It’s Just A Ride

As we approach the 20th anniversary of Bill Hicks’ death, our team at Flying Man Productions would like to share how he has inspired us and helped us counsel other marketers. He was so much more than a stand-up comedian and musician. Beyond the laughs, culture critique, and dark comedy insights, Bill Hicks left us with wisdom that can inspire network marketers and help them grow their businesses. We could probably extract tips from many of his bits, but let’s just consider the one we have found the most impactful: his famous “It’s Just a Ride” routine.

The World is like a ride in an amusement park, and when you choose to go on it you think it’s real, because that’s how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round, and it has thrills and chills and is very brightly colored, and it’s very loud. And it’s fun, for a while.

Some people have been on the ride for a long time, and they’ve begun to question, ‘Is this real, or is this just a ride?’, and other people have remembered, and they’ve come back to us and they say ‘Hey, don’t worry. Don’t be afraid, ever, because this is just a ride.’ and we KILL THOSE PEOPLE.

“Shut him up! We have alot invested in this ride! SHUT HIM UP! Look at my furrows of worry. Look at my big bank account, and my family. This just has to be real.”

It’s just a ride.

But we always kill those good guys who try and tell us that. You ever noticed that? And let the demons run amok. But it doesn’t matter, because … It’s just a ride.

And we can change it anytime we want. It’s only a choice. No effort, no work, no job, no savings of money. A choice, right now, between fear and love. The eyes of fear wants you to put bigger locks on your door, buy guns, close yourself off. The eyes of love, instead see all of us as one.

The Ride

The ride is the system we are told to adhere to. It’s working too hard just to barely scrape by, only to have too little to retire once you finally pay off all the debt. The ride looks something like this:

  • Go to college
  • Get a 9-5 job to pay off student loans
  • Get a mortgage on a big house in the suburbs
  • Commute an hour to work so you can live in the big house in the suburbs
  • Work overtime to support your family and pay the bills
  • Take a short vacation only when the boss says you can
  • Continue working after “retirement” for supplemental income

Before you became a network marketer, you were probably stuck on the ride. No matter how miserable you felt going to work every morning, you grit your teeth and did it anyway… because what other option did you have?

Somehow you were able to get off the ride. At some point, someone presented another option to you and gave you hope that there really is another way to live!

The Awakened

Some of the people among us have become aware. It all started with an original thought, a question (“Is this real, or is this just a ride?”), which led to a discovery. Now they are whistleblowers, artists, inventors, poets, teachers, protesters, entrepreneurs. They are people whose eyes have been opened to the fact that they can pursue something they love and believe in, achieve their dreams, fight the system, and break out of the mold. They have jumped off the ride long enough to recognize that our minds are capable of taking us further than we could possibly imagine, and staying trapped on the ride is a choice that is holding us back. With their individual talents and gifts, they try to help others see the truth and get off the ride. Sometimes it goes well; a network marketer can help hundreds of people get off the ride and start a new life! But sometimes it goes terribly, and they are treated as traitors. As an entrepreneur, your work is inspirational and life changing to everyone who listens to you! This brings us to the next point:

Don’t Be Afraid

You are not just selling machines, makeup, coffee, vitamins, etc. Your sales pitch is so much more than the product! It’s more than a part-time vocation. It’s more than supplemental income. What you offer is an opportunity to gain full control of life and start dreaming big. Because our minds have been so ingrained with the ride, that kind of opportunity will almost always be initially met with fear.

“What if I fail? What if I can’t pay the bills? I don’t have any experience in sales – how could I ever be successful!”

This is when your own story becomes so important! Use your testimonial to encourage your prospects not to be afraid. Tell them what happened after you jumped off the ride. Give them encouragement that while it might be scary to go against the grain, it was never real in the first place! Be a cheerleader as they take their first step toward True Freedom and Prosperity.

Choose Love

How many times have you wanted to share the business opportunity, but you lost your nerve out of fear? There was so much you wanted to say, so much that might have helped the person who was obviously struggling or unhappy in his current situation.

Please do not forget that your hands are on the brake that will stop the ride. Helping someone achieve mental and financial freedom is the most loving thing you could ever do!

Choose love. Change lives. Stop the ride.