We recently connected with Shaleea Venney and have shared our conversation below.
Shaleea, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?
This is an especially important question to me because I recently lost both of my parents a year apart. I often reflect on this very question and I think the only correct answer is: they showed up authentically. We have a tendency to set up expectations in our minds of who we expect people to be and we become disappointed when they don’t meet those expectations. My parents stayed married for 40 years (until my mom passed away) and it is was far from perfect. They made tons of mistakes and we had roller coaster like ups and downs in our relationship because of it. But they were honest about their imperfections. They let me see them at their worst. They put their flaws on display and explained that those flaws don’t have to be your only legacy. You can be and do better. I am the very best of both of my parents. My capacity to love and the way I feel and understand love is because of my mother and seeing her heart in action. I am a dreamer and doer because of my father. He squandered away his dreams and didn’t live up to his potential. He was brilliant and could’ve done anything he wanted to do. I made the decision (with his cheering me on) that that wouldn’t be me. They shaped me into who I am. My dad told me that I was “the thing he got right” before he left this earth and I keep that tucked away in my spirit as a reminder.
Shaleea, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am a married mother of 4 who has been with my husband for 22 years. I wear many hats as a Nurse, A Master Certified Relationship Strategist, 5 time bestselling Author, Internationally Known Speaker, and, Host of the successful Love This Way Podcast. I am also the President and CEO of Venney Girl Inc, a nonprofit organization for at-risk young women.
I have always been the friend or person people come to for advice and to talk about their trouble. I began to look around and noticed nothing but gender wars, discussions on why we don’t need each other, discussions on who brings what to the table, and I saw my community creating babies but not families. The numbers don’t lie: black women being least likely to be married, black children being most likely to grow up in single parent homes… It makes me sad. We deserve to have healthy and happy relationships just as much as anyone else does. We often carry so much pain, trauma and pride that it can seem impossible. My mission was to come in and educate my people on how to heal and make it work. How to communicate, fight fair, fix your inner struggles, and understand one another better. So many are trying to be something they have never seen modeled before them: wives and husbands. My idea is if you fix the relationship, you can save the family. If you save the family, you can save entire communities. This is bigger than me! I started posting on tik tok and accepting clients and everything just took off from there.
I coach clients toward personal empowerment and healthy relationships identifying where growth is desired, setting goals, boundaries, and objectives, and enforcing accountability, to help clients reach their highest goals and become better individuals and partners.
My social media audience wanted more so I created my podcast called Love This Way. It’s a show on relationship woes and good times for both men and women that is no nonsense and no gender wars, just solid advice on how to make it through and stay together. I make quick episodes because I know we are pressed for time- the episodes are mostly always 15 minutes or less. The show took off and I have listeners on every continent and more than 110 Countries, and over 20 million views across social media platforms.
Today, I coach men and women from all walks of life all over the world while they’re single, dating, married, and everywhere in between on their relationship journey. I do sessions with individuals as well as couples. I have a subscription club where my clients have access to a full library of amazing tips, downloads, ebooks and more that I have curated for them. There’s stuff for every area of their lives from career, relationships, skin care, weight loss, date nights etc. I wanted to touch on everything my clients might be going through. Then each tier of the membership comes with free sessions so they can book with me whenever they need to extra advice or to vent.
I think what I want my clients to know about me is that I sincerely want them to win. I believe in this concept so much that I have had to turn clients down when I have felt that I couldn’t help them. I am not here to waste their time or my own. I will be the first one to tell you that no relationship is perfect. I have been hurt, lied to, cheated on, had to fight, cried etc. I am not perfect but my heart and my ability to love is my super power. I have been where they are and I made it through. You want Ciara’s prayer? I have a whole book on those prayers AND I will tell you that the real truth is it isn’t about the prayer, it’s about your ability to do the work so that you are ready to receive that kind of blessing. I show you how! Love is not easy, but it’s worth it. I will always give it to you straight and I will fight with you as you fight for your relationship, to heal, and for yourself.
I am proud of my business and what it represents. I have helped millions of people and that makes my heart so happy. I am operating in my gifts. I am proud of every client I have helped. Your gift will truly make room for you. But my family is my greatest accomplishment. My children and my home life will always be my greatest gift and what I am most grateful for.
Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?
That’s easy! You need blinders on. You have to just keep going. There’s so many people doing what I am doing and it can be intimidating. But I remind myself that none of those people are me! My heart and experiences make me who I am. I turn a blind eye to what my peers are doing and don’t really even follow a lot of people because it’s easy to compare yourself to someone who’s more popular, known etc. Once you remember who you are and remind yourself that that is what sets you apart, you learn to run your own race, consistently, without worrying about what anyone else is doing. That’s when you start winning.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Social media! Hands down. I never marketed my business or ran ads or anything. 100% of my clients came to me organically because they saw me on tik tok or online somewhere. I just showed up and gave solid advice that resonated with people and they came to me asking to book sessions one on one with me. My social media was something I started to put positive feedback out there about relationships and to be a light for those trying to build something real, but it became bigger than that. People built trust with me and knew going into a session with me that I was knowledgeable to some degree. It was a life changer.
Contact Info:
- Website: Shaleeavenney.com
- Instagram: @Shaleea_Venney
- Facebook: Coach Shaleea Venney
- Youtube: Relationship Woes With Shaleea Venney
- Other: Find me on Tik Tok as @ShaleeaVenney