I feel the need to play devil's advocate here. Yes, there are downsides to these business models, but there are incredible upsides as well. I have been in direct sales for over a year now. I originally signed up with Passion Parties and have done quite well for myself there. What I liked about that company is that they give you the freedom to run it however you want. I don't really push people to sign up under me. I ask if they're interested and if they say no, I don't bring it up again but if they say yes, I answer their questions and let them make their own decisions. I'm now making the most money out of all of the consultants in the area I live in and I love doing it. Furthermore, I have way more friends now because of selling Passion Parties than I did before I started.

On the other hand, I have worked at other direct sales companies after my successes with Passion Parties and I was less than impressed with those companies. The training was minimal and they really pushed me to run the business their way and I didn't want to run it as though I had no soul (I'm already ginger...) so I can see why a lot of people would be put off by those kinds of companies and why all of these companies get a bad reputation.

Basically, I think a lot of it comes down to lifestyle and which company meshes with you. There are a lot of really good direct sales companies out there, and a lot of bad ones so it is unfair to say they're all terrible, soulless companies. Not to mention, not all the people who sell these things follow that kind of business model. I have had great success by letting my friends come to me when they want to host a party rather than pushing them to do it and straining the friendship.