Cherika Johnson looks over some paperwork during a Longview Housing Authority Advisory Board meeting on Tuesday November 14, 2017. (Michael Cavazos/News-Journal Photo)

Do not tell Cherika Johnson that she cannot do something — unless you want her to accomplish it.

Using grit and hard work, the Longview native transforms discouraging words and negative comments into motivation for success, especially when it comes to her business, Johnson Realty.

She began her real estate career in 2006 and 2007, just before bad loans and inflated real estate prices led to 2008’s Great Recession.

“After I became a real estate agent, people would call me about their bad experiences,” Johnson said.

Rather than tuning them out, she listened.

“I wanted to know what was not working for them, how I could be that change, … how I could turn that around for them. That became my goal, not just to sell houses,” Johnson said.

“I love helping people. I have always had a passion for designing homes. I used to watch HGTV a lot,” she said. Johnson, who attended Longview public schools and has a business administration degree from LeTourneau University, thought she might become an interior designer.

“I knew business was my thing. I just didn’t know that it would lead me to here,” she said.

Then, while buying and selling her own family’s homes, Johnson became interested in real estate. She worked as an agent for several brokerages for 10 years but wanted more.

In Texas, a real estate license allows you to buy and sell houses, but you must have a real estate broker’s license to start a brokerage.

Johnson received the license, opened her brokerage in November 2016 and expected to work alone. That soon changed.

“As God saw fit, I attracted other new agents. … I went from a party of one to a party of eight,” she said. Now Johnson oversees seven agents in Longview, Tyler and Dallas.

“We call ourselves the ‘I-20 Connection.’ … The business has really grown. I have matured as a broker. I have stepped out of my comfort zone. My agents have pushed me to be great,” she said.

“The motto for my company is, I don’t want to produce an office of followers, I want to produce an office of leaders,” Johnson said.

“I want to teach them how to do the business, not just work” as real estate agents, she said. “Whatever I venture, it has to be good not only for me but for my agents.”

To Johnson, success is more than selling expensive houses and earning big commissions.

“My most rewarding experiences have been with the clients who thought they never could buy a house. It’s almost as if I attract the people who don’t think they can own a home,” she said.

About a quarter of her clients are first-time homeowners.

“I love working with them, because they are so grateful,” Johnson added.

Home ownership is important because it builds generational wealth. People who do not buy a home will not have generational wealth to leave to their children.

“To me, real estate, buying a home, is the biggest factor in building wealth, period,” she said.

Many people think real estate agents just sell houses, but there is much more to it. Agents market, prep and show houses; they educate buyers and negotiate sales prices.

“We’re always in front of people. … We deal with a lot of companies: survey, inspection, title, lender,” Johnson said.

“We give (home buyers) different options for lenders. Once a house is under contract, we help them understand the inspection reports,” she said.

“Most of my business is repeat clients. You take care of one client, then they will send you three or four clients,” Johnson said.

Her husband has supported her work financially and emotionally.

“He was a push when people were saying I couldn’t do it. …. He pushed me to keep going,” she said.

“I am family first. I love my duties as mom, first. I have three boys, and they all do sports,” Johnson added. She likes her flexible schedule, because she could take one of her sons to baseball games during the week when he was in middle and high school.

Johnson is a member of the Junior League of Longview and on the boards of ArtsView Children’s Theatre and the Longview Area Association of Realtors. In addition, she volunteers with the LISD Foundation.

These efforts “help me connect with people across the racial lines. I work until they start to see me,” she said.

Her honors include being named Realtor of the Year in 2019 and a Star over Longview by Longview Regional Medical Center in 2016.

Johnson said she is blessed that her career allows her to have a fulfilling life as a wife, mother and businesswoman.

“This is like God has given me a gift and put it in my lap with a bow. I feel like this real estate direction was God’s direction,” she said.