Mia Gray
Business Owner
Waldorf, Maryland

Q: How did you first hear about Dani?

I heard about Dani through a friend who had just read the book “First Steps To Wealth” and she recommended it to me and I said, “Yeah, whatever! It’s just another one of those books.” She went to the website and decided to go to the next First Steps To Success event, and she asked us if we wanted to go. I asked Tony, but he said we couldn’t afford it. Our friend went, and we stayed back. I went online to check out this Dani woman, who we were missing that weekend. I stumbled upon the live Spiritual Equipping taking place that night, so I watched the live broadcast. Dani’s message that night was about having faith like a mustard seed. I was shocked that she was talking about the Bible. I had to find out more about this.

Our friend came back from that event and said, “I believe this is the answer you’ve been looking for.”

Q: Describe your life before attending First Steps To Success.

At that time, Tony was making a 6-figure income. I had just gone back to work after working at home for a number of years. He wanted me to make more money, so I went out and got a full-time job. Shortly after that, we got a phone call to come get his nephews from foster care. We had declared bankruptcy for the second time. We walked away from our home we had built from the ground up, and we were living in people’s basements because we had lost everything. We went from place-to-place because we didn’t have any money and we were drowning in debt, even after the bankruptcy. We found a landlord who gave us a chance, and things seemed like they were getting better, but then we got the call to get the kids.

After that, Tony was working 80-90 hours a week, and I was working full-time and basically being a single mom. I couldn’t handle the stress of having 6 kids and working outside the home. I had been into drugs in the past and I was on the path to that again. I would wake up every day and say, “Lord, I can’t do this!”

My son was getting into trouble. It was a struggle all the way around. Tony and I hated each other. We were so tired. I was ready to check out mentally, physically, emotionally. We had lost everything, every tangible object we had worked so hard for. But we knew how to put on our game face when we left the house.

I don’t remember what happened, but we started listening to Dani’s trainings and thought, “Maybe it’s time to have faith to believe that we could get a house and move out of someone else’s basement…”

We came to our first event in March 2012 in Long Beach, California. We didn’t know how we were going to get there. Our credit cards were maxed out, but Tony said let’s go!

Q: What made you decide to attend your first event?

We were beating our head against the walls. We had tried other things, financial programs, counseling, but nothing was working. So we thought, “What do we have to lose? If we don’t get help, we’re just going to get divorced and this will be over.” I didn’t know which way to go, and the only way I wanted to go, was to just quit. But God always gives us a way out. DaniJohnson.com was that way out for us.

Q: What has surprised you the most about DaniJohnson.com/First Steps To Success?

The thing that surprised me most was that this was like nothing we had ever seen before. The spiritual aspect of it had a tone we had never seen anywhere else. We knew it was all rooted in scripture. We had not walked away from God, but I had given up on asking Him for anything. When we walked in there, it sparked something. It was like kindling. It was real. It wasn’t fabricated, it wasn’t blowing smoke. Dani spoke with such authority. Even when we were standing in line, people were sharing their stories, and I knew they weren’t just “plants” there from the Dani Johnson team. They were real people with real stories. This was everything I had been asking God for. These people were family, they were our people.

Then when she taught “War On Debt,” I was DONE! I was sold! That’s exactly what I needed!

We’ve been through some fake stuff in our life, but this was real!

Q: What is one strategy you’ve found most useful, and how have you applied it to your life?

Forgiveness. Once I learned the true meaning of forgiveness and how to walk in it, it helped me everywhere else – kids, marriage, finances. I had to forgive myself in order to move forward. Even now, I still get choked up because it should be an everyday practice, an ongoing thing.

Also the affirmation and encouragement I receive there. That’s something I still struggle with. I would sit there and say “I don’t need that, I don’t need other people’s encouragement.” But I do! We all do.

Q: How has your life changed since First Steps To Success?

When Dani says you won’t recognize yourself, it’s true! I don’t recognize myself, my family, my finances, my marriage.

Our marriage was restored. My husband and I can say we love each other. We had been married for 18 years, but we were just going through the motions.

Our children have been able to grow into themselves and not be hindered by my words of condemnation or me holding my past over their heads. My daughter owns 2 businesses that are very profitable and she gives more than 40% to the orphans. My other daughter, who was very shy and timid, scored her first job at the age of 16 and she is one of the greatest leaders in her company. Both of my daughters were suicidal, and now they are not! My son is a great leader in his job. He has a son and he’s a great father. My kids thank me for taking them to First Steps To Success! They get to travel all over the world with us!

We have paid off $116K of debt in 32 months, and we’ve doubled the amount we give to those in need. We have made investments, which we had never done before.

My income has tripled this year alone, in the business that was stagnant back in 2012.

We’ve always lived in the red, never in the black…until now!

Tony lost his 6-figure job in 2012 shortly after we started attending First Steps To Success events, and because of the training we got there and “Job Domination,” he landed a leadership position in a company and recently got a $10K raise!

Phenomenal things have happened in our family.

One of my goals has always been to travel for an entire month and not miss the income or anything. This month, I traveled for 26 days! Income was still coming in; we didn’t have to worry about it!

Going to First Steps To Success was the best decision we’ve made. It’s not for a moment; it’s for a lifetime.

Dani pushes me past my limits and excuses. She’s given us the ability to go into the community to help others, with 88 people in our community paying off over $3 million of debt in 30 months. I didn’t think people would listen to me, but my influence has skyrocketed. We’ve been able to help other people to succeed. We get to see people go from being depressed to having joy. They go from giving up to truly believing they can do it!

I am so honored God thought enough of me and loved me enough to share the avenue of DaniJohnson.com, because ultimately God is all over this.

Q: What would you tell someone who is on the fence about attending First Steps To Success?

It’s never too late. You don’t have to quit. There are answers. There is a pathway available to you. You just have to go, you just have to experience, you just have to trust that this pathway will lead you to the success, the freedom, the peace and joy you’ve been looking for. If I hadn’t tried it for myself, I wouldn’t be in the position I’m in today. Quitting is not an option. Giving up is not an option. Words can’t sum up all that’s waiting for you. There’s so much waiting for you. The very thing you think is not possible, IS possible! In order for you to get there, you have to plug in! There are two parts – you see the socket on the wall, but you have to plug into the energy source. First Steps To Success is that energy source. You just have to plug into it!