I'm retired USAF and being as I am female, I did get pressured to go to MLM parties hosted by the spouses of Airmen I worked with. I did buy things to be nice, but stopped when I realized I was being cheated. The big MLM everyone was in was Scentsy (edited to correct the spelling) and I have no sense of smell. Since they knew I had no sense of smell, rather than delivering the actual candles I'd ordered and paid for, they'd just give me much cheaper candles that happened to be the same size and color, figuring I'd never know the difference since I couldn't smell it. They accidentally ratted themselves out by bragging about it in their group on Facebook. Being as I'm not a very confrontational person, I just printed out the post where they bragged about ripping me off and used it as my reason to not attend any more MLM parties.
Oh my goodness. I cannot believe this, I am so sorry! Just know you are so much stronger than them and I have so much respect for you and your hard work in the service!!
I'm a military spouse and I'm doing a project on military spouses un/underemployment, and after watching this I might include the issue of MLMS in the project
@@cruelworldhappymind Yeah my husband is stationed at Fort Bragg, and the unemployment rate in Fayetteville is double the national unemployment rate. A friend of mine sells for Pure Romance since the job market here is so competitive, but she's actually had a lot of success with it. I, on the other hand, have lived here almost 2 years and have yet to be able to find a job of any sort. I've applied to so many it's ridiculous. I hope that by doing this project I'm able to get a better idea of job-hunting strategies for military wives so I can share them with others, and maybe even get in contact with the higher ups at the employment office on base to try to get them to implement more effective programs and tools to actually help spouses find satisfying work.
When my husband was stationed in Japan, I joked you could making a drinking game out of how many cars you saw at the BX and commissary with MLM stickers. Me, I had an actual job at the base daycare and a side hustle running a shopping service for anime merchandise and Japanese goods (yukatas, flavored kitkats, Starbucks sakura mugs etc)
@@cruelworldhappymind there's a website where you can apply for jobs on the base you're stationed. The daycare had high turnover so it was easy to get hired there. The side hustle started by me seeing people looking for merchandise in anime buy and sell groups on Facebook and realizing "hey! I saw that stuff in the cash store (thrift shop) and/or the mall!"
Im a military spouse, i can back that this is a huge issue. Its hard to even make friends when moving to a new base. Its hard to trust people want to be your friend and not just use you
Yep. This and the never ending drama 🤦♀️ I stay tf inside and mind my own business. Neighbors think I’m weird but I’m not tryna end up screwed over like I did when we lived in Ft Hood
@@cruelworldhappymind i feel you. My husband join at a older age. So im alot more mature than the average age military wife. Both my husband and me had careers before he join. So I find that the military life style is very high school mentality and gets a lot of women caught up in the drama of mlms
As a military spouse who has really struggled with basically giving up my chances of a normal career, I REALLY want to thank you for making this video. So many wives that I know (including myself) are desperate to be able to work, and it makes us all easy targets for these schemes. I don't blame the women that get sucked into them because they're probably just trying really hard to fill their days with something and looking for a way to make money. It's just sad that military spouses' insecurities about their working careers are exploited by these MLMs. Thank you for talking about this.
Thanks for this. As a former (now retired) military spouse I can attest that this has been going on since at least the early 80’s. The pressure from the more senior wives was real. I was sucked into my fair share of MLMs myself when I was younger. My heart breaks when I see on Facebook that MLMs in the military spouse community are still alive and well.
I had no idea your husband was in the military! My husband is in the Navy! I run a Navy significant others group on facebook and soooo many of them ask if there is jobs they can do from home but legit things are so hard to come by. People try to join my group just to find vulnerable girls to scam them but I can tell who is the scammers and kick them out lol. I'm lucky that I've been able to always find a job in my career field but it is tough to explain I will only be here for a year 🤷♀️
Also you should do a video about college scams like Medcerts, Martinsburg and things like that. Those representatives always cold message my group members about going back to school to their scam schools!
I've been a military spouse for 18 years now. The first 10 years of being a spouse I was always invited to these MLM parties. I would go and buy whatever because I wanted to support the person throwing the party. But there came a point in my life where I decided I no longer wanted to be part of the military community because of mlm and just spouse drama in general was too much. Since then I DO NOT look for military spouse friends. I try to find jobs off base and make civilian friends. I think I'm much happier now then I was before. I have a select few friends who are/were military spouses, and i value their friendship (i'll also add those friendships were also made overseas and being overseas, you find people who will become family because you need that support). Those friendships were not built on MLMs. The spouses I became friends with because of MLM, I couldn't tell you where they are at right now.
I’ve seen a lot of anger (and hope!) in the disabled community recently as we realize that a great many jobs be done from home, hopefully some kind of reform will also allow military spouses to have legitimate careers that are relatively portable.
Yup. I'll never understand why someone who is on the computer 99% of the day needs to be in the office. It's nice to have a good office environment and see people for sure, but telecommuting should be an option for most if not all employees.
My husband is retired AF, I spent 17 years as a mil spouse and now my daughter is married to an airman. MLMs are crazy prevalent as is spouse unemployment and underemployment (my salary more than double when we left rural NC). I want to preface by saying I'm not defending MLMs but back before online shopping and Amazon, there was a lot of products that you couldn't get unless you traveled or bought from MLMs. The biggest thing that jumps out is adult.... toys (I guess). It was/still is I think, illegal to sell adult novelty items in NC and there wasn't a store anywhere near us. Not that they are a necessity but my husband deployed 8 times, we spent more than 5 years apart so I'm not ashamed to say I own vibrators and an MLM home party was the only local option. But that's why that are so successful in the military community, they are providing products that you can't or couldn't buy locally in some places. I was never comfortable joining an MLM myself because there are rules for fraternization and I didn't want to make it awkward as my husband made rank, and because more than once I was pressured to attend or shop because of a someone's spouse's rank. Thank you for covering this topic and thank you for your sacrifice.
That’s such good insight and a great point! I’m only on year 1 of being a military spouse so I can’t imagine what the deployments are going to feel like... I admire your strength to get through them and congrats to your daughter on her marriage! 💜
I never though of that I thought u could order adult toys online wherever u lived if u couldn't buy them at a store ... seems like an overly conservative law
@@justinkelsey9218 online shopping wasn't as prevalent in 2001-2005 and I don't think we could even get Amazon Prime when it first launched because we were in a rural area. Oh and conservative is an understatement for Nor' Cackalacky.😂
I live in NC and I think I know the city you’re from because I’m from there too and we have a military base (for privacy reasons for us I won’t say which one). We have adult sex shops prevalent in Asheville and Raleigh. Is it illegal for people to sell them without a special license?
You should also talk about MLMs targeting minorities. I am Mexican and I literally grew up with MLMs without knowing it. Tupperware and Avon were the top ones that hosted parties. I actually thought Avon was a high-end brand. My aunts and my mom were a part of it. My aunt even quit and rejoined because she needed money and thought it would be different that time. It didn't work out.
Avon actually sends u the products you order tho? At last when I was little my mom would place orders with my aunt from the magazine but my aunt never tried to recruit her tho.
I've lived in a large Latino community of primarily Mexican/American people for 6 years now, and I've never been approached to enter an MLM here; it's one of the reasons why I love it!
I use to say : I will go to your party, and eat your snacks. But I’m not buying sh👋t. Our post commander banned mlms from our post. Yet it didn’t stop then. Thank you for your sacrifices and your husband’s service.
Victoria Stargle at the time, I was not an anti-mlm-er, so I didn’t see need to tell on anyone. Now, as an older woman with an understanding of the mlms, I would talk to command.
My husband and I are both Marines, and I am a member of some of our neighborhood community pages. SOOO many girls in my neighborhood are apart of an MLM.
Madison Harnish Thank you! It’s really sad, a lot of these women end up having to stay home because the CDC is full, day care out in town is too expensive so they are stay at home moms. Commonly see younique, lularoe, and I think pampered chef. Got my make up done by a girl for the Marine Corps ball, and she used mostly younique products. Never thought about how easy of targets milsos are until you posted! Shoot, even I have been reached out to by other spouses because “I serve and it would make a good selling point”
I've been watching your content for a while now and I'm glad you put in your two cents towards this, I would hear jokes about it and I never once would see the explanation about it. And yea, military couples marry younger because (from what I heard) the resources, benefits and other things are easier to have when you are legally attached to them. It's sad that these groups go for people who already in a tight spot.
