We’re looking forward to introducing you to Lauryn Pena. Check out our conversation below.
Lauryn, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: Are you walking a path—or wandering?
I’ve often gone back and forth regarding staying to a path or wandering, and I think right now I’ve been wandering for a while. But I’ve been trying to get back onto the path to achieve my next few goals.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am a writer, I’ve written one novel, Love and Mardi Gras. Where you can find anywhere books are sold. I have slowly been working on the sequel which has taken me longer than I had anticipated but I’m close to the final phases where I can turn it into my publisher and get the publishing process going.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
The word and concept of ‘purpose’ is something that I have been thinking about a lot lately. I love to listen to the Radiolab podcast, and they had an episode focused on purpose. During that episode I heard a quote by Jonas Salk, that struck me so deeply I’m incorporating it into my next book, “Our greatest responsibility is to be a good ancestor.” I don’t necessarily think we all have one specific purpose, but I would like to be a good ancestor.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
My suffering has taught me resiliance. I’ve always been an athlete- I was a college athlete, and success didn’t necessarily help me identify the lessons learned, just how to defeat an opponent, and move along to the next. The times that have brought me suffering have taught me not only to survive the loss, but how to grow from it.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
I have seen the smartest people use great logical tactics to make wrong or hurtful descisions. The smartest people to me are the ones who can trust and make decisions based on their heart, apologize when wrong, and read through the smokscreens that are constantly in front of us.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: When do you feel most at peace?
I feel the most at peace whenever I’m on the beach. Reading a book by the beach, or any body of water, is my favorite form of relaxation.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://loveandmardigras.com
- Instagram: @laurynep, @loveandmardigras
