Community Highlights: Meet Santoria Sawyer of Santoria Speaks

Today we’d like to introduce you to Santoria Sawyer.

Hi Santoria, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My name is Santoria Marie Sawyer. I am a published author, speaker, and entrepreneur. I own and manage my own short-term rental properties, and I offer consulting to others looking to do the same. More importantly, I am a mother to two amazing children and a travel junkie! 

I am originally from Toledo, Ohio, and I moved to Columbus to attend The Ohio State University (OSU), where I graduated in 2014. I’ve been in Columbus since, and I love it. 

It was during my time at OSU where I discovered my love for entrepreneurship through my involvement in a travel-based network marketing company. It exposed me to a lifestyle that I wasn’t accustomed to seeing back home. 

Despite working long hours and doing the best my mother could, we mostly lived paycheck to paycheck. We didn’t take family vacations. We didn’t have a plan to build wealth. We just “got by.” 

In addition to all of this, I had a pretty rough upbringing. At a young age, I was exposed to a life of drugs, domestic violence, and child molestation at the hands of my stepfather. The abuse lasted about a year until one day, he tried to cut my fingers off, and I made an exit plan to get help. I was 13. He was arrested, served eight years in prison and when he got out, my mother took him back. 

In my book, I go more in detail about this story, but the purpose of telling it is what I don’t want readers to miss. There is power in telling your story. There is redemption in taking back what was taken from you, in controlling the narrative and the outcome. 

Through storytelling and entrepreneurship, I control the outcome. I write my own story. And I’m really good days; I write my own paycheck too. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has most certainly not been a smooth road. Life can ruin your life if you let it. I deal with some of the same everyday problems as everyone else. I’ve had seasons where money was tight. I’ve lost jobs. I’ve lost friends. I’ve been betrayed, heartbroken, and abandoned. I’ve had struggles with my mental health. I’ve dealt with mom guilt. I’ve buried loved ones. You name it. 

But one of my favorite quotes by Helen Keller is, “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it.” 

I choose to be on the side overcoming, and even on the hard days, I get up and make that choice every day because I have little people depending on me. Also, because I am worth it. God says I’m worth it, and as long as my strength is coming from him, there’s nothing I cannot overcome. 

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about Santoria Speaks, LLC?
The mission of Santoria Speaks, LLC is to 

Inspire. Motivate. Educate. 

“Inspire people through storytelling. Motivate them to find the gifts in their own stories. Educate them on how to use those gifts to then inspire others.” 

Santoria Speaks, LLC offers a variety of products and services. Readers can purchase any publications written by myself, including my memoir, “The Broken Crayon That Colored Still.” They can also book me for any speaking engagements or workshops as well as schedule a short-term rental consultation if they wish. 

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
My planner is hands down the best at helping me in my life and business. As a grad school student, mother, and entrepreneur, my life is full of demands. Therefore, I have to plan. I’m a firm believer that if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. 

Books: As a Man Thinketh, Make Your Bed, How to Win Friends and Influence People, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Year of Yes, Getting to Zero 

Podcasts / Speakers: Earn Your Leisure Podcast, Steve Harvey, Eric Thomas, Tony Robbins, Brené Brown, Jay Shetty, Tyler Perry 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.santoriaspeaks.com
• Instagram: santoria_marie
• Facebook: Santoria Speaks, LLC
• Other: https://www.amazon.com/Broken-Crayon-That-Colored-Still/dp/1796614319/ref=nodl_?dplnkId=ffdfd587-4b7a-4e81-ad68-e700a99786f8

Image Credits
Alissa Mauter
Lamar Pacley