Meet Mary Grothe

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mary Grothe. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Mary, really appreciate you opening up about a very personal topic with the hopes that it can help someone out there who might be going through it. What can you share with us about your journey with postpartum depression and how you overcame PPD? For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.
I had a rough bout with Postpartum Depression that I describe in extensive detail in my #1 bestseller book, Destination; Remarkable. Surviving the Dark Side of Success, published by Forbes Book. For this article, here is the abridged version.

My PPD set in slowly about 6 months after my son was born. I was in an upmarket B2B SaaS sales role working to secure one of the top 10 largest accounts sold in history when I found out my 6-month-old son needed surgery. I began having to travel for work and got so angry at my husband for everything he did or didn’t do, concerning taking care of our son while I was away.

I also grew angry in my work, nitpicking how this large deal was being taken care of and managed by others on my team. I found myself in an unknown state of red-hot anger and frustration. I would feel spells of numbness, fear, and hyperactivity. These were not normal characteristics. Unfortunately, those around me failed to say anything or bring it to my attention. They just dealt with it and thought it was just a phase of stress that would blow over. It did not blow over.

The PPD escalated to two emotional breakdowns, the second far worse than the first when I became verbally aggressive while pacing in the waiting room of the medical facility while my son had his surgery. I was angry about my large deal and the mishandling by my team and I chose to explode in a public place. 2 months later, my second breakdown occurred which led to an hour-long shower, crying hysterically, and then locking myself in my closet by barricading the door with my body, in the dark. After no one ‘came to my rescue’, I felt unloved and abandoned, so I fled. I packed a bag and told my husband I was leaving and I drove away. Thankfully, he did come after me and we proceeded to fight for the first time in our then 5-year relationship. I shred him with my words and he cried. I cannot remember who said it in that conversation, but it was apparent something was wrong with me and I scheduled an appointment with my OB. They brought me in immediately and prescribed me with an SSRI that helped me within minutes of taking it, although they said it could take up to 2 weeks before I noticed a difference.

As soon as it kicked in, the clouds lifted, the weight lifted, and I realized what a monster I had become. I began my round of apologies to everyone in my life and helped them understand what I was experiencing. Thankfully, everyone in my life, personally and professionally, was quick to forgive me. I didn’t want to stay on the medication long-term, so I began practices to dive deep into my bible and spend quiet time with God, praying and asking for healing. I also sought council from my coach. He helped me identify the feelings of anxiety and how to intercept them. He also helped me understand how to communicate with those closest to me and ask them to tell me when they felt I was reacting in an off-kilter way. Within 3 months, I was off the medication and learned to manage my anxiety naturally.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
At the age of 22, Mary embarked on her sales career with a Fortune 1000 company, rapidly progressing from an administrative role to becoming the company’s top sales representative. Her unwavering commitment to prioritizing customers’ needs allowed her to drive remarkable success, generating millions of dollars in revenue. This accomplishment marked a turning point in her life, enabling her to break free from a traumatic and impoverished childhood marked by abuse.

Motivated to help others achieve their goals, Mary established her first company at 28, specializing in startup business strategy for early-stage companies. Over three years, she guided 36 startups toward profitable scale. Yet, her intense work ethic and past wounds eventually led to a transformative wake-up call. It was during this period that she discovered Christ, met her husband, and returned to the payroll industry to rebuild her career.

After three years, her passion for scaling businesses resurfaced, leading her to establish her second company, Sales BQ®, broadening her influence from startups to SMBs. Recognizing that concentrating solely on the sales process was no longer sufficient for successful scaling, Mary evolved Sales BQ into House of Revenue® and crafted a comprehensive, integrated revenue strategy.

Mary and her team assisted numerous second-stage growth companies. In January 2023, she transitioned from CEO at House of Revenue to the CRO at PNI·HCM, successfully selling House of Revenue in June 2023.

As an openly faith-based leader, Mary serves as an inspiration, empowering others to commit themselves to the concept of “Do Remarkable Work.” Her keynotes, podcasts, and blogs cater to Christians who yearn for deeper spiritual fulfillment, seek proper discipleship in their professional lives, and turn to her content to bridge the gap on their journey to becoming fulfilled followers of Christ, striving to integrate their faith into all aspects of their lives, both at home and in the workplace.

Without faith integration at work, many Christians become susceptible to their flesh-driven ego that worships earthly success, fame, money, titles, and recognition. Christians can fully thrive in the workplace as spirit-led, positively impacting everyone they encounter and causing a tremendous snowball effect of love and light!

