You Poison Minds
Another critic of Mary Kay who knows all the catch phrases…
There is a reason that Mary Kay Cosmetics has been the #1 selling cosmetics in the U.S for years! I am very offended by your comments, and of your insensitivity towards not only Mary Kay herself, but also to individual sales directors and NSDs.
I completely understand that you are entitled to your opinion, but you are sadly mistaken. I have known more women who were beaten down into spineless nothings before they got into the WONDERFUL business of Mary Kay. Now they are empowered, self assured, and most likely making a lot more money then most of the rest of us do. If Mary Kay doesn’t work for you then fine, don’t do it. But PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not go bashing it just because you don’t like it.
The women in Mary Kay are some of the most selfless, giving, loving, wonderful friends that I have. I thank GOD for them everyday. If you didn’t happen to meet women like that then I am truly sorry. But remember, there are self-centered jerks in every business, NOT JUST MARY KAY. I completely admit that there might be some self-serving women in Mary Kay who are only in it for the money. But for the other 99.9% of them, they are in it because they have a passion to help other women have a BETTER LIFE.
Women like me. I was in an emotionally abusive marriage, and Mary Kay gave me the courage to GET OUT. It was the best thing that I ever did, and I never would have done it had it not been for my Mary Kay business.
You know, I could go on and on about the benefits of Mary Kay and how life-changing that it has been for me and every other woman I know who has gotten into the business. I could go on and on about how they teach the Mary Kay business plan at HARVARD because it is one of the best in the nation. But you would have to have an open mind about it, and I don’t believe that you do.
I didn’t have to write you this letter. I have no idea who you are or why you have such a hate on for Mary Kay, but I could not stay silent. How many other businesses do you know put God first, WHICH BY THE WAY IS EXACTLY WHERE HE SHOULD BE, family second, and your career third.
And as for making production when you have personal trials, that is why YOU HAVE A TEAM. It was never intended for you to do it all on your own. We are all to work together for the common goal of our unit of team members, or rather I will say our friends. It has nothing to do with working yourself to death while you are sick or having a baby or whatever. You encourage your teammates to help you, which helps them, and everyone succeeds. That is the Mary Kay way!
Know any other companies that do that? I sure don’t!
And as far as the lady that can pay for her car with her Mary Kay, MORE POWER TO HER!!! I sure as heck wouldn’t have been able to do that with my 9-5 job, which stands for journey of the broke.
Just have an open mind about it, learn your facts, and consider the fact that you could be wrong about the whole thing. And if it still bugs you that much, go to headquarters and talk to them about it. But don’t poison everyone else’s mind about it just because you don’t like it.
Visit the
I’ve been jokingly giving my religious affiliation as “The Church of the Poison Mind” for ages. Love me some Boy George, I do.
Meanwhile, pardon me if I ignore this cliche, platitude, and untruth – spouting foghead and continue to believe the lived experiences of those who have left the fog and the similarities between their stories: the coercion, the debt, the family problems, the religious manipulation, and the unhappiness.
We need a new tagline for the site: “Pink Truth: poisoning minds since 2006.”
“Just have an open mind about it, learn your facts, and consider the fact that you could be wrong about the whole thing.”
Uh… wait a second. Isn’t that the entire message of Pink Truth?
“Have an open mind.” Please don’t take anyone’s word for anything. Don’t go into anything with your mind made up, especially by people who have something to gain from your decision. (News flash, directors, NSDs, and corporate have EVERYTHING to gain from your MK “business.” PT doesn’t.)
“Learn your facts.” You mean, like the federally mandated income disclosures that reveal that IBCs are earning less than $250/year? And that the ultra-glamorous, highly exclusive position of sales director pays on average less than a fry cook?
“Consider the fact that you could be wrong.” After opening your mind and learning the facts, I challenge you to do just that, OP.
I genuinely feel sorry for this person; they’re going from an emotionally abusive marriage to a workplace that is emotionally and financially abusive. I hope they eventually get out of the pink fog and can truly heal from the abuse they’ve suffered.
Harvard called and asked that you stop repeating that lie. It would be nice, OP, if you could be open minded enough to acknowledge this and all the other lies and deceptions told in Mary Kay.
It is easy to get caught up in the love bombing, accolades and dime-store rewards in Mary Kay. MLM depends on lies and distortions for survival. The fact that you are repeating them proves the point. But when the time comes, you too will finally create a proper business ledger so you can see that Mary Kay is costing your team far more than your team is making.
Please get started on that detailed business ledger, and encourage your downline to do the same! If you can, keep a “roll up” ledger for your entire team (current and former members), tracking all of their orders and bonus checks. You will quickly see the aggregate losses in your own downline for yourself.
When that time comes, we welcome you here to join us in helping open the eyes of others before (and after) they fall for the pink lies of Mary Kay.
The real ethical question is this: How much financial carnage are you willing to oversee in your own team for you to meet your personal goals?
