I’ll try to keep this brief. My neighbors got involved with this group about six years ago. One day the wife asked to bring their representative to my house to demonstrate the sales presentation for them to observe. I don’t want to cast doubt on their true motivation but I said OK (just to be neighborly.) Since I had been involved with Amway in the late 70’s for a year or two, I was tuned into the verbage and code words. Sure enough, they were there. After a very lengthy presentation with graphs, pie charts and a ton of informational print, the woman finally got to the bottom line. Selling investment/insurance policies. Since I have a company that handles my (relatively meager) investments, I had no reason to pursue this opportunity. She saw I was a deadend but still suggested I might have 10 people to recommend. Well…NO. I’d never do that. I don’t know how much money my neighbors have invested in this venture, but I don’t see any change in their lifestyle. The wife completed the training and got some kind of license. The husband attempted the test twice and failed both times. That was about JDate five years ago and she is still at her real job. I was asked to attended a presentation (she needed to bring people) and it was a huge crowd of extremely enthusiastic and hyperactive people held at a convention center. Because of my experience with Amway, this was all too familiar. They may have given it up as I’ve not heard anything else about it. It takes a special personality to succeed at this: aggressive, tenacious with lots of contacts. When a person exhausts family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, it’s over.

WFG gives him motivation to get through the week

What I find interesting is that I haven’t met one WFG client who actually has investments…they’re well-known for selling way over-funded indexed universal life insurance. They even recommend moving 401(k) and all other retirement assets into the life insurance policy which is ridiculous unless you know what the commission that’s paid on those transfer is…it’s clearly about the person selling it and not the person being asked to buy. Run the other way!

We have a variety of products that include life insurance, mutual funds, and annuities. It all depends on what each person needs and what makes sense.

My dad works for WFG, and as a finance major I do see a lot of the company’s flaws, but he has found a really great support system in his team. Every team and office is different, so I know this isn’t the case for everyone. He still works a full-time job that isn’t his true passion. Also, he’s made a steady income that reflects the part-time hours he has invested. He likes to focus on selling and educating more than recruiting, but I definitely see his team lead pushing him to recruit more. I am aware of the fees he has paid and has continued to pay. I don’t want to lie nor be naiive. However, his time at WFG has been a great experience, and he’s learned so much. If he’s happy, I’m happy.

At one point she told me she hoped to do this full time and quit her real job

Agree with you! When a company is big, there are different kinds of people. Some are professional, some are in training. The company itself has great system. It’s just people how they do it!