Mary is an award-winning global keynote speaker, addressing topics such as sales, marketing, entrepreneurship, faith-based leadership, and the integration of faith in the workplace. Her recent book, published under the prestigious Forbes | Books brand is a #1 bestseller. Mary now dedicates herself to spreading the gospel’s message through her keynotes, blogs, and nationally-syndicated radio show, Fearless Faith, with plans to release a second book in 2025. She and her husband also run a successful Christian clothing and accessory line called Do Remarkable Work.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in my journey are:

1. Relentless pursuit of winning ethically while loving and honoring God and people. Although I didn’t always have this as my north star, once adopted at age 29, my entire life changed. My business ethics in my 20’s were not God-centered. They focused on chasing everything the world promised me, fame, money, titles, recognition, and material assets. I learned through my rock-bottom experience that God needed to be the center and foundation of my life. I chose to rebuild my life on His rock, with Him. I continued to pursue growth in my career and went on to achieve incredible success before turning 40, but this time, my relentless pursuit of winning was coupled with and guided by the north star of loving others and honoring God through my work. Many people have tarnished views of Christianity which I understand can come from a lack of understanding or a direct, hurtful past experience. As a Christian Executive in Corporate America, my goal is not not preach scripture, but to be the scripture – be the love and light, extend grace and mercy, and create a different experience for those I work with internally and externally. I hope that when people experience love and light, they will seek to learn more about how to get this freedom, peace, and passion in their lives, It has changed everything for me and I will never turn back.

2. Learning everything I could about the topic I was passionate about or the work I was doing, as I firmly believed that people would prefer to do business with me and interact with me as a knowledge leader and trusted source. This proved to be true in my work, causing tremendous market response which resulted in significant growth and success in all my roles as a sales rep, VP of Sales and Marketing, Founder CEO, and now, CRO (Chief Revenue Officer) and host of the nationally-syndicated radio show, Fearless Faith. Whenever I embark on a new role or new chapter of my life, I assess my knowledge gaps and determine where my focus needs to be to learn as much as I can about the problems I can solve with my product or service, who will benefit most from them, and what they care about. Be it my professional customers in the companies I have worked for or my role as a radio host, I care deeply about the experience I create for my customers or my audience. If people walk away from an interaction with me truly believing how much I care about making their life better, I can earn a customer, or follower for life. I believe this is another example of being the love and light. People know that I genuinely care about them.

3. Going all in and trusting what is meant to be will be. I’ve been given feedback that I am extremely trusting and have a passion level that most have never seen. I never commit to anything I am not willing to give my all. I have always believed that I could never truly determine if something was worthwhile or successful if I didn’t give it everything I had. From my first professional role at 22 years old to my current roles as Chief Revenue Officer at PNI HCM, Fearless Faith Radio Host, and Keynote Speaker, I refuse to leave a stone unturned in learning, development, strategic leadership, and execution. Why not? If we are given a chance in a role, especially a role that impacts or influences others, why would we ever do the minimum? That sounds terrible to me. God created us with intention and purpose and I have committed my life to the plan and purpose He has for me, therefore, I will go all in with Him and with every venture I commit to.

What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?
In the past 12 months, I transitioned from a Founder CEO, an executive team of one, to a CRO at a new company, joining a team with 6 existing executives. Personally, this was difficult for me. I was used to being the top dog, being in charge, approving and implementing my own ideas without anyone checking my work or offering an opinion. As a high-energy and stubborn visionary, this was a great set up for me and I underestimated what it would be like to step down from my CEO title and get integrated with a talented executive team of a much more established company.

It wasn’t an easy journey. I was stubborn and frustrated on some days, yet, my leadership team, especially the company President, extended a significant amount of grace to me. They were patient and kind. What more could you ask for? I am grateful God opened this professional door for me and I love my role at PNI HCM.

I overcame this challenge slowly simply by living through it and praying through it. God held my hand and my executive team supported me through the transition.

Contact Info:

 

Image Credits
The lifestyle photos are all photos I took. The professional photo was shot at soona Denver.

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Leadership Development
Empathy Unlocked: Understanding how to Develop Emotional Intelligence

“Empathy is the starting point for creating a community and taking action. It’s the impetus

Productivity
Where do you get your work ethic from?

We’ve all heard the phrase “work hard, play hard,” but where does our work ethic

Productivity
Boosting Productivity Through Self-Care

When you have a never-ending to-do list it can feel irresponsible to engage in self-care,