption, I never once played that game with her for fourteen years. I think a few years ago I was caught off guard but Extreme wasn’t actually there, my sister had brought over some really great wine and I sincerely lost track. Extreme was probably watching through the window, because I rarely let her in now.

I haven’t seen Extreme for a few months now and when I do see her I usually call Wisdom for moral support. About twelve years ago Wisdom told me she knew Extremes’ parents. Their names didn’t surprise me, Fear and Control. Her dad’s name was Fear and her mom’s name was Control. No wonder.? Wisdom informed me that her dad is God and her mothers name is Humility. She truly admires her parents! ☺ I do too.

After spending a lot of time with Wisdom, she and I became very good friends and a few years ago I wrote her a song. I’ll copy and paste the words here:


SHE IS AMAZING …. Laurie Jackson 2-08

She is amazing there in the beginning When God created the earth and sea

Her name is wisdom, God created her as a treasure for kings and queens to seek
(I will bow before God)
Far more precious then diamonds and rubies, far more precious then silver and Gold
It’s an honor for me to seek her as treasure I want to know her more… Wisdom of old

Humility comes before her she will teach you to fear your God
A humble heart precedes honor

she will teach you to bow
she will teach you to bow down
Before God Before your God
I will bow before God. I will bow down before God.

She was the first of all Gods work, appointed from eternity
(I will bow before God)
day after day she was filled with joy, Rejoicing always in our king

She’s so glad about this world God created, she’s taking delight in all mankind
In her ways are peace and safety, prosperity honor and life.

Those who ask God for wisdom, He will give abundantly
(I will bow before God)
Jut don’t doubt her and if you doubt her you’ll be tossed around with the wind and sea
Wisdom will be the same for tomorrow for today and yesterday
With her, is the path of the lesser sorrow but her cost requires all your life and all your days.

I usually have coffee and counsel time with Wisdom every morning. She often quotes proverbs 3:5 and I’m learning how right she is.

I hope you enjoyed this little allegory leave a comment and please join us here.

Relax…Relax? Relax!? By Laurie Jackson 1/10/2012

Relax…Relax? Relax!? By Laurie Jackson 1/10/2012

I have not heard the word “Relax” in very many conferences, motivational seminars or even sermons that I’ve attended throughout the many years, but on the Treadmill today I noticed that I was tensing up my shoulders and had to force myself to “Relax.” It felt soooo much better when I relaxed, but yet I was running 12-minute miles? This made me start thinking about the wisdom from a well-known passage, Hebrews 4:11 “Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest,….” Make every “effort to rest???” Isn’t this an oxymoron? The King James Version is even better, “Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest,..”

This revelation of wisdom keeps growing in my heart and getting so much more fruitful. I can see the truth of it everywhere now. Running for instance scientifically causes endorphins in our bodies to stimulate them to actually relax. Exercise does this to everyone. Right now I feel very relaxed, not tired, weary or hyped and anxious but serene, energetic and excited for the day. I just ran 5 miles less then an hour ago. One of the reason’s I love to run is because it relaxes me. I’ve had tons of issues with anxiety disorders in all their forms; depression, obsessive compulsive, and Attention Deficit are all under the umbrella of anxiety disorders. I’ve even had trouble with grinding my teeth and caused myself to get TMJ.


The truth is that work actually is part of relaxing. Oh my goodness did I just write that? Seriously, when you are in bed all day, depressed, negative and unmotivated do you really feel relaxed? I feel relaxed when I’m not motivated by fear but rather hope and expectation for the good and when I’m active doing fun stuff. As a believer in Christ, this was Gods huge revelation from the old to the New Testament. The old, was being fulfilled with the “Work” done in the New. Jesus did the work so we can relax.

I’ve struggled with this for years and honestly I still catch myself constantly trying to live in the “old” instead of just relax in the “new.”

