Latest / Hurdle with Emily Abbate / 318. Owning Your Voice: Nike's Chief Impact Officer Vanessa Garcia-Brito On Training For Work Like An Athlete & Empowering The Next Generation

Transcript

318. Owning Your Voice: Nike's Chief Impact Officer Vanessa Garcia-Brito On Training For Work Like An Athlete & Empowering The Next Generation · Hurdle with Emily Abbate

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Is it more important for you to be right or
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: is it more important for you to move forward? And
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: sometimes they're not mutually exclusive, sometimes they are.
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: Hey, hey, Emily Abody here, You're listening to episode three
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  Speaker 2: hundred and eighteen of Hurdle, a wellness focused podcast where
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  Speaker 2: I talk to inspirational people about everything from their highest ties.
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: And toughest moments to essential tips on.
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  Speaker 2: How to live a healthier, happier, more motivated life. We
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: all go through our fair share of hurdles, and my
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: goal through these discussions is to empower you to better
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  Speaker 2: navigate yours and move with intention so that you can
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: stride towards your own big potential and of course have
• 0:51
  Speaker 2: some fun along the way. Now, I got so much
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: great feedback after the episode. I posted a couple of
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: weeks ago featuring a aman of Athleta, and that's why
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: I know that y'all are going to love this conversation
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  Speaker 2: as well. Please welcome to the feed today. Vanessa Garcia Brito.
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  Speaker 2: She is the Chief Impact Officer at Nike.
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  Speaker 1: Now. She knew that she wanted to make a difference.
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  Speaker 2: She started out her career as a human rights lawyer
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  Speaker 2: and then pivoted into a non traditional path for someone
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: of her education. We talk about that today and she
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  Speaker 2: gives some insight into her decision about joining the team
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  Speaker 2: at Nike. She talks about the longevity she has had
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  Speaker 2: at the company and also shed some light on how
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  Speaker 2: her upbringing and being a Latina helps to inform the
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  Speaker 2: way she makes decisions. She also talks a lot about
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  Speaker 2: where she gets her confidence from. She's someone that is
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  Speaker 2: commonly at the front of the room making some of
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  Speaker 2: the biggest announcements on behalf of the brand, and I
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  Speaker 2: ask her how she garners that confidence, where it comes from,
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  Speaker 2: how she navigates the nerves that come hand in hand
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  Speaker 2: with what she does. And I really appreciate her sentiments
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  Speaker 2: about how she prepares for her job. She says, quote unquote,
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  Speaker 2: I train for my job like an athlete. What a vibe.
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  Speaker 2: So many motivating and really inspiring takeaways from this conversation. Now,
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  Speaker 2: just like last week's special episode featuring paralympian Sarah Reinertson,
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  Speaker 2: I had the opportunity to record this at Nike's Paris headquarters,
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  Speaker 2: where the three of us were in attendance for the
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  Speaker 2: announcement of their Game on initiative supported by the US
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  Speaker 2: Olympic and Paralympic Committee.
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  Speaker 1: It's a one year career.
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  Speaker 2: Program that's designed to increase awareness and underscore the importance
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  Speaker 2: of disability inclusion, and they're doing that through a range
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  Speaker 2: of professional development opportunities educational opportunities that all support individual's
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  Speaker 2: career goals. Now you can get more information on this
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  Speaker 2: one year program via the link in the show notes.
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  Speaker 2: Applications for it are now open and you can check
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  Speaker 2: it out via the link jobs dot Nike dot com
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  Speaker 2: slash Disability dash Inclusion. Again that length jobs dot Nike
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  Speaker 2: dot com slash Disability dash Inclusion.
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: Make sure you're following along with the.
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: Show over on social It's at Hurdle podcast. I am
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: over at Emily Abodi And yes, if you are not
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  Speaker 2: get in on the action.
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: We are now cusping six thousand subscribers.
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: I love it, I love to have you, and I'd
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: love to land in your inbox every single Friday with
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: so much of the same inspiration, motivation things you love
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: from the show.
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: So again that.
• 3:43
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• 3:47
  Speaker 2: but not least, if you haven't yet.
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: Rated and reviewed the show. What are you waiting for?