I know right! And yes that’s what it seems to be, I know the benefits was a huge reason my husband and I got married instead of just living together for a while (we had a small wedding and tbh never really cared about the event itself, just being together)
the experience of a military spouse sounds very similar to the experience of a third culture kid (children/teenagers who move around internationally a lot/who do not grow up in the culture that their parents belong to)
This is a huge reason I’m pursuing tattooing. My husband is USAF, and I know every military town has at least one tattoo shop nearby that I’d be able to find work at. I’m recently married, not even living on base yet, but I already have seen the MLM issue in the milspo community :/
Dec 27, 2020 Best of luck to your tattooing apprenticeship! Hope you and your family stay strong with all this virus and wherever your husband gets deployed. Thank you to your husband for serving our country. 😄🌟
I’d love to see a deep dive into Lifevantage. I don’t see anyone talk about this MLM, and they’re SO awful. Keep up the great content Madison!!! I love your videos!
I didn't even know there was such a thing as an mlm insurance. Now I'm wondering when I got approached by a friend to buy some insurance if she was in some sort of mlm insurance. I thought it was weird, but never gave it much thought I was even thinking about giving it a try just to see. Oh boy!
Your insight is so amazing! If you’re interested, I would love to see a video about mlms and Christianity since a lot of mlms brand themselves as “Christian companies”. Love your work!
I'm glad i found these antimlm channels. Here in my country they have a thing where they ask you out to party or drinks or dinner whatever and suddenly you find yourself on a "meeting". Haha they basically kidnap you to listen to them.
Just to follow up, I think one way to help end the MLM grip on the military community is they could ban MLMs from base housing. Although I don't know how that would work now that most housing is privatized but I remember you use to need command permission to have a home based business and they could simply crack down using that authority.
Its really heartbreaking how many Military spouses are targeted by these sorts of things... Its hard enough to make that lifestyle work without companies preying on them.
Active duty female here, and yeah, it's bad. One of my jobs is inprocessing soldiers to my unit and I warn them to keep an eye out for these companies! Btw, I think you'll like Colorado Springs a lot!
Back with another story, shorter this time. We've been on the same base for the last couple years as our first home away from home. My husband is AF, I was medically discharged AF, and we had just the one daughter at the time. Our first Halloween rolled around and we went by the housing office's table so my daughter could get goodies and the manager of the housing office handed me a little baggie saying "And something for Mommy too". It was her Pure Romance card. It was 800 levels of awkward and that was when I learned there's an adult toy MLM... From the woman that handles my rent and housing needs.
I am active duty USAF, identify as non binary but have typically female body parts, and my spouse is a man who is a USAF veteran. I also used to be Mormon, so MLMs were around me for a big part of my life. My babysitter growing up (who was Mormon) was into BeautyControl, Tupperware, Pampered Chef, Mary Kay, Cookie Lee jewelry, and now Paparazzi. She is an older woman and was stuck at home trying to contribute financially to her household but just lost a shit ton of money in the process. They lost their home and had to move after years of these MLM ventures. I haven’t noticed a lot of MLM talk since entering active duty service, although one of my coworkers has a spouse who does/used to sell Scentsy but is now going back to college to further her education (a much better course of action IMO). Thanks so much for making videos like these - I’ve been bingeing your content for the past 3 days 👌
So this is why the guard made all of us take anti Mlm classes. We were all very surprised when a anti mom class was mixed in with the suicide prevention, financial help, and anti serial harrasment class
I always think of it this way- there should never be a specific timeline in which one should “live their life”, I haven’t graduated college (I got halfway through my classes and the costs mounted up, and I lost my passion for it) but I may feel the desire to go back later in life and that’s great! There is no right or wrong time to do anything, just as long as you’re happy and feel like you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be! 💜🌟
I'm 24, in my final year of masters & still single. I learned to overcome that social pressure of getting married & having kids by acknowledging that I have other priorities and for me, those are more important for my security at the moment 😌
@@cruelworldhappymind I agree 100%.:) I studied to get a new career, completed my studies in 2017, and have been teaching adults ever since. I'm in my early 40's. Back at the university, when I originally got to study a degree and was already 26 when I started, there were a few retired people, some came to finish their degree "now that they finally had the time for it", some only starting. One year I was a peer tutor for a group of new students who had gained access to the university through open university. I'm Finnish, so I bet the system might work very differently in the US, but anyway I've seen and experienced how life long learning works. And also as a teacher in creative writing my students tend to be aged 25 to 85.
I am a Marine wife in Okinawa with my husband, on an air base. I know how this goes. The women are ruthless with these things- like the "college" scammers, for one. I FEEL THIS.
When we were stationed in S. Korea the base we were at had on base housing and leased off base housing. So we were split into two different communities. I was in off base housing, so I don't know how the on base spouses were, I assume the same. All spouses were not allowed to get jobs...it wasn't allowed by the agreement with the government or they would "kick the US military out." (I knew several wives who did have jobs on the economy but I'm sure they weren't ever found out.) So you had a tiny community of say 15 wives and out of them, about 7 had MLMs. It was a constant circle of MLM parties...and if Mary went to your party you then had to go to hers. It was pretty easy to see that any money being made was just changing hands into whomever was holding a party that week. The only folks making any real money were the MLMs. And sadly most wives had a house full of MLM products to add to her weight allowance to move back home with. I had already decided after my first Military MLM party stateside that I was going to avoid the parties at all costs. Luckily while I was frequently invited to parties held by "higher ranking" wives than myself, I was always able to come up with a good excuse to avoid the parties and not order from the catalogs (because that was their backup.)
sooo glad you made this video :) great job calling out what is a totally under-reported issue. Coming from a marine corps family (my dad is now retired) I care about this a lot, but I think most civilians don't understand the unique situations of military members and their spouses and the challenges they face in society. Thank god my mom never got sucked into an MLM after spending 20+ years moving with my dad basically every 3 years.
I'm a military daughter, but once I was old enough, I was talked into joining a couple different MLMs. One was Lia Sophia, which is no longer in business, and the other was PartyLite Candles. The PartyLite one was particularly eye opening for me. They would have weekly conference call pep talks where they would offer advice on how to scam all your friends and family. They would talk about going after people who were in financial trouble and suggested things like just wearing people down if they say no at first. People were nothing but dollar signs to them. Once I quit that one, I swore I would never get sucked in again.
Madison, here' a crazy but possible idea: What if you set up a business(NOT AN MLM) that trains Military Wives to make an income using TH-cam...? You could educate them in all the different areas of youtube(Such as: Beauty, DIY, Daily Vlogging, Lifestyle, Family, Pets, Drama, Product Review, Anti-MLM, Comedy, Finance, Artistic, ASMR, Gaming, Chat Show, Storytime etc. etc.) so that they could find their unique passion and then teach them all the skills they need like camera, lighting, green screen, editing, streaming, advertising, merch etc. etc. to become happy TH-camrs. They might not all get rich or famous from it but they WILL make more than they would joining an MLM and they will most likely gain a community of friends and followers who are not trying to sell them anything.
@@Afmedic85 That's actually a misunderstanding. There are many TH-camrs making a full time living with 50k to 100k subscribers which is still a lot but not crazy unattainable.
@@Piscoandmartinis they only make a few dollars from TH-cam. They probably have legitimate jobs. Some people shill products but most of them are just shitty weight loss drinks or shady web6
Probably the best way to minimize such a rampant plague such as MLM among Military Spouses, would be knowledge of the issue. These videos go a long way towards that goal, as I'm sure your close friends are aware of your channel and can easily spread the videos easier than explaining what to look out for. Well done.
I had no idea you were a military spouse as well! My husband is AF. (You will love Colorado Springs!) Thank you for speaking about this topic, it's definitely an issue within the military spouse community. We had the same issues with the on-base military spouse job assistance program at our previous base. It needs some major revamping. I actually worked as a military spouse employment specialist at my previous base through a state grant, where I worked off base and assisted spouses with services and resources to find meaningful employment. This is something I am super passionate about! Great video.
Thank you for the high quality, well researched content that you share with us. Wishing you good health and all things good that you want in life. (I also had shorter employment times and companies straight up rejected an interview without even asking me for resons.)
I am a Navy spouse and own my own photography business- I started out of a passion I had for photography. We lived in Japan and I had nowhere else to work. My business has been something I can confidently promote and stand behind everywhere we move. I have LOADS of friends throughout the years that have tried&failed (and tried&failed) at multiple MLM “opportunities”. I have been invited to party after party. I’ve had so much pressure to purchase/“host” a party. I have lost friendships over refusing to “support their small business like they’ve supported mine”. It’s been the most tiresome cycle to the point where I avoid people who are involved in MLMs. I think they have ultimately damaged relationships and potential for relationships for lots of spouses and have contributed to the already lonesome experience that can come about from being a milso.
I'm not a military spouse, but your comments about your experiences with employment services really resonated with me because that has been similar to my experiences with all the employment service offices I've ever been to. That's not to say they don't have some useful help to offer, but if your needs go beyond basic help with resumes/selection criteria, or applying to jobs then they are useless. The best thing that ever came out of one of these offices for me was when they were getting people into volunteer programs. Nowadays they just force people into online learning to pad out their resumes with basic certificates.
