#multi level marketing groups

[rainyfestivalsweets]

2/4/24

The MLM hack list

Alright. So there are a bunch of MLM diet companies that make a shitload of money of of us and yet our obesity rates in developed countries are thru the freaking roof.

How many times have you gotten the messages on Facebook, Instagram or whatever and it's like: Hey girl, haven't seen you since high school, let's get coffee... OR... they just post the precopied message & ask about your goals, & proceed to add a flurry of hyperpositive social media messages, like my friend recently did to me.

Did anyone in high school like you? Not me! Do that screams danger from the start. I was horrendously bullied in elementary school. I was gone to a parochial school for a couple years so the only reason that I avoided constant bullying in high school was because... they forgot who I was.

Here are some ideas I stole from various companies, cheaper:

Herbalife: this company's stuff works, for 2 reasons- you replace 2 out of 3 meals with shakes. However, alot of people are not successful if they make their shakes at home and if they add in all the snack bars. People do, however, lose weight if they get their shakes from a "nutrition" shop. Why? Because they blend those shakes super thick with a metric shitton of ice & I think alot of them add sf pudding, which enhances the thickness. Also, you get an iced tea, normally with added fiber. So the answer is- you have 2 drinks that take a long time to finish AND give you added caffeine & fiber. So? Just do it at home: keep your shake calories low, make it extra large & thicker than a snicker, & follow with a caffeinated tea & add fiber to it. I like the herbalife brand but I order it off Amazon so I don't have to get the whole shpeel. Now brand has "prebiotic fiber" that is cheaper. There is also benefiber from Walmart. It is cheap, so why not?

Beachbody: you don't need to spend a billion dollars on protein shakes or meal replacement shakes. I do, however, love some of their workout systems.

Tai Slim: this company's great idea was the chocolate gluccomannon chews, I just didn't know ot at the time. I have tried to order it but have been unable to so maybe they don't make it any more. So my hack would be- the chocolate calcium chews, some gluccomannon tablets, & a large glass of water.

Modere: this company was all over tik tok & reels for awhile, while the reps were trying to schlep people into this scheme. The Golden Child was the liquid CLA chocolate, probably because it tastes like a chocolatey treat while it is actually a CLA supplement. CLA can be purchased at almost any health food store, way cheaper.

Plexus: the pink drink. More research needed on this, but I think it is just a fiber drink. Hack: gluccomannon powder & a Starburst all pink flavor packet.

Most of these companies often sell an associated "fat burner:" often something with caffeine, ecgc from green tea, etc. You can get something similar at a health food store for a fraction of the price. If you want something fancy, there is Ember from the Ambrosia Collective. Use the Google. MFINGCOO is a discount code that I think still works, but it isn't mine.

The other way these companies are successful is because they have a built in "tribe." Weight watchers, beachbody, herbalife-- they rope you into a bunch of meetings, calls, and online groups. A bunch of people are sharing ideas regularly and getting involved in their cultish antics. You can do this on your own by finding your own people. You can get your own seminars by watching a lot of youtube. Anything that focuses on reprogramming you to cook at home and eat primarily whole foods will probably work. Join free groups. Disregard anything outside of what works for you ( I have to ignore a lot of dessert recipes because they cause bingeing for me).

Lipozene: pretty sure this is just gluccomannon. You can find gluccomannon tablets way cheaper at a health food store. Walmart also was carrying a generic version.

Hydroxycut: pretty sure the active ingredient here is HCA? I don't have a bottle currently to look. But isn't HCA just garcinia? So much cheaper at a health food store. I personally cannot take hydroxycut, it makes me RAGE. I like, get upset and freak out at work, so I don't even think I am willing to try it again.

It works: I think the skinny coffee would be comparable to the "slim coffee," which was cheaper but seemed to be chromium. You can just pick up a chromium supplement... & seriously, you can just drink coffee. Don't add calories to it.

Apple cider vinegar gummies: Just take shots of apple cider vinegar. You can buy a gallon at walmart, it will last a long time. Play with shot recipes, you can do good girl moonshine (ala Trim Healthy Mamma), & use it liberally for dressing recipes.

L-Glutamine: don't remember the company, but this is available at more health food stores, not for $100 a container.

Maybe I have bought so much shit so you don't have it. Is there an MLM company I missed? 🤔 let me know and I will check it out for future posts.

Remember- whatever you do, stay safe. Research your shit. Focus on your daily habits and remember that what you are eating outweighs almost any supplement you could buy. Eat whole food, walk, have an exercise routine & stop expecting a 30 day result for a body that took you 40 years (or whatever) to create.

I definitely don't think the ozempic trend is worth the cost, but if there is no other way for you & you have the money, it is worth a shot. Just don't expect your insurance to pay for it. Many insurance companies are currently not covering it, and I don't really know if they should consider it.

Surgery? If there is no other way and you want to, go for it.

The way that these things work though, is by changing what you are eating. Period. These are all systems to change what you ingest and you can change what you eat for free.

I am still on Nomorbidity & Alkemi from the Ambrosia Collective. I have not found suitable replacements for them but I am also not looking hard, they have a reasonable price point to me.