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• 3:54
  Speaker 2: write loving words about how you feel about Hurdle. It
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: means the world to me and I appreciate you for
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: taking that little bit of time to show the show
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: some love. With that, Let's get to it. Let's get
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  Speaker 2: it so hurdling. Today, I am sitting down with Vanessa
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  Speaker 2: Garcia Brido. She is the chief Impact Officer at Nike.
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  Speaker 2: How are we doing today.
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  Speaker 1: Hi, Emily. I am doing great. I'm so excited to
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  Speaker 1: be here with you today.
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  Speaker 2: I know, and here being we are in Paris right
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  Speaker 2: now during the Paralympics, such a special time for both sport,
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  Speaker 2: but also here for you at Nike. Talk to me
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  Speaker 2: about how you feel to be in this amazing place
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  Speaker 2: during the special moment.
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  Speaker 1: Being in Paris anytime is amazing. It's such a beautiful city,
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  Speaker 1: but being here during the Paralympics makes it extra extra special.
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  Speaker 1: The energy in the air has been amazing. So yeah,
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  Speaker 1: I'm thrilled.
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  Speaker 3: Thrilled.
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  Speaker 1: Have you been to a Paralympic Games before? I have
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  Speaker 1: not been to Paralymic games before, so this is my first,
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  Speaker 1: but I've been wanting to go because I don't know
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  Speaker 1: if you've been to partly could pick games before these athletes.
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  Speaker 1: I think they're some of the most amazing athletes in
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  Speaker 1: the world. Yeah, it's super inspiring seeing what they're doing.
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  Speaker 2: And I'm elated to get to the track tonight to
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  Speaker 2: watch some of these stellar performances.
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  Speaker 1: Me too.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I am so happy before I even get
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  Speaker 2: to do that, to be here with you right now,
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  Speaker 2: specifically because you have had such an inspirational journey to
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  Speaker 2: where you are. Your background in law, I think is
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  Speaker 2: really inspiring. Talk to me a little bit about what
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  Speaker 2: inspired you to make the transition to working in corporate
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  Speaker 2: at Nike from your career beginnings as a human rights lawyer.
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  Speaker 1: Well, you know, being human resoler was my dream since
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  Speaker 1: I was seven years old. That's what I wanted to do.
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  Speaker 1: I also wanted to be an astronaut, but you know,
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  Speaker 1: we can talk about that later. And I, you know,
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  Speaker 1: I always wanted to be out there advocating for people,
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  Speaker 1: for humans, no matter who they were, but especially for
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  Speaker 1: girls and women. And I was really fortunate that when
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  Speaker 1: I started out in my law career that I had
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  Speaker 1: a chance to work on human rights matters, as well
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  Speaker 1: as doing some international and other corporate law. But more
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  Speaker 1: important than the space of where I was doing it
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  Speaker 1: was the how I wanted to do it. I wanted
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  Speaker 1: to do the work in a way that was unifying, energizing,
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  Speaker 1: and really action oriented. Because I discovered recently that I'm
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  Speaker 1: not a very patient person. So I'm so working through
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  Speaker 1: with that. This is a recent discovery, recent discovery or
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  Speaker 1: maybe just a recent acceptance. I really want to see
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  Speaker 1: change in my lifetime, and so you know, working at
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  Speaker 1: a place like Nike makes a ton of sense. We've
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  Speaker 1: got just do it as our call to action are
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  Speaker 1: We're obsessed with human potential and sport. We're just really unifying, right,
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  Speaker 1: you have all this emotion and passion, and you know
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  Speaker 1: inherently action.
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  Speaker 3: M h.
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  Speaker 2: You know, you'll be hard pressed to find someone that
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  Speaker 2: works for this company that isn't an active individual. But
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  Speaker 2: I laugh a little bit when you say that you're
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  Speaker 2: not a patient person, knowing that you yourself are an
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  Speaker 2: ultra marathon or which takes a fair amount of patients.
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  Speaker 3: Talk to me about that.
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  Speaker 2: Talk to me about what you've learned on your personal
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  Speaker 2: journey through sport that you bring into your work here
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  Speaker 2: at Nike.
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  Speaker 1: Running and I have been together for a really long time.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, how's that working out for you?
