MLM = Must Lose Money

Imagine you are enjoying a casual trip to your local sporting goods store. Maybe you’re walking down campus. You are just going about your day. 

Suddenly, you are approached by a stranger. “Do you have a minute to talk?” Why is it never just a minute…

This stranger then launches into his sales pitch. “Wouldn’t you like to retire at 40?” 

Despite education becoming readily available in the United States, despite having seen bankruptcies and lawsuits, somehow, multi-level marketing pyramid schemes are still strong and healthy in 2026. 

Why? Ease is an easy sell. 

Maybe you get a message from someone you haven’t spoken to since high school. 

Maybe a grandparent asks you to hold a “party” for them to sell the products.

Maybe you’re attending a Dia De Los Muertos celebration, and some random guy begins talking to you about why he dropped out of college to retire at 40 (despite him pushing 38). Not speaking from personal experience, of course.

I don’t support MLMs because of their business model: Develop a product that’s “too good to be true,” position it as your customer’s way to “live their dreams,” and recruit individuals in vulnerable positions. 

Be it cleaning supplies, essential oils, makeup, dropshipping, or brand ambassador discounts, don’t be fooled into believing ease leads to wealth, much less fulfillment. 

Some innovative professionals are able to build wealth without working hard. Some investing models can help you literally earn while you sleep. But passive income and asset ownership are both very different from the MLM sales pitch. 

They are not the same. 

I was studying marketing at BYU Idaho in the frigid Rexburg, Idaho winter. It was about 9 pm, and I was studying in the student center hall. 

I had a gentleman about the same age as me approach me. He asked if I like being at school. “No, I’m not an academic,” I replied. 

He then said, “Me neither. I don’t want to work till I am old. That’s why I dropped out of BYU Idaho so I could retire by 40 and live the rest of my life on the beach.” 

The idea of a beach with warm sand was a refreshing thought in -14 degree Rexburg. I responded: “You misunderstand. I’m not an academic per se, but I do want to work till I am old. Having work is a privilege. Being at school is a means to an end for me.” 

He sluggishly walked away. 

What I started to learn then, and what I understand now, is that joy and fulfillment come through the pursuit and the journey. Not the result. 

With AI replacing jobs, what will happen to meaning? To fulfillment?

While ease is appealing, and many have been sold on the idea that they can sit on the beach for 40+ years without doing the work needed to pay their dues, it is not fulfillment. 

Love the process. Love the game. Avoid the MLM sales pitch. Work hard. And just maybe you’ll experience actual fulfillment. 

Fulfillment does not come from a life of ease. 

Wealth does not come from a life of ease. 

So stop chasing ease.

I now conclude this long-form rant.

2.12.26

By Noah Cisneros

Disclaimer: 

This article is not sponsored or approved by any financial institution that I am associated with. I am NOT a certified personal financial advisor. I am NOT a professional investor. This article is purely educational to provide helpful ideas to improve life. Please use the tools within your reach to personally make any and all decisions for your finances.