New Perspectives

Stories in this section:
Lessons in Leadership
Direct Selling: A Real Business
Neil Offen: Why Are We Hot?

Lessons in Leadership
by Dyan Lucero

I joined Jafra without an inkling of how that decision would change my life and give me the opportunity to change others' lives. Like a number of us in direct sales, I attended my first party only because a friend begged me to. I had absolutely no intention of buying anything and was not the least bit interested. But that's not the way the evening turned out!

I couldn't believe how much fun my friend had showing everyone how to use the products and the fun I had experimenting with them, too. By the end of the night, my friend had sold something to every single person there, and she had a ball doing it. I decided to host a party of my own. After watching my friends respond so well to the products, it didn't take me long to sign up as an independent consultant for Jafra. That was thirty-three years ago, and I still love my job and have fun with it every day.

This year, Jafra celebrates its fiftieth anniversary. Perhaps more accurately, this year we celebrate "50 Years of Changing Lives." As you'd expect from the company with the mission to empower women personally, professionally and financially, we'll be celebrating in grand fashion with the introduction of new commemorative anniversary products and packaging, special events, cash bonuses, exciting programs and more.

We're especially pleased to support our vast family of women through a partnership with the American Heart Association's "Go Red for Women" movement. During the month of March, consultants will hold "Beautiful Heart Pamper Parties" to help spread the word that heart disease is the No. killer of women and to show their clients how to take the first steps to a healthy heart. Jafra will also support its consultants by hosting "Beautiful Heart Rallies" throughout the nation. The parties and rallies will give consultants and their clients an opportunity to raise and donate funds to benefit the American Heart Association.

While we're all excited about this important milestone year, our fiftieth anniversary is not only a time of celebration, but a time of reflection. It gives us an opportunity to get reacquainted with our past, reaffirm our values, and set new goals for the future.

In looking back on our past, I can't help but think of the founders of the Jafra family, Jan and Frank Day. The Days were true pioneers in the direct selling industry. From a Malibu, California, home-based startup, they built Jafra into a national leader in the skin care and beauty industry, and they did it by keeping true to their vision to create a company that would empower women. It's a testament to their leadership and business savvy that the company they started continues to grow-using the direct selling and party planning strategies they put in place fifty years ago-and is now an international enterprise with a network consisting of more than 400,000 independent consultants in 22 countries.

In many ways, Jan and Frank not only built a company, they created a blueprint for leadership and shared it with women of all circumstances. By doing so, they lived up to their vision to empower women by giving them an outlet for their dreams, a sense of their own value, and the financial wherewithal to focus on the things of importance, such as their homes, families and friends. That's true leadership.

Jan and Frank's motto, "Sharing and Caring," combined with our current motto, "Philosophy Before Results," is still embraced by Jafra's leadership and consultants, and I continue to use it as a guidepost for success. I see so many companies focusing on the bottom line to the exclusion of all else. I think that focus is a little like putting the cart before the horse. I know from experience, and from the examples set by Jan and Frank, that if we as individuals and as a company focus on living up to our values and visions, we will achieve our desired results-financially and in every other way we choose to measure success. To help ensure we realize our vision, rather than focus on the bottom line, we fix our sights on our independent consultants. The more we help others get what they want, the more we ultimately receive. We are helping women reach their dreams, and that is why 2006 will be the best year ever.

Our success begins and ends with our consultants. We marshal an international support enterprise to provide our consultants with a fabulous product line, a lucrative program, superior customer service and comprehensive training. What sets Jafra apart is our unlimited horizontal and vertical compensation structure for leaders. In addition, our easy entry plan allows new consultants to earn up to 100 percent profit of our product line. But more importantly, we listen to and talk with our consultants daily, and we act swiftly and appropriately to address not only their concerns, but their fresh ideas and "at-the-party" perspectives.

Our consultants are our foundation and our public face. They have all the real power and knowledge as they embody the Jafra brand, interact with clients, and see firsthand how clients respond to new products, packaging, promotions and other innovations. They are more than an extension of the company-they are family.

In preparing this article, I was asked the question, "Are leaders born or made?" While I don't have the definitive answer, I believe leaders are made as well as born. The lessons I've learned over 33 years of experience in direct sales tell me it's true. Thirty-three years of watching women from all different backgrounds take charge of their lives, find financial independence, and then eagerly share those same opportunities in order to empower other women-these all show me it's true. The interesting thing about leadership is that if you ask ten different people what the qualities are that make a great leader, you'll likely get ten different answers. I think the qualities that make people great leaders are as different as there are businesses to be led.

At Jafra, the qualities of leadership that are at the core of our family and the hallmarks of our culture are the ability to empower others, a passion for people and for our products, the willingness to share, and the desire to contribute.

Our leaders are role models of intelligence and compassion, and they empower others-both clients and other consultants in their own downline-by giving them important work to do and products that help them feel good about themselves. Jafra offers rewards and recognition for their efforts, and provides ongoing support to help them realize their full potential and achieve their personal vision of success.

One of the most inspiring traits our leaders share is their passion for people and for our products. They believe in what they do and in our products, and their passion shows. They are helpful, enthusiastic and optimistic, and their satisfaction with their lives shines through to color everything they do.

On a daily basis, our consultants lead other women by sharing our quality products and the financial opportunities we offer. Our leaders share their own personal stories in order to encourage and inspire other women. Most impressively, they willingly share their own, often hard-won, knowledge to help others achieve the personal growth, professional advancement and financial independence they seek.

Looking back on my own experience and time as an independent consultant, I realize that many women are fueled by the same thing that keeps me going: the desire to contribute. It's an unbeatable feeling giving another woman the opportunity to achieve both personal and financial success, and knowing the impact that success will have on her family, friends and community. When I empower someone to become her best, she passes it on to others; the feeling is priceless. It's a fire that energizes mentally and physically and renews my commitment to myself, my fellow consultants, and the company.

In the next fifty years, we will help even more women transform their lives through personal fulfillment and financial independence. To that end, we will further Jan and Frank's vision to empower women, and we will strive to live up to our goal to be the best for women and their families. After years of international growth, my goal is to bring Jafra "back home" by exposing even more people in the United States to the Jafra name and products and by increasing the number of consultants throughout the country. It's a goal I know we'll achieve, as we have a fabulous front line of leaders to help get us there.