No doubt you've heard the battle cry of MLM marketers: "Be your own boss and make thousands of dollars a month in just a couple of hours a day!" Everyone wants that, right? Yet, even though some MLM marketing is indeed legitimate, far more of it is simply a scam meant to empty your pockets make someone else rich. Therefore, just as with anything, you need to live by the adage, "Too good to be true." If, indeed, you take care and something turns out to be legitimate, that's great. But it's far better to be cautious upfront and hang onto your money until you know everything there is to know about the particular venture you're investigating. Then and only then should you invest your hard- earned money if in fact you feel that this is a legitimate business opportunity.

First of all, there are a couple of myths to dispel. Never, and I repeat never, is an opportunity out there that will take no work. Any opportunity out there will take at least some effort to set up, get going and maintain. Don't expect to "get rich quick," and do expect to put forth a fair amount of time investment and at least some initial money investment before you see profits.

There are two schools of thought when it comes to MLM. Many speak highly of MLM as a legitimate opportunity, with some qualifiers. For example, Donald Trump was asked what he would do if he had to start all over again today and was looking for something to begin with. His answer unequivocally was MLM. Someone else said that it was a wonderful opportunity to both be your own boss and be mentored at the same time.

Still others see it as nothing more than a scam. One of the major drawbacks is that you probably aren't going to make a lot of money with an MLM until you have a lot of people in your downline, or underneath you. This takes a lot of time to get to this stage and you may in fact not get there at all. You also have to spend a fair amount of money to stay in the MLM every month. Many have to quit just because they can afford to keep spending the amount they must to stay in the MLM. Most don't make the amounts of money "testimonials" say can be had.

Simply put, it's not as easy as it sounds and as so many try, so often, to make it seem. Most people who get into MLMs actually end up more broke than when they started. It is only a few and far between who actually achieve actual wealth in an MLM, even a legitimate one. Most compensation plans pay so little upfront that you won't make money until you've been in for a while.

Whether supportive or not supportive of MLMs, however, everyone agrees (if legitimate) that they simply aren't for everyone. Simply, no matter what you do, MLM or traditional business opportunity, you need to have passion and a drive for your work that goes beyond simple monetary compensation. If financial gain is your only driving force, then you will doubtless fail, because a passion for what you do is what takes you through tough times. You need to believe in what you're doing, be a product or service, or you'll fail in the end.

Do your homework and research any opportunity you come across that looks interesting. Then and only then, after all careful research has been done, should you invest if it's something that looks like you'd be interested in doing and can actually achieve passion about.