Her Story
About Lauren
I've been coaching wrestling for over 20 years, and my journey in this sport has been one of breaking barriers and creating opportunities where none existed. As an athlete, I competed at three Olympic trials and earned international medals representing Team USA at competitions including Pan Am Championships and Junior Worlds. I wrestled during a time when women's wrestling wasn't recognized - it took over 25 years for the NCAA to finally recognize us as a national sport, even though we had our first nationals in 2000 and first Olympics in 2004. I forced myself into places that didn't want me, but couldn't say no. I was the first female to trailblaze in a bunch of places that I didn't necessarily want to, but I had to, to do the thing that I wanted to do. I have 4 degrees - 3 undergrad and a master's - but honestly, the real answer to success in this field is grit and tenacity, not taking no for an answer, and finding the answers under any rock that you need to. As a coach, I've come to realize that the platform of coaching goes far beyond the medals and the awards. It's about helping people become better people and living up to their maximum potential of who they were created to be. That's what drives me every day.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Lauren
01What do you attribute your success to?
Oh man, there's not just one thing. I guess, one, probably those characteristics that I mentioned - integrity, grit, tenacity, being willing to do the hard things, to do whatever it takes, and self-evaluate. Two, you know, every person that's been in my life that helped develop those characteristics in myself - my family, my parents, my grandma, you know, all my coaches that I've ever had in every sport. Anyone who's seen potential in me and guided me along the way. And my belief in Jesus, my relationship with the Lord. All of those things.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Probably from one of my strength coaches - the answers that you seek is in the cave that you're avoiding. So, the work that you don't want to do, that you're avoiding doing, that's where your answer is. It's actually a quote, I don't know whose quote that is, but my strength coach would say that all the time. This applies as an athlete, and then also as a coach, and then it pertains to life as well.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say don't give up. It's expected to be hard. I think a lot of people underestimate how difficult a goal, or something that you want to accomplish is going to be. A lot of times they expect or want it to be easy. So, you know, when you go to the gym, you don't expect it to be easy. In fact, you know, a lot of times, if you didn't break a sweat, or if you didn't work hard, it feels like you didn't gain something. So, remember that when life, or when your career, or whenever you're doing gets difficult, it's to be expected, because you're going to gain something from that.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I would say one of the opportunities is that the fact that women's wrestling is the fastest growing sport in the nation for females. We just had, just last weekend, our first NCAA-recognized national championships. So it took over 25 years for the NCAA to recognize us as a national sport, even though it was first at the nationals in the year 2000, and first in the Olympics in 2004. I would say one of the challenges being that a lot of those coaching opportunities and positions are being taken by a lot of men instead of the women, for various reasons.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Integrity - I think who you are is important. Grit and tenacity. Being willing to do the hard things, to do whatever it takes. Self-evaluate - being willing to look at yourself honestly and do the work that needs to be done.
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