The DSA is the national trade association of the leading firms that manufacture and distribute goods and services sold directly to consumers. Approximately 260 companies are members of the association, including many well-known brand names as Mary Kay, Scensty, Usana and Lia Sophia. Winning these awards simply adds validation to all the hard work and dedication of our marketing and programming teams.

The first ETHOS Award we received is in the Salesforce Development category for our Life Shotz’s 10-Day Challenge Incentive Program. When we crafted the challenge, we knew we were on to something big. Anytime an incentive is created that is a win for both Distributors and Customers, it has to be a success. Top that off with awesome marketing tools and cool Distributor lead pages, we couldn’t be beat!

Our second ETHOS Award was in the Technology Innovation category for the Back Office/Business Support of the LifeShotz.com website. The category had us brushing shoulders with two other award winning businesses—Mary Kay Inc. and Team Beachbody. Oh Yeah!

I can’t say enough of how proud I am of our talented and devoted team. A special recognition to our marketing crew: Dan Dekan, Mike Colton, Bryan Albrandt, Stephanie Guerra and Danielle Lockwood. And here’s to my lead programmers, Kevin Shay and Brian Harder, for making it all work. Let’s not forget Lauren Myklebust for helping me keep our projects on track and on AWESOME!

It is awe-inspiring to be recognized with these awards, and our job is never done. We are just as thrilled that over the next month we are working to roll out other great projects, tools and innovations for our Life Shotz Brand Reps and Customers.

Melissa Gulbranson

Vice President of Marketing

Here at Life Shotz, we know the importance of having a clean environment. We’ve been practicing it from the beginning and continue to do so today.

Environmental stewardship has been at the forefront of every decision we make about our product and our company. It’s the reason we ditched the plastic. It’s the reason we went to powder. It explains our choice of environmentally friendly inks, biodegradable dyes, and packaging certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

Our packaging contains:

• Fully recyclable wood fiber box (to reduce deforestation)
• Vegetable based inks (to reduce emissions from volatile organic compounds and emissions of hazardous air pollutants)
• The least amount of packaging possible (to reduce the amount of wasted resources)

Because we knew it would make a giant impact on the planet and for generations to come, we made our water bottles out of stainless steel — making it so you can drink Life Shotz, water, or any other beverage without discarding a plastic bottle into the trash that would eventually end up in some landfill taking up space and harming the environment. We did this because 86% of all ocean debris is plastic, and we thought that number was WAY too high!

Maybe we’re just optimists, but we think that doing the right thing is about more than immediate gains, and when we look at our world, we’re more than happy to make choices that we’ll be proud of later.

That’s why you have to ask yourself on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis what your impact is. If everyone lived the way you lived, how many planets would we need to support all those people? Would it be one, or would it be twenty? Earthday.org has an ecological footprint calculator — It’s pretty cool, and it will definitely open your eyes. Check it out.

Join us by making a small change in your lifestyle today. Whether it’s drinking out of a Life Shotz water bottle, or buying a reusable bag at the grocery store — every little bit counts. We have a huge stake in preserving our planet for future generations. If everyone does their part, a real difference is easily within reach. So please, make the small and large decisions that make the earth a happier, healthier place.

Happy Earth Day!

Melissa

This day marks the anniversary of the World Health Organization. It was founded back in 1948 as a global organization to bring all leaders and public together to focus on emerging health issues and positively impact everyone’s well-being.

Each World Health Day has a focus topic. This year’s topic is “Aging and Health.” The mantra is “Good health adds life to years.”

Think about that last line for a minute. Go back and read that line again. How many times have you read it differently? I’ve read it many times as “this will add years to your life.” We’ve all seen it in marketing ads.

Those of you that are in your retirement years probably understand the message very clearly. How enjoyable are the retirement years of our life, without good health? We all know people who are retired that have good health and we also know those that do not. Good health adds life to years. That statement sums it up perfectly.

Those of you that aren’t even close to your retirement age, don’t stop reading. This message is as much for you as anyone. Retirement age may seem very far off and you might seem bulletproof right now, but it will get here much quicker than you expect.

The message from the World Health Organization this year is another reminder. A reminder that we all know is true. Each and every one of us can make a dramatic impact on our health. It can be positive or negative. We make choices many times throughout each day. The choices we make are compounded over the years. Even before we reach the “golden years” we either have added life to our years or taken life away from our years.

All of us want to be happy and healthy, none of us are reading this and saying “nah, I’ll take the poor health option.” This is where choices we make every day, impact our current and future quality of life.