#anti mlm #mlm #multi level marketing #multi level marketing groups #mlm scams #scammers #save money #diet product #diet supplement #health company reviews #healthy lifestyle #getting healthy #losing weight #healthy eating #fitblr #healthy habits #operation lose this gut #weight loss #operationlosethisgut #weight loss journey #weight loss plan #eating for weight loss #weight control #supplement #supplements #diet help #diet plan #dieting #dietista #becoming that girl

[leeholtwrites]

Baldurs Gate 3 has led me to starting my high-control group (cult) recovery, and that is so strange to me.

Whatever works, I guess.

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #cult recovery #toxic work environments #high control groups #multi level marketing #i have good resources too

[generic-whumperz]

CW: IRL cult experience, MLM (as in “multi-level marketing,” not “men-loving man”), mentions of depression and thoughts of suicide, talk of pursuing legal action

***

Disclaimer- This is all my personal experience, and thoughts and feelings expressed here are only my own and do not reflect the organizations or all persons within the organizations.

***

I know this is a weird place to be sharing what I’m about to, but quite honestly, I don’t know where else to divulge this information other than Reddit.

Here we go-

Several years ago, I accidentally joined a cult within a cult, a subset of Amway at the time called “World Wide Dream Builders.” They have since renamed their organization “World Wide Group” because they began getting negative affiliation with their name as people began exposing them online. (Just Google “World Wide Dream Builders” if you are interested.) But make no mistake, this is the same damn company cult, run by the same people, doing the same shit, and probably using the same or similar tactics.

After moving out of state in 2018 for a myriad of reasons, but a determining number of them being my need for a clean slate, I began to slowly unpack what the fuck I was just a part of and started a long healing journey (from that and much else). A significant component to my understanding of what was really going on and how cults and MLMs operate were the podcasts “Life After MLM,” “Sounds Like A Cult,” “Sounds Like An MLM But Okay,” and “The Dream.” And, of course, Leah Remini’s series “Scientology and the Aftermath” helped me realize just how deep-rooted cults are in American culture at large. If you’ve been in one cult, you’ve kinda been in all of them. (Additionally, r/antiMLM is an excellent source for all things anti-MLM, and this Facebook group is great for ex-members of WWDB/WWG specifically.)

It took me years to make peace with myself over how I could have gotten mixed up with such blatant bullshit and fuckery. I wasn’t in for very long, but those five months where I was dedicated and “all in” (as they say) were a roller coaster, and my mental and physical health was at an all-time low. I was extremely depressed and, at a point, even suicidal, largely due to the “brainwashing” (thought-stopping clichés, love-bombing, and bait-and-switching) and being fed the narrative that “all my problems would go away if I just practiced CORE” (the cult’s acronym for how each good little IBO {another bullshit acronym short for “independent business owner”} should be living day-to-day). I was extremely volatile at the time, and instead of being told that I just needed to “lean into my upline” (my culty superiors), by my upline, they should have urged me to seek professional counseling and help. They were not therapists, psychiatrists, or counselors to any degree, yet they loved to masquerade around as such. 

I could go on and on about all this, but the point of me sharing all this is that back in 2020, I submitted a formal complaint (against either Amway or WWDB, or both; it’s been a while, so I do not remember which) to the FTC. A couple of months ago, I was finally contacted by a senior investigator regarding my submitted complaint. But at the time, I was sick and bedridden with COVID, and I still haven’t responded to them. To be honest, I don’t know what to do or say. Amway is no stranger to class-action lawsuits, and I believe WWDB changed its name because of class-action lawsuits against them.

I still have some of my official paperwork/documents and notes that I took during our “meetings,” but I don’t know if these have any teeth, as so much has changed internally now. My question is if anyone has dealt with the FTC in regards to MLMs and what their experience was. I’m afraid of doing or saying the wrong thing- I don’t know what to say- where to even start. Or is this more so the FTC trying to add me to a class action lawsuit against one or both companies?

I’m hoping to find someone who has gone through this process and can share some words of advice. Or, if you have an Amway/WWDB/WWG/BWW/etc., feel free to reach out to me or reblog this with your experience! My DM’s are always open to those seeking catharsis in this strange and unusual experience and to validate you that yes, that was happening, and yes, that shit was whack!

*A note to my fellow whumpers: I decided to share this here, on my whump blog of all places, because I feel like there is an overlap of connoisseurs of whump and people who have been through some strange experiences. And because this is the first time I’ve felt safe enough in a space to do so. Know that you are not alone! I shared this in hopes of it reaching and helping someone-anyone. Even if one person gets something from this, that’s more than enough for me. Again, my DM’s and asks are open to fellow culties!

P.S. If you are an Amway/WWG/general MLM sympathizer who feels the unnecessary need to DM me or send me an anonymous ask, don’t. Practice self-restraint. I don’t care to hear whatever string of words you feel so compelled to share, insisting that I’m “wrong,” a “loser,” or a “failure,” and that “the system works” because your upline Crown Diamond, Double-Eagle Ruby, Emerald, or your brother, sister, mom, dad, cousin, or whoever else told you so or claims to be a living testament of- it doesn’t and I’m most certainly not. Even if you do know “someone at the top,” it is at the expense of hundreds, if not thousands, of people beneath them, funneling money back up through WWG tool kit systems and dubious “recruitment bonuses.” I won’t read whatever hogwash you send; it will be promptly deleted, and I will block you.