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  Speaker 1: He running is my is my bestie. No offense to
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  Speaker 1: all my besties out there. You know who you are,
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  Speaker 1: and I love you very much. But n it goes
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  Speaker 1: everywhere with me, and you're right, It's really taught me
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  Speaker 1: how possible things are. I think you're a runner as
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  Speaker 1: well as I understand it. And I love ultras because
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  Speaker 1: it really expands your mind. I can literally feel my
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  Speaker 1: brain expanding and there's never a lack of imagination. Right.
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  Speaker 1: Anything that seems impossible forward really is a pace and
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  Speaker 1: just stepping into it and going forward, it's you know, look,
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  Speaker 1: when I'm running, I feel like a gazelle. I do
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  Speaker 1: not look like a gazelle. I am not a graceful
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  Speaker 1: runner for anyone who ever sees me out there, you
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  Speaker 1: know what I'm talking about. But I do feel like that,
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  Speaker 1: and I think it's such a wonderful thing to see
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  Speaker 1: what your power is inside of you, yourself, and that
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  Speaker 1: you are actually the one that's pushing it and shaping it.
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  Speaker 1: And our body is remarkable and whether you know that
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  Speaker 1: mind body spirit connection.
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  Speaker 2: Ah, Yeah, that ultra distance is something else, and it's
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  Speaker 2: so impressive to me beyond the patience and determination and
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  Speaker 2: the grit that it requires. It truly is like you're
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  Speaker 2: saying a muscle, how does your will strengthen you give
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  Speaker 2: it something to push up against? How does your mind
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  Speaker 2: your muscle strengthen you give it something to push up against.
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  Speaker 2: And so to be out there for that amount of
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  Speaker 2: time is so impressive. It's glorious, and it gives you
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  Speaker 2: some time to really digest and work through whatever it
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  Speaker 2: is that you're going through, whether it be in your
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  Speaker 2: personal or your professional life. Would you say that that
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  Speaker 2: is something that really works to your benefit when it
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  Speaker 2: comes to showing up in being your best self in
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  Speaker 2: the office.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, you know. Running for me and especially those those systances,
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  Speaker 1: it's like a meditation. It's also a not so well
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  Speaker 1: kept secret that I am an introvert and so I
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  Speaker 1: really do refuel in these long running runs. It's funny
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  Speaker 1: because people think about all the energy that you're expending,
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  Speaker 1: but really it's just I feel like I'm regenerating it.
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  Speaker 1: I also really think that you can't give what you
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  Speaker 1: don't have, and running really helps me build up all
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  Speaker 1: those different areas that I want to be putting out
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  Speaker 1: into the world.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, one of the reasons I was so
• 9:49
  Speaker 2: excited to sit down with you is because you are
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: often at the front of the room making some of
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: the biggest announcements on behalf of this company, and that
• 9:57
  Speaker 2: requires so many things. It requires poised, it requires preparation,
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  Speaker 2: It requires a certain amount of self belief that yes,
• 10:05
  Speaker 2: I can be the person that delivers this information news
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  Speaker 2: what have you? So, talk to me a little bit
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  Speaker 2: about how it feels for you to be that person.
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  Speaker 2: How do you keep your composure and handle your nerves
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  Speaker 2: when you are at the forefront during these big moments.
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  Speaker 1: First, you know, I know it's not about me, right,
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  Speaker 1: and I leave the ego at the door, the perverbial door,
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  Speaker 1: wherever that might be, because I take being a witness
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: to the world and really that role of advocating and
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: being a voice for others really seriously. So whenever I'm
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: standing or sitting or talking even here with you, I
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: know I'm doing that on behalf of so many other people,
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: and I want to get it right for them. But
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: most importantly, I just want to get it through for.
• 10:53
  Speaker 2: Them interesting getting it right and getting it through making
• 10:57
  Speaker 2: sure that your message is delivered. When you first started
• 11:01
  Speaker 2: finding yourself in these roles, in these opportunities of being
• 11:05
  Speaker 2: at the front of the room, was there anything specific
• 11:08
  Speaker 2: that you would prepare to do in these moments or
• 11:11
  Speaker 2: that you would do to prepare for these moments.
