When It Sounds Too Good...

When It Sounds Too Good…It Usually Isn’t Good: The Truth Uncovered

December 3, 2019

Today’s lesson is in business…and life…so you don’t make the same mistakes…

When I was growing up, we lived in a small town (Fernandina Beach, FL – not so small anymore, but you used to know everyone). My mom was a single mom as far back as I can remember (my dad left us when I was 3).

My mom cleaned houses. She would ride me on the back of her bike all over the island wherever we needed to go. I went with her when she cleaned and learned about how to respect other people’s property and not to touch anything that wasn’t mine (God forbid it broke and she had to replace it). I also learned how to clean properly.

This is how we lived for about 3 years until she remarried – simplicity. Happiness. No worries. She paid the bills and we had a roof over our heads. That was all that mattered. My grandparents would come visit and bring me to Jacksonville, FL most weekends. My grandfather was like my dad growing up. But, unfortunately, no one taught me about scammers or all the bad people out there who will take advantage of anyone who is willing. I had to learn all that as an adult…and it hasn’t been pretty.

I am a trusting person. Sometimes too trusting. Some would call this a downfall. I call it how I operate. I am all or none. There was a time where I had a wall up and didn’t trust anyone due to being taken advantage of by people during my upbringing. My heart was cold. Over the years, I have learned that in order to provide services to those who request them and to operate in a family and have meaningful relationships, I had to let that guard down. In doing that, I have let it all the way down. I treat people with love and a helping nature. This sets me up when things happen that I don’t expect and when people come in who don’t treat people the way I expect them to. It brings me back to reality quickly.

Ever heard the saying, “you can’t plan for everything”?

Today was one of those very unplanned events.

Last week, while in New Mexico for my husband’s retirement after 20 years of service in the United States Air Force, I was sitting on my computer and was on LinkedIn. I saw an ad for something that sounded super prestigious. It was on LinkedIn, so it was legit right? The company is called the International Society for Female Professionals (theisfp.com). Sounds amazing right? I mean, what better way to network than to be a part of an organization that is only female professionals? The website looked legit and there was nothing that made me second-guess them. I continued to fill out the online “entry form,” which included my name and email. There was still an “approval process” and “interview” that would be conducted over the phone.

A week later, after doing a near cross-country move and unloading a 26′ moving truck into our place here in Jacksonville, I received a call. It was during the day and I was folding clothes, not thinking about anything logical. The lady’s name was Alisha Dawson. She asked me questions regarding my professional history, about my business, etc. The conversation seemed great…at first. After I answered all her questions, she told me that I was “accepted.” My initial emotion was sheer happiness! Finally! I was going to be able to get my name out there and help my company become more recognized!

Then, she told me the price. For a 5 year membership, it would cost a little over $400. For a “Lifetime Membership,” which is what “most people get,” she said, is $589.

Now, before you say anything, I have spent more than that on a single certification ($800 for my PT Cert to be exact) and much more on mentorship (over $10,000), so $589 doesn’t seem like that much for a “Lifetime Membership” to an “elite organization of professional women.” HOWEVER, I am currently paying off debt from the other “mistakes” I made. So, paying another almost $600 didn’t seem like something I wanted to do, especially since I had just made a payment to that credit card for about the same amount. So why didn’t I just end the call right then and there?

It really seemed like it was a good thing. So, as the saying goes, “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” She asked for my credit card number. This is where my brain should have switched on and realized something wasn’t right. I mean, it kind of did because I asked if I had to pay right then. Then it switched back off as she said I did have to pay today, because I ended up grabbing my credit card.

Like a dummy, I gave her my credit card information.

After I gave my information, Alisha put me on hold for the approval. At the same time, I received a call from the Veterans Administration about my disability claim I put in last week as well. That call was very important, so while Alisha had me on hold, I had to hang up and switch over to the person from the VA.

It also dawned on me I should use that time to do some research because my gut (what I really know now as the Holy Spirit) was telling me that this was wrong. The Spirit literally said, “Jodi, what have you done?” Now, I have been saying the entire time I have had this walk in my renewed faith that I have not heard from the Holy Spirit. Today, it was loud and clear. The more I looked up, the more sick to my stomach I felt. It was a scam and I completely fell for it.

From what I found, this organization targets women professionals and has gone by other names in the past as well as an alias. It used to be known as the

“National Association of Professional Women,” the “International Association of Women,” and now is the “International Society of Professional Women.” All the same scam. All organizations you want to stay away from!

The Better Business Bureau, otherwise known as the BBB, contains files and complaints about companies out there such as this one to warn the consumer.

Here is what I found from the BBB website (https://www.bbb.org/us/ny/garden-city/profile/professional-organizations/international-association-of-women-0121-100689/complaints):

BBB files indicate a pattern concerning issues with the sales practices, billing and customer service of the National Association of Professional Women (NAPW), now called International Association of Women (IAW). Consumers tell BBB that they feel misled by company representatives regarding membership prices, membership levels, and additional fees for processing and set-up. Some consumers also allege that they were subjected to high pressure sales tactics by company representatives even before they understood the costs or benefits of joining the organization. Other consumers that originally agreed to join the organization but later choose to cancel or not renew the membership say that they are charged for it anyway and must reach out to company representatives to seek a refund.

