We are all looking to build an income stream that will survive our efforts — a business that will allow the royalty income to keep coming every month, whether or not we are out there making it happen. That’s the essence of the unique residual income economic value Network Marketing offers.

How do we create residual income? By building a network that can "take the lickings and keep on ticking." We need the troops to keep using, recommending and sponsoring every month — no matter what. The key to accomplishing that lies with the leaders.

Entire networks of distributors stay involved through thick and thin based on how connected they are to their upline leaders. Leadership and relationships are the glue that holds the organization together.

Keeping leaders is tough. By their very nature, leaders often need more than we have to offer. They are looking for their next challenge or frontier, for the place where they can be the leader. Leaders have strong opinions and egos. It is a lot easier to get into a fight with one of your leaders than anyone else. Fights lead to hurt feelings and parting company.

So how do we get it done?

Here are some ideas:

• Confide in your leaders that which they feel a strong need to know. Perhaps not everything, but more than you are comfortable with.
• Do more for your leaders than they expect you to do.
• Tell your leaders the truth; don’t "spin." They’re your partners; lay it all out and ask for their partnership, leadership and loyalty.
• Maintain your integrity. Don’t speak one set of values and live another. Leaders see through this, and it erodes their confidence and loyalty.
• Keep your long range vision alive for them; make sure they have a strong place in it. What’s in it for them, long term?
• Maintain the integrity of the leadership group. Weed out those who don’t meet the standards. Keep the bar high and in line with your spoken values; challenge leaders to live up to it.
• Allow your leaders to experience what it’s like to walk in your shoes. Give them opportunities to lead in areas where you normally do. They will see the challenges from a different perspective and respect you for it.
• Love and respect them; accept their uniqueness and their imperfections. Like everyone, leaders are looking for a safe place to be themselves.
• Play with your leaders far more than is "normal." Play builds bonds, brings down barriers to relationship; play is authentic and builds friendship; play is powerful.
• Listen, listen, listen from the mind and heart. Let them know they are heard — maybe not agreed with, but certainly heard.