Laura Gassner Otting

I just wrapped my second residency for my PhD program. The difference between this one and the first? Night and day. The first time around, I was flailing — trying to keep up with the language, the frameworks, the rhythm of academic life. I was surviving. I walked into that first residency in September like a tourist in a foreign country where I didn’t speak the language. Everything felt new and hard and like everyone else knew what they were doing and I was somehow already behind. (Spoiler:...

Last week I stepped off stage after speaking to a powerhouse group of women in optometry—smart, ambitious, mission-driven. And yet, I left the room thinking about one stat I just can’t shake: 70% of students in optometry school are women.Only 50% of practicing optometrists are. This means that there is an entire generation of women entering the profession who are going to have a harder-than-average time finding mentors and champions, along with another entire generation of leaders who will...

On Thursday, I stood on stage in front of a room full of brilliant engineers, visionary founders, and high-stakes decision-makers to deliver my Wonderhell keynote — a talk about ambition, growth, and that weird liminal space between success and self-doubt. You know the one. You’ve just achieved something you once thought impossible…And instead of feeling satisfied, you’re overwhelmed by the possibilities it unlocked.Excited. Anxious. Grateful. Exhausted. Welcome to Wonderhell. It’s the place...

Force: (n) strength or power exerted upon an object; physical coercion; violence; intensity Power: (n) the ability to do or act; capability of doing or accomplishing something Energy: (n) the capacity for vigorous activity; available power Leverage: (n) the mechanical advantage or power gained by using a lever, a rigid bar that pivots about one point and that is used to move an object at a second point by a force applied at a third Have you ever tried to muscle through something where you...

Yesterday was American Business Women's Day. Look at us, real life business ladies... harumph. I hate this. And, I hate this mostly because it's just another way to "other" women in business. We already do that enough on our own, thankyouverymuch. How? Men lead with confidence.Women lead with competence. And let me tell you, one of those is far more rewarded than the other. I saw it myself over two decades in executive search: men ask for promotions, negotiate higher salaries, and run for...

Let’s be honest. When salespeople feel overwhelmed, they point fingers.👉 The leads are weak.👉 The market is shaky.👉 Politics, inflation, tariffs, Gen Z, remote work… But here’s the truth: salespeople have been selling through wars, recessions, and disruption forever. So, if excuses aren't the real problem, what is? It's the burden of their own potential. Hear me out: Every time your team hits a number, crushes a quota, or closes a deal, they see a bigger, better version of what else might be...

Thank God for evolution. I mean, seriously—without it, we’d still be licking light sockets and chasing saber-toothed tigers off cliffs. Jump off that bridge? Nope, instincts say hell no.Stick your head in a lion’s mouth? Probably not ideal.Eat day-old gas station sushi? Well, I *was* pretty hungry... Our instincts are built to keep us safe. Alive. Upright. Our instincts are great for avoiding death. But, terrible for leadership. Because those same instincts? They’re the ones that stop you...

It’s Day One of my doctoral program. YEAR NINETEEN, if we’re counting. (Of course we’re counting. Also, you know I took a First Day of School photo like a damn proud kindergartener.) But, between us, even now, with a couple of bestselling books, a thriving speaking career, and a few decades of professional experience under my belt, I still feel that funky cocktail of excitement and terror at the idea of starting something new. And I'm telling you the real truth: I'm already overwhelmed by the...

Me: "Hey, August, love you. Glad you are always a slow month."August: "Hahahahahahaha." August was anything but slow.So, I am taking time to smell the flowers. Last week alone? Ten days straight on the road. San Antonio. LA. NYC. Keynotes, media hits, and yes—shout-out to the unsung heroes of every damn event: the A/V guys. I got home for one night, hugged my pillow like it owed me money, then turned around and did six more days. Today? I’m sitting in my backyard like it’s the goddamn Garden...

I don't know about you, but my social media feed right now is filled with two things -- Taylor Swift's new album tease, and those perfect first day of school photos. It's honestly hard to know which of the two is more manufactured. I'll leave Taylor alone. I'm a Swiftie. I'm cool with that sort of manufactured experience. But, I'm not cool with the other: the endless parade of perfection: perfect parents with perfect kids on the perfect first day of school, all with matching outfits and...