Name: Brainstorm Tech 2023: Beyond The Slopes
Uploaded: 2023-07-12
Duration: 14 min 27 s
Description: Lindsey Vonn, Olympic Champion, Entrepreneur, Investor and Founder, Lindsey Vonn Foundation. In conversation with: Jo Ling Kent, Senior Business and Technology Correspondent, CBS News and Co-chair, Fortune Brainstorm Tech

Lindsey Vonn, Olympic Champion, Entrepreneur, Investor and Founder, Lindsey Vonn Foundation. In conversation with: Jo Ling Kent, Senior Business and Technology Correspondent, CBS News and Co-chair, Fortune Brainstorm Tech

Brainstorm Tech 2023: Beyond The Slopes 

Conferences

Lindsey Vonn, Olympic Champion, Entrepreneur, Investor and Founder, Lindsey Vonn Foundation, Jo Ling Kent, Senior Business & Technology Correspondent, CBS News

Lindsey Vonn, Olympic Champion, Entrepreneur, Investor and Founder, Lindsey Vonn Foundation, Jo Ling Kent, Senior Business and Technology Correspondent, CBS News

Thank you so much for that. It is time for the grand finale of our day. We have an absolute powerhouse joining us. Now on stage, our next guest is not only an Olympic champion but also an entrepreneur, an investor and notably a philanthropist, a true Trailblazer both on and off the slopes from empowering underserved young girls to taking a stance in the realm of technology and its potential to revolutionize professional sports. Our guest has left an indelible mark in diverse arenas. Her fascinating journey is filled with challenges, triumphs and pretty much everything in between, fueled by an unwavering passion for innovation and for breaking boundaries. So without further ado, please join me in welcoming the brainstorm tech, the incomparable alpine skiing champion and so much more Lindsey Vonn and sorry and joing Kent. Good afternoon. I'm Lindsey Vonn in the house fans. It's so great to have you here. All these familiar faces, you know, this is beautiful, welcome home. Sort of. Thank you to Park City. I'm so happy to be here with you. You're an Olympic champion, 82 world cup victories. You're the most decorated female skier of all time. Yes, but perhaps most important to me personally. You're from Minnesota. I am and so am I and that is just the best bond to have the people are from Minnesota. Thank you. I agree. I agree. But you also, you wear so many hats. You're an entrepreneur, you're an investor. And you also have started about 89 years ago, the Lindsay Vonn Foundation. And that's partially why you're back here in Park City. So I just wanted to know, you know, as I was doing research in advance of our conversation, one thing that really struck me is that you are an advocate for empowering, underserved girls in a positive way to help them in not just sports but education and art. And it's about discovering the grit within. Why did you start the foundation and how is it going as you try to get these values instilled in these amazing young women? Well, I started a foundation in 2015 and it really stemmed from meeting my childhood idol, Peekaboo Street and I was at an autograph signing in Minnesota when I was nine years old and I met her for 90 seconds and she inspired me to want to be an Olympian. So when I was injured, I thought I need to do something positive with my time, I'll start a foundation and hopefully I can inspire young girls the way Peekaboo inspired me unknowingly. But, you know, for me, I want to be intentional about it and you know, for me, I think what served me best in my life through skiing is determination and grit and grit is a really hard thing to teach Angela Duck work is a big inspiration to me. And she wrote the book grit and I truly believe that successful people are determined and gritty and it's not the smartest people in the room. It's the people that are willing to sacrifice the most to be the best. And so when I, you know, start my foundation, I want to help build strong characters and kids that empower them to have the skill set to go into the world. And to say, yes, I can do this. I have the skills not just, you know, in sports and probably no, it's definitely not in skiing because to be honest, it's probably not the best job to be going after. Definitely put me in the hospital a few too many times, but I just wanted to give them the skill set to be able to succeed. So that's my mission. We've given over a million dollars in scholarships. Um It's really just been me, my sister and her husband. So a family operation, very family. Uh Yeah, run operation. But now we have a CEO and we're really trying to scale. So Dan Rosensweig has been a big, you know, promoter. He's been gathering support today and we're going to go up Den's house after this for cocktails and uh hopefully I'll I'll pass out some information. So, how are the girls responding? I mean, you're, you're doing something really special, an amazing group of