Q and A with Sarah, Seattle, Washington
“Sports have been a passion of mine since I started playing soccer at 4 years old, and I have been coaching for 15 years.”
Q: What are you passionate about?
A: As the CEO/ Founder of Girl Boss Sports and a professional tackle football player with the Seattle Majestics this year, you could say that one of my biggest passions is sports.
Girl Boss Sports is a company I created for two main reasons:
1) To improve the pipeline of female sports coaches as there are simply too few of us (for example, only 21% of soccer coaches in the US are women) and
2) To provide a quality sports experience FOR girls BY women (currently we are focusing on soccer in the Seattle area). We work on soccer-specific development, mentality, fitness, AND do all of this with the added benefit of providing female role models to the athletes we coach.
Sports have been a passion of mine since I started playing soccer at 4 years old, and I have been coaching for 15 years.
In addition to being a soccer player, I have now joined the Seattle Majestics football team to try my hand at something new.
As a rookie, I am excited to step outside of my comfort zone, learn to tackle, and hopefully win a championship with the impressive women who make up this team.
I am also passionate about leadership, women supporting women, and being a “womanpreneur.”
Currently, my two big goals are having the best season I can with the Majestics and scaling up Girl Boss Sports as we hire several coaches and are establishing partnerships with other local businesses who have similar goals.
Q: What were your younger years like?
A: Being an athlete my entire life was one of the most impactful things on who I am to this day (and I’m not alone in this). According to a survey of female C-Suite Executives, 96% said that they participated in sports as a teenager, and I am one of those individuals.
Sports ignited my passion for leadership when I first took on the role of “captain” and then eventually “coach.” Sports also taught me life lessons about teamwork, accountability, working toward goals, sportsmanship, confidence, and communication–all these things that have helped me to be successful as a woman in this world and at work.
These lessons I learned along the way are a huge part of who I am today and what Girl Boss Sports is working to do for the next generation of female athletes and coaches.
Q: What is something valuable you’ve learned that you’d like others to know?
A: I have learned that if you want success (in whatever area that is for you), it takes hard work, grit, preparation, and resilience (and one without the other doesn’t work).
Life will hit us hard at one point or another, and the ability to be resilient in the face of adversity is one lesson that sports taught me that is transferable to finding success and happiness in life.
Secondly, I have learned that nothing comes easy that is worthwhile, and this is where hard work and grit comes in. One thing I often find myself speaking about to the athletes I work with is centered around these topics.
Often I have found that athletes can be hard on themselves if every movement, touch, etc. is not perfect every time.
Instead of getting frustrated about not having fully developed a specific skill we are working on, I discuss that it is not perfection we are after, but progress.
The only way to progress at something is to go through the discomfort of imperfection.
Finally, whenever I am working on a “hard thing” (and what that is varies depending on the circumstances), I have found that by preparing for it ahead of time not only does it go better, but I have significantly less anxiety around it as well.
Preparation really is the key to success in life!
Q: What would you like others to learn from your story?
A: One of the things I hope you learn from my story is the power that sports can have on anyone and everyone.
Being involved with sports provides so many opportunities to teach life lessons and find success on AND off the field.
Whether you are someone who has never played before or are thinking about getting back into it, just do it!
There are a ton of recreational leagues and teams and classes around the nation [and around the world] that could be a great outlet for you, and I highly recommend it.
And, if you are someone with children (or know somebody who has children), I’d encourage you to get them involved in (and help them stay in) sports. If you have girls, it’s even better you’re reading this.
By age 14, girls are 1.5 to 2 times more likely to drop out of sports, and this is incredibly sad to hear. This is due to a ton of reasons, including lack of access, costs associated with participation in sports, and lack of positive female role models. These are all things that Girl Boss Sports is working to change.
Q: What does feminism mean to you?
A: Intersectional feminism is where it’s at! This means that I am striving to do my part in advocating for equality, not only among the sexes, but also working to be inclusive of women with other intersectional identities (i.e. women of color, LGBTQ+ women, women with different abilities, and more).
As someone who has experienced how hard society can be on us women, it is so important for us to stand together and advocate for one another in everything we do.
Connect with me!
Girl Boss Sports:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/girlbosssports/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/girlbosssports/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/girlbosssports1
Sarah Wolfer:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahwolfer/
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