Why We Need To Get Scammed At Least Once In Our Lives

Life lessons from someone who joined a cult

You need to get scammed.

There are plenty of options out there: Tinder prostitutes, cultists, or con artists.

If you’ve been scammed before, congratulations. If not, here are some lessons you’ll need to experience to become immune:

Real opportunities don’t come to you on a silver platter

At my job, we deal with the public regularly. That’s where I met a stranger, Clyde (this happened in 2018).

We were talking about my job and life in general. I felt like he was genuinely trying to get to know me as a person. When I look back at the conversation, he was really just trying to gauge whether or not I would be a good fit for his “business”.

At some point, he asked me about my goals in life.

I told him, this and that, you know, the standard canned response.

He replied that he had this “online marketing” opportunity that he was working on with some other “business owners” in the area. He talked like it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so I gave him my phone number for later.

I hate trying to persuade people to buy shit I don’t care about.

Yet here I was months later selling soap in a pyramid scheme with Clyde as the leader of this whole thing.

Yes, I was literally trying to get people to buy overpriced Amway products that are only available online with a ridiculously priced shipping fee.

Why would anyone buy 24-pack bottled water for $45 when they can get it at Walmart for $3?

Not only is Amway a scam, it’s a cult too. It’s an odd mix of Christianity and scummy business practices rolled into one slimy package.

Brainwashing is Amway (well, really LTD’s) objective, and the individuals leading this cult did what they could to alienate us from the rest of society. We were pressured to go out daily like Jehovah’s Witnesses to spread the gospel of Amway and LTD.

I spent most of my monthly paycheck on Amway products and LTD training to include:

• Quarterly Conferences (at least 100$ each)
• Monthly LTD subscription ($90)
• Yearly Amway renewal ($100)
• Weekly meetings ($6)
• Self-help books
• Overpriced audios (Amway/LTD produced brainwashing, I mean podcasts) ($9)

People like Clyde just about promised that if we spent the money on this content, it was only a matter of time before we were rich business owners.

Eventually, I had to quit because COVID-19 was getting worse and I had to pay rent. I didn’t want anything to do with their blatant disregard for the health of the community.

At one point I realized my friendship with Clyde was built upon a lie. He only cared about me as long as I was a source of income for him.

Opportunities don’t just come to you on a silver platter.

They don’t seek you out. Only the bad ones. They’re constantly on the hunt, looking for their next victim. I didn’t realize I was perpetuating the cycle when I went out to meet strangers for Amway.

I still cringe when I think about some of the dumb shit I did at that time, but it was at least a learning experience.

Even the most legitimate places are abused by scammers

A few months ago I was on a freelancing website for extra cash.

I didn’t think I would almost be scammed on here. At some point, I found a job listing and went through their “hiring process”. It seemed legitimate at first.

Yet something sketchy was going on…

There wasn’t much effort in getting hired for the company.

I “ordered” equipment to be delivered to my apartment from the company for the job. Free of charge. Something was off, but I couldn’t pinpoint the reason yet.

I discovered in my email, that the website removed the job listing for TOS violation.

I could feel a knot in my stomach, and my heart started to race.

The fake company wasn’t going to send the equipment until I paid a shipping fee for “out of stock” items on their list.

It was too good to be true. A legitimate company isn’t going to hire someone remotely without a rigorous process. It was too easy. There’s nothing out there that isn’t filled with scammers.

At the end of it, I told the “hiring manager”: Something doesn’t seem right, don’t worry about sending me the equipment I don’t want it.

His response: fuck you Paul! (Yikes)

Even if you make a mistake and pass up on a good opportunity. Listen to your gut feeling. If something seems fishy, that’s because it is.

It’s too good to be true, they just want your money

Dating apps are somewhat useful. I’ve gotten laid once or twice using them.

There are of course risks to meeting strangers online…

Even verified profiles should be approached with caution. Treat every dating profile with skepticism. You don’t know who’s on the other side.

I’ve been dating for a little bit, but I haven’t run into this yet:

Tinder prostitutes. The first experience messaging one was a bit…off-putting. Though, at this point, I’m used to it.

Recently, I found a new app where you can directly message one new person per day without having to match with them.

I saw a girl I was interested in. She called herself Jewel.

She seemed eager to meet up with me, even though she lived 2.5 hours away. I didn’t even ask her to come visit me. We exchanged contact information and she even sent me pictures of herself, or whoever it was.

Her location was in a much larger metropolitan area than mine. I thought it was weird that she was willing to drive the distance to meet a stranger whom she’d known for about 5 minutes.

I even asked her: Are you not interested in guys in your area?

She was only interested in guys who were “serious” about meeting up.

If she hadn’t asked me for gas money I wouldn’t have thought much of that statement. The puzzle started to come together. Apparently, she was broke and didn’t work, but REALLY wanted to spend the night with me.

I was not convinced she was in this for a good time. I don’t lend money to people I know, let alone strangers I meet on the internet.

I tried:

• Asking to video chat to verify this person (she had an excuse why it was impossible)
• A picture of some way to verify her identity
• Other solutions than me sending money through an app
• Me driving up there and paying for her gas

Sending money could be interpreted wrongly, and I didn’t want to be out of cash if this person ghosted me.

My experience with Amway taught me this:

Scammers will oftentimes try to suck up to their victims and sweet talk them.

Once I remembered this I became more distrustful as the interaction continued the following day. She followed this exact pattern.

Jewel was adamant about receiving money before the trip, despite my concerns, and was unwilling to try a different solution.

My solutions just seemed to agitate this person more.

At some point, she gave up when she realized I wasn’t going to send her money.

I’m not unattractive or unlovable, but attractive women aren’t giving away their contact information right away without some kind of catch.

The three lessons:

1. Real, legitimate opportunities aren’t just going to find you
2. You can find scammers in places you wouldn’t think of
3. If it seems to good to be true, that’s because it is

While I don’t condone scamming, it’s a lesson that you need to learn if you want to avoid it from happening again. Sometimes we can only truly learn by experiencing the pain.