Creators, Takers, and Breakers How to Be a Leader and Contributor to a Network Marketing Organization
As a devoted fan of John Maxwell’s leadership books, I feel that his work has shaped me for over ten years. I don’t remember how I found out about your leadership books, but finding them has had as great an impact on my professional and personal development as almost anything else I’ve ever done.
The company I’ve been with since 1999 has announced that John Maxwell will speak at our 20th Annual International Convention. Our president established a book club in anticipation of the big names at this year’s Convention. As a result, I have read – no, make devoured – Maxwell’s newest book, The five levels of leadership. I feel like my world of leadership has once again tilted on its axis.
The following is my interpretation of Maxwell’s description of three types of membership for a professional organization: takers, creators, and breakers. He is credited with the distinction. The description is based on my thoughts and feelings after reading your comments. Since I am a network marketing professional, team building is essential to the profitability and stability of an organization. This is why Maxwell’s work is so important.
Are you a Maker, Taker or Breaker?
1. Creators: They do it. They have their eye on the prize. They live to be inspiring and influential on behalf of others. They love to grow, so they are generally open to the opportunity to expand. They live outside of their comfort zone, generally have a very positive energy, and build on attracting others who are just like them. They profit from “the similar attracts the similar.” They take the initiative and do not limit themselves to what they are told to do. They love to work hard and often see no difference between working and having fun. They have a clear objective and they always keep it in mind. They thrive in a challenging situation because they know that it means more growth, more opportunities, and more opportunities to make a difference for others. They enjoy obstacles, knowing that they will improve if they move over them. They love to pursue the results that measure their success. The creators on my team get going every day and usually start on their own. Creators love helping other people because they see this as a mutual benefit. They are designed to take responsibility for your own productivity.
2. Takers- I received an email recently from someone who wanted to mentor me. He sent me a long list of his questions, requesting fifteen minutes of my time. I looked at this email, realized that she was essentially asking me to help her review her entire business, and suggested that she book a paid coaching session with me, and I’d be happy to take an hour or thirty minutes to go over it. concerns with her. She said, “No thanks anyway. I just wanted you to tell me what to do.” Recipients don’t really understand the law of reciprocity. They don’t understand giving first or the value of making a contribution. Be careful with receivers because they can consume a lot of your time, but they are not as focused on adding value. If you are a team leader, know that participants can take a lot of time and energy to train, but they do not necessarily generate results from what they learn. Participants may have the best of intentions, but after you’ve worked with a few, you may be wondering where the training went, as there is little to show for their efforts. Since recipients focus on what you bring to them, they may not necessarily be motivated to give back to others. Receptors can be chatty, they may or may not be good listeners, but whether or not they want to make a difference to others, they tend to lock themselves out. They are easily derailed by obstacles and need a lot of help to overcome them.
3. Breakers: they are people who tend to negative energy. Instead of a “can do” attitude, they create barricades around them. These barricades coexist between them and their supposed objectives. Even if they aren’t particularly negative, they just seem to get in their own way. And sometimes they block the progress of a team or an organization. Sometimes they blame others, tend to find fault, and are not eager or willing to take responsibility. They look outside of themselves why things are not going well rather than within themselves. They are potentially toxic to an organization. They spend too much energy being critical of others or themselves rather than finding ways to make contributions. They tend to see the world as a half empty cup. And even if Breakers don’t have negative energy or criticism of others, they tend to be their own worst enemies. Much of their effort and energy is absorbed by the tendency not to believe in themselves. Again, like receivers, they may have the best of intentions, but they have blocks that are hard to overcome.
When building a networking organization, you will find all kinds of people. Some that you will work with will be a mix of these three groups. For example, I’ve worked with creators who needed a lot of help before they really took off on their own. I am very happy that I invested in people like this. You don’t always know, and Maxwell will be the first to tell you that you can’t always be sure of getting your investment back in people. This is why leadership is so important. It is also why your decision to be a creator and overcome those inevitable obstacles and challenges that pave the way to success ensures that, by extension, you will be the catalyst for as many people as possible to come to work with you.
“A leader is one who knows the way, follows the way and shows the way.”
John C. Maxwell