Choices like these:

• Did you choose to get 7-8 hours of sleep?
• Did you choose to eat breakfast?
• Did you choose to eat fresh, high quality, foods?
• Did you choose to be active today? (Going for a long walk is active, you don’t need to join a gym. Simply get moving every day.)
• Did you choose to smoke today?
• Did you choose the stairs or the elevator?
• Did you choose fast food or pack a lunch?
• Did you read today or make time to challenge your mind?
• Did you take Life Shotz today?

I just listed nine choices that will impact your health based on what you choose. There are many more daily choices than what are listed above. I just wanted to paint a picture for you. The best part is, we all know the correct choices to make, it’s a matter of making them.

Life Shotz is unique that even if people are making the wrong choices daily, but wisely take Life Shotz, they will feel the positive impact. It just might be the impact they needed to start making more of the right choices.

Think about the choices you’ve made in the past 11 days since the anniversary of the World Health Organization. Have they had a positive or negative impact on your overall health? Make a goal to form more healthy habits — you have the next 354 days to do so.

We are in a position to dramatically influence the health of the world.

A belated Happy World Health Day to you!

Tom

Her Sponsor, Jennifer Reedy, is extremely proud of Alison and all her efforts:

“Alison has taken on an adventure and ran with it. I’m so proud of her accomplishments. She takes it on full-time and has excelled quickly and steadily for the past year! Her team loves her and we’re all extremely proud to work with her. Even though I’m technically a ‘leader’ to her, she continues to lead and inspire all of us on a daily basis!”

Steve Machado is in Alison’s Upline, and is very excited and happy for her:

“It’s so much fun to see Alison’s hard work pay off. She truly is great at what she does and her dedication to her business and her team is something to admire. The consistency in her effort, the enthusiasm in what she is learning and building and her willingness to be coached are the keys to her making Silver this month and it will be those traits that will take her to Gold and beyond. We will definitely be celebrating on the Cruise!”

A big part of Alison’s success has been her team-first attitude and her ability to take what she’s learned, and put it into action. Her effort and positive attitude spreads to everyone she comes in contact with!

From the entire Life Shotz family, congratulations Alison, and we can’t wait to set sail with you in May!

Make good things happen today!
Rick

Amy Machado is in Jennifer’s Upline, and is extremely proud of her:

“Jen is a dream to work with. She is helpful, committed, always prepared and very hard working. She is always ready to challenge herself to be better, which is great in this business since you must never stop learning or growing. Her love for people is always evident in every move she makes.”

Steve Machado, also in Jen’s Upline, is thrilled for her:

“I’m so excited for Jen! She has been very dedicated to her business and has been working so hard to grow her team. Any time there has been an opportunity to advance her business or take a step forward on her personal development path, she is the first to commit.”

Jennifer’s hard work and dedication has helped her advance quickly with Life Shotz. She’s willing to learn and spread her training and knowledge to everyone involved with her team.

Great work Jennifer! Get ready to celebrate in May, and we’ll all be toasting you with a glass of Life Shotz here at the corporate office!

Make good things happen today!
Rick

The topic for this blog is the 90-Day Success Plan. Successful leaders in Life Shotz will tell you that planning is a crucial activity for them and their Life Shotz business. Having a good plan is one of the factors that determine their success and failure.

I really like the 90-Day Success Plan:

• It’s short enough for you to see the end, but long enough for you to get exciting results.
• It provides a picture of where you’re heading.
• It’s extremely valuable in the pursuit of your goals.

Advance Planning

Can you successfully build a house without first having a plan? Not a chance. The same holds true for Life Shotz — if you are brand new and your goal is to be 3 Star in 30 days, you need a plan and action to get you there.

You will encounter distractions that will cause you to lose focus and blow you off course. Stay committed to your plan. Know your plan by heart — know the daily, weekly and monthly targets you need to reach. The more targets you hit, the more motivated you will be — and the more your motivation increases, so too will your productivity. If you want confirmation of this, just ask any of our recent Cruise Winners!

Nimble Planning

Look, life happens. Events don’t always go our way. And when life happens, just adapt and move forward toward your target. An example of this is your 2 A Day 10 In Play. If your daily target is two face-to-face meetings, should one or both of your appointments cancel, be nimble and move to your back up plan: contact your other 10 in play.

Time Planning

Advisory Board Member, Janine Avila, has shared the importance of time management and organization. We all have the same hours, minutes and seconds in the day. To make time work for you, use your 90-Day Success Plan. Create a daily timeline for your actions. Have specific times and days that you do certain things and make them your priority each week. Whether it’s one hour or eight hours, effective use of your time will help you hit your targets and achieve your goals.

