"Just like anything in life, what works for you, may not work for everyone else."
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We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Jenna Griffith: I am a former military spouse and current first responder wife who empowers other military and first responder spouses to find their purpose and embrace their individual skills and passions while still serving alongside their spouse.
Throughout my life, I have faced numerous challenges, including being a teenage mother, caring for a micro-preemie baby, and aiding in my ex-husband’s recovery due to a helicopter accident in 2011. These experiences have shaped me into a caring and empathetic caretaker, motivating me to share my knowledge and experiences with others.
I am very passionate about helping other women discover their true calling and equip them with the necessary tools to embark on their own transformative journeys. I have a strong background in health and healing, so I offer a strong foundation in guiding others towards personal growth and fulfillment.
As a current first responder’s wife, I firmly believe that military spouses have their own purpose beyond their role as a spouse. Because of this, I strive to connect with and support others in realizing their potential.
With the help of my husband, I make strides to not only fight, but to put an end to human trafficking. My passion for doing so stems from my husband’s integral role with Aerial Recovery, a disaster relief organization that also helps to recover and rescue the most vulnerable.
My business offers courses and workshops to empower individuals to overcome obstacles and embrace their passions. I aspire to save marriages and strengthen families by fostering personal growth and self-discovery.
Beyond my professional endeavors, I enjoy exploring new destinations, spending quality time at the beach, and immersing myself in music.
In the past year, what is the greatest business achievement you’d like to celebrate with your team? Please share the details of that success.
Jenna Griffith: This past year has been a season of reinventing myself and my business. Before, I would jump into whatever idea I had without proper planning and that led me down a long and frustrating path.
The biggest achievement is getting crystal clear on the initiative that myself and my team are leading for the wives whose lives we will be impacting. This fall, I am celebrating my book, Service and Soul: A Journey to Purpose and Prosperity for Military and First Responder Wives.
This book is such a blessing for me because it allowed me to really step into a space that I’m extremely passionate about. My hope is that the women who get to read this will feel like they can also create a dream life like I have.
What advice do you wish you had received when you started your business journey and what do you intend on improving in the next quarter?
Jenna Griffith: Enjoy the process. When you are so stressed out and worried about the end result, you miss all of the fun you can have while in the process of creating something amazing. I truly believe that whether it’s a win or a loss, you’ll learn something from it.
I also wish that someone had told me to enjoy the wins and lick the wounds. I cannot be the only one who has had a hard time with licking my wounds. This is something that has been hard for me to grow through because I take things very seriously and personally.
I remember the very first client that ever fired me. It was so uncomfortable for me and I think I cried about it for a solid week because I wasn’t able to put myself in a good mental space. Now, I have really grown into more of a business mindset where I know that I need to celebrate the wounds as much as I celebrate the wins.
There’s always going to be something to do. Starting a new business and trying to keep up and keep that inbox empty is not a reasonable mind set to have around your work.
I have lost a lot of sleep and endured a lot of stress over feeling like I could never catch up with my work, but what I have learned since then, is that the next thing will always be right there waiting for me. The bottom line here is, there’s always going to be something ready for you to do!
Lastly, work boundaries are necessary. Not having boundaries around your business is a fast track to burn out! And you know what’s harder than keeping up a slow steady momentum in your business?
It’s digging yourself out of the burn out hole! I have created great boundaries around my work schedule and that took me a while because of the judgment I would receive from my peers. Just like anything in life, what works for you, may not work for everyone else. And that’s okay!
Here is a two-fold question: What is the book that influenced you the most and how? Please share some life lessons you learned. Now what book have you gifted the most and why?
Jenna Griffith: “You are a Bad***” by Jen Sincero. When I first read this book, it catapulted my personal and self growth. Up until I first read it, I found my confidence in other people.
Learning how to find strength and confidence inside myself was such a gift because it helped me release the stress and anxiety I carried every day to make people like and value me. I learned that anything that I put my mind to, I could accomplish.
That’s funny to say because it seems like such a simple thing that everyone has probably heard over and over before, but it just hit me hard when I read it. The book that I have gifted to others the most is “Money Grows On Trees” by Jerremy Alexander Newsome. Jerremy also happens to be a dear friend of mine.
This book has been easy to give because it packs such a powerful message that can be read within a week. There isn’t any fluff, just knowledge bombs about the power that money holds over many of us and how we can create better relationships around it.
There are many people who struggle with money issues and if you are someone who relates to that, I highly recommend reading this!
Christopher Hitchens, an American journalist, is quoted as saying that “everyone has a book in them” Have you written a book? If so, please share with us details about it. If you haven’t, what book would you like to write and how would you like it to benefit the readers?
Jenna Griffith: I am the author of the upcoming book, “Service and Soul: A journey to Purpose for Military and First Responder Wives.” I married a soldier at the young age of twenty-one which lasted for 10 years. Going through a divorce was one of the hardest things I have gone through.
So many emotions of self doubt, rejection, anger, and betrayal flooded throughout me. There was nothing more important to me during that time than working on my own mental health and healing. This is when I really started to decide what exactly I wanted to do when I “grew up”.
I went on a journey to find myself and create the life that I desired. Over the last seven years I have accomplished things that I didn’t believe I could. My hope is that the wives who read my book will feel a new sense of empowerment to step into the desires of their hearts.
2020, 2021, and 2022 threw a lot of curve balls into businesses on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past years, how can businesses thrive in 2023? What lessons have you learned and what advice would you share?
Jenna Griffith: The past three years have really shown the world how to pivot during a crisis. It has also shown that there is more than one way to get something done. Businesses now have more opportunity to scale due to being able to provide more flexibility for their work.
This allows employees to become more creative and empowered by having the choice of where they perform their work. There is so much opportunity for businesses to succeed and grow due to the shift in technology that is offered today. Technologies such as: artificial intelligence, automation, and analytics to help improve customer relations and outreach.
For my business personally, it has taught me that sometimes things don’t work out exactly as planned and that it can be a good thing. Many of us spend time and energy on trying to control the outcome of every situation. This leads to over working, burn out, unnecessary stress, and anxiety.
Being able to understand now how to focus more on the journey and less on the outcome has allowed me to have more fun while working towards my business and personal goals.
What does “success” in 2023 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Jenna Griffith: The meaning of the word success has changed for me throughout many different seasons of growth and experience. This year has already been wildly successful for me because for the first time in my life, I know that I am doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing.
Being able to take my story and use it for good to help other women feel successful is an incredible accomplishment.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Jenna Griffith for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.