people. Thanks. Yeah, I mean, I think the best thing I've done in my career is to be able to have this foundation and to actually see the impact that I've, you know, hopefully made on these girls. You know, I've met girls that, you know, are self harmer and now they're not, they go through my camps, which are our two day empowerment camps. And we have a curriculum and we teach them about, you know, how to take something negative and reframe it into something positive. You know, most kids, especially young girls, when someone tells them, they can't do something, they take that as fact and they stop trying entirely. And which is why, you know, there's a lot of, there's so much drop off, especially in sports at, you know, around the teenage age because someone says they can't do it, they stop. So, you know, for me, I'm here to try to tell them that they can give them the skill set to do that. We're a shining example of it and one thing that you've been able to really do that has resonated with millions of people. You've been so public and brave about your mental health journey and your struggle with depression since the age of 18, self esteem issues, things that traditionally and you've said this are not associated with an Olympic champion or you're not allowed to be associated with it. How do you care for yourself and maintain such a high level of success in your day to day life? It's hard. I mean, I think it was actually, it's actually much easier now because I have a better skill set than I did when I was skiing. Um, you know, when I was skiing, I, I, you know, now everyone talks about it, Naomi Osaka and Simone and Kevin love and all these people, it's very commonplace. But, you know, when I was growing up, there was no support or anyone to talk to. And so I found ways to, you know, figure it out on my own. Um I use skiing as a way of, you know, doing therapy. Um And now, you know, I worked with AAA new therapist since I retired and it's really changed, you know, my, my outlook and how I approach mental health and, you know, the, the skills and tools that I can rely on and go back to and, you know, use whenever I need to. You know, I've haven't had the easiest time since retiring. I lost my mother, my grandmother and my dog um in a six month span. Um And because I had, you know, the, the tools I was able to rely on that. So I'm just a big advocate for going to therapy. Um I work with a, I'm an advisor for a company called and they basically um help connect therapists to patients and it's covered by insurance, which is a big um inhibitor of people actually going to therapy because they can't afford it. Um So, yeah, mental health is just a big, a big part of my life and trying to get people to have the confidence to, to go talk to someone. And even if it's not a therapist, a family member or a friend, and when you're leading a very successful life or a very driven life where you're always on the road and you know, there's, there's no stopping, it's really important to take care of yourself. And I think again, when you're successful, people also don't, you know, assume that you're good and just because you're successful doesn't mean, you know, on the inside, everything's ok. So it's important to, to take care of yourself when you have a moment and you're not with your therapist and you are having a moment of maybe it's a mini crisis or just a down moment. I think a lot of people look to athletes for inspiration for that, like sort of self talk. Do you have a phrase or a mantra or a thing that you go to? We have so many people out here who are high performing executive ceos founders who have those low moments. What do you use in that mini moment? I mean, what do you say? I kind of have two different answers when I was skiing, I, I had a journal and it sounds silly, but I really wrote down the times when I was feeling great because when I felt down, I could go back and reflect on, OK, this is what I did. This is how I felt I can get back to this. Um And it was just a good way to kind of re center myself. Um And also Law and Order health. I uh obsession of Law and Order. Um I don't know why the crime gets solved and I somehow feel better every time a beginning and an end. Yes. Add some bit. And Jerry's and you've got a great night, the magic recipe. And now, you know, I don't actually really talk to my therapist that much because I've, you know, again, I've actually been given a set of skills that I can rely on and I can't particularly explain it. His name is Dr Amano Gonzalez. And it's, it's called brain spotting. And, you know, it's really, it's about feeling and accepting the emotion that you're feeling instead of pretending that it doesn't exist or talking your way through it. It's you sit there and you experience it, your brain processes it and then you move on. And so that's