We Americans love media! We love entertainment. We bathe in it. We pay big bucks, sit through the commercials, eat the popcorn and and beg for more. Not only do we enjoy distractions, we crave them. We’re addicted to distractions. We seek them out. Why?

I think the answer lies in some complicated sociological study. One that would be over my head. Maybe the Ken and Barbie lifestyles we seemingly want is turning out to be unfulfilling. Maybe the gap separating our professional lives from our personal lives is growing too large, forcing us to consume media like a drug, numbing the pain away. Or maybe collectively we’ve chosen careers that suck, have very little meaning, or worse, do social harm, and force us to seek out the next crisis.

But the data is in: distractions make us stupid. The cure = focus. Stanford University students did a fascinating study about the affects of media multitasking. The article states,

The researchers are still studying whether chronic media multitaskers are born with an inability to concentrate or are damaging their cognitive control by willingly taking in so much at once. But they’re convinced the minds of multitaskers are not working as well as they could.

“When they’re in situations where there are multiple sources of information coming from the external world or emerging out of memory, they’re not able to filter out what’s not relevant to their current goal,” said Wagner, an associate professor of psychology. “That failure to filter means they’re slowed down by that irrelevant information.”

So maybe it’s time to stop e-mailing if you’re following the game on TV, and rethink singing along with the radio if you’re reading the latest news online. By doing less, you might accomplish more.

Translation: time to wake up and take ownership. We’re in the middle of an enormous paradigm shift in how businesses are formed and marketed. Today, anyone can source a product, build a website, put out remarkable ads on YouTube and compete with Procter and Gamble. But in the midst of all of this opportunity, we seem stuck with our noses in our blackberries with a “I’ll do something later” attitude. Meanwhile, we reach for the next crisis, the next season of Lost, our inbox…anything to distract us from carving out our spot in history.

So what’s the answer?

Recently, I agreed to a recorded phone interview with network marketing aficionado, Warren Wojnowski. Warren is the man behind the popular and informative blog Network Marketing Success Secrets. Unlike a lot of other purported experts, Warren truly is a student of the industry. After reading a few articles last month, one of which was about the history of the direct sales industry, I knew Warren was someone that shared my values for the need to preserve the integrity of the industry. The article and recording can be found here at network marketing law audio.

Personally, I prefer to download recordings and play them on iTunes. Right click this link and click “Save link as…” to save it. Enjoy.

We’ve all been there. Whether it was a spouse or parent that was pitching an exciting business opportunity, we’ve all been sold an opportunity of a lifetime. And deep down in our gut, we felt…maybe a little uncertain. Is it legitimate? Is it legal? Unfortunately, distinguishing a good network marketing company from a bad one involves more art than science. It’s hard to tell a difference and there’s never a sure answer. I prepared this article to help consumers make wise choices during these tough economic times. The article is also written to be informative for network marketing executives to help them run their businesses.

Legitimate MLM or Pyramid Scheme: How can you tell?

It’s hard to argue with Seth on this one. Social media offers a huge opportunity for businesses to connect with their clients and customers. It also offers an easy way to waste a ton of time. I like it when Seth said the internet has become “one giant cocktail party” where the users gauge their popularity by using certain metrics i.e. facebook friends and twitter followers. Attention is the ultimate currency. A business can have thousands of fans and followers in the world, but if it controls very little attention and there’s very little engagement from the “fans,” it’s spinning its wheels. So how do you rack up this attention? There are books being written about how to leverage social media to build up your brand, books like Trust Agents and Crush It. But for a short tip to rack up attention, you need to build up trust with your customers, clients, fan base, etc. And it takes time to build relationships and trust. Add value to people’s lives, for free. Be a place where they can go to for insight, information, and support. Instead of broadcasting a message, listen to what your folks are saying. I launched a fan page for my MLM law practice, The Advocate Group, for this very reason. I want to engage people in conversations, publicly. Facebook makes it very easy. There’s hardly any engagement now, but with consistent effort, I’m hoping that changes.

On July 22nd, David Vladeck, the FTC’s Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection, testified before a senate subcommittee about the need for more resources to combat fraudulent and deceptive advertising.   In the press release, it states,

The testimony also discussed Commission’s efforts to update its Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Based on the prevalent – and sometimes deceptive – use of third-party endorsements in advertising, the FTC adopted the Guides in 1980. Although the basic principles of the Guides still hold true, dramatic changes have occurred during the last three decades in how products are marketed – most notably, program-length infomercials, Internet advertising, word-of-mouth or viral marketing, and consumer blogs have all become commonplace. Vladeck testified that it also has become clear that “results not typical” and other disclaimers of typicality commonly used in endorsements and testimonials are not working as intended to prevent consumer deception.

The FTC’s efforts recently clearly demonstrate that they’re ramping up their efforts to police all forms of marketing.  How does this affect your business?  Is it too little too late?  Are they overreacting?