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  Speaker 1: One again, I take it seriously, so I do do
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: the homework. Yeah, I do prepare. I don't you know.
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  Speaker 1: I admire people who are like, oh, I can just
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: swing it. I prepare because I want to make sure
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: that I'm honoring everybody that's in the room with me
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: or that I'm in there for. So I think that's
• 11:29
  Speaker 1: the That's the big one. The other one is don't
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: take yourself too seriously. And they might seem at opposite ends,
• 11:35
  Speaker 1: but you know, life is short, but it's also long.
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  Speaker 1: It's not you know, it's a series of things. It
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: won't be the first or the last, so you know
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: you can you'll always have the next. And you know,
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: the beautiful thing about life is that you're constantly learning.
• 11:47
  Speaker 2: Yeah, do you remember the first big announcement that you
• 11:50
  Speaker 2: had to deliver?
• 11:52
  Speaker 1: Oh gosh, the first big announcement probably would have been
• 11:56
  Speaker 1: really early in my career. I've been really fortunate. Actually,
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: I've had a lot of champions and people who have
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: believed or are at least not questioned whether I was
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: able to do it or not. And so it just
• 12:08
  Speaker 1: took the fear out of it. And also I think,
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: you know, I come from really really humble beginnings, and
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: so I've been an advocate for my family since really
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: early on, having very adult conversations as a child. So
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: I think that also just has built up confidence in
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: being able to connect.
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: I love that sentiment that you've been around people that
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: believe in you. Still you can also personally be your
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: biggest type man, but deal with things like imposter syndrome
• 12:33
  Speaker 2: or deal with things like abundant nerves.
• 12:36
  Speaker 3: Right, So what does your inner dialogue look like?
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: What does your personal self talk look like, either during
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: these moments or when you're out on the run, or
• 12:44
  Speaker 2: how do you speak to yourself when you're by yourself.
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: I often talk about how the conversation that you have
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: with yourself is the most important conversation you can be having.
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: And I've heard others people say, you know, talk to
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: yourself like you're your best friend, and I do that.
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  Speaker 1: There's a lot you know, there's a lot of detractors
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  Speaker 1: out there. You don't need to be working against yourself.
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  Speaker 1: So internally, I'm you know, it can be done. I
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: am possible, it is happening. We can do this. Those
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  Speaker 1: are pretty much the words that I'm you know, I'm
• 13:14
  Speaker 1: saying to myself.
• 13:15
  Speaker 2: Hmmmm, a lot of positivity. And can I tell you
• 13:18
  Speaker 2: that I also use we for myself. Sometimes I'm like,
• 13:21
  Speaker 2: we got this, and I'm like, how are you.
• 13:22
  Speaker 3: Talking to girl?
• 13:23
  Speaker 2: Like, it's just it's just me and myself and I
• 13:25
  Speaker 2: here on this street, on this trail, wherever I am.
• 13:28
  Speaker 3: But sometimes just weeing it makes it feel a little
• 13:30
  Speaker 3: bit more like a group activity.
• 13:31
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 13:32
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I can really relate to that.
• 13:33
  Speaker 2: You mentioned your humble beginnings. Give us a little bit
• 13:36
  Speaker 2: of insight about where you come from and how your
• 13:38
  Speaker 2: upbringing informs how you show up today in the world.
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: Sure, my mother is from Honduras and I'm a mama's girl.
• 13:44
  Speaker 1: So everybody out there that's really important that really has
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: to find who I am. She is a warrior and
• 13:50
  Speaker 1: I love, you know, being a warrior's daughter. My father's
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: from Argentina and I was born in New York, so
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: already there you have a lot of ants and ands,
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: which has been really liberating because you know, since from
• 14:02
  Speaker 1: very early on, I knew that there's not one way
• 14:06
  Speaker 1: or one example. There are so many different options to
• 14:10
  Speaker 1: be to be in your becoming and that's really informed awesome.
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: My mom is so damn optimistic even today. She is
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: in her mid seventies, and she believes that, you know,
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: she's got like all these dreams and things she's going
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: to be doing in a couple of years. And that
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: is something that I have really incorporated into my life
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: as well. I think tomorrow will be better, Tomorrow will
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: be better, Tomorrow will be better, and we I and
• 14:35
  Speaker 1: we are the ones who make that happen. M H.