#not whump #cult #culty #cult stuff #cult shit #anti mlm #multi level marketing #MLM #amway #world wide dream builders #world wide group #cult experience

[moonbeam-fox]

Anyone else watch that escaping twin flames doc on netfl*x? Its short and also pretty awful if you're into that sort of thing.

#ive been studying cults since i was like 12 and only years later did i realise #that cults and abusers use the same tactics- that abusive relationships are basically 2 person cults #the BITE model applies here #but yeah how fascinating that such a level of control could be reached without the group regularly meeting in person #this is why im always suspicious of woo hoo new age stuff like Bars or Course In Miracles #its just multi level marketing for people with no sense of self desperately seeking external definition / loci of control #escaping twin flames

[troonwolf]

something I find funny is when i explain the endo situation to singlets or people not involved in the online system community, and describe it as a cult, they immediately agree. there is no question to the unbiased viewer that this is a cult

it’s always people within the syscourse community who want to clutch their pearls and be like “oh b b b b but we shouldn’t call them that!! that’s such a big mean word :(” even when a cult survivor is out here like “btw I recognise all these tactics from when I was raised in a cult and I can actively give you lists of examples of these things happening right now.”

#it's not a special elevated word for an evil secret group that wants to kill babies #it describes a certain kind of negative group mentality based on ideology #multi-level-marketing for example #has been blasted by people for its cult tactics #and how many of these groups operate like cults #and most of the people in those groups are not operating maliciously #they genuinely believe in what they're doing and that it's a good thing #I can give literally dozens of examples of cults who are operating under the belief they're doing something good #BECAUSE MOST OF THEM BELIEVE THAT IT'S KIND OF THE DAMN POINT #how do you think they recruit and maintain members if they're just outwardly like #YES WE AR THE SECRET EVIL SOCIETY OF KILLING BABIES #or w/e weird hollywood shit you think cults are #cults maintain their existence by convincing the members it's a good and preferred thing to be in the cult #endos do this by furthering ableist ideals with their roots in western religious fundamentalism #as many cults do #eg. mental illness bad mental illness demons #but oh you have visions from god? that's cool and makes you special no you don't need medication :) #etc etc etc

[cruelsister-moved2]

very dystopian to witness the exvangelicals who are like ‘the BITE model applies to organised religion inherently’ or something despite the fact that the guy who coined it is an observant conservative jew, bc thats easier than confronting the fact that like the overwhelming majority of american christianity is cultlike organisations operating, at their core, almost solely for profit 👍 

#i actually think its really interesting how it took someone with an experience of like #healthy non-manipulative and affirming religious tradition #to be like. ykw. maybe the like focus on the dramatic whacky supernatural stuff #is actually making people ignorant and unaware of what cults actually are & therefore putting them in danger #of being exploited especially by one that doesnt SEEM weird #like.again. a LOT of very mainstream american xtian groups #whilst also maligning religious minorities for no reason #like a lot of ppl who come out of these groups n their only experience is of xtian background will jump to like #all religions are cults #which is actually just like..not helpful for preventing cult recruitment at all #and also the american xtians who are obsessed w trying to 'debunk' the bite model #bc they are well aware that it applies to them but theyre like 'no controlling peoples thoughts behaviours and identity is GOOD actually' #something is only a cult when idk its weird and strange and has blood sacrifice or worships satan or something #THATS the problem:) #sometimes a cult is like. an essential oils multi level marketing ischeme #its literally not that deep

[stjohnstarling]

Alright, so: I want to explain a little more about this connection between the Twilight fandom, Fifty Shades of Grey, and seemingly, the self-publishing industry as a whole. It's a lot, so I'm going to have to chip away at it a bit at a time, and I think the best place to start is by describing the scene in late 2000s Twilight fandom.

In 2009, Twilight was one of the biggest fandoms in the world, although it was nearly invisible to outsiders because it

Was about a straight couple, while most other fandoms were predominantly gay, and

Was conducted almost entirely on fanfiction.net among a group of people who had little other background in fandom. (x)

That meant for many Twilight fans, Twilight was fandom. It was all they knew, and many had no path out. That also made it a corked champagne bottle with the pressure building.

