What Tim Russert Can Teach Us About Network Marketing by Susan Bonfiglio

I was saddened to hear of Tim Russert's death. I was a huge fan of his. Sundays will never be the same. For me, it will always be...."if it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press". But his legacy is much more than that. He was a remarkable man. And as I watch the tributes flowing in about Tim, it is easy to see how beloved he was. But it wasn't just that he was a great guy and good interviewer, one by one people started sharing about the man, his life and his work. And I saw that he has much to teach us about the way we do business.

Tim loved his work. His passion and enthusiasm for politics seemed to jump through the television screen into my living room. You could see that he was having fun in his job. I think that's a good place to start. In order to be truly successful, having passion for what you do is essential. Passion sustains you through the all the seasons of your work, both good times and bad. Don't waste your time in a job that you hate. Find something to be passionate about.

He knew his field. No one had a better command of the political scene than him. He had mused in 2000 that it wouldn't it be something to see be if one candidate could win the popular vote and one win the electoral vote. Tim was right ,know your business! You need to know your product. Nothing is worse than having someone ask you questions about your product or service and you can't answer them. Take the time to get to know your product, comp plan and all the ins and out of your business.

Tim said his father taught him that is important to show up, do your job and always be prepared. How many of us don't show up to our jobs? Oh yes, our bodies may be there but we don't really do the things we need to do to move our businesses forward. I once saw Tim in an interview say that nothing is more important than keeping your word. Nothing! Being in integrity can make the difference between success and failure. Who are we as entrepreneurs if we are not our word? Our word is our bond. People do business with people they know, like and trust. If we fail in establishing trust, we will never get or keep our clients.

By all accounts, Tim was a nice guy. He was never too busy to stop and talk to people, send a note of encouragement or offer a hand. Bryant Gumbel said that he always found the time to let you know that he was there. That is a good lesson for us when speaking to prospects, don't just jump in and try to sell people, talk to them, spend time with them, and get to know them. And for our customers, don't just call them when they are running low on product, take an interest in them. You never know where that will lead.

The other thing that struck me was that he kept his priorities in order. His priorities were faith, family and work. Mary Kay Ash used to say that in that order, everything works. As entrepreneurs we need to remember to live a life in balance. Since many of us work from home, it is sometimes hard to separate work time from family time. It's important that we learn how to make those distinctions.

I will miss Tim Russert. Meet the Press will never be the same. I will miss him during this political season; he was so looking forward to it. But I have learned so much about him that I didn't know before. I will remember the lessons I learned from watching this larger than life journalist.

Rest in peace Tim.