FLOOR IT!

Tania Nordby drove hard for recruits -- and wound up on the road to riches

Tania Nordby
It's a warm, pleasant Saturday morning in San Jose. Some folks are heading to work, some are jogging in Quicksilver Park, some are just enjoying the fresh Northern California air.

Tania Nordby just finished running her morning reports. She's been up since 5:30 but her energy's still high. She hops in her Mercedes 560 CL, rolls the top down, and soaks up the sun as she speeds to the mall. She's not on her way there to shop, though -- she's going to help new Avon Representatives with their recruiting.

It may seem strange to see someone step out of a Mercedes to hawk Avon brochures. But Tania doesn't mind. That's how she earned the Mercedes, and a whole lot else. Pounding pavement, spending hours on the phone with Downline, and all the grunt work of Leadership got her from Unit Leader to Executive Unit Leader in just three campaigns, and from there to Senior Executive Unit Leader and the steady stream of bonuses that comes with. She's not about to kick back.

“Nothing much has changed in my day-to-day,” she tells us from the cozy office just off her living room. I'm always shoring things up. I go out every day, sometimes with a manager, to teach the girls how to do this themselves and pass it on to their Downlines.”

Tania took a winding path to Avon. Both her parents were independent businesspeople. Mom was a hair stylist, but Tania couldn't relate - “I couldn't imagine putting my hands in hair dye!” Tania studied marketing at San Jose State, then got married and devoted herself to child-rearing.

A Chance Opportunity
It was only in 1993, when her regular Avon Lady failed to give her timely service on ANEW Face Cream (“which I loved”), that Tania signed up as a Representative. But unlike most “sell-to-buy” Representatives, she immediately felt a strong instinct for salesmanship. “I sold $350 worth of product in two days,” she recalls.

Tania's managers loved her so much that they recruited her to management. But though she excelled at it, attaining Circle of Excellence status, she eventually had to admit to herself “that I hated being a manager,” she says. “I liked working with people, but I hated having bosses - particularly bosses that were always changing and not always responsive.”

In 1999, Tania got divorced. “A new century was coming,” she says. “and I thought, it's really time to ring in the new.” Though she had three kids to raise, Tania knew she had enough jam to return to Leadership. And this time she wouldn't be interrupted.

Build the Dream with Recruits
“Basically I would take anyone who would get into the car and help them get the recruits and sales to make Unit Leader,” says Tania. “If you know what you're doing - or you're working with someone who knows - you will find five or more recruits. You just will.”

Retention's a problem, but Tania's solution is still “keep recruiting.” She relates to the plight of new Representatives who may not see the light at the end of the tunnel, which may be why she's been able to talk so many good ones into staying.

“My first Leadership check was for ten cents,” she says. “I used to say I wanted to quit six times a day. I don't anymore. I'm doing great, I'm putting my daughter through college, I can take a day off and still make money. If you hold on, you'll get through the rough spot, and after that is the pot of gold.”