Because of these community dynamics and the declining quality of the Twilight books themselves, Twilight fanfiction evolved to be mostly AUs so alternate they were more-or-less original romance novels that used Bella and Edward as broad character templates. (x)

Seriously, Twilight fandom got really crazy big for a few years there. It was not totally uncommon to get multi-million clicks on a semi-popular story. It's weird looking back on it and calling it "Twilight fandom" because it was really more like "Romance Novel fandom". For real, for a period there, calling a Twilight fanfic author a 'Twilight fan' would be the ultimate insult. But they never stopped writing about Edward and Bella! It's so weird. (x)

If you were in 2000s era fandom, you're probably aware of the phenomenon of Big Name Fans and the various social-climbing dynamics that happened around them. The Twilight fandom took this social power game another level:

This wasn't even just an author thing. There were Big Name Authors (BNAs) but there were also Big Name Readers. These were basically like... full-time rabid fans of a BNA. They devoted so much of their time to helping out the BNAs, reviewing their chapters, making them fanart, promoting their fics, kissing their asses with cringe-worthy intensity, you name it. Which is why you saw what looked like BNAs having 'employees', such as Moi, tby789's Director of Marketing. (x)

It became apparent that these power games weren't just for fandom clout. The fandom was proving that that social power could be translated into real-world dollars. You see, the Twilight fandom used to organize charity auctions where big name authors would auction off custom fanfiction, and the money generated was substantial:

Mostly authors would auction off stories. So if you donated in my name, I'd write you 10,000 words of porn in my Tattward universe, or something new, etc. That's how it worked. The 2009 auction raised $80,000. The 2010 auction raised $140,000. The 2011 auction raised $20,00. [NOTE: this is likely a typo] (x)

A lot of these dynamics were not unique to the Twilight fandom, but it was the combination that created a perfect storm of opportunism. This would end up changing not just fandom dynamics but the publishing industry as a whole.

#original post #fifty shades liveblog #Working on the rest of this #Part one of not sure how many

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA For ruining a coworker's "business opportunity?"

For a bit of context this happened in the Summer of 2020. Also I'll be using the term MLM frequently and in this case it means "multi-level marketing" so comapanies like Avon, Tupperware, Monat, Vector-Cutco, LuLaRoe, etc. A

So I have this coworker let's call her T and in July of 2020 I got a FB message from her that said "Hey girl, so I recently started my own business and I thought you would be the perfect candidate to join my team! We'll be selling cooking and bakeware which should be right up your alley given how much you love to bake! So what do you say are you ready to join my team and leave [place of employment] behind?" I was immediately suspicious about the uncharacteristic tone of her message and asked her "What is the company name?" And she responded with "Pampered Chef." (an MLM). For the record, I am extremely anti-MLM, and know from following several anti-MLM YouTubers that hardly anyone makes any kind of money in those comapanies. So I politely declined her offer. And she immediately said "But you would be perfect! It would be just like when you sold Girl Scout cookies when you were a kid! I need you to join my team!" And I told her "I'm not interested in selling bakeware for an MLM. So my answer is still no." (Also bold of her to assume I did any of the cookie selling when I was in Girl Scouts, I gave thr forms to my parents and they did the bulk of the work).

I thought that was the end of it until I got an invite to an IN-PERSON (remember this was July 2020) Pampered Chef party at her house that at that point 40 people had RSVP'd to. I declined again snd blocked the group and a few days later I got another invite which I again declined. And the process repeated several more times. One day I got one at work within earshot of the manager's office and loudly said "Oh my GOD T I'm not going to your Pampered Chef house party in the middle of a pandemic!" Which got the manager's attention (we had already had one incident where an associate's wedding turned into a super-spreader event where 20 other associates ended up missing work due to Covid) and he asked me what was going on. And me being fed up with the near constant harassment, she messaged me several times a week and even went to my dad about it (he worked at the same store we did), I told him everything. And the following day T announced on Facebook "Unfortunately due to the current state of things, I regretfully have to cancel the in-house Pampered Chef party." She had also messaged me "thanks to you I can't hold my party or recruit people from work. Why did you tell management about it?" And I told her I was fed up with the constant harassment and didn’t see any other way of making it stop. I ended up blocking T after that. And thought it was the end of it.

Until her husband messaged me on FB several weeks later "Hi, I'm [so-so] T's husband, she asked me to reach out to you on her behalf to ask you if you would be interested in joining her team at Scentsy (another MLM that sells scented wax melts) she can't seem to message you for some reason." And I responded "Sir, with all due respect I've already had to threaten to file a harassment grievance against T if she continues to try and recruit me for her "businesses." My answer is still no and I will ask you to never contact me about this again otherwise I will go through with my threat." He apologized and I never heard from him again. T on the other hand makes snide remarks about how I ruined her businesses every time we happen to be on the same shift. And how I didn't have to be a narc and go to management about it and I should have just let it be. So AITA?

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

[beelzebuddy-catan]

Obey Me Headcanons - Part 4

Mammon became luckier when the exchange program started. Not because of MC but because of Luke.

Satan is in an improv group but if you ask no he isn't.

Asmo gives people he's modelling with backhanded compliments to throw them off their game. Of course he'll look better but you can never be too sure. Right?

All of the brothers, except Satan sleep with lights on because they can't fall asleep in full darkness after living in the Celestial Realm.

Beel can't tie a tie. Satan tied his once and now he just loosens and tightens it.

Belphie can't tie his shoes. They're either Velcro, slip on, or untied.

He will never admit it.

Which is why he buys lace up shoes and just tells people he's too tired to tie them.

Levi wears heelies religiously and will just zoom out of the room when he's had enough.

Simeon pronounces lmao like LUH-Mayo but nobody will correct him.

Once in a fight when Satan was getting pissed™, MC turned to walk away and he said something under his breath.

