We had an absolute BLAST highlighting, celebrating & raising up Red Bra guest, Lauren Bateman this week! Talk about how much one’s life can change with ONE single decision. Music has always been a passion of Lauren’s and we are so excited to share her story in Episode 59 on The Red Bra Project about how she left her “cushy” job in her late 20’s as a Scientist to pursue a career in music.
Music entertains, heals, lifts the spirit and provides so much more. To say it offers therapeutic benefits from playing, listening, turning up and learning how to play is just the beginning of the what the wonderful world of music can offer. We aren’t all born natural musicians and when it comes to learning a new instrument there’s often a learning curve, some steeper than others. This is where we get to share Lauren’s inspiring story with you!
Lauren not only taught herself how to play, but now teaches others online as well as operates three music schools in the Boston area, all of which she is extremely humble about! Lauren helps her students to achieve their dreams of learning how to play the guitar in a simple, non – traditional, fun & interactive way from the very beginning, one guitar lesson at a time! Mind you, her degree is in Archaeology and Biology – but wait, so how exactly did Lauren go from research scientist to musician?! More on that, shortly…
Growing up, Lauren has always had a passion for music. Maybe not the piano per se as she shared with us in our convo, but music, certainly. For Lauren’s 16th birthday as a confirmation present, Lauren’s sister bought Lauren her first guitar. This gift was strongly discouraged by her mom, not because she didn’t want to support Lauren, but because she knew how much Lauren despised piano lessons and didn’t want her daughter wasting the money. Lauren’s sis couldn’t pass up a good deal though and one of her college dorm-mates was selling a guitar AND a VHS “how to play a guitar program” which as Lauren explained, was quite classic for the time! Lauren began to teach herself the guitar here and there and was off to college soon after pursuing her love of science. Once she graduated, Lauren worked within the cancer research department at a pharmaceutical company, which held a special connection to Lauren as she had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma when she was younger. Interestingly enough, Lauren was actually diagnosed with Hodgkin’s right around the same time she started playing guitar, which Lauren feels is a big part of her story as far as timing and an outlet for her.
Fast forward to 26 years old when Lauren was on a cruise with a folk festival theme, all music and absolutely loved it! You bet that Lauren had her guitar with her and she just felt such a strong calling to play more music and have more music in her life. While she could play fairly well at the time, (but never had taken an actual guitar lesson at that point), she felt that the next logical step to putting more music into her life was to start to taking lessons. Which led to performing, recording and ultimately where she is today, but not without a lot of dedication, hard work and perseverance!
Of course Lauren had reservations about what people may think of her as a “self – taught musician” who holds a degree in the Sciences and just recently started on this career change. She didn’t let those doubts stop her though. Here’s the crucial turning point for Lauren, at the time, she said to her girlfriend then, now wife, “Can you just humor me for a few minutes? I just want to try to teach you a lesson on how to play this really, realllly simple song (Ode to Joy). So we sat down and I kinda gave her an informal lesson…she started playing the guitar, I ripped it out of her hands, ran into the next room and built a website!” Her girlfriend said, “What happened?” Lauren’s response was, “I forgot when you are beginning how hard it is to play a single note” she said, “I could do this. It made me realize that compared to someone who has never touched the guitar before, I was an expert in some sense or form. That gave me a very big mental shift that this IS possible, if I work with this group of people!” Lauren went on to explain that she does not shy away from being up front and admitting that she is not like Hendrix or Van Halen, nor the greatest guitar player on earth, but she is really good at helping people have fun on the guitar! Advanced music theory stuff is more for the teachers with the background of university education, but to learn the basics and have fun, that is Lauren’s jam in which she excitedly discovered!
Key word, she keeps it FUN, not overwhelming or stressful which is immediately noticeable even when just watching some of her online lessons. Her student reviews share the same vibe and many tell stories of how they have spent over a year with other teachers and learning how to play the guitar just didn’t click until they met Lauren and her teaching style.
Lauren was actually nominated to us by one of her students (who also happens to be my Dad – connections!;-)) who recently found her after trying several other online instructors. To read the reviews and listen to her students it’s like Lauren swoops in with a refreshing, fun and simple teaching style that students really thrive on and take off playing the guitar! The fact that Lauren does not have a degree in music is actually a wonderful commonality she shares with many of her students. She often reminds them, if I don’t have a degree and can play guitar and you don’t have a degree, you too can learn, just like she did.
As a childhood cancer survivor, Lauren shares with us how she completely understands what it means to live in the moment. Being sick at a young age means the realization that here today, may not mean here tomorrow and THE time is now. Lauren shares about when her Aunt died of Pancreatic cancer at the young age of 51 (again this is when Lauren was about 26) “Ok, noooo, if I only have 25 years left on this earth, I have to do something that makes me feel alive for those last 25 years. So, that was a big push. I use fear as a positive for me. When I’m scared of something, I think of how I’ll feel if I don’t do it. If the reasons are big enough, the fear goes away,” Lauren passionately shared. (Right there, so, so good)
Lauren truly has so many layers and shares so many pieces of wisdom she has gained throughout her own experiences. They are truly empowering. Shawna and I could have spent an additional hour with her during our chat! We definitely see a part II in our Red Bra Highlight(s) future.
From her perspective about doing things NOW, not waiting – to refusing to let things get in your way to doing it your own way to how exactly she transitioned from her very comfortable (great company & great benefits) research job to channeling her inner rock star! Lauren specifically loves that she wants to help as many people enjoy music in the way they want to. Not the way she does, not the way they “should” be taught, but by however they want to enjoy it.
“Believe in yourself even when not “qualified” to do what you want, life is all about obstacles and challenges but it’s how you will tackle those in your own unique way that makes you successful in life,” Lauren said.
We dig a little deeper with Lauren in Episode 59 in regards to knowing when to take the leap and just get started. “The more you do it, the more it becomes a confidence thing,” Lauren said, “The more I stepped into the role, the more I felt confident.”
Lauren’s Bra Moment: “Stepping into the role of what I was trying to create. The sooner you have a support system is important. For me, that’s my mom. She’s always been so supportive of me no matter what I do and I know I have had some crazy ideas over the years. I don’t think I’ve ever been told “no” you can’t do something. So for me, it’s owning what I wanted to step into and not going back. My mom may have been worried about me starting my own business but you could never tell. I think she also knew that when I set my mind to something there wasn’t much you could do to stop me. If you are going to do something, don’t do it halfway, go the whole way in. Even if you didn’t go to school for make – up and beauty, but are representing a brand or a make – up artist, then own it if you are going to sell other people on it,” Lauren shared with us.
Lauren loooooves helping people get started playing guitar. If you are just starting off or have been playing for a while, but feel like you are “stuck” you have to check Lauren’s online courses out. Lauren gives suggestions for where and how to start off on a limited budget in our interview as well, right here!
Lauren’s passion for music and helping others to learn literally radiates as she shares her story with us. (We LOVE her mindset!) Grab a drink of choice, sit back, relax and hit play to hear Lauren’s story. Trust us, it will have you feeling like you can do ANYTHING by the end, maybe even learn how to play guitar! Oh and grab your FREE guitar crash course, here! https://www.laurenbateman.com/crashcourse
Here’s where to connect with the brilliant, humble & kind Lauren Bateman:
@thelaurenbateman on IG
7 Level Beginner Guitar System
Thanks for stopping by, you are so appreciated! We hope this story inspired you or someone you know on some level. We know it did us, please share away. Always wear that red bra underneath it all and make sure to join the party over @theredbraproject!
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The Red Bra Project
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