Inspirational Women Of the Speaking Circuit: Venus Morris Griffin of ‘Meybohm Real Estate’ On The Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Speaker

Be direct and be vulnerable….and don’t be afraid to show emotion. Sometimes I cry, laugh, get mad, and get excited during my talks. When I first began, I thought by showing these emotions, it made me appear weak. As I became a more seasoned speaker, I realized that showing these emotions made me more powerful. I share the good and bad, and I make it personal and at each presentation, I can always tell my audience is connecting with me because I see many of the participants crying when I make eye contact with them.

As a part of our series about Inspirational Women of the Speaking Circuit, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Venus Morris Griffin, a mom of 7 children, an award-winning real estate agent, motivational speaker, and author of an upcoming 2021 book. In 2011, her life was forever changed when a phone call in the middle of the night unraveled her husband’s wrongdoings. It eventually led to him being sentenced to jail for 45 years and Venus becoming the sole provider for their 6 young kids. Through hard work and determination, and against the expectations of many, Venus has been able to successfully grow her real estate business to achieve the career of her dreams and provide her family with the security and stability she always craved.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?

I grew up in the South, in a home that never felt like home. The parental figures in my life each had their own issues they were dealing with, such as drug addiction and mental illness that prevented them from truly being present in my life. My siblings each struggled with their own issues as well. The one blessing in my childhood was my grandmother, who showed me love and care. The limited time I got to spend with her are my most treasured memories.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

My ex-husband and I have always wanted a big family. Unfortunately, with big families comes big financial bills. That and along with somethings my ex-husband was doing at the time unknown to me, meant we were almost always struggling to get by. In an effort to help, I decided to step into the workforce to help contribute. I was driving down the street one day in Augusta, GA and a sign caught my eye. It read in bold letters, “Do you want to make money, and work your own hours? Sign up to take real estate classes”. I didn’t know much about the profession, but a woman I knew was also in the field and I appreciated being able to choose my own hours so that I can still take care of my children.

Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

As I became more successful in the real estate world, the number 2 ranked agent within my company began spreading vicious untrue rumors about me in an effort to ruin my thriving business and reputation. It became so bad that my company hired an investigator. After weeks of interviews with many different people, from lenders to homeowners, the company took a stand and action against this 20 year plus agent to stop further damages to me professionally and personally.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I pretty much laugh all of the time and I cannot communicate just one funny incident. I have a talent in finding humor in the worst of situations and I believe that quality has carried me far in my industry.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I could not have gotten to where I am today without my friend, Rhonda. Our children were best friends and we went to church together. When everything imploded in my previous marriage, she was the one I called for support. Rhonda protected me, provided me with the clear-headed perspective I needed when I was at my lowest, and helped with my children while I was starting out in real estate as a single mom. There was a time when I was debating taking down my real estate billboards to save $2000 a month so I could pay the bills, tuitions, and fees for the activities each child participated in. When I told Rhonda, she instantly told me not to take them down, and told me “I will feed your family if I need to” because she knew it was good for my business and future.

You have been blessed with great success in a career path that can be challenging and intimidating. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?

Do not worry about what people say about you….It’s none of your business. :-) .Do your best and focus on only the things that you can control….

What drives you to get up everyday and give your talks? What is the main empowering message that you aim to share with the world?

My children are the reason I get up every day. I always tell people, “know your why”. Why do you want to succeed? Why must you succeed? My children were my why. I couldn’t fail, because if I did, they would most likely fail too. I couldn’t let that happen.

Can you share with our readers a few of your most important tips about how to be an effective and empowering speaker? Can you please share some examples or stories?

Be direct and be vulnerable….and don’t be afraid to show emotion. Sometimes I cry, laugh, get mad, and get excited during my talks. When I first began, I thought by showing these emotions, it made me appear weak. As I became a more seasoned speaker, I realized that showing these emotions made me more powerful. I share the good and bad, and I make it personal and at each presentation, I can always tell my audience is connecting with me because I see many of the participants crying when I make eye contact with them.

As you know, many people are terrified of speaking in public. Can you give some of your advice about how to overcome this fear?

Before I ever enter the conference room, I start my presentations off with positive self-talk. I remind myself that we are all created with equal worth and value. I never let someone else intimidate me because I know we are all the same even though we all come from different walks of life.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

1. Success will take more effort than you might think but don’t give up….You can’t expect to have a six pack the first month you work out, so don’t expect to make six figures the first six months that you’re in business.
2. Treat your business like a business…If I have nothing on my calendar for the day, I still get up and put my business suit on and act like I do. The business will always follow.
3. Find one or two people in the business that are successful and that you look up to, then don’t look at the rest. I learned early on in this business that more people unfortunately would rather see you fail than succeed, but don’t let that stop you from giving 110% every day. You will be successful if you make the effort.
4. Get your mind in the right place… It doesn’t matter how bad the market is…or how many other agents are out there, you will be successful if you consistently put the effort in.
5. It’s ok to be uncomfortable…Own that and don’t let the client see or feel it. They can’t read your mind and you will become more comfortable as you become more established. It’s normal and okay.

You have such impressive work. What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? Where do you see yourself heading from here?

I give talks on my story, which includes why and how I decided to enter the real estate industry. In telling that story, I talk about the adversities in my childhood and previous marriage. Many times, after a talk, women from the audience would come up to me and tell me how inspiring my story is and how it gave them the motivation to make a change. I am now preparing to release my book this year, “Validated” in which I talk about my journey in hopes that I can inspire even more people. This is a project that I’ve been working on for many years now and I’m very excited.

Can you share with our readers any self care routines, practices or treatments that you do to help your body, mind or heart to thrive? Please share a story for each one if you can.

For self-care, I get up at 5 AM every morning and head to the gym for almost 2 hours. I started working out during one of the lowest points of my life to feel better, and the habit just stuck. Now, working out is my way of taking care of myself and my mental wellness. How you take care of yourself is a reflection to your clients of your discipline and how you will take care of them.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% on how you react. After my husband was sentenced to 45 years in prison and I was left as a single mother of 6 children, ranging in age from 1 to 15, I decided to not be a victim and to press forward despite the many obstacles ahead of me. I chose not to give up but to rather give 110% to my children, career, and faith. As a result, I became very successful in all areas of my life very quickly, never looking back to dwell on the past.

You are a person of huge influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I just want people to realize that they can do anything. If I could achieve everything I have today even with all the obstacles I had, so can they. I want people to not doubt themselves and have faith in their own capabilities.

Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!

I would love to have lunch with Reese Witherspoon because when my book becomes a film, which it will be, I would love to see her play my role. We look alike, think alike, and have the same drive to help other women succeed through adversity. Reese Witherspoon has been a vocal advocate for gender equality in her industry and is now working to change the narrative for women.

Are you on social media? How can our readers follow you online?

I’m on almost all social media accounts and my handle is @venusmorrisgriffin. My Twitter handle is @Venus_M_Griffin. I also have a website where they can subscribe to my email list for newsletter updates.

This was so informative, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!