This is the article that stopped my straight in my tracks: https://theestablishment.co/anatomy-of-a-scam-the-national-association-of-professional-women-94304c38fb35/index.html

As the lady from the VA was speaking to me, I was glad it was not a video call. My mouth dropped as I read the article and the writer spoke about the exact situation that happened to me and how it was a complete scam.

Not only are NAPW’s fees frequently hidden, they’re also ongoing. Once members sign in to the NAPW website, they lock themselves into an annual re-charge on their credit card. And the organization’s refund policy makes it very difficult to recoup the money lost…

Also coming at a cost? Special “VIP” recognition. On Yelp in July, “Jaime E.” recounted:

“They just called again to congratulate me on being selected for their VIP circle, for outstanding commitment to my profession and advancing professional women. I would get press releases, a mahogany frame with a certificate inside, and superpowers . . . Here I am thinking ‘Sweet, this is legitimate, and I rock!’ Just like when I signed up, she went on and on about the benefits before finally pitching (once again) the $999 cost. I hate how nonchalant they do it. They just slip it in and move right on, confirming your card on file, and buttering me up with more benefits. I had to stop her and say, ‘Wait, $999 today?’”

As soon as I got off the phone with the VA representative and after reading all the complaints I’d found, I immediately went to my banking app. I use USAA (a military-affiliated company) and they have always been helpful (been with them 14 years now). I didn’t know what to do. The charge still said “pending,” but I had received a confirmation from Alisha (even though she said I had to stay on the line for the charge to be authorized). The damage had been done.

I immediately tried to dispute the charge, but since it hadn’t posted to my account officially yet, I could not dispute it. I called my bank. I needed to get this done. I had literally allowed this to happen and I was NOT going to stand for it! This was the LAST time I would let someone get over on me! I said a quick prayer: “Lord, if you let me out of this one, I promise I learned and I will make sure this doesn’t happen again. I know I don’t always make sound choices when it comes to money, Lord, but this time, I promise, I will learn and I will not allow this to happen again.”

I spoke to three people from my bank. I told the story. The second person I spoke to was from the security department at the bank. He asked me if I could give him the name and phone number of the person who called me, so I did. Then, as I looked at my missed calls that came in while I was on the phone with the lady from the VA, it was different numbers from different cities all in New York. When I saw that, I couldn’t believe I had allowed this to happen. I know I can’t change the past, so I continued to press forward in hopes someone could help me. After about an hour of this, the entire issue was finally resolved. They were able to reverse the charge, cancel my card I gave, and issue me a new card (that I am going to shred by the way). I am counting my blessings! This could have been detrimental. I mean, what on earth was I thinking? I wasn’t.

I am not only writing this to tell the story of what happened to me, but to allow it to have happened for me so that I can tell you about it and you can share it with everyone you know. There are people out there who don’t care about any of us. They are driven by money and they will do whatever they can to get over on others. It’s a shame. From here on out, I will ONLY operate with people I know and trust and people THEY known and trust. I won’t trust any other pop-up ads.

This is the world we live in, unfortunately. It’s sad to me to be honest, but it’s the world.

I am just truly grateful I had that intuition and the Spirit who made me question it right as it happened.

On a good note, not only was I able to reverse that charge, but I also received my deposit check afterward for my last rental apartment. I am going to continue to be obedient to God because He is being obedient to me. Not only am I tithing my first fruits, but I also decided to put aside 10% of the money I could have lost today as part of my next gift to the church I am a member of.

While it may seem like I should have really wanted to throw in the towel after all that, it really made me become even more aware of myself and things I truly need to work on. I need to question things more. Not that I have to go back to not trusting anyone or putting that wall back up, but just being more suspicious.

I truly hope this keeps you from becoming a victim.

This is also why I operate off word of mouth. I expect no one to trust me anymore than I trust them. However, if there is someone out there who knows me and has worked with me, I would hope they would tell others. I don’t want cheap ads that target other people and suck them in. I want to be authentic, genuine, and honest in everything I do. Sadly, not everyone operates in the same genuine manner. Nevertheless, knowledge is key. Whether you gain the knowledge from others or from an experience such as mine, keep it – never make the same mistakes twice and always pass on the information and what you learn. Serve others. Don’t be like the scammers. Have a heart. And never, ever give up on something you are truly passionate about. Be patient. Stay the course. Know that things will happen in due time that will show you what your true purpose in life is. Stay in the present. Don’t blame yourself for past mistakes. You’re not dumb (even though you may feel like it temporarily, you’re not). Take ownership and fix the problem. You are stronger than you think. You have what it takes. You are…a warrior.