Boy this takes me back. 30 years I ago so was a new military spouse and everything she’s saying about now was just like that when I first got married. Military spouses (esp female) tend to be very young and ripe for MLM recruiting. I was actually in one before I got married and my dad intervened and got me out. Thank goodness.
19:00 reminds me of that tone deaf meme where a military wife had a sticker in her car saying, "You will address me by my husband's rank" and she was referred to as *petty and second class.*
Military brat here, my mom sold pampered chef, the big issue she found was that once people bought the products they lasted so long they didn't need to buy new ones. She sold it for a long time probably because so many people came in and out of our town. She stopped selling it when she was no longer making sales because new reps started popping up. Im glad she didn't lose a bunch of money and the products were at least useful it's so crazy knowing that it was an MLM now.
Wow. I am so happy someone directed me to your video. Both my husband and I serve so I’m both a member and a spouse and I have been introduced to more MLMs than I’d like. I’m so glad someone covered this and sad to have just seen it. The spouse community is over saturated with MLMs and they take it as if we don’t buy from them then we support the big stores and companies. Which if not supporting your MLM means that then sure. I’m going to keep sharing this every time I see someone on the spouse page post about an MLM in hopes of spreading the word 🙌🏽❤️
Thank you so so much for this video. My husband is out now but when he was active duty it was insane how many MLMs there were, and also how many people fell for them. Really sad. I have always felt like SAHMs and military wives are the main targets because of their vulnerability! And you’re honestly the first person I’ve seen address both. Love your channel so much! PS I always felt like it was so hard to find a nice, normal girl to be friends with on a new base! Thank you for showing the world that military wives aren’t all crazies lol
This hands down the truth about mlms and MilSos. They know that we are a vulnerable group and want to feel “productive” and “useful” by brining an income. I recently started back up again with military content on my channel and I really wanted to tackle this topic on there. I just didn’t know how but this video has given the inspiration ❤️ We as MilSos need to not only inform newer MilSos of all the benefits related to the military but also some of the dangers that lurk within our community.
this is really really heartbreaking to hear I really had no idea. Military spouses went through this kind of thing I mean I've heard some things about not being able to find good work because of lack of stability but I guess when you're not living the life you don't truly know what someone's going through.military spouses fight a different war than their spouses that are deployed and they should be supported to the best of our government's capabilities. But that shows you the government that your loved ones I loved ones are fighting for.
My first mlm party was in officer housing at Fort Sham Houston. I bought some stuff from the lady. Looking back, I was thirsty for friends. I can’t imagine going through a deployment without the support of the other wives. Luckily, they were not heavily involved in mlms . Isn’t it against the military rules to operate any business out of military housing? Also, I have made some coin flipping things on eBay. I encourage military spouses to look into that avenue. It’s a lot of fun and you don’t have to bug your friends and family. I enjoyed hearing from the other spouses. Take care everyone. 😊👋😷💅🏻
Working Freelance is also a really great way to work temporary jobs while getting that experience. Also if your MWR ever offers some transition counseling to please take it, my husband and I would've never known any of the opportunities that were available because you really need to reach out to find some of these programs and networks. Another suggestion I have that's a better investment than MLM is if you're the creative type sell on Etsy or craft fairs. I knew tons of ladies who made soaps or cloth diapers, even if you're not creative but like making some sort of craft like knitting or sewing there's always something basic you can create to sell and people will buy it.
Thank you guys!! These suggestions are both really amazing alternatives and I know there are so many military spouses that would really enjoy these options!
Madison! You should make a video on how MLMs target college kids. I'm from Mexico so the situation might be a little different but, at least since 2017 MLMs shifted from single and stay at home moms to university students, specially Amway and NuSkin. At one point you couldn't go to a class peacefully without a hoard trying to get you to join their team. It's infuriating because you had 40 to 50 year old people convincing 18 to 20 year olds to join these scams with the promise of financial stability and freedom when they knew perfectly those kids would only spend like crazy. Anyway, I love your content. ¡Saludos!
Excellent video - this has to be one of your best. I'm neither from the US nor anything to do with the military and this managed to capture and explain the MLM/military spouse dynamic in a way that nothing has before and really helped me to see how especially heartbreaking the situation is. Thank you for sharing this content
MLMs exploit good organizations in the worst way. They thrive in religious, military, workout, mommy, and even educational communities. It’s so frustrating.
I came across your channel pretty recently and immediately became obsessed with your videos on MLMs. It seems like most people that aren't in them, hate them, but it's really interesting to see your personal ties to the mlm world. It made me think back on a lot of the women I know that advertise mlm products on Facebook and a lot of them are military spouses. Thanks for bringing such a niche but serious problem more to light!!
I really appreciated your deep dive into how MLMs harm military spouses and their communities. I knew they were a vulnerable to MLM demographic, but I had no idea how deep the exploitation went and really how few options they have on base etc
Not a military spouse, but an Army Brat - the system consistently fails our soldiers and their families. After my dad retired, he began working for the local VAC and my family volunteers with Gold Star families. It’s a struggle to get veterans health care and access to mental health and housing. I hope you are doing okay right now with covid and that you are receiving proper assistance! 💕
It's strange for me to find out that military spouses in the US Army are not being more supported seeing how crazy proud the US is of their military and how much applause soliders get...here in Germany, being in the military is just another (very safe and well-paid) job. I've had to move around all my life due to the military careers of my dad and then my husband so I never grew roots anywhere but I did chose a stable career for myself that I could do anywhere and I never had trouble getting a job or even working from home (not in MLMs). There is absolutely no Support for military spouses here in Germany but at least we're not being fooled into thinking that there should be, seeing as being in the military isn't seen as glamourous and important here as it is in the US
Just a small note, at 19:11 the screenshot and what you are reading aloud don't match up. Great video! Important that things like this be brought to light.
I'm a military kid and while I don't remember how big they were in the 2000s/2010s, I do know the base my parents are currently at outright banned MLMs because they kept screwing spouses over which in turn messes up the active-duty members. I think my mom mentioned they were bigger back in the day but its been so long.
I grew up in Alaska and was the child of a mentally ill mother. We were always in Battered women shelters. Mary Kay visited the shelters often and it felt creepy because who could afford to buy something when they are homeless!!??
Even working at Walmart, I try not to pressure(or peer pressure) people into buying something. It makes me feel so uncomfortable when people try to break down your will to get you to buy something. Once you notice it, you see how many people try to do it, it happens in everything to TH-camrs to video game companies to health and beauty companies. It's very predatory
I’m about to become a military spouse and I’m pretty young. I feel very isolated due to the fact that I don’t really want to tell people I’m getting married and am going to be an army wife. I think everything you said was very important and informative and I’m glad I watch your videos because it made me feel a little better seeing how you are also a military spouse and so young.
I was literally about to suggest a MLM in the Military Spouse community video when this one popped up! So well said Madison. Thankfully when I became a military spouse during the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan the Family Readiness Groups were at a peak, offering opportunities for young spouses to socialize in low stress (zero sales) environments while our partners were deployed. That's not to say I haven't see my share of MLM "opportunities" over the years. As you said in the video, many military spouses are seeking gainful employment, when there are rather limited options in small military towns too far from the cities to commute and not enough gainful opportunities to go around. I'm hoping the advances in tech will improve the odds for gainful military spouse employment. That's the direction I turned with in my career (thanks to a Military Spouse Career Advancement Scholarship) many moons ago and hope it becomes a more viable option for other military spouses. Thanks for the vid!
Truly sickening how these companies prey on women in tough situations, promising them support and companionship only to turn on them when they can't sustain being in the MLM. As if these Military spouses don't have enough to deal with in their lives already. Stay strong girl! Love your channel and the way you fight against these asswipes!
I’m prior service in the CG (served 8 years). I love this channel because this is accurate. Since my fiancée didn’t live with me, because I lived on my cutter, she didn’t get that much influence but Herbalife and The Nails one is by far the funniest thing we experienced. Since I left to a totally different place I still get email from those Dependas.
OMG- you must be at Ft. Drum! I was stationed there for a year and grew up in the Albany area. Man, Drum was tough. I remember the 5am runs and coming back with ice coming off of my baklava. It was the coldest year of my life. No wonder they do all of the cold weather training there. Thank you for supporting our military as well. Spouses make a huge difference in morale!
Being a part of this community and still having the lady balls to make this video is amazing. Thank you for talking about this passionately while still being logical. I have friends who are going through this and I am definitely going to share this video with them.
I’m a military brat and my mom still has lots of Mary Kay and tubbaware left over from when my dad was stationed over seas over a decade ago. Her friend (who she met in the military) has “recruited” her in a couple different ones recently but thankfully those didn’t pan out.
