A Helpful Heart Mo Anderson may be one of the most successful and powerful leaders of the global real estate giant Keller Williams Realty, but she once wore only handmade clothes made from used feed sacks. Anderson may live in a stunning mansion, but she once knew what it was like to be so poor that 25 cents seemed like a fortune. Anderson may give hundreds of thousands of dollars to charities and to those in need, but she said that giving spirit came from her father who was a tenant farmer.
Anderson, a leader of Keller Williams Realty, helped build one of the most successful franchises in real estate history, but along the way she learned several key lessons on how to live a joy-filled life. She struggled through poverty as a child in the aftermath of the Great Depression. She lost her fortune in the oil bust of the 1980s and she worked so hard at times that she developed a heart condition. But in her soul, Anderson said her life has been nothing but blessed. “You can have a joy-filled life in spite of all the things, all the challenges that have happened to you,” Anderson, now 80, said. “You
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Outlook December 2016
by Heide Brandes
can still rise above it. When I look back, I see how losing all of my money was the greatest thing because it set up circumstances that gave me the life I have today.” From daughter of a tenant farmer to one of the most successful and wealthy CEOs, Mo Anderson now dedicates her life to the goal of living on 10 percent of her wealth while donating 90 percent to causes. But, in her heart, her true passion is sharing the knowledge that a joyfilled life is possible for everyone.
THE TENANT FARMER’S DAUGHTER
Anderson was born in 1937 in Ames, Oklahoma, the fifth child of a tenant farmer who moved his family from farm to farm for work. He had an eighth grade education, but Anderson said he was the greatest example of a Christian and his integrity still inspires her today. “He was the first one to arrive whenever there was tragedy or a problem,” Anderson said. “Once, when we were in Enid —on the rare occasions we had money to buy things—he had a quarter left. When we walked past the penny store, he saw a beggar and he gave that last quarter to the beggar. I was shocked. That was the last of our money. “He looked at me and quoted that scripture about when you do good things, your bread comes back buttered.” Other days, while helping her father corral the livestock, Anderson would walk along the dirt lane and dream of becoming a music teacher. “That pasture lane was my place to dream,” she said. “I wanted to be a music teacher so much.” Anderson herself was the first child in her family to attend college. She earned a scholarship to the Oklahoma College for Women, but transferred to the University of Oklahoma in her second year. Although she still dreamed of teaching music, the music department closed the practice rooms at 10pm. Anderson worked until 9:30pm most nights. “I quickly realized I could not major in music, so I majored in elementary education,” she said. But magic happened. When she interviewed for her first job at Traub Elementary in Midwest City, the principal received so many letters of recommendation that touted Anderson’s music ability that he offered her the job as the school’s music teacher. “When God puts a dream into your DNA, He finds a way to make it happen,” she said.