Vera Jones: The Hall-of-Famer That Shows You How the Blind Can Lead the Blind

Vera Jones is a Syracuse University Hall-of-Fame athlete turned motivational speaker. Her contagious wit and cheery demeanor are what make her coaching company, Vera’s VoiceWorks, the success it is today.

As a single-mother to a son with special needs, Vera is no stranger to hardship. Whether it is becoming an award-winning broadcaster with over 20 years of experience or parlaying into mortgage consulting and real estate, challenges have never stopped Vera from pursuing her goals.

Her portfolio of work is nothing but prolific. According to her website, her professional background ranges from team coaching to writing, acting, and even stand-up comedy. A firm believer in ‘how we choose to overcome our challenges most deeply defines our strength’, she continues to inspire others to reach for the extraordinary.

What makes Vera an exceptional speaker is her ability to befriend her audience with humor and empathy while discussing adversity. She once was described by a former ESPN executive as making "people feel like they are having a deep conversation and a cup of coffee with their favorite sister or best friend".

In her speech at INBOUND 2016, Vera explains the difference between sight and vision. Defining sight as sensory perception, she makes the case that lacking vision is the real deficit. Why? Because vision refers to “faith in your future”. And without faith in yourself, you are lost. 

Vera’s VoiceWorks is dedicated to making “faith your new best friend” by empowering people with the mindset to overcome their adversity. Her coaching service offers courses in professional development and leadership training to educate and inspire businesses all around the world.  

If you want to learn more about Vera and her public engagements, here’s her personal website. You can also check out her most recent book here: Play Through the Foul: Basketball Lessons for the Game of Life.