MC spun around and slapped him.

It happened so fast he immediately snapped out of his rage fit from surprise and started laughing.

MC sells Mammon's stuff that he's forgotten about (you know he's got storage lockers full of things he doesn't even remember buying).

They save it for when he asks for money and pretends to loan it to him, know he won't pay them back.

MC has said "oh I thought you were the Avatar of ____, not the avatar of being a bitch ass" to at least one of the brothers.

Mammon was fucking around and chased some baby geese only for the mom to beat the shit out of him.

If Lilith had fallen with the brothers and become a demon, her sin would have been wrath.

Any being that can see ghosts/spirits can catch glimpses of her having violent reactions to coinciding with Satan's if he gets mad.

When MC drinks too much and needs someone to pick them up, they voice text Mammon asking for him to come.

Except half way through they always go: oh never mind Solomon just walked in. I'll just have a sleep over with him.

Mammon is ALWAYS there faster than a pizza delivery guy promising 20 minutes or less or a free pizza.

While Levi had his nickname long before Satan, it only really became commonplace when Satan was young because he couldn't pronounce the TH in leviathan.

Asmo can't French braid his hair, it always turns out as a Dutch braid.

Levi, however, is amazing at all different types of braids, so now he has to braid Asmo's hair

Diavolo thinks the funniest joke he's ever heard is the updog joke.

Mammon has gotten tricked into several multi level marketing scams.

He tries unsuccessfully to get his brothers to join each time.

Solomon started one just to mess with him.

It's the only time Mammon has been successful at it.

#on this page we believe Satan had to literally grow up and wasn't created as a full ass demon #toddler Satan brought new meaning to terrible twos #obey me #obey me memes #obey me headcanons #my headcanons #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me Levi #obey me Beel #obey me satan #obey me mc #obey me diavolo #obey me belphie #obey me like #obey me simeon #obey me solomon #obey me lilith

[thisisthinprivilege]

Since I keep seeing "$61 billion weight loss industry"....

This is a super old figure, folks.

In 2022, the US market cap of the weight loss industry was $75 billion [1, 3]. In 2021, the global market cap of the weight loss industry was estimated at $224.27 billion [2].

In 2020, the market shrunk by about 25%, but rebounded and then some since then [1, 3] (Tell me thin privilege is socially constructed without telling me that thin privilege is socially constructed).

Also disturbing, "Multi-level marketing companies constitute a major force in the [US] weight loss market, with the top 8 firms accounting for $3.4 billion in 2020 sales. Included in this group are Medifast, Herbalife, Shaklee, BeachBody, AMWAY, USANA, Isagenix and more." [3]

By 2030, the global weight loss industry is expected to reach be valued at $405.4 billion [2].

-ATL

References

LaRosa, J. March 10, 2022. "U.S. Weight Loss Market Shrinks by 25% in 2020 with Pandemic, but Rebounds in 2021." Market Research Blog. Available here.

Staff. February 09, 2023. "[Latest] Global Weight Loss and Weight Management Market Size/Share Worth." Facts and Factors Research. Available here.

LaRosa, J. March 27, 2023. "U.S. Weight Loss Market Partially Recovers from the Pandemic." Market Research Blog. Available here.

#statistics #fat discrimination #weight loss #weight loss industry #fat liberation #diet culture #dieting #diets #FAQ

[90stvqueen]

I have been contacted by multiple multi-level marketing "job opportunities" this week.

It's starting to occur to me -- and nobody really tells you this -- that unless you are looking for something specific (and probably not entry-level), Indeed is not the place to look for jobs. I was applying for jobs pretty indiscriminately on there a few days ago, and have since been contacted by what looks to be multiple multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes.

Here are some red flags I've found in these job postings that point toward a pyramid structure:

[Company] is a [PR/marketing agency/local startup] that is looking for outgoing, motivated candidates who are just out of college or looking to make a career change!

[Company] will pay for you to be trained in business and sales, so don't worry if you don't have prior experience! This is an entry-level role with HUGE opportunities for growth!

You'll have networking and travel opportunities, such as leadership development conferences and seminars!

Sounds good, right? But if you look up these companies on Glassdoor, you'll either find nothing or you'll see a mix of reviews:

positive reviews from the current employees who are incentivized to talk up the company

negative reviews from former employees that will often flat-out tell you it's an MLM

there's a lot of repetition in the phrases you'll see across the board: "a great opportunity," high turnover/burnout, manipulative management, lack of transparency, no job security, "hard work pays off," "not for everyone"

sometimes you'll find out that the company was renamed from another company, and if you look that company up, you'll find even more bad reviews explicitly calling it a pyramid scheme/MLM

If you go to the company website, you'll see a clean interface with stock photos of people looking happy, and all of the "who we are" text on the site will be utter jargon that doesn't explicitly tell you what the company does. It will tell you, however, that they're hiring now!

If you make it to the interview portion, (which, if you apply, you almost certainly will, because these companies are preying on people who are desperate for a job) you will be rushed through an initial interview, which will look something like this:

You'll be interviewed alongside another candidate or in a group.

It's a quick 10-minute getting-to-know-you call so the company can see if it's a good fit.

