Our very own Associate V Partner Fofana Amaral, Diamond Star and beloved upline, gets candid in this interview about believing in yourself in order to find success in direct selling. Read on to find out about how he got out of his comfort zone when he first joined QNET. Associate V Partner Fofana Amaral started his career as a direct seller by taking a leap of faith, and with a firm belief that one day he would succeed. He also dishes on what it means to be in the QNET Achievers Club, and how be a QNET Achiever too.
How did you feel the first time you were called on stage as an Achiever?
It was fantastic. I felt like I couldn’t just walk to the stage, I wanted to fly! My team and I were called on stage as Diamond Stars. Rank advancement in QNET had just been put in place. First of all, I didn’t believe that it was possible for me. In 2012, I wasn’t even trying for an Achievers Club rank. However, after seeing many people achieve it, I felt more confident. One day, when the new QNET Compensation Plan had just been put in place, I decided to go for rank advancement. I think it is necessary for leaders to set the example for their teams. So, when we finally heard our names, it was a truly great moment and I believe everyone should experience that feeling.
Aside from earning a higher income, what are the other reasons one should strive to become an Achiever?
Well, at first, you are not driven by the income itself – you are driven by the fact that we have to achieve another rank. This pushes people to get more downlines. My first priority was to build my sales team. To be part of a group, to have business meetings and overseas trips together, to meet the Founders – these were the reasons my team and I aimed at becoming QNET Achievers; the income was secondary.
Being a QNET Achiever is something special that all IDs need to work towards. When QNET chooses you to go on incentive trips, it is a great privilege and an exclusive experience. You get to meet our beloved Founders. You get to travel with them and the top Achievers around the world. This is the sort of experience you won’t find anywhere else. It is something very unique, and everyone should do all they can to go at least once in their life.
We’ve been told since the beginning that the direct selling industry is one where you lead by example. To be selected among other top performers and be invited by the QNET Founders themselves is the ultimate reward one can receive in this business venture. Besides the higher income, you truly feel that you’ve done something right and that you belong to a group of quality people.
Tell us a bit more about your first Achievers Club Incentive Trip
My first Incentive Trip was to London. For me, it was both my first trip with the Achievers Club and the first time I went to Europe! It was something completely new, and magical. I did everything I could to be chosen for the honour. When I reached there, I met the other Achievers, the V Partners and, of course, the Founders. We went everywhere together whether we were shopping, going out for meals or even going on a cruise. We spent hours talking to each other and learning from each other. If working hard and giving your best in your business, and in everything you do, gives you this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, then go for it! Do everything you can to be a top performer because, one day, you’ll be called for this kind of meeting, and you will see the value of this journey for yourself.
What is your favourite memory from that trip?
I remember on the two-hour cruise along the River Thames, Dato Sri Vijay Eswaran came to where I was sitting with my wife at the back, and shared with us his vision. When I think of this trip, this is the first image that comes to mind – Dato coming over, sitting next to us, and speaking from his heart. He wants so badly for us to develop to our full potential. Over the next hour, he shared how they started QNET, the way they built the business, the challenges they faced, and how he wanted us to achieve success like him.
What advice do you have for leaders who want to build a team of QNET Achievers?
Firstly, uplines and need to support their downlines, and pass on all the necessary information that their network needs to perform well. The QNET Rank Advancement requirements are quite simple, but sometimes we don’t pass the information and aren’t focused enough. In QNET, we grow if we help people to grow. We will reach higher levels if our downlines reach higher levels. As long as we support our network, we will go further altogether.
If you could share one important tip with others to qualify for the Achievers’ Club, what would it be?
Follow the QNET Compensation Plan and work hard. You need to set targets for yourself and achieve them step by step, fulfilling the requirements. If you pay attention to your downlines and help them with rank advancement, you will also automatically rise. Help more people make money and not just yourself; work hard with your people, and I’m sure you will achieve higher ranks.
How do you motivate your team members to become Achievers?
There were many moments where I felt that things weren’t moving ahead; times where I turned away from myself because I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Then, you ask yourself if you’d made the right decision and whether things will be better. These things happen, but you have to know that for everything you want to achieve in life, there is a price to pay. The higher the price, the bigger the things you will achieve.
You need to be confident in yourself and believe that what you’re working towards will come true for you. Never give up – this sentence is so simple, yet so true. So, whatever happens, however tough the situation may be, stay positive and believe in yourself. Increase the number of meetings and presentations you give, find what you’re not doing well and improve yourself. Keep moving, never stop, and you will find the solution on the way. Trust in your efforts and, before you know it, things will start to come together.
Do you remember when you first made the decision to keep going? Who were the ones that helped you in those difficult times?
I remember that moment very well. There are different parts to my QNET journey but the beginning was in 2007-2008. I started the business that year and faced a lot of challenges. I was in India, a foreign country to me, and I was broke at the time. I’d borrowed money from people and couldn’t pay it back yet, and my passport was with them. It was a very tough situation. This was when my upline told me, “Fofana Amaral, nothing great in life comes easy – you must first pay the price. So, all the difficulties you’re facing now, this is the price you’re paying for something great that will come.”
Once he told me that, I started to see challenges as the price for success. And, instead of being down, I became more motivated! When your energy level drops, when you start to feel doubt and negativity within you, that means you have a challenge weighing down your back. You have to identify it, face it, then move ahead.
If you could speak to yourself 12-13 years ago when you were struggling at the start of your journey, what would you tell him?
I would tell him, “If you are in this business, all your dreams are already achieved.” With QNET you can achieve everything you want. There is no dream you have that direct selling isn’t able to make come true. It will even deliver the things that you can’t believe in right now. The things that I’ve achieved through this business, I couldn’t imagine that one day I would have them. After doing the business for two to three years, when I started to make money, I bought my first and second car. One day, while driving around here in Abidjan I came up to a place in the affluent area near the city, where all the rich people bought houses by the sea. I went in what I thought was a beachside hotel restaurant and sat down to do some work. I waited for the waiter to come, but all I saw were two men sitting nearby, having a nice chat. They looked at me and said, “Sir, this isn’t a public place, this is a private house. But you can sit if you’d like, it’s not a problem.” When I heard that, I replied to them, “This is your house?” They said, “Yes, we own this place.”
I couldn’t believe that some people had that much money to own a big, beautiful house like that in front of the beach. The entire area was expensive land, and for someone from Abidjan to have a house there, they must have achieved big things, because they come there just for the weekend. So, I said to myself, “If I push myself and work hard, maybe one day I’ll buy a part of the land here.” I’d already been in direct selling for three years at that point, things started to come together, but I never thought I could own something like that.
Today, I am the owner of one of the best parts in that area. I own more than two acres with several properties. After 13 years in this business I can truly say that everything is possible, even the things I couldn’t think of back then, as today, they are a reality. This business has the potential to deliver everything we want. So, we have to believe in ourselves, we have to believe in our dream, and we have to believe in QNET.
Achievers’ Club member Diamond Star Associate V Partner Fofana Amaral is a man who knows the value of hard work and nurturing a good team. He has made it very clear that in our struggle to achieve success, we often forget that it’s not just about ourselves. According to Associate V Partner Fofana Amaral, we must also take care of our people on top of taking care of ourselves. We thank him for this lovely and insightful interview. What lessons do you take away from Associate V Partner Fofana Amaral? Let us know in the comments.
