15 - How Amber Rodgers Took Tragedy and Made It a Thriving Business of Helping Others

Wow, What a Story!

After a divorce left her on the verge of suicide, Amber Rodgers decided there had to be a better way.  After trying to navigate her way through her own divorce, she decided to take her pain and make sure others never had to experience what she had.

That’s when D.I.V.A.S (Divorcing Independent Very Able Survivors) came to be.  Today D.I.V.A.S is a thriving business about to go nationwide, and Amber’s story is an incredible one of taking a tragedy and making something amazing out of it.

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

‘It’s through the adversity and the failures that we grow.’

'Leaders, who are truly successful, don’t have to tell you, they will show you, and the people around them will verify that.'

'People are attracted to people who are moving up.'

What was your first step?  Amber did have enough business savvy to protect her company by filing a DBA.  However, she knew her biggest asset was going to be her story, and she understood the power in that story.  So she set out to tell whoever would listen.

How does Amber make money?  Her best description is that D.I.V.A.S. is like a Weight Watchers for divorce.  She saw non-profits helping the lower-income class, but there it was the people in the middle level who can’t qualify for these programs.  And what D.I.V.A.S does is create a map for these people.   Instead of getting caught up spending all of the hard-earned money during a divorce, D.I.V.A.S. guides them down a better path with getting out of a marriage without losing all of their assets.

Amber’s mission is to help provide unbiased people to help with the divorce.  Divorce is a $51 billion dollar industry, and her goal is to help guide people through the process so their divorce doesn't contribute too much to that total.

What has been the biggest obstacle to overcome?  Amber struggled as a visionary to really dial back her ideas to take the steps to get it to where she wanted it to go.  She had so many people tugging her into different directions.  One of her biggest tools is her intuition and surrounding herself with people who compliment her.  She knows her weaknesses, and hires people she trusts to help. 

Amber gives amazing advice, when she tells us that:  'Leaders, who are truly successful, don’t have to tell you, they will show you, and the people around them will verify that.'  It’s the people who are talking, talking, talking and not backing it up, that you have to watch out for.

Amber never lead with fear, and she knew she was going to have competition.  She understood it was her story that was going to create success.

What has been a big marketing win?    She claims her ability to never stop talking really propelled her business because she was all about telling anyone who would listen.

Another big piece for her was a meeting with Jeff Crilley – of Real News PR.  He helped her get on various news media outlets.  And although all those appearances may not have had a massive difference in the building of her business, it had a massive difference in the building of her brand.  For more about Jeff's Book it's called 'Free Publicity'.

Another great piece of advice Amber gives is when you’re going to do business with people, you need to know who they have kept around for long-term relationships.  If they don’t have friends from way back, it’s telling of who they are.

When it comes to course changes, the best advice Amber ever got was that you have to be Gumby.   You cannot be so set in your ways that you’re not willing to make the changes that are necessary to make your vision come to fruition.  Her business was initially intended to be a social club.  However, when she started diving into the problems and the lack of problems, she knew she had to change the course of her business. Amber’s advice is that you have to listen to your audience, and you have to trust them more in certain aspects, you have to listen to what they want, and change course if necessary.

What was the moment you knew you were on the right track?  When Amber was starting the business she learned of a woman who took her own life the day she found out her ex-husband had been married.  It was at that moment Amber made it a mission to help every person that she could to never feel alone through a divorce.

Amber’s piece of advice for the person standing on the edge: ‘Follow your instincts and do not give up on your dreams. Do not allow anyone to rob you of your destiny.'  You also need to be passionate about what you’re doing.

More About Amber:  Amber Rodgers is the Founder of D.I.V.A.S.  While she spends most of her time running and building D.I.V.A.S, she's also a writer and speaker.