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE
The Harvard liezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz It is so tired
>>And as for making production when you have personal trials, that is why YOU HAVE A TEAM. It was never intended for you to do it all on your own. We are all to work together for the common goal of our unit of team members, or rather I will say our friends. It has nothing to do with working yourself to death while you are sick or having a baby or whatever. You encourage your teammates to help you, which helps them, and everyone succeeds. That is the Mary Kay way!>>
As a long time reader of Pink Truth, even I know this is not true. How many directors had to (euphemistically) step down from Director (i.e lost their unit) because things in their personal life had to take priority? MK does not care. Although true is, if your national in qualification needs you to step up, you must and you will.
The best of all: >>There is a reason that Mary Kay Cosmetics has been the #1 selling cosmetics in the U.S for years! >>
Ever notice that the majority of people you know and see every day do NOT use Mary Kay? You all would be gazillionaires if that was even slightly true. It gets its numbers because of the mini stores every has stacked up in in their basements and garages
no one refutes this, it seems.
And when does that “team” work for the benefit of the WHOLE tram, and not just the director and the rest of the upline?
There is a reason that Mary Kay Cosmetics has been the #1 selling cosmetics in the U.S for years!
And the first lie.
I am very offended by your comments, and of your insensitivity towards not only Mary Kay herself, but also to individual sales directors and NSDs.
Insensitive?? That’ a new one. How are we insensitive? Pointing out lies? Fraud? The simmering resentment in the directors FB group?
I completely understand that you are entitled to your opinion, but you are sadly mistaken.
We are not mistaken but “You Go Girl”.
I have known more women who were beaten down into spineless nothings before they got into the WONDERFUL business of Mary Kay. Now they are empowered, self assured, and most likely making a lot more money then most of the rest of us do.
Don’t make me drag out the income disclosures because that shows that they are not making more money than us.
https://www.marykay.ca/-/media/images/mk/united-states/canada/esuite/footer/earnings-representation-bilingual-0223.pdf
If Mary Kay doesn’t work for you then fine, don’t do it. But PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not go bashing it just because you don’t like it.
So the above linked pdf. It doesn’t work because it is designed not to work.
The women in Mary Kay are some of the most selfless, giving, loving, wonderful friends that I have. I thank GOD for them everyday.
Ah yes. The wonderful, kind Ellen Bowman Cox springs to mind.
If you didn’t happen to meet women like that then I am truly sorry. But remember, there are self-centered jerks in every business, NOT JUST MARY KAY. I completely admit that there might be some self-serving women in Mary Kay who are only in it for the money.
Jerks will be jerks!
But for the other 99.9% of them, they are in it because they have a passion to help other women have a BETTER LIFE.
By better, do we mean POORER?
Women like me. I was in an emotionally abusive marriage, and Mary Kay gave me the courage to GET OUT. It was the best thing that I ever did, and I never would have done it had it not been for my Mary Kay business.
Congratulations on leaving one abusive situation for another.
You know, I could go on and on about the benefits of Mary Kay and how life-changing that it has been for me and every other woman I know who has gotten into the business.
The figures in the pdf show otherwise.
I could go on and on about how they teach the Mary Kay business plan at HARVARD because it is one of the best in the nation. But you would have to have an open mind about it, and I don’t believe that you do.
You could and it would be another lie, I have an open mind and my independent research shows that Harvard does not teach such a thing.
I didn’t have to write you this letter.
You didn’t but it amused me over my Friday morning cup of tea.
I have no idea who you are or why you have such a hate on for Mary Kay, but I could not stay silent.
A quick scan of the site would have shown you who we are and our reasons.
How many other businesses do you know put God first, WHICH BY THE WAY IS EXACTLY WHERE HE SHOULD BE, family second, and your career third.
All MLMs claim to put “God First”. If God was first, why don’t these ladies become nuns? Then you could combine goals one and three.
And as for making production when you have personal trials, that is why YOU HAVE A TEAM. It was never intended for you to do it all on your own. We are all to work together for the common goal of our unit of team members, or rather I will say our friends.
Transactional friendship is not real.
It has nothing to do with working yourself to death while you are sick or having a baby or whatever.
Do (general) you know how many posts in the r/antiMLM show women doing just that? Boasting about working their “small business” while in labour? Waiting for their pet to be put to sleep? People are claiming Jessie Lee Ward was working on the day she died from stage 4 colon cancer.
You encourage your teammates to help you, which helps them, and everyone succeeds. That is the Mary Kay way!
Cue normalising excessive credit card debt.
Know any other companies that do that? I sure don’t!
All MLMs certainly. But most companies encourage team work because being able to depend on your co-workers makes your job easier.
And as far as the lady that can pay for her car with her Mary Kay, MORE POWER TO HER!!!
Except we know that’s not how it works. She gets paid a stipend towards the lease of a car or she can choose to take the money. The latter is frowned upon because they don’t want their independent beauty consultants being too independent!
