Any Other Mumpreneurs?

I agree

In fact if I was starting up again in IM, I'd never ever use my real name either. Worst mistake I ever made

Kim

Sorry I missed this earlier. Just to clarify:

I'm like you: I don't care if the marketer is a man or a woman. If I want what he/she is selling, then I'm buying. (The standard know/like/trust factor applies, of course.)

As I advanced in my IM education and experience though, I was looking for someone to MODEL, not just learn from. And I'm not talking just about HOW they do business. This really isn't about the mechanics of business. It's more about style and WHO that person is.

It was really completely unconscious in the beginning. It started with me buying from Ali Brown and a key reason I bought from her was because her audience was "real" business owners, not other wanna-be IMers. (I hate the incestuous nature of IM.)

Ali is VERY feminine and I loved her style, although I'm not nearly as polished and high-class as she is. But it was my first real exposure to how a woman approached IM, the language, the style, the writing, etc.

Through Ali, I got to know other ladies, including Lisa Sasevich and Fabienne Fredrickson. Along the way, I also stumbled across Carrie Wilkerson. I LOVED her style and learning from her. And it was another lesson in a more feminine way of doing things. (Or at least NOT a "Kowabunga, dude!" style. )

Again, keep in mind I wasn't specifically going out looking for women. I just stumbled across them and loved what they did and HOW they did it. It was a gradual thing until I found I was mostly buying from women.

And I could MODEL not only what they did (the how-to's), but HOW they did it (the style, language, etc.) in a way that was much for authentic for me to model. I was observing how to be a WOMAN in business.

It's really about style and nuances, nothing particularly earth-shattering. And in the beginning, my choices to buy from women were quite unintentional. I was buying the info and their gender made little difference to me. (As a woman, their messages and communication DID resonate with me more...)

And then, through Ali, I was introduced (again) to my mentor Sheri. Sheri had founded and ran the National Association of Women Writers (NAWW) for 10 years. As a writer, I already knew of NAWW and Sheri, but for various reasons, didn't pay much attention. So I was re-introduced to her and some work she was doing that I hadn't known about.

I'd previously spent a LOT of money over the years on various courses and other information products. Now I was ready for coaching and I immediately fell in love with Sheri's style. I loved her personality and style and immediately decided she was the right coach for me.

Coaching is a much more personal and intimate experience than just learning from a course. I think you can have 10 coaches all offering essentially the same thing, but one or two will match YOUR personality and style more than the others.

And I think it's important to pick a coach YOU resonate with. If you're coaching with someone who gets on your nerves, then you won't get as much out of it, even if the actual information and coaching is top notch. (Sandi Krakowski is a good example of someone who just gets on my nerves. She's perfectly legit and helps a lot of people, but she is NOT for me! She really sets my teeth on edge.)

I picked Sheri as much for the example she modeled by WHO she was and HOW she did things as for the actual A-B-C's of business she could teach me. In a lot of ways, she embodies who I want to be when I grow up.

I also keep loose tabs on the MLM industry and more recently, found myself drawn to and listening to a woman who's been highly successful in MLM. I'm on her list, look forward to her e-mails and watch a lot of her videos. And yes, I've bought from her. Again, it was completely unconscious at the time, but it WAS about her style and personality. I didn't deliberately go looking for a woman in MLM and choose to exclude men. It just sort of happened. Again, I'd subconsciously chosen a woman based on personality and style.

Don't worry. I still buy from men...like PLF from Jeff Walker. (I like his style too. )

I hope that makes sense!

Michelle