Resource Planning

Lay out your daily action plan the night before. By investing the time the night before, you will have a greater, more impactful result the next day. Be disciplined — make time work for you. Know your resources; know how you are approaching each prospect or customer. Know the tools you are going to use. How effectively you prepare, organize, and utilize your resources will make all the difference. Janine is right when she says, “leaders make the most of their time.”

Focus and Relax

Having your plan in place will allow you to focus and relax. A lack of planning and preparation can make you anxious and nervous and will have a negative impact on hitting your targets. By creating your plan in advance, I guarantee you will feel calmer, more confident, focused and relaxed. And it will be rewarding putting a check mark by the daily targets that you hit each day.

Action Planning

You don’t have to get it right; you just have to get going! And when you do get going, make sure you go “all in!” Whether you are able to work your business a couple of hours a day, every day, or an hour or two every other day, make sure you’re consistent and follow your plan. If you’re reading this and saying to yourself “creating a success plan is something that I should be doing,” flip the switch that gets you back on track to success by moving it into your must do action for today.

Start with what you would like to accomplish in the next 90 Days:

• What are your goals?
  • How much money would you like to make
  • What rank do you want to be
  • What new skills will you learn
  • What existing skills will you improve
• List 3 reasons why you will succeed.
• What are the top 3 outcomes for you when you do succeed?
• Daily Productivity — 7 Key Targets
  1. Use the product
  2. Recommend — expose new people to your business
  3. Invite people to take a look
  4. Enroll new Brand Builders
  5. Gather 10-Day Challenge Customers
  6. Get new Brand Builders and Customers started
  7. Follow up

I really believe you will be amazed by what you can accomplish in the next 90 days when you plan it. I look forward to seeing it happen!

Make good things happen today!
Rick

This got me thinking about some of the similarities between our Brand Builders and their efforts to win the cruise, in relation to what athletes are going through to win a basketball championship.

In a basketball season, every team starts the season at the same starting line with the same record. The art of the start is important— you can’t win the championship on opening day, but you can lose it if you don’t start.

The same is true for the Cruise Contest. On October 1, 2011 every Brand Builder started out on the same level, and at the same starting point. You couldn’t win the Cruise Contest on day 1, but starting strong and sustaining the course was imperative.

As with a basketball season, our contest period of 183 days results in a full range of highs, lows, thrills, disappointments, gut checks and incredible moments of victory along the way.

And now as the basketball season is coming to its finish line, in a few short days the Cruise Contest will also reach the finish line. Fortunately, unlike the Men’s and Women’s NCAA Tournament where there can only be one winner, there will be multiple winners of the Life Shotz Cruise!

Determine to finish just as strong as you started. For those of you who have already won the cruise, CONGRATULATIONS and it will be an experience of a lifetime – actually a “LIFESHOTZ LIFETIME.”

For those of you who are close enough to see the finish line, it’s important that you stay in it to win it and continue the course— you still have time to write your amazing success story! Put all of your energy, passion and determination into finishing this “season” up strong.

Push yourself to finish on top! You will be glad you did.

Make good things happen today!

Rick

Let’s take a look at some of the other awareness month topics:

• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Awareness month— fitting that it falls in March with Caffeine Awareness.
• Alcohol Awareness Month— April
• Arthritis Awareness Month—May

There are hundreds of different awareness topics.

So what does awareness mean in regards to these topics?

It’s meant to be an annual reminder to all of us. A reminder telling us to pay attention to our habits, safety, and overall knowledge of the topic.

Is caffeine bad? No. The overuse and abuse of caffeine is bad. Continued abuse might just make you celebrate Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Awareness Month.

What we all need to be aware of, is our level of daily caffeine use. A cup each morning to start your day? Great, no problem. Studies actually show that a mild dose of caffeine in the morning helps to fire up our neurons and get our brain’s activity level alert and ready.

Here is where awareness comes into play.

Do you find yourself needing more caffeine throughout the day, every day? Do you switch to soda or a caffeine juiced energy drink? Do you head back to the coffee shop in the afternoon for another hit? Do you find yourself craving a beverage that has caffeine?

Caffeine addiction is real. It’s a daily habit that grows slowly. It doesn’t start off with massive amounts of caffeine, because we don’t need a large amount.

Over time our body adjusts to the caffeine hit and we require more to get the same effect. Slowly our usage starts to increase until before we know it, we are constantly consuming caffeine throughout our day.

Caffeine is simply a band-aid for poor nutrition and lack of rest. Caffeine in the beginning will fake your body into feeling alert, energetic and ready for the day. In a pinch, it will pep you up but after continued use, it will drain you. Caffeine abuse can lead to anxiety, depression, difficulty sleeping, nausea, and restlessness. Once you are addicted, stopping caffeine use can cause drowsiness, headaches, irritability and nausea.

