Commonly abbreviated MLM, it's a form of selling a product whereby one person recruits other salespeople, who recruits other salespeople, ad nausea and after each sale, everybody above the salesman gets a small piece of commission. To make money in one (98%+ of people don't), one should place much more emphasis on recruiting than sales. Amway is probably the most well-known MLM.

Many MLMs have "optional" national meetings, motivational books and tapes, and other various expenses. The cost of these comes out of pocket of the individual. As a general rule, if you can be one of the first people to join a successful MLM, you'll make a lot of money, especially if you can sell all of this crap to your downline. However, if you're not in this lucky 1-2%, you'll honestly be lucky to break even in your expenses.

There is some technical difference between a pyramid scheme, which is illegal, and an MLM, which is legal. However, nobody but the high-priced lawyers which keep MLMs in business and stealing the money of its starry-eyed employees seem to know what this difference is.

When you eat dirt for the first time and leave your family to build a shack in the woods

The full version of the more commonly used abbreviation, MLM.

A Form of Legalized Pyramid Scheme, Commonly called "A Fucking Scam".