You know how pyramid schemes work, right?  A single person starts the “company” and recruits others to join the “company”.  The way you join this company is you pay an enrollment fee.  Then your only job is to recruit more people to said company.  When person A recruits person B and C, the enrollment fees from B and C are split between person A and whoever recruited A.  When you visualize the hierarchy, it kind of looks like a pyramid, where the person who starts the company is at the very tip top.  The person at the top has the potential to get rich without lifting a finger beyond recruiting a few people that are willing to recruit others.

Genius!  Unfortunately, pyramid schemes are illegal in the United States

"Both Ponzi schemes and pyramids are quite seductive because they may be able to deliver a high rate of return to a few early investors for a short period of time. Yet, both pyramid and Ponzi schemes are illegal because they inevitably must fall apart. No program can recruit new members forever." (via [http://www.ftc.gov/speeches/other/dvimf16.shtm](http://www.ftc.gov/speeches/other/dvimf16.shtm))

If only pyramid schemes weren’t illegal, I would have a great working scheme … err … company to go with.  I think the pitfall of these pyramid schemes is that they charge too much as an enrollment fee.  If an “investor” is recruited and spends $1,000 or even $20, that is a chunk of change that would be missed.  My idea is something of an affordable pyramid scheme.  What if enrollment was simply $1.  Then a 5 year old could enroll and start getting recruits without breaking the bank.

Now I know the downfall of this system is that it lacks the “get rich quick” luster that others might hold.  But think about it for a moment.  I bet I could much more quickly find 1,000 people willing to give me a dollar compared to one person willing to give me 1,000.

Taking this affordable pyramid concept a little further, what if the enrollment fee was completely flexible dependent on the recruiter?  If a recruiter can set the enrollment price, that all of a sudden creates competition for goods (the goods being a return on your investment).  Then, a person who is already a member of the company would able to buy in under other recruiters when the rates are good and then try and recruit others for a larger profit than he or she paid as the enrollment fee.  When demand goes up, so do the enrollment fees, and when people slack off and demand falls, so do the enrollment fees.

By golly … I think this plan might just work! … wait … whoops, I think I just described Wall Street