Lauren Gardner

I competed in the 2004 Olympics as team captain of my synchronized swimming team and won a bronze medal. After the Olympics, I attended community college before transferring to Columbia University, where I earned my degree in political science in 2008. When I graduated at age [AGE], I had a college degree and an Olympic medal, but no traditional work history, which made it challenging for people to know where to place me. While working as a personal trainer, one of my clients connected me with a headhunter who found me a role at CreditX, an inter-dealer broker for credit default swaps. The CEO had specifically asked the headhunter to find him an Olympic athlete because all of his top salespeople and performers had been Division I athletes. I knew nothing about finance when I started, but I joined right before Lehman Brothers went under, so I was in credit default swaps at a very historic time. I had to learn very quickly how the industry worked and helped people manage their positions against these failing banks in CDS contracts. I've been in my field for 18 years now. I'm also a cancer survivor and have four children. I've been doing keynote speaking on and off since I was [AGE], speaking at Rotary Clubs, work conferences, Olympic send-offs, and schools.