God is all about the new! His mercies are new every morning, the new wine, the new heart, and the new covenant! It has taken many years for me to understand that I had the option to relax into Gods new stuff. Who knew? Peter Finally figured it out, John pretty much knew from the beginning and Paul found out the hard way. Me? It’s like I can relate to all three of these characters. I’m so glad I’ve “tasted” this rest. I’ve entered into His actual New Covenant. God’s truth talks about the problem with forgetting this and missing out on this new stuff all over his word. Galatians 5:4 is one of my favorite reminders to relax into the new stuff. “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”

Let me run back to the running analogy. As I run, I begin relaxing and the warmer I get the easier it seems. When I’ve been running regularly this is so easy. When I get out of shape and stop the running it feels harder at first but our bodies have muscle memory and are quick to find the way again.

I’d like to say that we are born to run. Look at the children it’s natural and normal, no one is telling them to do this? We are also born to know God and receive his love and goodness.

So Relax… but to get there we may have to seek, wrestle with the truth, and even labor to find this Resting and relaxing place. I’m learning that you can run, set goals, be motivated and play hard and relax all at the same time. I found this place but God keeps reminding me to continue the work in takes to remain here. Believing truth requires us to take “old” thoughts and choose to replace them with the “new” stuff. Having an amazing resting heart rate requires us to raise our heart rate a few times a week. Hebrew 12:1 says it best, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Enjoy the run… and I’ll meet you at the finish line.

Be True To Yourself. The Truth Sets Us Free.

Be True To Yourself. The Truth Sets Us Free.
10 Easy Things And Only 20 mins To Start, That Can Really Help You! By Laurie Jackson 01/02/2012

The stuff I’m getting ready to write doesn’t come from an amazing successful person with tons of awards, education and achievements that I’ve made. The truth that I’m getting ready to share comes from a lot of soul searching from a wounded individual. Hurt people hurt people, but helped people help people. This is true even if it’s just yourself you are hurting or helping.

For many years I “tried” so hard to apply the things I’m getting ready to share and kept stopping and starting and getting very discouraged that those close to me seemed to be able to keep on keeping on. What the hell is wrong with me? I would cry out to God!

What God kept telling me over and over and over wasn’t what was WRONG with me but rather what was RIGHT with me!

This is the foundation of any positive that comes into a person’s life. Think about it. You get married because you believe a person loves you. You get healthy because you believe you can. You finish college because you believe you could. The list goes on and on. The reverse is also true. I won’t even take time to write it!

The 3 obstacles that kept the 7 next things I’m going to share with you from not happening consistently in my life were:

1) Not really knowing what “I” wanted. Pleasing other people and not living from a place of passion. Being disconnected from the things that gave “ME” joy and satisfaction. The clue? The Truth sets you Free, even the truth about ourselves. I would get very close, but still wasn’t “connected” enough to myself to really define what my individual foundation was. Each year seemed to get more and more clear because God was healing my heart to help me see who He made me to be more clearly and He still has me on this journey.

2) A conflicted soul. The obstacle of “Religion.” This is not about going to church or not, but rather about making rules for yourself apart from the spirit of LIFE! In other words I would read certain verses from my bible and they would seem to conflict with some of the 7 things I will share with you shortly. The Holy Spirit can heal you from religion and rules too. Seek and you will find. The Truth brings freedom!

3) Getting to the end of my own resources helps me every time. Simply asking for help, it requires true humility and a childlike heart. This tends to be a constant revelation I need personally. Someone who knows more then us in an area can easily be of help to us. A person who is successful in the area that you are pursuing is worth more then gold. “I think Humility is receiving Gods wisdom and or correction and then turning back to Him and asking Him for the strength and understanding to apply it.”
Apart from God we can do nothing. Even if you think you are doing stuff without God… uhmmm.? I would have to say it’s His grace right now that allows people to benefit from His ways. Many people that don’t profess Jesus are still able to benefit from applying his wisdom and principals. They may miss out on the relationship part but He is so gracious and loves all people the same. Think about it, if you had two kids and one of them said they hated you and the other one was obeying everything you said, which one would you, love more? Hello?! My point exactly. In fact the one that said they hated me, would be even more on my heart as to WHY they said this. I would secretly pray and seek wisdom as to how to win their hearts back. “Hint, hint”… God ended up leading me to go to the doctor because I kept asking him to help me and I finally humbled myself to someone who knew more then myself. God did help me indeed, through the doctor!