They will ask you to tell them (in front of the other candidates) what you would bring that makes you stand out.

They will ask you if you have reliable transportation.

They will go over the "job description" without ever making it clear what the day-to-day looks like.

They'll tell you about how you're going to be trained in different departments. The departments will have names like "Marketing & sales," "HR & PR," "Leadership development," "Logistics, numbers, and operations," and "Client relations." This is an actual example from a Zoom interview I just did less than an hour ago. These are the "departments" of this company, according to my interviewer.

They'll emphasize that expansion is the goal. Top-level customer acquisition. Their clients are looking to open to new markets, so they're looking for go-getters to quickly fill the role.

IF YOU ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THE COMPANY, THEY WILL DO EVERYTHING IN THEIR POWER NOT TO ANSWER IT. They'll tell you that you'll have the opportunity to ask as many questions as you want if you make it to round two; they'll tell you they have another interview in 2 minutes and don't have time to answer your questions; they'll repeat that this is a preliminary getting-to-know-you call, so there's no need to get into the details just yet.

If you do manage to get a question in, they'll put as vague & positive a spin on it as they can. I asked if the company I interviewed with was a new company (because I couldn't find it on BBB or Glassdoor) and the interviewer told me yes, it's a "branch-off company" to a company that's been around for a few years. He did not tell me what that company was, and I didn't ask, because at that point I knew I wouldn't get a straightforward answer either way.

Y'all, if you find a job that raises any red flags for you, DO YOUR RESEARCH. You should be looking up any company that reaches out to you. Find their website. Read their reviews on Glassdoor and Better Business Bureau. BE SMART AND DON'T LET THESE COMPANIES PREY ON YOU.

#mlm schemes #so the job search is not going well lol #long post

[tellusd20]

Artwork by @hirodraga A campaign I started in June 2021 has finally concluded and this band of tomb robbers and grubby mercenaries archaeologists and brave adventurers have gone their separate ways at the end of their expedition. Starting from top left and then zig-zagging down to bottom right, here are their brief bios and character arc conclusions: Qiliq: orc ranger and party leader. Minor noble from the empire of Alamgir who got roped into a matter of family honor. His uncle, the patriarch of their family, had been disgraced and accused of cowardice. His uncle had subsequently undertaken an honor quest into a magical wasteland (the remnants of a collapsed civilization) with the promise of retrieving the crown of a long-dead tyrant as a trophy for the emperor. He disappeared instead, leaving Qiliq to both solve the mystery of his disappearance and to complete the quest. The party accomplished both objectives, recovering both his uncle's corpse and the crown. The tyrant's crown turned out to be a powerful, sentient magic item that began speaking to them in their dreams, preying on insecurities and tempting them into bargains. Almost all of them desired it for themselves, but in the end, Qiliq ended up possessing it. Instead of returning to Alamgir and presenting his emperor with a new prize, Qiliq turned to a conquistador path, using his newfound wealth from the expedition to hire more mercenaries and carve out his own bloody "kingdom" on the periphery of civilization.

Minerva: elven druid, common born retainer of a reactionary noble house in the elven empire of Melate. A spy inserted into the group to ensure that any elven artifacts recovered on the expedition were returned to their homeland. Over the course of the campaign, she made a bargain with the fey to betray her sponsors in favor of the empress for her own gain.

Minerva possessed the tyrant's crown when it was first obtained, but ended up trading it to Qiliq in exchange for a political marriage and a leadership position among the forces he intended to raise. She went on to conduct numerous atrocities in their conquest of a new 'kingdom'. Her player was aware that the lifespan difference between Qiliq and Minerva meant that the crown would pass back into her possession again within a few short decades, and she was fine with being patient.

Zerrus: tiefling warlock masquerading as a human sorcerer. A con artist, grifter, and criminal from Alamgir's lower classes, he misrepresented himself to acquire a spot on Qiliq's expedition and the opportunity to gain wealth, power, and most importantly, a way out of the country. During the course of the campaign, he somehow managed to keep his secrets. Zerrus liquidated his share of the expedition's treasure, purchased a townhome in the city of Aphursa (a bustling, Istanbul-style metropolis), and went on to invent the world's first multi-level marketing scheme.

Auden: human fighter, archaeologist from the kingdom of Talland. Marooned in the wasteland by the deaths of his prior party, Auden gratefully took the chance to join a new group after meeting them at a frontier outpost. Upon the conclusion of their adventure, Auden returned to his homeland and university, where he published numerous research papers on his findings. He became a highly sought subject matter expert on the wasteland; published tales of his adventures raised him to something of a minor celebrity and enabled him to found a profitable consulting service for other expeditions.

Aupo: orc, orthodox cleric from Alamgir's anti-magic Tathir religion. He signed up mostly to remove heretical and blasphemous artifacts from existence. His enthusiasm for the task often generated tension with the rest of the party, particularly when his hammer fell upon expensive relics. The crown never revealed its true nature to Aupo, and the rest of the party concealed the truth from him, knowing he would attempt to destroy it. He signed up with Qiliq's mercenary force, becoming a fanatical missionary in new lands.

