Lauren Eskreis-Winkler

Lauren Eskreis-Winkler is an assistant professor at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where she researches motivation and achievement. Her work on mastery and learning from failure is crucial in helping people reach their goals, no matter their situation in life.

Formerly a post-doctoral fellow at the Wharton School (as well as a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania’s Character Lab), Lauren has designed and implemented numerous interventions alongside #1 New York Times bestselling author Angela Duckworth (Grit). Together, they have successfully reached everyone from struggling athletes, to students in grade school and college, to individuals at every level of the workforce. Her work reveals a critical fact: “Grit is not only important, but also malleable and can be encouraged via intervention.”

Named to the prestigious Poets & Quants list of 40-Under-40 MBA professors, Lauren is a dynamic and engaging speaker with deep experience in the corporate world. Her sessions prime audiences on the cutting-edge science of grit, using fun intervention techniques that work empirically to increase motivation, resilience, and other qualities that cultivate a mindset of mastery. Her interactive talks can be used for individual character-building, or to nurture a corporate-wide culture of mastery. Lauren earned her PhD in Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.