7 Things That Only Take 20 mins To Start Doing!

1) Really Ponder 3 things that matter most to you! Family, Business, Health??? Etc… Write down your three top priorities in life.
2) What do you want said on your Epitaph? What do you want to be remembered for when you die? Now write that down with a few more specifics and call this your life’s mission statement. This should include your top three priorities and should make you feel happy and peaceful at the core of your heart! You can modify this anytime. The more connected to ourselves we are the less our mission statement will change. When you find that your mission statement doesn’t change much, then you know you’ve found yourself. ☺
3) Write down 10 things you would like to accomplish this year. Be specific! Don’t write get healthy but rather, lose 50 pounds. Each goal must have numbers to measure by. Have a successful Business. Nope… make a “number” or write, have 300 more customer’s… numbers. Specifics. Trust me, this works like a charm.
4) Out of the 10 things you want to accomplish this year, write down the main one. The one that will help you with all the other ones on your list of 10 goals. The most significant one! Write down as many things that pertain to this specific goal that will help you achieve it. If its “lose 20 lbs” then write down anything you think that would help you do this. Find gym, buy shoes, and purchase a product from my local Beach body coach! www.beachbodycoach.com/ljackson “hint, hint”… Write down as many things that you think pertain to this particular goal on a scratch piece of paper.
5) Now take your “Health” goal. Hopefully it was one of your 10 or even better, one of your top three priorities! Do the same for your Health goal that you just did at #4.
6) Now be honest and reasonable and insert Weekly/Daily tasks that will help you reach these last two goals. There are books you can read that will take you more then 20 mins to help you organize your thoughts and life and do this process more thoroughly but, I’m writing this blog for those of us who are not willing to read an entire book on this subject and need a quick system to help us live our lives more true to ourselves. Two people who I’ve read their books and have helped me tremendously are Steven Scott, The Richest Man Who Ever Lived and Chalene Johnson’s book: “Push.” For those of you who just aren’t there yet, hopefully this little blog will help you at least “focus” and live truer to yourself this year then ever before!
7) Write down “your” definition of success! Put your Mission statement, your definition of success and your 10 goals for this year in your smart phone as well as your daily tasks in your smart phone calendar. The more accessible and visible you have this, the better off you’ll be. Perfectionism is your enemy! Truth sets us free! Grace is the truth and You Never Fail Until You Stop Trying! Keep on Keeping on. Part of my definition of success is to have Love, Joy and Peace in my life! If these are things that are included in your definition refer to #3 from the list of Obstacles that I wrote earlier. ☺

The living enjoy... the thriving inspire others to enjoy and the surviving don't enjoy anything! Psalms 16.
Getting on the Right side of Truth makes the pain of it go away! If the truth hurts, maybe we are on the wrong side of it.?

I hope you found this blog to be helpful, if so join us and please feel free to leave a comment. God Bless Us Everyone. ☺

Miracles and Mission Statements!

Miracles and/Mission Statements: By Laurie Jackson

Apparently, my husband, Russ was looking for his old goals and ran across mine from 2009. I woke up this morning with him smile-ling at me, eager to read something to me. He didn’t even say what it was. As he read, I began thinking to myself, Wow, these must be his goals and I feel like I already have them. He got to the end and one of the last statements was the big give away. He read aloud, “ Help my husband, Russ be able to retire from his job” I knew at that moment these were MY old goals! I got teary eyed and read them again, astounded that every single thing I wrote down two years ago, I actually have on this very day! Wow! It’s biblical, spiritual and mysterious how this works!

Write them down and go a step further then I did two years ago and read them everyday! Mine are now written on my calendar with an alarm and I look at my mission statement daily. Plus I have goals written right on my phone that is with me constantly.

Many years ago I thought this was a narcissistic and vain thing to do. I couldn’t see the love and humility that is wrapped around doing this.

My Daily chores are so much more meaningful now! I have the depth and purpose of my mission statement above it all motivating me to do the menial, mundane and often tedious tasks with passion and even joy at times.