Herwyg: human druid, archaeologist from the kingdom of Talland. Upon return to his homeland, he liquidated many of the mundane treasures but kept all the interesting pieces for his own collection. His research papers and artifact loans to museum exhibitions won him tenure and academic awards, as well as recognition from the royal government for his service to the kingdom's cultural prestige.

#D&D #dungeons & dragons #character art #adventurer #Tellus #ttrpg #love a good heroes to villains arc

[elphantasmo]

TNA Shakeup - Fightful Select

Early details on major TNA shakeup

An hour ago

Anthony Cicione is in, Scott D'Amore is out as President of TNA Wrestling.

Fightful confirmed that talent and staff were informed of the move today, with some finding out this morning.

Currently staff and talent are on a zoom call to discuss the move.

One talent said they believed Anthem wanted the brand to be more closely associated with them as opposed to D'Amore, and when we asked another about that they said "I can see that, but he saved TNA."

We'll be posting more as we get details. 

Anthem posted the following: "Anthem Sports & Entertainment Inc., a global multi-platform media company, announced today the appointment of Anthony Cicione as the President of TNA Wrestling.

The move aims to further integrate TNA Wrestling into Anthem’s Entertainment Group, of which Cicione is the President, leveraging the entire Company’s resources to add more value in areas including production, distribution, marketing, viewership, customer acquisition, digital revenue streams, ad sales and sponsorships, digital tech operations, and more.

Cicione replaces Scott D’Amore, whose contract with Anthem has been terminated. D’Amore has been a part of TNA since 2003. He held many key leadership positions and played a vital role in the growth of the company leading to its strong industry reputation today, including the successful return of the TNA Wrestling brand in 2024. Anthem thanks him for the commitment he brought to the business, the talent, and the people who work outside the ring.

In addition to these duties as President of Entertainment, Cicione will now manage the day-to-day business operations for TNA Wrestling. He brings more than 30 years of executive-level management experience to the organization. Cicione has been with Anthem for the last 16 years, managing technical operations and multiple cable and digital channels. Prior to his time with Anthem, Cicione was a producer of sports content including catapulting The Score to success by bringing WWE to the channel."

#impact wrestling #tna wrestling

[clearancecreedwatersurvival]

Reminder that people who have been in one high control group tend to end up joining other high control groups (including the guy who developed the BITE model).

Reminder internet movements/communities/pipelines often become high control groups.

Reminder that online communities that demand you at all times police yourself and everyone else around you, and/or sell you a worldview of complete nihilism where people not in the in group are evil or stupid and only you the people in the group Know The Truth and embody Goodness because what the group believes is the only correct way to be Are High Control Groups and if you find yourself in one you should consider getting the fuck out of there.

If it walks like a cult and quacks like a cult, it’s probably a fucking cult.

Flat-earthers/Q-anon/Atlantean/ancient alien conspiracy theorists (all of which are rooted in anti-semitism and most of which originated with the Nazi party) are high control groups, and most of the people in those communities are also in fundie Christian cults.

The ‘rationalists’ who push shit like the imminent evil ai which must be protected against and simulation theory and a Lot of Eugenics and also that one extremely notorious Harry Potter fanfic back in the day are high control groups.

Terfs are a high control group, and so are the community which is basically their inverse: the black-pilled part of the manosphere/incels. Once again most people in those groups are also in or formerly from fundie Christian cults. In the case of terfs, some people in the community genuinely believe that they are progressive and feminist which I find very darkly funny given that the entire terf movement has been proved to be intentionally created and spread by, you guessed it, the same fundamentalist Christian evangelical death cultists who are trying to seize governmental power and proposing anti trans bathroom laws and bans to anything remotely sexual or divisive in internet spaces.

Multi-level-marketing companies form high control groups out of their ‘sales rep’ consumer bases who don’t realize that 96% of them will never make a profit and they’re not supposed to, because they are actually the company’s market. And yes, mlms are incredibly popular with people who are also in a fundie cult, which is why they’re the most popular in the United States in Utah.

And the anti-shipping community is also a high control group which has found extreme purchase in algorithmic rabbitholes on tiktok and twitter. And it’s pretty apparent that most people in that community are either currently in some sort of repressive Christian religious environment or formerly so, given how many of them keep telling people to burn in hell for disagreeing with them.

#I watched another minuteman video about an archaeology related conspiracy theory and it got me thinking about cults again so #also I forgot to mention them but there are So Many mlm in the Maoist sense not marketing sense groups that are HCGs #read a extremely long document about all the fucked up shit this one Maoist cult in Texas did to its members. anyways #high control groups #internet pipelines #Christian fundamentalism #terf shit #shipping discourse #caitie speaks

[sabakos]

Going to the Catboy MLM meeting to find a White Meowist

Hm, I'd don't know, multi-level marketing seems more like a Dog Xiaoping market socialism kinda thing? Probably easier to find a white meowist at a reading group for Pawlo Furriere's Purrdagogy of the Oppressed

[zeravmeta]

Top 5 things you look for when choosing a new piece of media to engage with

5. Popularity

This is going to sound weird right off the bat but I think a solid initial litmus test for whether or not you want to get into a new piece of media is to take a look at the popularity surrounding it: Are people normal about it? Weird about it (good And bad way)? Is it mainstream? cult mainstream? cult cult mainstream where it has a dedicated army of hidden internet ninjas occupying the most remote forums of the internet for the past 20 years and if you ask a rando on the street they don't know about it despite it being a multi billion dollar franchise (cough cough nasuverse cough)? This is also partially important because this is the likeliest category from how you will find out about this hypothetical media: Maybe it trends, maybe you see someone comparing it to something you like/dislike, etc. Generally this is the least important thing to consider but it IS important to at least think about. You'll need to know if you have a group of people who enjoy it the same way you do, or if you need to blacklist every one of your tags about it and seclude yourself from everyone else whose ever touched it.