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  Speaker 3: I love that idea tomorrow will be better.
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: And also being realistic and honest about what it is
• 14:44
  Speaker 2: that you do want while being grateful for what it
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: is that you have when you think about what it
• 14:49
  Speaker 2: is that you want. We've already talked so far about
• 14:51
  Speaker 2: how awesome it has been in your career journey now
• 14:54
  Speaker 2: over a decade at Nike. What is it else? What
• 14:58
  Speaker 2: else is it that you see for yourself on the horizon.
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: Well, you know, on the horizon is a is a
• 15:05
  Speaker 1: near term goal for me. Right at Nike and our
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: team specifically really focuses on closing the gap for all
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: kids in play and sport, but especially girls. And it's
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: something that is so doable, you know, and I want
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: to see that happen in my lifetime. I want to
• 15:22
  Speaker 1: be celebrating that victory with my mom, and so I'm
• 15:27
  Speaker 1: pretty you know, I'm pretty focused around that because there
• 15:31
  Speaker 1: are so many things in this world that we can't change,
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: or I shouldn't say that are hard to change. This
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: is hard, but it's also really doable. Yeah.
• 15:39
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we know that young women drop out of sport
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: at twice the rate as young men, something that is
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: a startling and upsetting statistic. I to share your hope
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: and belief that that is something that together we can
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: make change. For when we say we want to make
• 15:55
  Speaker 2: a change in that, when we say we want to
• 15:58
  Speaker 2: close the gender exercise gap, make women feel like they
• 16:01
  Speaker 2: are more capable than maybe sometimes that they feel. What
• 16:05
  Speaker 2: does that action look like, both either for you and
• 16:08
  Speaker 2: for Nike when we say we're committed to it, what
• 16:10
  Speaker 2: does that look like?
• 16:12
  Speaker 1: So for us, it's three areas that were really focused on.
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: We want to increase participation. We want to improve the
• 16:18
  Speaker 1: experience and we want to ensure that there's greater representation,
• 16:22
  Speaker 1: and within that, we need to open up and break
• 16:26
  Speaker 1: down the barriers for girls earlier.
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  Speaker 3: The earlier.
• 16:29
  Speaker 1: You know, we focus on ages seven through seventeen, and
• 16:33
  Speaker 1: we want to make sure that the experience is positive.
• 16:35
  Speaker 1: So play and sport are not necessarily designed for girls usually,
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: and we're trying to change that. So we're working with
• 16:41
  Speaker 1: experts and other community partners to define and to listen
• 16:45
  Speaker 1: to what girls say that they want and what would
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: make that different for them, and then design that into
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: the experience. And you know, the see it to be
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: it is real at every stage in your life. Actually
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: need it's just you need to see it to be it.
• 17:01
  Speaker 1: And so we need better representation, greater representation for girls.
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: Yeah that means more female women coaches. Yeah, more female
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: women coaches.
• 17:10
  Speaker 2: And something that you're doing here at Nike with the
• 17:12
  Speaker 2: Athlete Think take as well, gathering together inspirational and really wonderful,
• 17:17
  Speaker 2: stellar women from athletes to all walks of life to
• 17:21
  Speaker 2: come together and inspire the next generation of athletes.
• 17:24
  Speaker 3: I think it's really impressive.
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: Yeah, it's I mean it has to be done. I mean,
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: even what you're doing, it's fantastic. You know others are
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: seeing you and no believing that they can be that
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: because you're helping to pave the way.
• 17:37
  Speaker 3: Oh you're so sweet to me.
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: And it sounds as though from what you're saying that
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: your mother is a very big example of in order
• 17:44
  Speaker 2: to be it, you need to see it when it
• 17:45
  Speaker 2: comes to your career and the way that you walk
• 17:48
  Speaker 2: the walk here at Nike, who has been that leader
• 17:50
  Speaker 2: for you that has empowered you just show up and
• 17:53
  Speaker 2: you have seen them lead the way.
• 17:55
  Speaker 1: It's a great, great question. I think you know one.