The older I get the more connected I am with who I am and what I was really created for. Don’t delay in defining your mission statement in life, do this today! It will change as you change and as the seasons change in your life. Follow your heart and think about what you would want people to say about you when you die. What you would want written on your Epitaph.

I read a book a few years ago based on a book in the bible called Proverbs. The book was by Steven K. Scott. His book, based on the principals of proverbs, inspired me to write my goals down, yet again a couple of years ago.
I highly recommend his book and here is his site:

http://www.stevenkscott.com/index.htm

Steve Scott’s Vision Mapping Journal shows you how to:
1) Create a list of the most important areas of your life.
2) Define your dreams
3) Break those dreams into goals,
4) Turn goals into steps
5) Change steps into tasks.

here is my You-Tube Vlog that I made today as I was excited about this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3cUZuDNvQA&feature=share

It’s not about the destination but rather about the Journey!
Enjoy your Journey and take one day at a time knowing that you are doing your best every single day.

What makes a good sales person?

What makes a good sales person?

EVERYONE is selling something. The reason for my epiphany was because I actually “Sell” the work-out I was doing this morning and became all the more “sold” on it and proud that I am part of helping America get fit and healthy! Everyone is selling a product or a service if they are making an income. My first job was delivering newspapers... no wait, it was baby-sitting... Both of them required my services or my “skills.” Then my "skills" grew... so now I could be a hostess for McDonalds! I loved this job because I would be with the little kids and do the Birthday parties in the McDonalds birthday party caboose...the kids were so cute, most of them anyway. I came home from work very fulfilled. I was tired but glad about what I did all day. Then I worked "up" to the cashier at McDonalds. What a difference. One lady called me a very naughty word and I was only 15. The "fries" simply were just no done yet. lol.. Anyway. Then I served as a Piano teacher, but I was working “for” another person at a music store in my hometown. They charged a certain amount for each lesson and would give me half. I was enjoying this until my older sister convinced me that I could make more money "selling shoes." Those days were so much fun and we learned some amazing customer service techniques. As our commission checks grew, we became some of the best shoe sales people around town for Naturalizer shoes. I've had many other jobs after this, various social work positions, business owner, Special Ed teacher asst, and music teacher and even received a little royalty check for some songwriting I’ve done in the past.

Today I am a Health coach and work with a company called Team Beachbody. We sell excellent Health products as well as an amazing Business opportunity. The business opportunity is actually a very new concept known as Multi Level Marketing or Network Marketing and has also been coined as peer-to-peer marketing. I have researched Multi level marketing and I am now convinced that this type of business module is here to stay as well as growing at a fast pace. Because it is a fairly new business concept, many people are skeptical and have some good reasons to be. Anytime something new is created, initially the bugs and quirks must be worked out. Consider the I-pod or newest I-phones. I was skeptical of Network marketing at first because my husband and I had some negative experiences with some sales people in another MLM company. Simply said, we were involved with some really toxic sales people. They didn’t exhibit the qualities listed below. Because a MLM business is typically inexpensive to get involved in, most “anyone” can afford to sign up. Not just “anyone” can succeed at in a MLM especially a type of person that wants something for nothing. The kinds of people who are successful in sales or service of any kind tend to have the qualities listed below.

The stock market used to be a new way to make money many years ago. Today many people invest in stock on a regular basis. I’ve researched MLM companies and have found that it nurtures and rewards the “good” sales people. There have been knock off’s of real MLM’s. These are truly Pyramid schemes. The difference being is that it’s not product driven and you can actually “buy” into your spot. These pop up and are terminated almost immediately. The people on top truly do make more money then anyone below them. They are illegal! A “true” MLM is product driven and you can’t buy into your spot. The people underneath you can easily make more money than you. Corporate America is more of a Pyramid scheme then the MLM business module. The reason is because in your typical corporation the top management must be replaced or die in order for another individual that is “under” them to succeed to a higher position. Another attribute of a true MLM business is that your customer gets to know you on a more personal level. Just like the “old days” when you knew to call Mr. Smith down the street as he made “locks” for your doors. Most people want to buy something from someone they trust and know. This “old” way is becoming the “new” way because people are tired of being manipulated by false advertising and want a “real live” person to give them a deal on what they may need or want. The qualities that make up a good sales person are the same attributes that make up a “good Person.” Toxic people make toxic sales people. I feel like I am doing America a favor as I promote health today while making a living doing it.

