You might know Katie Hoff Anderson as a two-time Olympic swimmer and three-time Olympic medalist, eight-time World Champion and current American record holder in swimming. In fact, she was once touted as the “female Michael Phelps” logging her first trip to the Athens Olympics at just 15 years old!
But it hasn’t been all sunshine and roses.
In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Anderson missed her lifetime goal to secure an Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle by just 0.07 seconds, sending her into deep disappointment and self-reflection in search of her identity within and outside of swimming. She turned this journey into a book, called Blueprint, and in 2020 she founded fitness training company Synergy Dryland. Most recently she has partnered with Lash Lounge as an official brand ambassador.
So, what are Anderson’s secrets for turning lemons into lemonade?
Here’s a look at the five lessons Anderson says she learned as an Olympic swimmer to help build self-confidence
Embrace the suck.
“This is military slang for accepting something that is completely unpleasant but also unavoidable. It’s approaching and accepting the situation, no matter how bad it is. It’s also the biggest lesson I learned during my time as an Olympic swimmer. I experienced some really high…
