Competitive Gymnastics

I did gymnastics for 14 years, training over 20 hours a week through middle and high school at Chelsea Piers. I competed as a nationally ranked Level 10 gymnast, was a team captain, and coached younger gymnasts.

What It Taught Me

Mostly hard work and the determination to keep going. A skill takes months of failed attempts before it takes one clean one, so you learn not to quit on something just because it is not working yet.

Competing teaches you to perform under pressure: one routine, no retries, in front of judges. Captaining and coaching taught me the rest, which is that getting the best out of other people is a different skill from getting the best out of yourself.