My sister and I were great sales people at the little Naturalizer Shoe store and little did I know we possessed these qualities early in life. Indeed, we both made the owners of the company quite glad that we worked for them. To this day I will see the owners of the old Shoe store and they have happy memories from the “honest hard working sisters” that helped make their business profitable. They were great people to work with.

So what makes a good sales person?

1) They are confident with their product. When the person buys a product or service from them they feel good about sending them away with it and know that the product or service will benefit their customer and trust that their customer will enjoy it.

2) They are confident with themselves. They like themselves and this spills over into how they treat their customers. People who like themselves tend to treat others with respect and have a genuine concern for others. They authentically like their customers. They treat their customers well and serve them. They listen and empathize with what they need from their particular service or product. I remember becoming more mature in my sales abilities and could always calm down a “crazy” customer and make them feel cared for or acknowledged. If they didn’t get what they wanted or if I made a mistake, there was a humility I had attained from being in the “service” industry. It was no problem for me to admit a mistake. I would make sure they were always happy when they walked away. The customer may not “always” be right but I want them to leave from my presence feeling genuinely served, helped, like a happy camper.

3) They are always learning more about their product. Successful people research their competitors, know the newest trends and or services people desire to purchase. If they don’t know an answer to a question from a customer, they have enough confidence and honesty to tell their customer they do not know and will check it out for them. A good sales person will walk away from a question that they didn’t know and find out ASAP.

4) Genuinely cares about their customer as an individual. I was recently sold a dining room table and the sales person actually suggested that if I couldn’t afford it then I should wait. I loved that this sales person was not just interested in making a sale but was hearing my concern about me spending over my budget. I ended up buying the table a month later and walked straight in the store asking for the same sales man to help us. Of course I remembered his name. Why, because he was kind and genuinely concerned about me.

5) They truly enjoy and feel good about what they do and how they make money for a living. More confidence!

6) They are not pushy or manipulative because they are secure and "know" they have an excellent product! They realize not everyone will be able to buy something from them and there is always another customer that will and can. They are not desperate to sell and because they have “true” confidence they won’t feel bad or mad at someone who doesn’t buy from them.

7) They know their product “first hand” because they themselves use it. They honestly love their own product or service personally themselves.

8) They are not money hungry or desperate. They work hard but have a balanced life. They are secure in themselves and what they do for a living. They are confident making an honest living doing something that they love to do. They Want your business but won’t sacrifice their integrity to get it. A good sales person is simply a good person at heart!



I love buying from people like this. They tend to be loving, kind and have an ownership to what they are telling or selling you.
I have a lady friend that sells me “hats”. I could go ANYWERE to get hats but I choose to buy from her because she has become a friend and has all of these qualities about her.
When I want to be entertained I go to “Taproot” because they have good service, my brother manages the place and plays the piano there. My brother is an excellent entertainer btw.
Mooses Tooth! Need I say more…. ? The best Pizza in town. And out of town would be in Eagle River at “Pizza Man!”
Rusty, the salesman from saddler’s furniture, told me not to buy if I didn’t have enough money. He not only sold me a nice table but sold me on a good character quality as well.

I am convinced I have some of the best Health products out there. Come visit my website, listen to some testimonials and browse as long as you need. We have cutting edge home workout DVD’s from some of the best trainers and can save you time and money compared to the usual gym membership. We offer free online coaching services when you purchase any of our merchandise as well. Come take a look-see at: www.beachbodycoach.com/ljackson

We offer a nutrient dense, completely organic meal replacement shake called, Shakeolgoy! It speaks for itself, listen to all the testimonials at: www.myshakeology.com/ljackson

We also offer an opportunity in our non-conventional business. If you are looking for other ways to make some extra income or retire early from your job we welcome you to join our Network of coaches as we help millions of people around the world live healthier life styles at: http://www.startcoachingtoday.com/russjackson