The way people are doing business nowadays has changed all over the world, especially when we look at network marketing in India. Values and ethics which have been mostly visible earlier have become a cornered piece in today’s time. The face of network marketing in India has got totally changed over the years. Need of the hour is to have prudence, humility, ethics and the interest for common good.
The issue is simple. You must get rid of dishonesty and corruption from your own system. You will have to play a very crucial and pivotal role in implementing it. I am very sure you don’t have a personal inclination in corruption. May be money and power holds very little significance for you. But unbound compulsions to maintain a certain lifestyle and regular assurances to family for a decent livelihood compels you to compromise on the moral front and forces you to commit undesirable acts or crimes.
If the first 13 years are any indication, then this century has a very high probability of going down in history as the “century of corruption, frauds, and extortion”. A series of high profile companies scandals unfolded this decade – Enron, subprime mortgages, LIBOR rate rigging. Corporate leaders are now making news for all the wrong reasons and are losing their dignity. Some among them are Rajat Gupta, an Indian and exDirector of Mc-Kinsey and Company, Bob Diamond – the former CEO of Barclays Bank’s who was implicated in LIBOR Scandal. Both Diamond and Rajat were well-known in their respective industry for their supreme business acumen and wisdom. They were praised for their extraordinary intellect and their quality of work. Their organizations stocks grew rapidly in market under their leadership. So what went wrong? What got these gods into these problems? It was not their lack of ability and intellect but lapse of their moral principles and values. Yes, the things which we take for granted can cause greatest of downfalls in the context of network marketing in India.
Examples of Failed Network Marketing in India
Now let us talk of some people who used network marketing in India in a different way. Snap shot of Rajat Gupta case – It was a fateful day on the October the 26th 2011, Rajat Gupta, an Indian, Ex Director of Mc Kinsey and co. and also one of the most informed and serious personalities in the financial and banking field, known for his services he offered to the company, was convicted and arrested on the charges of insider trading.
He was accused of releasing inside information of his company to his close friend Raj Rajaratnam. Raj was running a huge hedge fund of $9 billion. Raj was also sentenced and sent to jail along with his close accomplices. What was wrong in it? Rajat’s telling company information to his friend was definitely wrong, but more wrong happened when his friend Raj used this information as an opportunity to make some hefty earnings out of it, which led to fall of company stocks and thereby affected its indirect and direct sales. Rajat would have never ever imagined that, his small mistake would earn him so many miseries.
He was accused of releasing inside information of his company to his close friend Raj Rajaratnam. Raj was running a huge hedge fund of $9 billion. Raj was also sentenced and sent to jail along with his close accomplices. What was wrong in it? Rajat’s telling company information to his friend was definitely wrong, but more wrong happened when his friend Raj used this information as an opportunity to make some hefty earnings out of it, which led to fall of company stocks and thereby affected its indirect and direct sales. Rajat would have never ever imagined that, his small mistake would earn him so many miseries.
In India, with the stock exchanges, the so called “Dalal Street”, the insider trading is very prominent and its magnitude and scale is limitless. Take the case of the next door real estate developers, who by bribing the government bodies and authorities, unfairly and unjustifiably extracted out the master plan of the government development plan and beforehand bought the real estate in bulk to be sold off to buyers at a later stage at very high premium. This is also an example of an insider trading where the product’s price is unduly raised without letting the end user know anything about it. This is example of relentless dishonesty, greed and materialism. People tend to become extremely dishonest when they hold a position of power. Dealing with trickery and falsehood is like a wild horse; your initial ride can be until you are thrown away from it.
When I hear all this, I get a feeling of rage. I get insomniac and my blood boils with anger. I feel like hurting someone really bad. I wonder how these people become so selfish and greedy, that they put their own jobs at risk to earn extra money. On the top of all this, it’s even harder to believe, they like what they do and don’t want to change.
“Change” – Newest Mantra of Network Marketing in India
Yes, you interpreted it right, in the context of network marketing in India, change means sticking your neck out, break the norm and start questioning the normal. Do not be a follower but be a change leader. Acknowledge the problem and please do something. Dishonesty and cheating is now becoming a part of us. It is getting ingrained in our system. Don’t let that happen. As Vivekananda had said “could mud be washed with mud”? Could “blood be washed with blood”. The answer is No. So, why just not so simple direct selling for the organization and earn accolades rather than using illicit means of gaining money.
To tame and harness dishonesty in the long run, you need wisdom that gives you ethical clarity and sense of purpose.
May I have got it all wrong, may be my hope & optimism are misplaced, and I am just like them; an odd loser. To tame and harness dishonesty in the long run, you need wisdom that gives you ethical clarity and sense of purpose. When wisdom provides the moral compass, sticking to correct values become more potent. Clearly, at this point we need some change leaders who can act and also lead with maturity and wisdom.
In the current times, only few corporate leaders relentlessly and intuitively follow and appreciate the value of honesty and integrity. My personal role models are Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Ratan Tata, Narayan Murthy, Oprah Winfrey, John Mackey who have not defaulted from their ethical moral position even once in their long corporate career. All these people have actually contributed a lot in the establishment of this school of thought and leadership and the evolution of network marketing in India.
What To Do, How To Inculcate All This In Network Marketing In India?
Considering all these aspects of network marketing in India, it seems desirable to be an honest and value driven leader and it really is. In this complex and uncertain times, when we stick to our principles, we not only experience remarkable success but also feel capable and strong, operating at the top of our game. Both honesty and strong values help achieve both sense of accomplishment and fulfillment. It brings meaningful growth and eternal prosperity to not only individuals but also to the organizations they lead.
The issue is simple. You must get rid of dishonesty and corruption from your own system. You will have to play a very crucial and pivotal role in implementing it. I am very sure you don’t have a personal inclination in corruption. May be money and power holds very little significance for you. But unbound compulsions to maintain a certain lifestyle and regular assurances to family for a decent livelihood compels you to compromise on the moral front and forces you to commit undesirable acts or crimes.
It isn’t easy to change things but its need to be done. And all of you need to take a chance and take bull by his horns and control it. Remember it’s your responsibility to correct the changed face of Network Marketing in India. Nobody else can do this, except you all.
The brutal question I am going to ask you people is, “are you guys up for this new face of network marketing in India??”
By Tarun Gupta
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