Last Halloween, my friend Lisa dressed as the perfect woman:

My Halloween costume featured: a biz suit jacket and pearls; fishnets, mini-skirt and stilettos; an apron; a feather duster (to clean and tickle!); a wooden spoon (to cook and spank!); a tank top that read "OK I'm Perfect Now Stop Staring" and of course a baby[doll] on each hip.

Her request for ideas about the costume generated a whole lot of great discussion about what makes the perfect woman, and, more interestingly, why so many of us feel compelled to achieve that idea of perfection.

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This is a recent email from one of the critics of Pink Truth. Her subject line to me was "Wow what encouragement."

My question for you is, have you yourself had an experience with Mary Kay itself? Actually become a Consultant, really read how it all started and why?

Just because some Directors and/or Consultants are not true to the Companies mission because they think their way of doing the business or that making the money fast even if it means taking advantage of people is the way to go does NOT make any of your claims true. Or are you basing this whole website on people who unfortunately had a terrible experience with the Company?

It is not the company's fault that people are greedy and care more about themselves than for others. Unfortunately, thats true for any company in this world because, unfortunately, that's what we're all raised up to do, especially in America, to be successful no matter what the cost even that of innocent people.

Fine, what the people who have shared their stories had to go through is not right, but neither is wasting your time away bashing on the entire Company when some women actually work hard to make a difference in other womens lives... which in many cases means giving their lives away to make sure that the women they're leading are indeed changing their lives for the better.

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Thanks for your suggestion Raisinberry.... Until the forum is fixed, we'll just keep having our discussion on the front page. Don't feel bad if you want to make off-topic comments. We've got to keep things going somewhere!

I mentioned in the last front page thread that even in Australia, the same lies are being used by Mary Kay representatives to suck people into this loser of an opportunity.A newspaper article about a couple of Australian women qualifying as Sales Directors included this fiction:

You undoubtedly noticed that Pink Truth was offline for a good part of yesterday, and when it was online, parts were inaccessible. We are working on the problem... Be patient. Pink Truth will be back to normal soon!

It's always fun to browse through Mary Kay NSD websites and see what constitutes “money management” training.  Naturally, when I came across the "Fall Retreat Money Management Slides" on NSD Linda Toupin's website, I was interested.  "Wow, an NSD that’s actually teaching her National Area how to avoid debt?  How nifty is that?”  At least, that's what I thought until I read the very first slide:

Face palm.  Sigh.  Roll eyes.  Pour a stiff Pepsi.  All of the above.

NSD Toupin's a Class A product pusher, actively “encouraging” her followers to load themselves (and their new recruits) with mountains of makeup for a myriad of reasons.

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Here are the new products Mary Kay Cosmetics is releasing for Spring 2010:

REGULAR LINE

Mary Kay® Liquid Lip Color ($13 suggested retail)
Rich, juicy, vibrant. Lips are in full bloom and focus this season with ripe, luscious color. New Mary Kay® Liquid Lip Color gives you the rich color of a lipstick with the application ease of a lip gloss. Its weightless non-sticky formula glides on smoothly to instantly moisturize and treat lips to a special semi-matte finish that’s naturally flattering. It goes from semi-sheer to full coverage. Versatile, flexible, different and fun! Choose from Malted, Raspberry Ice, Sherbet, Cherry Coffee, Chocoholic and Royal Plum. Mary Kay® Liquid Lip Color also will be available as a Section 2 sampler (strip/6 with applicators, $1.25).

Mary Kay® Creme Lipstick — 11 NEW Shades! ($13 suggested retail)
Now there’s even more to love about your favorite lipstick. The Mary Kay® Creme Lipstick brings you the classic formula wome have loved for years in 36 beautiful shades. Glides on with a ightweight, creamy texture and delivers maximum color impact And moisture that last. It’s fragrance-free — with a hint of vanilla flavoring to delight the senses — and comes in a custom-designed case featuring a color button cap that easily identifies the shade that’s inside. New shades are Sunny Citrus, Icy Peach, Boysenberry, Hot Mocha, Whisper, Maple, Sunlit Sand, Copper Star, Pink Passion, Blaze and Midnight Red. Section 2 samplers of these new shades also will be available in strips of 6 for $1.25.

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Let’s not kid ourselves. Getting consultants to order more inventory is the heart of the pyramid scheme: recruit and frontload. Notice that this email has absolutely NOTHING to do with selling the product. It is pure recruiting and scamming orders out of newbies. 

All of this ordering is encouraged without regard to any consultant’s personal situation. No regard to her inventory. No regard to her sales. Only regard to has she ordered yet? And if she has ordered, was it enough? And if it was enough, do I need more?

I love how the writer points out that these schemes have worked for her time and time again throughout the years. That is… It worked to suck orders out of consultants. (I know, Kaybots. It’s their fault if they’re not selling to support their orders. But do you see anywhere in this email where it instructs the director to help anyone sell anything?)

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 Thank you Amber Blaze!

(click the image to see it full size)

“The Wondrous World of Me!”  No, it’s not the title of an 1980s-era junior high health textbook, but I’ll be honest with you, when I cracked open this quarter’s Mary Kay star prize brochure, I was half-expecting artfully-shaded diagrams of ovaries, followed by an explanation of menstruation and how beautiful it is to experience the kind of monthly hormonal overload that makes you grab a wad of Kleenex every time you see an Oxy-Clean commercial.  “I’ll never let go of your memory, Billy Mays.  I’ll never let go.” 

Obligatory Fine Print:  All prizes not covered here.  If I was unable to find an exact match for any given prize, quotes will be given based on items found with Google searches that used the item’s brand and/or description.  Put away those copies of “Are you There God, It’s Me, Margaret?” my friends, a world of pink paltriness awaits!

1800 Sapphire:  You could go with the magpie-attracting gold-trimmed Perlina handbag ($59.99 @ Target.com) but why when you could have the necklace and earring set instead?  The set’s black-and-gold- colored gems are described as having “elegant 14-karat gold flecks…inside acrylic stones.”  The copywriter then tacks on the phrase “reminiscent of Venetian glass from Italy,” just so travel-savvy readers know that “Venetian” refers to Venice, Italy and not Venice Beach, CA.   Many Mary Kay leaders tell their troops not to read the paper or listen to that horrifically negative Weather Channel, so Corporate’s got to use small words when referring to any geographical location outside of Dallas.  I suggest ordering the black goldstone necklace (complete with Swarovski crystals) for $115 over at houstoncrafts.com .  Then go fart around Google Maps for a while; it’ll make your Visa bill skinny and your brain fat!           

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When I first started Mary Kay, oh so long ago, I bought into the hype. I heard about inventory, was told I NEEDED it in order to be successful, so I bought a bunch. After all, who in their right mind starts Mary Kay with the intent to fail? We all start with the intent to succeed, and if that’s what we NEED, then we’ll do it!

Back then, I was given a sheet from my sales director that outlined how many classes per week you needed to earn so much, how much the supposed average sales per class were, how much the supposed average reorders were… Little did I know, all of that was total fiction. Made up.

These days, Mary Kay Inc. has an inventory worksheet to fill out. I read the sheet, and realize that just about everyone “needs” $2,400 or $3,600. Heck... You even give yourself extra points on your worksheet if you plan to attend weekly “success meetings”. What? You need more inventory because you’re going to waste your Monday nights at rah-rah sessions?

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