I'm watching an MLM conference online right now just to get someone who is pretending to be a friend off of my back. Shoot me! The whole message is that you're doing yourself a disservice and you're giving up your dreams if you don't work for OPTavia. So many sheeple!
Fellow Military spouse here and this is too relatable! After arriving at our first station, I started noticing all these different "consultants" and "managers" selling the same products within local spouses groups. I keep thinking that these all sounded sketchy and starting researching these products and that's when I fell down the anti-MLM rabbit hole lol. I definitely can see the appeal for spouses to join as it can be defeating trying to start a career or even get a job when you don't know how long you will be there and your resume looks like it is all over the place. Now I am afraid to start going to spouse gatherings because they might try to lure me in with free snacks and then attempt to recruit me haha. Thank you for bringing light to this topic because employment struggles are real and it is terrible that there are companies that feed off of it!
My husband is from upstate NY, and was also stationed where I think you might be after basic. We will welcome you to Colorado when you come here. 😊 (Denver here, born and raised on the western side of the state.) You will be moving to our "Bible belt" and MLM/prosperity gospel and Rachel Hollis sheeple abound there. You will be needed. Lol
I’m a Military spouse and us Army Veteran. I’m new to the military spouse role, but I have heard of the MLM community targeting military spouses in particular. Thank you for this information!
I know this is an older video but I think you described life as a military mom perfectly. It's something really unique and really indescribable. Although I'm not a military kid, I can relate to it. My dad worked on the Alaskan Pipeline for 2 weeks, and came home for 2 weeeks. Essentially all of the everyday struggles - like getting us to school, getting us fed, washing our clothes, etc was put on my mom and only my mom. I always explain it to people that my dad was in my life and there for me, but my mom was kinda a single mom, even though she was married. Not everyone women can be a military spouse (or a Alaskan Pipeline wife)
Interesting! I knew that it’s common for military spouses to be involved in mlms, it’s interesting to hear about the reasons behind it. Seems like it’s kind of a perfect storm.
I’ve been subscribed since your first few videos and I just want to say your growth makes me so so happy. You have amazing content and I can’t wait until you reach over a million!
How messed up is it that the US military forces people to move every couple of years? My father was in the military for his entire life (Belgian military). We only moved once: when the base he worked on closed. After that, the worked at the same base for over 10 years.
y e s!! they totally do target military spouses! I can’t go to a single job fair on post bc they are ALL mlms. I stopped adding military spouses from my mil church group because all of them are in either a tea mlm, monat, scentsy, or arbonne. even knowing how awful mlms are you start to wonder if maybe that would be a way to find community! they absolutely prey on the loneliness and lack of job security. I’ve got about 3 years of professional child care under my belt and yet had to settle for a job at target because the job market is surprisingly competitive in military communities!
When my husband was in the Air Force NO ONE would hire me. They would interview me and never call me. That’s why so many in the military have a one income household.
The only mlm experience I had while I was a military spouse was towards the end when all a sudden our FRG treasurer brought up if anyone wanted to buy some essential oils at the end of the meeting. No one bought but I wish I spoke to her before I left, I really hope she stopped, she had a very good business cleaning houses for families moving. From my experience, the experience of a Military spouse varies from base to base, I'm so thankful that my husband's ship had a separate guidance counselor who could help us with our marriage and such a helpful ombudsman, I would hear from the other Spouses how much nicer they were being treated here compared to their last post and it was all because our Triade had worked very hard to ensure their Sailors had the resources to focus on their work. I wonder why so many Officers don't try to do the same when they have the power but I do know that by the end of the day the priority is to defend our country and sadly I feel the families are just always left out.
This is why a loved one of mine fell into MLM’s. I get it, she’s lonely and has desperately tried to make friends with other military spouses and hasn’t had much success. I think she got so defeated that when someone from ARBONNE approached her she went for it. I kept encouraging her to look at peoples stories and how they got completely screwed over. Of course the allure of sisterhood and friends was something she couldn’t resist. She’s already seen a promotion due to her getting enough people underneath her. Honestly it makes me so sad. I can’t look at her posts anymore, she’s using the term “boss babe” un-ironically so I think she’s really down that rabbit hole.
I never knew that it was prevalent for military spouses to join MLMs. Military spouses requrie more assistance to find quality childcare, good paying jobs that meet their educational standards as well as find friends. Thank you for sharing your story as it shows the importance of these factors and how it affects military spouses.
No offense but I feel like I doged the world's biggest bullet by not marrying a guy I met in highschool who joined the army when I was literally 18 😐😬 I was with him because I was depressed and getting abused at home. My life and mental health would have definitely got far worse.
I remember being a young military wife with a baby. I got sucked into the Mary Kay world. It’s the one thing I regret when I was young lol I wish I listened to the voice that said I didn’t need a “job” to feel worth while. That’s what they sold to me. “Don’t you want to contribute to the household verses just staying home all day?” Like I wasn’t raising a kid or anything. Ugh. It was a world full of very toxic women and I wish I could see that then.
I used to work for a company that has a lot of military families and one of them did mention an MLM, but legally, she couldn't sell me anything. Thank God.
This is so true my husband was in for 9 years and the number of MLM parties i went to was a lot. I worked in healthcare and went to school while he was in. It’s funny now that he is out i have only been to one MLM parties.
I'm retired USAF and being as I am female, I did get pressured to go to MLM parties hosted by the spouses of Airmen I worked with. I did buy things to be nice, but stopped when I realized I was being cheated. The big MLM everyone was in was Scentsy (edited to correct the spelling) and I have no sense of smell. Since they knew I had no sense of smell, rather than delivering the actual candles I'd ordered and paid for, they'd just give me much cheaper candles that happened to be the same size and color, figuring I'd never know the difference since I couldn't smell it.
They accidentally ratted themselves out by bragging about it in their group on Facebook. Being as I'm not a very confrontational person, I just printed out the post where they bragged about ripping me off and used it as my reason to not attend any more MLM parties.
Wow. That's horrible.
Oh my goodness. I cannot believe this, I am so sorry! Just know you are so much stronger than them and I have so much respect for you and your hard work in the service!!
random stuff same here retired military and I have been to all kinds of parties...scenery, 31 bags, lull roe, etc...
That's infuriating, and so mean girls of them. I'm glad you got out of going to those parties, no one deserves to be treated that way.
I had no sense of smell to I got i back but I know I can loose it again... I have AERD... wow cannot believe people can go so low!
I'm a military spouse and I'm doing a project on military spouses un/underemployment, and after watching this I might include the issue of MLMS in the project
No way! that’s amazing!!
@@cruelworldhappymind Yeah my husband is stationed at Fort Bragg, and the unemployment rate in Fayetteville is double the national unemployment rate. A friend of mine sells for Pure Romance since the job market here is so competitive, but she's actually had a lot of success with it. I, on the other hand, have lived here almost 2 years and have yet to be able to find a job of any sort. I've applied to so many it's ridiculous. I hope that by doing this project I'm able to get a better idea of job-hunting strategies for military wives so I can share them with others, and maybe even get in contact with the higher ups at the employment office on base to try to get them to implement more effective programs and tools to actually help spouses find satisfying work.
When my husband was stationed in Japan, I joked you could making a drinking game out of how many cars you saw at the BX and commissary with MLM stickers. Me, I had an actual job at the base daycare and a side hustle running a shopping service for anime merchandise and Japanese goods (yukatas, flavored kitkats, Starbucks sakura mugs etc)
No way! I am SO IMPRESSED you hustled and had great jobs overseas! I would be so intimidated. Thank you for sharing your story!
@@cruelworldhappymind there's a website where you can apply for jobs on the base you're stationed. The daycare had high turnover so it was easy to get hired there. The side hustle started by me seeing people looking for merchandise in anime buy and sell groups on Facebook and realizing "hey! I saw that stuff in the cash store (thrift shop) and/or the mall!"
Im a military spouse, i can back that this is a huge issue. Its hard to even make friends when moving to a new base. Its hard to trust people want to be your friend and not just use you
Yep. This and the never ending drama 🤦♀️
I stay tf inside and mind my own business. Neighbors think I’m weird but I’m not tryna end up screwed over like I did when we lived in Ft Hood
It’s so sad 😔 I’m already extremely antisocial, so it’s really hard to make friends in the military spouse community
Madison Harnish it’s the worst. :( hoping to move soon again for a fresh start somewhere new. Yet I always say it and it never lasts long lol
@@cruelworldhappymind i feel you. My husband join at a older age. So im alot more mature than the average age military wife. Both my husband and me had careers before he join. So I find that the military life style is very high school mentality and gets a lot of women caught up in the drama of mlms
If someone you don't know invites you to a party, always assume they're trying to sell you leggings.