kind of what I focus on now. Um I don't have many crisis because I'm able to, I'm trying, I mean, it's never perfect, but I try to have that balance and also for me, a huge thing is working out. Obviously, when I was skiing, I had plenty of that right now. You know, when I'm on the road, it's so important for me to have that outlet just to keep that balance. Otherwise things crumble pretty quickly. Well, I see you working on sharing it on social media and I think it's such an inspiration for the rest of us who are not Olympic athletes but aspire to have that balance and that mental health in our lives. You're a big investor too. We can't, we can't skip that today. And I was wondering, you know, you've invested in some pretty big successes, some that have been a bit more of a roller coaster beyond Meat Hyper Ice or a Ring Angel City football club. I'm in L A. We love Angel City. How do you decide what to invest in? And what sort of strategies from your athletic and professional career do you use as a filter to say? Ok, I'm getting in on this. I look at investing in the same way. I looked at relationship building for my brand and what partners I chose to work with. Um It's what's authentic to me, what I believe in what I use, what um you know, I believe is gonna be a value long term. Um All of the things that I invested in, I use myself um I believe in so maybe haven't worked out as well as others. Um but I think for the, the most, the majority of, of my investments, I'm, I'm really happy. I wish someone maybe, you know, sell, uh, soon, um, looking for an, that'd be really great. Um, but yeah, I mean, I think for me it's all about long term strategy. I never do anything short term, you know, all of my sponsors, for example, I've been with Rolex for 15 years with Red Bull for 20 years under armor and the longest standing athlete of 20 years. So I don't ever look at anything short term. So um yeah, it served me well in my career and now in this new investment world. Yeah, we have time for one audience question. Anyone wanna ask a question? Hello? Yeah. Is there one in the back there right here. Go ahead. Please stand up and identify yourself. Hi, I'm Phil Wabo with Fortune. I'm a terrible skier, but I get down the hill in one piece. But my question for you is I was speaking with a couple of locals yesterday and they were saying the cost of skiing has gone way up and it's becoming very difficult for middle class families. I mean, this is not your responsibility, but as a prominent skier, I'm just wondering, do you worry that skiing is going to become another one of those things where income inequality pulls it to the upper middle class and therefore it will not be this incredible joy that middle class I mean, many more Americans have been able to enjoy for decades. Yeah, absolutely. Any question, my grandfather is the one that started my family in skiing and he started going to, as in the fifties and he would side flip the hill for half the day to get a half price ticket for the afternoon. Um, you know, my family is always found ways to, you know, make it, make it affordable for us to all go together. I don't think there really is a way to make it affordable these days. I mean, oh, God knows how much tickets are here in Deer Valley. I think they are over $200. I mean, to, to ski with your family, it's next to impossible. Um, I think Europe is actually a much more affordable plan. Um, you know, you go to small towns in Austria, you can get a lift ticket for 25 bucks. Um, I, I don't know, you know, for me, I understand the economic value and, and what, you know, Deer Valley and all of these amazing resorts are doing and, you know, it, there is a lot of income and a lot of money being generated through, you know, these giant corporations, but it really is taking away from the joy that families and kids have from the sport, which I'm, you know, sad about. I don't, but I don't know what the solution would be. Um, you know, if you go to Buck Hill, Minnesota. I was about there. Hey, have you skill? I think it's about 100 bucks for a season pass. So it's a steal of a deal. Minnesota. You don't want to go to Deer Valley. You can always go to Minnesota stop by the Mall of America. Yes. Um, but no, I think it's a, it's really disappointing because, you know, my family, uh, we're, we're kind of, we have the only glue we have is skiing. Um You know, we're, we're a huge family. I have 13 cousins and skiing was the only thing that we did together. So, um it disappoints me but um I hope we'll find a way to make it more affordable. I doubt that will happen. But there is always Minnesota, there's always Minnesota. Well, on that happy note, Lindsey Vonn Olympic champion. Thank you so much for being here. We all really appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you very much.