We were lucky to catch up with Shannon Carr recently and have shared our conversation below.

Shannon , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

When you have begun at the bottom, known the hunger pains of debt or having little to live on, been able to feel the desire to have more for a reason other than boasting of the ownership of material things…when you are willing to lower your pride and begin from the bottom up to know the business, to understand it, and to see the areas that could use real change which creates a deeper hunger than the hunger of debt. When you put in the work to obtain the goals one ladder at a time, enough to begin adding people to your team and have a heart to see them succeed and maybe one day surpass you or even take on what you began from that bottom up. When you look back and can acknowledge the difficult times and be thankful for them because you can look around you and see what you’ve earned, learned, and achieved because of those less than tasteful moments, then you have found success.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am the founder of a 501 c3 Non-profit – Hopeful Hearts Ministry. We aide in the long term recovery of survivors of abuse. Women and men who have been mentally, physically, sexually, emotionally, spiritually abused in their past and have never worked through healing the trauma effects. I am a survivor of incest by my grandfather at a very young age, and a rape survivor from my teen and college years. I ‘survived’ these and went through therapy as a teen, however, the memories of my grandfather didn’t fully surface until I was in my mid-30’s. It was then that I realized how many boundaries he had obliterated in my young life which led to me leading a life reacting and responding to various situations, relationships, etc in a way that was unhealthy for my mind, body, and soul. After being involved in youth ministry for over 15 years, speaking for a national youth conference, and publishing my first book, Exposed, I realized many adults were coming to me with similar stories having never shared with anyone the truth or having their full memories come back later in life after having children, or even grand children and now they wanted to get the true healing and help needed. I went out on a limb and began the non-profit now 10 years ago, January 2012, offering peer support, empowerment programs, and resources online. Over the ten years we have grown and evolved in our programming and have other trauma specialists involved offering programs for those who have been through Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking situations, that have already integrated back into life, yet still need support for continued healing.
We have found a space that is not being taken care of for all in need. Upper Class, Middle Class, the less fortunate, it doesn’t matter who you are, what race or gender, we have found that everyone needs the opportunity to talk, speak out, share what has been done to them in the darkness and bring it into the light – in a safe place.
In 2020 I published my third book Reclaimed – Overcome Trauma and Gain Healthy Control of Your Life. This book is essentially the process I work with survivors to not just survive but THRIVE in life.
That was published during Covid, before I realized we were not going to make it on the few monthly donations we received. Because we are a faith based 501 c3 we do not receive government funding. I needed to do something so I went to look for what other outside work I could do that would allow me the flexibility to continue helping survivors but also support the ministry and keep it alive.
Decided Excellence Catholic Media was the perfect answer considering my background as a Catholic youth minister and speaker. The company provides the opportunity for you to become your own publisher of local Catholic niche magazines for your area. I began with one magazine, thinking it would give me enough income to live and support Hopeful Hearts. I never realized the how many doors would open being involved in the local business community on this level. In less than two years I have published three local magazines, Kingwood Catholic, Atascocita & Humble Catholic and New Caney & Porter Catholic, spanning a readership of over 40K. The magazines provide rich Catholic content for our requested readers, and it is my job to find the sponsors (advertisers) to support the monthly magazine. For small business and local business, getting in with a local niche market is the key to branding. You want your product or service known and by being a sponsor in the magazine on a monthly basis, they are being seen, their content is being read, and it is bringing top of mind awareness to the readers.
Due to the success of the magazines in less than 18 months, I have since been able to hire a new team member for Hopeful Hearts Ministry, Tamara Lexow, our Director of Development. In relation to my success as a small business owner with the magazines I have personally supported the funds for our next Gala event for Hopeful Hearts Ministry, the first in nearly three years after Covid.
In both businesses, the non-profit and the magazine, I have found a level of success that comes only with perseverance, tenacity, fortitude and a lot of hard work. I have fully received what I have put into both endeavors.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I spent nearly twenty years doing ministry work, making little to no income, being provided for by my spouse and feeling as if I couldn’t get anywhere without his money or other connections. Then we got divorced. I had no idea how I would survive. If I could still do the non-profit. I left the area I’d lived in for 20+ years and moved to an entirely different city. No one knew me, no one knew of my books, or speaking abilities. It was scary. I had to start from scratch with the non-profit, other than the supporters who remained mainly because they received help over the years from Hopeful Hearts. Within the first two months I had set up two successful support groups, and through strategic networking I managed to meet some top influential business owners in the area and had a few fund raisers and other events to help support Hopeful Hearts Ministry and allow it to flourish. Over the following months the non-profit grew and flourished across the entire United States.
And then Covid happened. During lock down we were set to have our biggest fund raiser of the year, and the other outside speaking jobs I had, to support myself, were all canceled.
I was facing watching my passion and success slip away at the same time trying to figure out how I would even support myself. I had convinced myself I had no other skills than to be an encourager, a supporter, a cheerleader! The only thing I could think of relating to was sales and I had never sold anything before.
When I began with Decided Excellence I followed every single directive they gave me by the book. I wanted, correction, I needed this to be right. And in a matter of weeks I became the first person in the company to hit my goal in the fastest time frame.
I never thought I could integrate a sales position and still be involved in my passion of ministry and helping others, yet they support one another! I now have helped many sponsors (business owners) through their own personal issues, and watched them grow in both their personal and business life!

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn the ‘lie’ that remained in me for decades – that I didn’t have a right to speak up, or a right to have a difference of opinion, or a right to express how I felt, or a right to – fill in the blank. That was my lie. I don’t have a right. By having the most basic of boundaries crossed at the young age of 3 years old, by not having the ‘right’ to say ‘no’, ‘don’t do that’, ‘that hurts’, etc, I never knew it was a boundary I could have in a healthy way – to own my voice, thoughts, feelings, and opinions. We all have one lie that tends to nag at us, and it can affect how we succeed in all areas of life. Once we can dispell that lie we can turn it around. Suddenly I knew my right. I had my voice and felt confident in what I had to say and share. I could share my opinion and be fine fi you don’t agree with me. I could express my feelings about a situation and not feel as if it would ruin my life or career.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.HopefulHeartsMinistry.org
• Instagram: HopefulHeartsMinistry
• Facebook: Hopeful Hearts Ministry
• Linkedin: Shannon McGraw Carr
• Youtube: Hopeful Hearts Ministry

Image Credits
Jenn Hernandez Photography