As a military spouse who has really struggled with basically giving up my chances of a normal career, I REALLY want to thank you for making this video. So many wives that I know (including myself) are desperate to be able to work, and it makes us all easy targets for these schemes. I don't blame the women that get sucked into them because they're probably just trying really hard to fill their days with something and looking for a way to make money. It's just sad that military spouses' insecurities about their working careers are exploited by these MLMs. Thank you for talking about this.
I work for Tricare and I’ve actually had several Active Duty spouses try to recruit me over the phone. Its insane.
NO WAY!! 😂😂🤦♀️
Holy moly, seriously?????? That is so bad!
😂😂😂
That’s crazy.
Fuck that's depressing lol
Thanks for this. As a former (now retired) military spouse I can attest that this has been going on since at least the early 80’s. The pressure from the more senior wives was real. I was sucked into my fair share of MLMs myself when I was younger. My heart breaks when I see on Facebook that MLMs in the military spouse community are still alive and well.
Wow thank you so much for sharing your experience!! So sad that it’s still going on 😕
I had no idea your husband was in the military! My husband is in the Navy! I run a Navy significant others group on facebook and soooo many of them ask if there is jobs they can do from home but legit things are so hard to come by. People try to join my group just to find vulnerable girls to scam them but I can tell who is the scammers and kick them out lol. I'm lucky that I've been able to always find a job in my career field but it is tough to explain I will only be here for a year 🤷♀️
Also you should do a video about college scams like Medcerts, Martinsburg and things like that. Those representatives always cold message my group members about going back to school to their scam schools!
That’s amazing that you are helping others in the community!! 💜 and yes I’ve been wanting to do a video on that for forever!! It’s on my list 😉
Off topic, your cat is so cute!!
@@gogogetter omg thanks! His name Phillip lol.
@sondra what's your FB group called would love to give the info to my daughter in law
I've been a military spouse for 18 years now. The first 10 years of being a spouse I was always invited to these MLM parties. I would go and buy whatever because I wanted to support the person throwing the party. But there came a point in my life where I decided I no longer wanted to be part of the military community because of mlm and just spouse drama in general was too much. Since then I DO NOT look for military spouse friends. I try to find jobs off base and make civilian friends. I think I'm much happier now then I was before. I have a select few friends who are/were military spouses, and i value their friendship (i'll also add those friendships were also made overseas and being overseas, you find people who will become family because you need that support). Those friendships were not built on MLMs. The spouses I became friends with because of MLM, I couldn't tell you where they are at right now.
I’ve seen a lot of anger (and hope!) in the disabled community recently as we realize that a great many jobs be done from home, hopefully some kind of reform will also allow military spouses to have legitimate careers that are relatively portable.
Agreed!! 🌟🌟
Yup. I'll never understand why someone who is on the computer 99% of the day needs to be in the office. It's nice to have a good office environment and see people for sure, but telecommuting should be an option for most if not all employees.
My husband is retired AF, I spent 17 years as a mil spouse and now my daughter is married to an airman. MLMs are crazy prevalent as is spouse unemployment and underemployment (my salary more than double when we left rural NC). I want to preface by saying I'm not defending MLMs but back before online shopping and Amazon, there was a lot of products that you couldn't get unless you traveled or bought from MLMs. The biggest thing that jumps out is adult.... toys (I guess). It was/still is I think, illegal to sell adult novelty items in NC and there wasn't a store anywhere near us. Not that they are a necessity but my husband deployed 8 times, we spent more than 5 years apart so I'm not ashamed to say I own vibrators and an MLM home party was the only local option. But that's why that are so successful in the military community, they are providing products that you can't or couldn't buy locally in some places.
I was never comfortable joining an MLM myself because there are rules for fraternization and I didn't want to make it awkward as my husband made rank, and because more than once I was pressured to attend or shop because of a someone's spouse's rank.
Thank you for covering this topic and thank you for your sacrifice.
That’s such good insight and a great point! I’m only on year 1 of being a military spouse so I can’t imagine what the deployments are going to feel like... I admire your strength to get through them and congrats to your daughter on her marriage! 💜
I never though of that I thought u could order adult toys online wherever u lived if u couldn't buy them at a store ... seems like an overly conservative law
@@justinkelsey9218 online shopping wasn't as prevalent in 2001-2005 and I don't think we could even get Amazon Prime when it first launched because we were in a rural area.
Oh and conservative is an understatement for Nor' Cackalacky.😂
I 10000% can agree to this.... it's very very true
I live in NC and I think I know the city you’re from because I’m from there too and we have a military base (for privacy reasons for us I won’t say which one). We have adult sex shops prevalent in Asheville and Raleigh. Is it illegal for people to sell them without a special license?
You should also talk about MLMs targeting minorities. I am Mexican and I literally grew up with MLMs without knowing it. Tupperware and Avon were the top ones that hosted parties. I actually thought Avon was a high-end brand. My aunts and my mom were a part of it. My aunt even quit and rejoined because she needed money and thought it would be different that time. It didn't work out.
Yes!! Topic on that coming soon 🌟
Avon actually sends u the products you order tho? At last when I was little my mom would place orders with my aunt from the magazine but my aunt never tried to recruit her tho.
Hispanics are also HUGE targets for herbalife sadly.
I've lived in a large Latino community of primarily Mexican/American people for 6 years now, and I've never been approached to enter an MLM here; it's one of the reasons why I love it!
I use to say : I will go to your party, and eat your snacks. But I’m not buying
sh👋t. Our post commander banned mlms from our post. Yet it didn’t stop then. Thank you for your sacrifices and your husband’s service.
THATS AMAZING! I hope more post commanders start banning mlm parties, it just excludes people and creates way more problems then good!
How do you get petty and not snitch?
Victoria Stargle at the time, I was not an anti-mlm-er, so I didn’t see need to tell on anyone. Now, as an older woman with an understanding of the mlms, I would talk to command.
My husband and I are both Marines, and I am a member of some of our neighborhood community pages. SOOO many girls in my neighborhood are apart of an MLM.
No way! Dude that’s so badass good for you!
And yes it’s crazy how flooded each base is with mlms... it’s too much 😕
Madison Harnish Thank you! It’s really sad, a lot of these women end up having to stay home because the CDC is full, day care out in town is too expensive so they are stay at home moms. Commonly see younique, lularoe, and I think pampered chef. Got my make up done by a girl for the Marine Corps ball, and she used mostly younique products. Never thought about how easy of targets milsos are until you posted! Shoot, even I have been reached out to by other spouses because “I serve and it would make a good selling point”
@@kro___ “you serve time it would be a good selling point.” damn they’re good. 😭😳
@@hudanassiri you’re not wrong 😭😅
2:00 kitty on the fridge! Kitty on the fridge! Don't hurt yourself kitty!
Lol I was wondering who would be the first to notice that 🤣🤣🤣
My cat loves chilling on the fridge and waits til you forget to attack from above.
I've been watching your content for a while now and I'm glad you put in your two cents towards this, I would hear jokes about it and I never once would see the explanation about it. And yea, military couples marry younger because (from what I heard) the resources, benefits and other things are easier to have when you are legally attached to them. It's sad that these groups go for people who already in a tight spot.
I know right! And yes that’s what it seems to be, I know the benefits was a huge reason my husband and I got married instead of just living together for a while (we had a small wedding and tbh never really cared about the event itself, just being together)
the experience of a military spouse sounds very similar to the experience of a third culture kid (children/teenagers who move around internationally a lot/who do not grow up in the culture that their parents belong to)
This is a huge reason I’m pursuing tattooing. My husband is USAF, and I know every military town has at least one tattoo shop nearby that I’d be able to find work at. I’m recently married, not even living on base yet, but I already have seen the MLM issue in the milspo community :/
Dec 27, 2020
Best of luck to your tattooing apprenticeship! Hope you and your family stay strong with all this virus and wherever your husband gets deployed. Thank you to your husband for serving our country.
😄🌟
I’d love to see a deep dive into Lifevantage. I don’t see anyone talk about this MLM, and they’re SO awful. Keep up the great content Madison!!! I love your videos!
Thank you!! I will look into that one
are these the life insurance MLM? They are really freaking awful for that’s the one I’m thinking of
I didn't even know there was such a thing as an mlm insurance. Now I'm wondering when I got approached by a friend to buy some insurance if she was in some sort of mlm insurance. I thought it was weird, but never gave it much thought I was even thinking about giving it a try just to see. Oh boy!
I think it is how my aunt got into MLMs...military spouse, she is.
Makes sense! It’s so widespread in military spouses communities 😕
Yoda, are you?
Your insight is so amazing! If you’re interested, I would love to see a video about mlms and Christianity since a lot of mlms brand themselves as “Christian companies”. Love your work!
YES that is SUCH a good topic!! Thank you 💜
I'm glad i found these antimlm channels. Here in my country they have a thing where they ask you out to party or drinks or dinner whatever and suddenly you find yourself on a "meeting". Haha they basically kidnap you to listen to them.
