You could fill all the shelves of a metropolitan library with books exploring the vast differences between men and women. The battle lines are drawn something like this...Women like cats; men like dogs. Men talk about sports; women discuss "relationships." Men are hunters and gatherers; women are nurturers. According to one expert, we're not even from the same planet--men are from Mars; women are from Venus.
Women are red raspberry; men are saw palmetto. At last--some common ground! After all, red raspberry and saw palmetto are both herbs. So, both genders can benefit from the nutritious goodness of herbs.
And--this may come as a surprise--both women and men have found success running a Nature's Sunshine business. It's just that, as a general rule, men are less quick to realize the potential of Nature's Sunshine.
"Like a lot of guys, I suffer from "testosterone block," "laughed Brian Everhard, of Wimberly, Texas. When his wife Karen told him about her intentions to start an NSP business, he was skeptical, to say the least.
"I flat out told my wife there was no way she could make money selling herbs. Of course, that just spurred her on to make a successful go of it." Brian said. In 1992, he joined Karen full-time in their NSP business. They broke out as Senior Divisional Managers earlier this year.
Brian, and many men, may need a little more persuasion before they accept the benefits of natural health--and the fact that selling herbs provides a tremendous financial opportunity.
"For a lot of men, it's difficult to see themselves out there selling herbs. If a direct sales company marketing hunting and fishing gear had the same financial (reports) a Nature's Sunshine, it would probably have more immediate appeal for men. But when someone is balanced and really ready for this opportunity, male or female, then something about Nature's Sunsine will ring a bell with him or her."
To Brian, one of the "unexpected dividends" of Nature's Sunshine is helping others achieve their dreams of wee-being and financial security.
"There are some people I've worked with that I don't know where they'd be today without NSP. These were people with limited opportunities--they didn't have a degree and were told by others that they couldn't do this and couldn't do that. With NSP, these same people are tearing it up, really helping others. Today, they are independent and doing what they want to do," Brian said.
Several years ago, Danny Forrester, of Cumming, Ga., might have qualified as one of those individuals with "limited opportunities.: He'd worked hard to build a career in the fast food business. However, through an unforeseen chain of events, Danny ended up losing his business, home and automobiles. At the age of 36, Danny was starting from scratch.
He sen out resumes, hoping to land another job in the fast food industry. Polite responses informed him he was over-qualified for their jobs. "That was just their way of telling me I was too old," Danny said.
Running out of options, he turned his attention to an NSP distributorship, which he had signed up for several months earlier. He borrowed $1,000 to get reestablished, and he and wife Drucelia haven't looked back. Today, they are NSP Regional Managers.
"I'm so happy I hooked up with a company like Nature's Sunshine. I saw other people put 100% into their NSP business and succeed, and I was convinced I could do the same. I've made much more money that I ever could have in the fast food business.
"Anyone who is willing to take a little knowledge and forethought, and who sincerely works with the customer, can succeed with NSP. Concentrate on the product and the customer, and the money will take care of itself," he said.
Men may be a bit shy about getting involved with NSP at first because of a long-held belief that their health isn't their responsibility. In the traditional family unit, more often than not the wife has been charged with keeping family members healthy. That's one reason men make up approximately 25-30% of the customer base, according to a small group of Managers surveyed by Sunshine Horizons.
Bob Black, an Area Manager from Fort Wayne, Ind., is well aware that women are quicker to express an interest in herbs. During the weekly natural health meeting he holds, Bob has noticed that most of the attendees are women. "Men are more shy about discussing their physical well-being. Women are more open minded," Bob said.
In the beginning, Bob said that some of his female customers pay with cash rather than check, not wanting to explain to their husbands that they bought herbs, of all things. Slowly, though, the husbands come around.
"They see changes in their wives and their families. They see changes in the food the family eats. They see the effect of herbs, and what you can do with them.
"If you don't teach people, they're not going to learn. That's what I do--I teach the proper uses of herbs and vitamins and how they fit specific needs," Bob said.
Tim Morrow, an Are Manager from Hawthorn, Calif., "got hooked" with herbs when someone taugh him about the proper use of Herbal Pumpkin. After taking Herbal Pumpkin for just two days, a problem cleared up that had been plaguing him for five years. "I was fascinated that a simple product, that cost so little, could do so much."
Tim signed up to be a Distributor, mostly to "help others" by picking up products they requested. One day, he counted up the receipts from these orders, and the total was $1,300. "That was 15 years ago, and I realized I was in a business," Tim said.
He agrees that women are more open to talking about health, and they make up the majority of his customers. "Women will talk for their husbands, too, and make purchases for their husbands. Men are hesitant to ask for help; you're no macho if you ask for help."
However, Tim has seen a change in the past 15 years--men are slowly becoming more interested in their own health and well-being.
"There's been so many layoffs. Employment is uncertain. People can't afford insurance when they're out on their own. Men come to me and say they can't afford to be sick. So they come here to see what they can do to stay well.
"I recently spoke at a meeting with more than 50 people attending, and more than half those attending were men. That wouldn't have happened 15 years ago. I used to wonder when men were going to get interested in herbs and natural health. They're beginning to do that now, and it's a wonderful development." 
Click Here to see (Page 2 of Men's Health Issue) A Gentleman's Herbal Guide to HEALTH!
Click on Browsers Back Button to return to previous page
Return to Index of Products
Return to Main Page
| Ref: Sunshine Horizons - Manager Edition - Vol. 21 No. 5 - June 1996 |
|