So how do you ease off that caffeine gas pedal if you are now aware of the abuse? Gradually reduce your intake over the next week. Each day reduce the amount of caffeinated products you consume AND nourish your body with Life Shotz, a good diet and 6-8 hours of sleep.

Life Shotz’s scientific blend of nutrients gives the body what it needs to produce natural energy. This is the energy that was meant to fuel us. If you partner Life Shotz with making smart eating choices and getting adequate rest, you’ll find you no longer even need caffeine. Frankly, you’ll find yourself unstoppable.

To your health,
Tom

As business people we deal with many different personality types on a daily basis. As Brand Builders we also understand that each customer or prospect is unique. However, there does seem to be universal agreement regarding four basic personality types in the world of consumers, specific to retail. What motivates each one of these personalities is completely different when it comes to buying.

The Director – loves facts, benefits and reasons. They are the take-charge type and make their own decisions.

The Analytical – also loves facts and data. This type will visit the website, do their own research and have it neatly filed away. They love being asked their opinion (they consider it a compliment).

The Relater – wants to feel part of something. It’s personal for them and they take an ownership position in anything they do.

The Socializer – is outgoing, fun, loves to talk and make new friends. Relationships are paramount to this person. If they don’t like you, they will not do business with you. For them it is not “all” about the product; it is about the relationship. They look at the whole experience as a fun event in their life.

Historically the way drink companies have approached getting close to customers is to market their products by standing at the local grocery store and soliciting customers. They encourage people to sample their product as they walk by and then give them a coupon whether they want it or not. Hit it and hope. One taste – that’s it! With no consideration for the personality of the customer or the WIIFM (what’s in it for me) factor.

The 10-Day Challenge is a very powerful way to get close to your customer. By being prepared and using this approach you are in a better position to interact with each customer in the four basic personality types.

For the Director – this experience is exactly the way they want it. They are in control, they have the facts and will “feel” the benefits.

For the Analytical – they will be able to get their facts and data both from what you provide them and what they can get on their own from our website (and yes, they will be all over our website).

For the Relater – bottom line for them is they are included, they are making the decision and they are not being sold. They want to tell you about their experience so make sure they tell you about their results. The people in this group are wonderful customers to have and a sensational source of never-ending referrals.

For the Socializer – it’s about the relationship. Your fortune with this group is in the personalized follow up. You need to follow up – and follow up with enthusiasm!

As we know, in today’s world competing for people’s attention is not easy. The goal is to get someone’s attention and when we have it, the fact that we can KEEP it for 10 days is invaluable. With your customer on the 10-Day Challenge, you have that person’s undivided attention. Even if it is only for a moment while they are drinking Life Shotz – you still have their attention throughout the entire 10 days.

The 10-Day Challenge meets the customer on their terms, all you have to do is talk to them. All of these people have problems and quietly have goals – you have the solution and Life Shotz will deliver the results.

Now that you have their attention in regard to the product, you also have their attention about being a potential new Brand Builder. And as you are prepared to interact with them on a higher level, you are increasing your sales and your group drastically.

Set your goal: two new people a day on the 10-Day Challenge. Let’s continue transforming people’s lives one stick at a time.

Make good things happen today!
Rick

We have evolved into a “prove it to me” society. Information is readily available to all of us. If a story seems too good to be true we can quickly check it out. If a deal seems too good to be true, we can check that out too.

If we come across a great deal on a used car we can say “SHOW ME THE CARFAX” and we just might find out why it is such a great deal.

This instantaneous information has created a sea of skeptics. They may not be as easily sold now, without proof. However, with proof, their skepticism wanes.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, we invested in a series of human cell tests on Life Shotz along with five competitive nutritional supplements. We knew on paper that Life Shotz will dramatically improve the health of everyone who takes it.

This theory was also supported by the pouring in of testimonials from users who reported they were experiencing all the great effects that Life Shotz was designed to deliver. As great as Life Shotz is, it was still open to skeptics.

In came the test results. These were blinded tests. The scientists conducting the tests did not know what products were being tested. Life Shotz registered incredible scores on every test. The competitors scored extremely poorly, or not at all.

These human cell tests were a big investment, just like our NSF and BSCG certifications. They are all major notches in the belt of Life Shotz. Combining the new breakthrough in taste along with our new science, doors are beginning to open wider. We know 2012 will be an outstanding year for all of us.

Proof, we have it.

The full test results and explanation can be found here.

To Your Health,

Tom