Same here 😳, I'm from Mexico
Just to follow up, I think one way to help end the MLM grip on the military community is they could ban MLMs from base housing. Although I don't know how that would work now that most housing is privatized but I remember you use to need command permission to have a home based business and they could simply crack down using that authority.
TOTALLY agree!! It would at least help limit the amount of people that felt “excluded” because they didn’t want to participate in the mlm parties!
Its really heartbreaking how many Military spouses are targeted by these sorts of things... Its hard enough to make that lifestyle work without companies preying on them.
Ikr!! I’m so frustrated by it, especially since it erodes the support system of other military spouses 😕
Active duty female here, and yeah, it's bad. One of my jobs is inprocessing soldiers to my unit and I warn them to keep an eye out for these companies! Btw, I think you'll like Colorado Springs a lot!
So your husband is lucky as he can never bet a victim to MLM.Male spouses must have it easy then.
Back with another story, shorter this time. We've been on the same base for the last couple years as our first home away from home. My husband is AF, I was medically discharged AF, and we had just the one daughter at the time. Our first Halloween rolled around and we went by the housing office's table so my daughter could get goodies and the manager of the housing office handed me a little baggie saying "And something for Mommy too". It was her Pure Romance card. It was 800 levels of awkward and that was when I learned there's an adult toy MLM... From the woman that handles my rent and housing needs.
NO. FREAKING. WAY!! How awkward 🤦♀️
I am active duty USAF, identify as non binary but have typically female body parts, and my spouse is a man who is a USAF veteran. I also used to be Mormon, so MLMs were around me for a big part of my life. My babysitter growing up (who was Mormon) was into BeautyControl, Tupperware, Pampered Chef, Mary Kay, Cookie Lee jewelry, and now Paparazzi. She is an older woman and was stuck at home trying to contribute financially to her household but just lost a shit ton of money in the process. They lost their home and had to move after years of these MLM ventures.
I haven’t noticed a lot of MLM talk since entering active duty service, although one of my coworkers has a spouse who does/used to sell Scentsy but is now going back to college to further her education (a much better course of action IMO).
Thanks so much for making videos like these - I’ve been bingeing your content for the past 3 days 👌
THANK YOU! Sorry my account was down for a bit, changed computers. BUT I'm honored you used my article.
So this is why the guard made all of us take anti Mlm classes.
We were all very surprised when a anti mom class was mixed in with the suicide prevention, financial help, and anti serial harrasment class
When you put your 21 rst birthday video I, a 22 years old woman who's single and still in college I'm scared of the situation of a military spouse.
There are people who are 40 that go back to college. College i loved. If it was free i would go again lol. Best years for me.
I always think of it this way- there should never be a specific timeline in which one should “live their life”, I haven’t graduated college (I got halfway through my classes and the costs mounted up, and I lost my passion for it) but I may feel the desire to go back later in life and that’s great! There is no right or wrong time to do anything, just as long as you’re happy and feel like you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be! 💜🌟
I'm 24, in my final year of masters & still single. I learned to overcome that social pressure of getting married & having kids by acknowledging that I have other priorities and for me, those are more important for my security at the moment 😌
@@cruelworldhappymind I agree 100%.:) I studied to get a new career, completed my studies in 2017, and have been teaching adults ever since. I'm in my early 40's. Back at the university, when I originally got to study a degree and was already 26 when I started, there were a few retired people, some came to finish their degree "now that they finally had the time for it", some only starting. One year I was a peer tutor for a group of new students who had gained access to the university through open university. I'm Finnish, so I bet the system might work very differently in the US, but anyway I've seen and experienced how life long learning works. And also as a teacher in creative writing my students tend to be aged 25 to 85.
I am a Marine wife in Okinawa with my husband, on an air base. I know how this goes. The women are ruthless with these things- like the "college" scammers, for one. I FEEL THIS.
When we were stationed in S. Korea the base we were at had on base housing and leased off base housing. So we were split into two different communities. I was in off base housing, so I don't know how the on base spouses were, I assume the same. All spouses were not allowed to get jobs...it wasn't allowed by the agreement with the government or they would "kick the US military out." (I knew several wives who did have jobs on the economy but I'm sure they weren't ever found out.) So you had a tiny community of say 15 wives and out of them, about 7 had MLMs. It was a constant circle of MLM parties...and if Mary went to your party you then had to go to hers. It was pretty easy to see that any money being made was just changing hands into whomever was holding a party that week. The only folks making any real money were the MLMs. And sadly most wives had a house full of MLM products to add to her weight allowance to move back home with. I had already decided after my first Military MLM party stateside that I was going to avoid the parties at all costs. Luckily while I was frequently invited to parties held by "higher ranking" wives than myself, I was always able to come up with a good excuse to avoid the parties and not order from the catalogs (because that was their backup.)
sooo glad you made this video :) great job calling out what is a totally under-reported issue. Coming from a marine corps family (my dad is now retired) I care about this a lot, but I think most civilians don't understand the unique situations of military members and their spouses and the challenges they face in society. Thank god my mom never got sucked into an MLM after spending 20+ years moving with my dad basically every 3 years.
Thank you! So glad you liked this video and agree! 🌟
I'm a military daughter, but once I was old enough, I was talked into joining a couple different MLMs. One was Lia Sophia, which is no longer in business, and the other was PartyLite Candles. The PartyLite one was particularly eye opening for me. They would have weekly conference call pep talks where they would offer advice on how to scam all your friends and family. They would talk about going after people who were in financial trouble and suggested things like just wearing people down if they say no at first. People were nothing but dollar signs to them. Once I quit that one, I swore I would never get sucked in again.
As an Upstate New Yorker, I felt when you said there’s nothing going on. All we have are cows and snow.
Madison, here' a crazy but possible idea: What if you set up a business(NOT AN MLM) that trains Military Wives to make an income using TH-cam...? You could educate them in all the different areas of youtube(Such as: Beauty, DIY, Daily Vlogging, Lifestyle, Family, Pets, Drama, Product Review, Anti-MLM, Comedy, Finance, Artistic, ASMR, Gaming, Chat Show, Storytime etc. etc.) so that they could find their unique passion and then teach them all the skills they need like camera, lighting, green screen, editing, streaming, advertising, merch etc. etc. to become happy TH-camrs.
They might not all get rich or famous from it but they WILL make more than they would joining an MLM and they will most likely gain a community of friends and followers who are not trying to sell them anything.
Aw that’s such a cute idea!!! Would definitely be open to it!
To make an income on TH-cam you need at least 1 million followers (ie Pewdiepie, Jeffrey starr) Otherwise you're just making a few dollars.
@@Afmedic85 That's actually a misunderstanding. There are many TH-camrs making a full time living with 50k to 100k subscribers which is still a lot but not crazy unattainable.
@@Afmedic85 there's plenty of TH-camrs with less than 150.000 subs making lots of money, views are not the only way to make $.
@@Piscoandmartinis they only make a few dollars from TH-cam. They probably have legitimate jobs. Some people shill products but most of them are just shitty weight loss drinks or shady web6
Military spouse here! I already loved watching your videos but hearing that you’re also a military spouse makes me so happy 😍
Probably the best way to minimize such a rampant plague such as MLM among Military Spouses, would be knowledge of the issue. These videos go a long way towards that goal, as I'm sure your close friends are aware of your channel and can easily spread the videos easier than explaining what to look out for. Well done.
I had no idea you were a military spouse as well! My husband is AF. (You will love Colorado Springs!) Thank you for speaking about this topic, it's definitely an issue within the military spouse community. We had the same issues with the on-base military spouse job assistance program at our previous base. It needs some major revamping. I actually worked as a military spouse employment specialist at my previous base through a state grant, where I worked off base and assisted spouses with services and resources to find meaningful employment. This is something I am super passionate about! Great video.
Wow- I am so impressed!! That’s amazing that you’re working to help with this problem! 💜💜💜
I’m a military wife too down here in Colorado Springs and the hun bots are crazy
No way!! I’ll be joining you there soon! 🥰
Marisa O'Neill yessss girl 👐 so crazy
My husband isn’t in the Air Force anymore but go CS!
Thank you for the high quality, well researched content that you share with us. Wishing you good health and all things good that you want in life. (I also had shorter employment times and companies straight up rejected an interview without even asking me for resons.)
Aw I’m so sorry to hear that! 😕😔 and thank you that means so much!🌟🌟
I am a Navy spouse and own my own photography business- I started out of a passion I had for photography. We lived in Japan and I had nowhere else to work. My business has been something I can confidently promote and stand behind everywhere we move. I have LOADS of friends throughout the years that have tried&failed (and tried&failed) at multiple MLM “opportunities”. I have been invited to party after party. I’ve had so much pressure to purchase/“host” a party. I have lost friendships over refusing to “support their small business like they’ve supported mine”. It’s been the most tiresome cycle to the point where I avoid people who are involved in MLMs. I think they have ultimately damaged relationships and potential for relationships for lots of spouses and have contributed to the already lonesome experience that can come about from being a milso.
