Overcoming Extraordinary Obstacles To Achieve Success- with Venus Griffin- EP113

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer, talks to Venus Morris Griffin, who is a successful realtor in Augusta, Georgia. She shares a mind-blowing story about her journey through personal challenges and the ability to beat incredible odds. Episode Highlights:  Venus Griffin has been a real estate agent for almost 10 years. She got her real estate license to help her husband pay off extra bills. Venus grew up in a very dysfunctional family. Her mother was in and out of mental hospitals.  Everyone deals with adversity differently, but Venus’s brother and sister  just could not deal with it. Venus did not know how to break out of her situation, but one thing was certain that she did not want to be like the others who were around her.  She started by finding good role models and looked up to them and tried to emulate what they were doing in their lives. At the age of 14, she was on the verge of homelessness, living with friends, trying to figure out what to do. She decided not to get into any bad habits and focused on getting through high school. She went to college supporting herself with several different jobs. Venus married her husband, and their marriage lasted for 20 years. This is when she thought she got life all figured out. They functioned as a very normal, blue-collar family. Her entire life changed with the birth of her first child. In total they together have 6 children. Venus’s life changed from one phone call that she received from a prostitute. Her husband was seeing a prostitute for several years, and she had evidence to prove it.  She truly believed in saving her marriage and fighting for it.  Venus found out that her husband had been lying about his whole life.  Venus was a stay-at-home mom for 17 years, at that point with 6 children she just did not know what to do but she committed to do whatever she had to take care of them. In 2009 the market crashed and her attorney warned her that it was not a good time for her to start and she needed to have a plan. Initially, she tried everything possible, be it calling people or walking the neighborhood and trying to convince people to hire her to list their house. Slowly and steadily, she started doing 2-3 open houses every Sunday, Venus put forth the extra effort at the open houses and she sold houses, contrary to what research shows, and she would get buyers from it. In the part of her first year, she earned $20,000 and in the second year she made $100,000. For Venus, there has been no turning back since then.  No matter how much work she had to do, she committed to sitting down to dinner with her family every single night. Venus encourages the audience to have a “why” driving the motivation for what you do. Jeff asks Venus, “What advice do you have for agents in today’s world?” Venus talks about how it is important to look at the big picture and build your brand. In the first year, pay someone to do all the busy work.  Venus talks about her book which is about to get launched “Validated – Learning To Matter Through Breaking The Cycle of Abuse.” 3 Key Points: Venus Griffin talks about her journey and the struggles that revolved around it. But she never felt despair; rather she was happy about where she was headed. As she narrates her story, she shares that success is built over time, continually doing the right things, as well as respecting others and lifting others up. Venus shares tips from her own experience for young real-estate agents about how to thrive. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents  | Website | Facebook | Facebook Group | Twitter | Instagram | Jeff Pfitzer   | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter Venus Griffin | Website | Instagram | Facebook  Chime (sponsor) LinkU (sponsor)