I sure as heck wouldn’t have been able to do that with my 9-5 job, which stands for journey of the broke.
Ma’am, that’s not how acronyms work. That would be JOTB.
Just have an open mind about it, learn your facts, and consider the fact that you could be wrong about the whole thing.
“All we want are the facts, ma’am” to quote Joe Friday. We have the facts. We have our lived experiences. We have the income disclosures. We have the screen shots of your senior directors bitching about practically everything behind the scenes.
And have you reviewed the facts? it could be that you are wrong, not us.
And if it still bugs you that much, go to headquarters and talk to them about it. But don’t poison everyone else’s mind about it just because you don’t like it.
I’m sure that me walking into the HQ of any business and ask to talk to the big cheese about how to improve the way that their company works is going to go well./sarcasm.
“The best of all: >>There is a reason that Mary Kay Cosmetics has been the #1 selling cosmetics in the U.S for years! >>
Ever notice that the majority of people you know and see every day do NOT use Mary Kay? You all would be gazillionaires if that was even slightly true. It gets its numbers because of the mini stores every has stacked up in in their basements and garages
no one refutes this, it seems.”
I never will understand why they claim this, watch any highly talked about you tube beauty make up person’s channel and show me one who has consistently used recommended and reviews MK products…..
If it’s the #1 best selling make up brand in the U.S why do I never see any of the beauty you tubers use it or review it. I see them review dollar tree make up, I see them review make up brands from Japan, Korea and even from Etsy shops .. heck I even saw one do a a review of Sengence lip glosses. But I have never seen them promote the #1 selling cosmetics brand in the USA?! That’s not strange to anyone else, especially the Salesforce for the brand?….
Also how do you know MK is the #1 selling when they don’t track retail sales …. Seems a bit suspicious to me ..
“Also how do you know MK is the #1 selling when they don’t track retail sales?”
Oh, they track retail sales alright. To MKC, the folks in the sales force ARE the retail customers! But shhhh…we can’t let them know this or it will shatter the illusion of being a self-employed business owner! If they catch on, say goodbye to all of that frontloading, qualifying minimums and end-of-the-month over-ordering that provides all that upline cash flow!
“…and most likely making a lot more money then (sic) most of the rest of us do.”
This is laughable. The Canadian income disclosure statements show how LITTLE consultants, directors, and NSDs make annually, and those numbers are BEFORE expenses. As a registered nurse, I make more than most NSDs, especially when you consider bonuses, awards, and overtime. I guarantee you that I work fewer hours per week and month than the typical director.
“And as for making production when you have personal trials, that is why YOU HAVE A TEAM. It was never intended for you to do it all on your own. We are all to work together for the common goal of our unit of team members, or rather I will say our friends. It has nothing to do with working yourself to death while you are sick or having a baby or whatever. You encourage your teammates to help you, which helps them, and everyone succeeds. That is the Mary Kay way!
Know any other companies that do that? I sure don’t!”
Another laughable item can be found right here. Every director and DIQ is told repeatedly that she has to be the one to do it. Be prepared to do it alone. That means making up production gaps by ordering inventory that you don’t need. There is no common goal with an MLM team that does not require the members to go into debt. Plus, those women are only your friends when you’re ordering products and inventory.
As far as companies and organizations out there that work together as a cohesive team, I highly suggest that you read about high-reliability organizations (HROs). In fact, there is a great book by Karl Weick and Kathleen Sutcliffe, “Managing the Unexpected, Sustained Performance in a Complex World,” that dives into HROs and the principles that make an HRO. Neither MKC nor any MLM fits the definition of an HRO. Far from it. One of the top principles of an HRO is a preoccupation with failure, where organizations learn from errors and mistakes and empower employees to report them and offer suggestions for improvement. I guarantee you 110% that MKC and MLMs have zero interest in this kind of thing.
Your entire argument here is invalid, which has become the norm for Friday critics. Pink Truth will continue to post facts, opinions, and stories about MK and other MLMs. Should that “poison” the mind of someone, then so be it.
“Also how do you know MK is the #1 selling when they don’t track retail sales?”
There’s an article in the queue about this. It’s pretty eye-opening if I do say so myself. And I didn’t even touch the consultomers angle!
I got a Ridiculous Down Vote™!!
*puts gold stickie star on shirt*
“most likely making a lot more money then most of the rest of us do”? No. Giving EVERY advantage to Mary Kay, from the way I calculated expenses to assuming they sold everything immediately, in 2005 only 12.1% of the consultants were selling enough to equal or exceed the take-home pay of a teenager working 10 hours a week as a minimum-wage burger flipper after school.
http://lazygardens.blogspot.com/2015/09/mary-kay-home-business-opportunity-or.html
Yes, the data is old. If anyone has access to unit newsletters from the 2020s, I can rerun the analysis. I doubt the results have changed.