I'm not a military spouse, but your comments about your experiences with employment services really resonated with me because that has been similar to my experiences with all the employment service offices I've ever been to. That's not to say they don't have some useful help to offer, but if your needs go beyond basic help with resumes/selection criteria, or applying to jobs then they are useless. The best thing that ever came out of one of these offices for me was when they were getting people into volunteer programs. Nowadays they just force people into online learning to pad out their resumes with basic certificates.
I just got a downline recruitment training ad and I’m glad the algorithm is giving you their scammy money 😂😂😂
Boy this takes me back. 30 years I ago so was a new military spouse and everything she’s saying about now was just like that when I first got married. Military spouses (esp female) tend to be very young and ripe for MLM recruiting. I was actually in one before I got married and my dad intervened and got me out. Thank goodness.
19:00 reminds me of that tone deaf meme where a military wife had a sticker in her car saying, "You will address me by my husband's rank" and she was referred to as *petty and second class.*
Military brat here, my mom sold pampered chef, the big issue she found was that once people bought the products they lasted so long they didn't need to buy new ones. She sold it for a long time probably because so many people came in and out of our town. She stopped selling it when she was no longer making sales because new reps started popping up. Im glad she didn't lose a bunch of money and the products were at least useful it's so crazy knowing that it was an MLM now.
Wow. I am so happy someone directed me to your video. Both my husband and I serve so I’m both a member and a spouse and I have been introduced to more MLMs than I’d like. I’m so glad someone covered this and sad to have just seen it. The spouse community is over saturated with MLMs and they take it as if we don’t buy from them then we support the big stores and companies. Which if not supporting your MLM means that then sure. I’m going to keep sharing this every time I see someone on the spouse page post about an MLM in hopes of spreading the word 🙌🏽❤️
Thank you so so much for this video. My husband is out now but when he was active duty it was insane how many MLMs there were, and also how many people fell for them. Really sad. I have always felt like SAHMs and military wives are the main targets because of their vulnerability! And you’re honestly the first person I’ve seen address both. Love your channel so much!
PS I always felt like it was so hard to find a nice, normal girl to be friends with on a new base! Thank you for showing the world that military wives aren’t all crazies lol
This hands down the truth about mlms and MilSos. They know that we are a vulnerable group and want to feel “productive” and “useful” by brining an income. I recently started back up again with military content on my channel and I really wanted to tackle this topic on there. I just didn’t know how but this video has given the inspiration ❤️ We as MilSos need to not only inform newer MilSos of all the benefits related to the military but also some of the dangers that lurk within our community.
this is really really heartbreaking to hear I really had no idea. Military spouses went through this kind of thing I mean I've heard some things about not being able to find good work because of lack of stability but I guess when you're not living the life you don't truly know what someone's going through.military spouses fight a different war than their spouses that are deployed and they should be supported to the best of our government's capabilities. But that shows you the government that your loved ones I loved ones are fighting for.
So well said 🥰🌟
My first mlm party was in officer housing at Fort Sham Houston. I bought some stuff from the lady. Looking back, I was thirsty for friends. I can’t imagine going through a deployment without the support of the other wives. Luckily, they were not heavily involved in mlms .
Isn’t it against the military rules to operate any business out of military housing?
Also, I have made some coin flipping things on eBay. I encourage military spouses to look into that avenue. It’s a lot of fun and you don’t have to bug your friends and family.
I enjoyed hearing from the other spouses. Take care everyone. 😊👋😷💅🏻
Working Freelance is also a really great way to work temporary jobs while getting that experience. Also if your MWR ever offers some transition counseling to please take it, my husband and I would've never known any of the opportunities that were available because you really need to reach out to find some of these programs and networks.
Another suggestion I have that's a better investment than MLM is if you're the creative type sell on Etsy or craft fairs. I knew tons of ladies who made soaps or cloth diapers, even if you're not creative but like making some sort of craft like knitting or sewing there's always something basic you can create to sell and people will buy it.
Thank you guys!! These suggestions are both really amazing alternatives and I know there are so many military spouses that would really enjoy these options!
Sonisis Speedpaints I loooved my job with MWR.
Madison! You should make a video on how MLMs target college kids. I'm from Mexico so the situation might be a little different but, at least since 2017 MLMs shifted from single and stay at home moms to university students, specially Amway and NuSkin. At one point you couldn't go to a class peacefully without a hoard trying to get you to join their team. It's infuriating because you had 40 to 50 year old people convincing 18 to 20 year olds to join these scams with the promise of financial stability and freedom when they knew perfectly those kids would only spend like crazy. Anyway, I love your content. ¡Saludos!
THANK YOU! That’s such a great topic!
Excellent video - this has to be one of your best. I'm neither from the US nor anything to do with the military and this managed to capture and explain the MLM/military spouse dynamic in a way that nothing has before and really helped me to see how especially heartbreaking the situation is. Thank you for sharing this content
Wow thank you so much!!! 😻😻💜💜 I’m so glad you enjoyed!
MLMs exploit good organizations in the worst way. They thrive in religious, military, workout, mommy, and even educational communities. It’s so frustrating.
Yes!! Making a series on these topics diving into each of those demographics! 🌟
Madison Harnish Well, if you need any help, I’m a Mormon from Utah and I’ve seen it all 🤦🏼♀️
Got married to my military spouse this year and literally joked about putting "i will not join an mlm" in my vows.
I came across your channel pretty recently and immediately became obsessed with your videos on MLMs. It seems like most people that aren't in them, hate them, but it's really interesting to see your personal ties to the mlm world. It made me think back on a lot of the women I know that advertise mlm products on Facebook and a lot of them are military spouses. Thanks for bringing such a niche but serious problem more to light!!
THANK YOU! 💜💜🌟 I’m so glad you’re enjoying them!!
I really appreciated your deep dive into how MLMs harm military spouses and their communities. I knew they were a vulnerable to MLM demographic, but I had no idea how deep the exploitation went and really how few options they have on base etc
Thank you!! I’m so glad you enjoyed 🥰💜
Not a military spouse, but an Army Brat - the system consistently fails our soldiers and their families. After my dad retired, he began working for the local VAC and my family volunteers with Gold Star families. It’s a struggle to get veterans health care and access to mental health and housing. I hope you are doing okay right now with covid and that you are receiving proper assistance! 💕
It's strange for me to find out that military spouses in the US Army are not being more supported seeing how crazy proud the US is of their military and how much applause soliders get...here in Germany, being in the military is just another (very safe and well-paid) job. I've had to move around all my life due to the military careers of my dad and then my husband so I never grew roots anywhere but I did chose a stable career for myself that I could do anywhere and I never had trouble getting a job or even working from home (not in MLMs). There is absolutely no Support for military spouses here in Germany but at least we're not being fooled into thinking that there should be, seeing as being in the military isn't seen as glamourous and important here as it is in the US
Just a small note, at 19:11 the screenshot and what you are reading aloud don't match up. Great video! Important that things like this be brought to light.
Yes!! Lol slight editing mistake 🤦♀️ thank you!
I'm a military kid and while I don't remember how big they were in the 2000s/2010s, I do know the base my parents are currently at outright banned MLMs because they kept screwing spouses over which in turn messes up the active-duty members. I think my mom mentioned they were bigger back in the day but its been so long.
I grew up in Alaska and was the child of a mentally ill mother. We were always in Battered women shelters. Mary Kay visited the shelters often and it felt creepy because who could afford to buy something when they are homeless!!??
Even working at Walmart, I try not to pressure(or peer pressure) people into buying something. It makes me feel so uncomfortable when people try to break down your will to get you to buy something. Once you notice it, you see how many people try to do it, it happens in everything to TH-camrs to video game companies to health and beauty companies. It's very predatory
I’m about to become a military spouse and I’m pretty young. I feel very isolated due to the fact that I don’t really want to tell people I’m getting married and am going to be an army wife. I think everything you said was very important and informative and I’m glad I watch your videos because it made me feel a little better seeing how you are also a military spouse and so young.
Thank you, and congratulations ! 🌟🌟💜💜
No matter what, always do what feels right to you, trust your gut and never look back! 💜
I was literally about to suggest a MLM in the Military Spouse community video when this one popped up! So well said Madison. Thankfully when I became a military spouse during the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan the Family Readiness Groups were at a peak, offering opportunities for young spouses to socialize in low stress (zero sales) environments while our partners were deployed. That's not to say I haven't see my share of MLM "opportunities" over the years. As you said in the video, many military spouses are seeking gainful employment, when there are rather limited options in small military towns too far from the cities to commute and not enough gainful opportunities to go around. I'm hoping the advances in tech will improve the odds for gainful military spouse employment. That's the direction I turned with in my career (thanks to a Military Spouse Career Advancement Scholarship) many moons ago and hope it becomes a more viable option for other military spouses. Thanks for the vid!