4. Engagement

Right off the bat, when you see something new, did it catch your attention? If, in reading that synopsis, you find yourself lingering, then that's that. You've already engaged with it, and it being in your head is not a simple matter of modern marketing practices (sort of): Something in that first impression spoke to you, something that you already feel you might want to enjoy more. This isn't truly all that complex, but a first impression truly does mean everything, and regardless of how someone else might sell it to you, you do need to have your own judgment about a piece of medias initial presentation, be it the summary, first episode/chapter, the whole shebang.

3. Thematics

Ah, the good ol "Why?" of the world. What is this work trying to say? What is the theme of this work? Are these themes things that I value? I pride myself on being able to eat words and then say what those words are (It's the whole damn reason there is a zeravMETA blog here in the first place [well that and. archival issues]), and it's something that I always encourage people to try and develop for themselves: Despite what you may have felt like as a teenager in school, Critical Thinking Is Fun. When entering something new, right off the bat you will be thinking "What does this mean?", and asking and theorizing that question is half the fun. Not only that, but this process also necessitates your actual big boy brain to think (scary) about the media as more than just "These are lines." There are all flavors of media out there, and absolutely not all of them will actually want you to engage with it in a deeply thematic level, but just the act of doing so is fun, and more than anything, being able to identify what exactly a work tries to say bleeds into basically everything else on this list. More than that, being able to identify how serious a work is about its themes also helps in determining how much YOU will care about it. Perhaps you'd want to watch something that does not require much thinking, or maybe you'd like to read something that does challenge you. Use that sponge in your head, I know it hurts sometimes like that scene in Akira but I promise you that it is there to help you.

2. Aesthetic

This may be a weird one to put above thematics, which would be the literal meat and potatoes of a media, but I think it's important to determine whether something vibes with you more than if it is entirely coherent. Of course, you should not blind yourself to the flaws in any work, and it's part of your responsibility as the audience to take the work on its own terms and actually think about it, but beyond that you need to be sure that you actually vibe with the media you will be trying out. Something can be masterfully made, horrifically grotesque, bring out emotions in you that you didn't even know you had... And all of it would go down the drain if it's just not your taste of work. This is incredibly subjective and everyone has their own internal criterion on what types of works they vibe with, and contrary to popular belief that is in fact a good thing: Not everything is made for the nebulous 'everyone.' Different works will speak to and appeal to different people and groups, and recognizing what it is that YOU vibe with in trying to find new media to enjoy is important. Don't make yourself sit through something that you could know, objectively, is good, but you will not like simply because it is not to your tastes.

1. Do you think you will enjoy it?

Throw out everything else on this list. This was the first thing I wrote on this ranking and for good reason: On first impression, do you think that you will enjoy whatever it is in any capacity? You're going into this hypothetical media completely blind, aside from maybe seeing the synopsis, a trailer or two or maybe you saw a mutual talking about it, or maybe you saw a review offhandedly. Right off the bat, you will make a judgment, you just will, we do it automatically as humans, and you'll need to train yourself to ask: Will I Enjoy This? There are so many fandoms and people nowadays who like, refuse to engage with media on its own terms, or give it the type of critical thinking it may need, or who still hold onto medias they hate but still watch it even if it causes acid to bile up into their skulls every time they so much as perceive it: You need to kill that demon. Above all else, you will be engaging with something new, and it is important that at least, in SOME capacity, even in the most double-faced cynical hate-watching way, you enjoy it. Otherwise you will be miserable, Sisyphus carving himself a new stone, and that is something we want to avoid. Maybe you will be engaging with this new piece in an intellectual way, or maybe you love eating the words, or maybe you'll be joke watching it, or hate-watching, or just pointing out all the shit that could have been better, LITERALLY ALL OF THAT hinges on whether or not you enjoy it, so ask yourself: Will I Enjoy This?

->0. Sex Appeal<-

Is there an exaggerated effigy of a human being, a parodied facsimile of reality which activates your neurons? A character of fiction which has spoken to your peculiar proclivities, something awakened deep within you that you yourself never realized? It is said that the ancient Greek Philosophers first identified and called attention to headaches, some theorizing that this is because this was a critical junction of human evolution, where the first ever utterance of "boobs in my mouth" haunted their twisted minds. Know that you shall be engaging in fiction, that which parodies, reflects, and ultimately enhances reality, and why would you not engage with some bitches while you're there?

#zerav responds #thanks!