I'm so glad the algorithm brought me to you - you are AMAZING and I love all the anti-MLM stuff you cover!!!
Truly sickening how these companies prey on women in tough situations, promising them support and companionship only to turn on them when they can't sustain being in the MLM. As if these Military spouses don't have enough to deal with in their lives already. Stay strong girl! Love your channel and the way you fight against these asswipes!
I’m prior service in the CG (served 8 years). I love this channel because this is accurate. Since my fiancée didn’t live with me, because I lived on my cutter, she didn’t get that much influence but Herbalife and The Nails one is by far the funniest thing we experienced. Since I left to a totally different place I still get email from those Dependas.
No way!! 😂🤦♀️
OMG- you must be at Ft. Drum! I was stationed there for a year and grew up in the Albany area. Man, Drum was tough. I remember the 5am runs and coming back with ice coming off of my baklava. It was the coldest year of my life. No wonder they do all of the cold weather training there. Thank you for supporting our military as well. Spouses make a huge difference in morale!
Being a part of this community and still having the lady balls to make this video is amazing. Thank you for talking about this passionately while still being logical. I have friends who are going through this and I am definitely going to share this video with them.
I’m a military brat and my mom still has lots of Mary Kay and tubbaware left over from when my dad was stationed over seas over a decade ago. Her friend (who she met in the military) has “recruited” her in a couple different ones recently but thankfully those didn’t pan out.
I'm watching an MLM conference online right now just to get someone who is pretending to be a friend off of my back. Shoot me! The whole message is that you're doing yourself a disservice and you're giving up your dreams if you don't work for OPTavia. So many sheeple!
The way I literally got an ad for what seemed like an MLM on this video
Fellow Military spouse here and this is too relatable! After arriving at our first station, I started noticing all these different "consultants" and "managers" selling the same products within local spouses groups. I keep thinking that these all sounded sketchy and starting researching these products and that's when I fell down the anti-MLM rabbit hole lol. I definitely can see the appeal for spouses to join as it can be defeating trying to start a career or even get a job when you don't know how long you will be there and your resume looks like it is all over the place. Now I am afraid to start going to spouse gatherings because they might try to lure me in with free snacks and then attempt to recruit me haha. Thank you for bringing light to this topic because employment struggles are real and it is terrible that there are companies that feed off of it!
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed this video 💜
My husband is from upstate NY, and was also stationed where I think you might be after basic. We will welcome you to Colorado when you come here. 😊 (Denver here, born and raised on the western side of the state.) You will be moving to our "Bible belt" and MLM/prosperity gospel and Rachel Hollis sheeple abound there. You will be needed. Lol
Ooh so excited... 😅🤣 but WOW THANK YOU!! That’s so sweet of you 😻💜
I’m a Military spouse and us Army Veteran. I’m new to the military spouse role, but I have heard of the MLM community targeting military spouses in particular. Thank you for this information!
Yes so glad you enjoyed!!💜
I know this is an older video but I think you described life as a military mom perfectly. It's something really unique and really indescribable. Although I'm not a military kid, I can relate to it.
My dad worked on the Alaskan Pipeline for 2 weeks, and came home for 2 weeeks. Essentially all of the everyday struggles - like getting us to school, getting us fed, washing our clothes, etc was put on my mom and only my mom. I always explain it to people that my dad was in my life and there for me, but my mom was kinda a single mom, even though she was married.
Not everyone women can be a military spouse (or a Alaskan Pipeline wife)
Military spouse here and thank u for speaking on this!! Perioddddd
Interesting! I knew that it’s common for military spouses to be involved in mlms, it’s interesting to hear about the reasons behind it. Seems like it’s kind of a perfect storm.
I know right!
As a military spouse I can say this video is 100% TRUE!! Thanks for caring the truth, girl!
Thank you!! 🙏💜💜
Yes! They are everywhere on posts and FB. It makes trying to find a support system and friends so difficult sometimes.
Agreed!! 😕
THANK YOU! I’m so ducking tired of being approached by them.
Ikr!!
I’ve been subscribed since your first few videos and I just want to say your growth makes me so so happy. You have amazing content and I can’t wait until you reach over a million!
Thank you SO MUCH LOVE!!!! 💜💜💜💜
How messed up is it that the US military forces people to move every couple of years? My father was in the military for his entire life (Belgian military). We only moved once: when the base he worked on closed. After that, the worked at the same base for over 10 years.
You brought something new to my attention. I appreciate this contribution to the conversation. Well done
"So I see from your resume that you moved around quite a bit...." I have never been to an interview where they even looked at the resume.
y e s!! they totally do target military spouses! I can’t go to a single job fair on post bc they are ALL mlms. I stopped adding military spouses from my mil church group because all of them are in either a tea mlm, monat, scentsy, or arbonne. even knowing how awful mlms are you start to wonder if maybe that would be a way to find community! they absolutely prey on the loneliness and lack of job security. I’ve got about 3 years of professional child care under my belt and yet had to settle for a job at target because the job market is surprisingly competitive in military communities!
Totally agree, I’ve noticed the job market goes through phases when new families pcs with crazy high job competition!
When my husband was in the Air Force NO ONE would hire me. They would interview me and never call me. That’s why so many in the military have a one income household.
I'm late as usual! I'm also a military spouse! My husband is in the navy. Thank you for talking about these issues. I hope you've been well!
The only mlm experience I had while I was a military spouse was towards the end when all a sudden our FRG treasurer brought up if anyone wanted to buy some essential oils at the end of the meeting. No one bought but I wish I spoke to her before I left, I really hope she stopped, she had a very good business cleaning houses for families moving. From my experience, the experience of a Military spouse varies from base to base, I'm so thankful that my husband's ship had a separate guidance counselor who could help us with our marriage and such a helpful ombudsman, I would hear from the other Spouses how much nicer they were being treated here compared to their last post and it was all because our Triade had worked very hard to ensure their Sailors had the resources to focus on their work. I wonder why so many Officers don't try to do the same when they have the power but I do know that by the end of the day the priority is to defend our country and sadly I feel the families are just always left out.
Thank you for sharing your experience! That sounds wonderful and I’m so happy you found such an awesome base!
Great video. It’s very sad. These women should be supporting each other. Just subscribed.
Agreed 😕 and aw thanks!! I’m so glad 🥰
I would love to see a video research on wolrdventures. I haven't seen a lot of videos about this particular scam
Yeees! I was invited to a "party" for this one...had no idea it was for this mlm..strange experience.
Thank you for sharing! I will look into this 🙏
the only time i’ve heard of it was in tiffany ferg’s video with her sister on mlm’s! i’d also love to hear more
Ya they got me for almost a year... uugghh
This is why a loved one of mine fell into MLM’s. I get it, she’s lonely and has desperately tried to make friends with other military spouses and hasn’t had much success. I think she got so defeated that when someone from ARBONNE approached her she went for it. I kept encouraging her to look at peoples stories and how they got completely screwed over. Of course the allure of sisterhood and friends was something she couldn’t resist. She’s already seen a promotion due to her getting enough people underneath her. Honestly it makes me so sad. I can’t look at her posts anymore, she’s using the term “boss babe” un-ironically so I think she’s really down that rabbit hole.
I never knew that it was prevalent for military spouses to join MLMs. Military spouses requrie more assistance to find quality childcare, good paying jobs that meet their educational standards as well as find friends. Thank you for sharing your story as it shows the importance of these factors and how it affects military spouses.
No offense but I feel like I doged the world's biggest bullet by not marrying a guy I met in highschool who joined the army when I was literally 18 😐😬 I was with him because I was depressed and getting abused at home. My life and mental health would have definitely got far worse.
I remember being a young military wife with a baby. I got sucked into the Mary Kay world. It’s the one thing I regret when I was young lol I wish I listened to the voice that said I didn’t need a “job” to feel worth while. That’s what they sold to me. “Don’t you want to contribute to the household verses just staying home all day?” Like I wasn’t raising a kid or anything. Ugh. It was a world full of very toxic women and I wish I could see that then.
I used to work for a company that has a lot of military families and one of them did mention an MLM, but legally, she couldn't sell me anything. Thank God.
Keep up the good work.Enjoying these videos in this unprecedented situations.👍
Thank you I’m so glad!! 🥰
This is so true my husband was in for 9 years and the number of MLM parties i went to was a lot. I worked in healthcare and went to school while he was in. It’s funny now that he is out i have only been to one MLM parties.