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: I've had a healthy mix of mentors and sponsors, and
• 18:04
  Speaker 1: there's a lot of conversation out there around mentorship, and
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: I don't just talk actually emphasize sponsorship a bit more
• 18:11
  Speaker 1: because those are the people who you are you're asking
• 18:16
  Speaker 1: to put in skin in the game. They are the
• 18:19
  Speaker 1: people who are the decision makers in terms of talent
• 18:21
  Speaker 1: that know your work, know your strengths, and also where
• 18:24
  Speaker 1: you might have opportunities and are willing to champion you
• 18:29
  Speaker 1: in the room where those those decisions are being made.
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: I've been really fortunate in having sponsors who have gotten
• 18:35
  Speaker 1: to know my work and gotten to know me and
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: been willing to I'm not going to say take a chance,
• 18:40
  Speaker 1: because that means that you're not prepared. And if I
• 18:43
  Speaker 1: can pause there for a minute, actually we often go
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: people feel like that's a gamble. If you're prepared and
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: you're ready and you have the talent, it's not a gamble.
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: You just need people who are in those decisions making
• 18:56
  Speaker 1: roles to say your name, put it forth, and then
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: create the opportunity for anybody out there who is wondering,
• 19:06
  Speaker 1: you know, why is it taking so long or what
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: does it take? A big lesson for me was I
• 19:13
  Speaker 1: come from an upbringing where there's the belief of you
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: put your head down and you work really hard and
• 19:19
  Speaker 1: the work will speak for itself. Well, it turns out
• 19:21
  Speaker 1: the work does not speak for itself. I hope everyone
• 19:25
  Speaker 1: heard that the work does not speak for itself. You know,
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: there is a balance between being a braggert but also
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: just being proud and being able to make the work
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: be seen. And if you can help close that gap,
• 19:38
  Speaker 1: it makes a difference.
• 19:39
  Speaker 2: Yeah, there's so much interesting things to double click on here.
• 19:43
  Speaker 2: The first thing is, I don't know if I've ever
• 19:44
  Speaker 2: heard it called a sponsor, and I think that that's
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: a really interesting lens to put on people that champion you, right,
• 19:53
  Speaker 2: because it's not as though it's a sponsor in the
• 19:56
  Speaker 2: conventional sense that they're putting dollars down to fund your journey,
• 20:00
  Speaker 2: but it's more so a sponsor and that they are
• 20:02
  Speaker 2: there to be in your corner, maybe to be on
• 20:06
  Speaker 2: your personal board of directors, And that in itself is
• 20:08
  Speaker 2: an entirely different topic, but so valuable to have people
• 20:12
  Speaker 2: that see your value and say, you know what, like,
• 20:14
  Speaker 2: I'm here to champion you. I'm here to co sign
• 20:17
  Speaker 2: that everything that you have ever wondered if you are
• 20:20
  Speaker 2: capable of. I see you putting in the work and
• 20:22
  Speaker 2: you're good at it. Absolutely. Yeah, it's so important. And
• 20:26
  Speaker 2: the other thing really to double click on is this
• 20:29
  Speaker 2: mentality that it's irrefutable that you have, which is to
• 20:33
  Speaker 2: be your own hype person. I think there is a
• 20:36
  Speaker 2: fine line and a balance that goes on about being
• 20:39
  Speaker 2: proud of your work of sharing your work, and for
• 20:42
  Speaker 2: some people that can get to be quite uncomfortable. You
• 20:45
  Speaker 2: don't want to come off, for instance, as though you're bragging.
• 20:49
  Speaker 3: So what would you say for someone who says, okay,
• 20:52
  Speaker 3: but I don't know how to do that the right way.
• 20:54
  Speaker 3: I feel so anxious about it. What do you say
• 20:56
  Speaker 3: to them?
• 20:57
  Speaker 1: I was there too. It's very uncomfortable and it's really important,
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: and I think one of the one of the paths
• 21:04
  Speaker 1: to finding a way to break through from that is
• 21:07
  Speaker 1: to understand the value that you bring and to connect
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: it back to your workplace. I think that we're multidimensional people, right,
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: There's so many dimensions to you, and you're valuable on
• 21:21
  Speaker 1: each and every single one of them. And connecting that
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: back to where you you know the path that you're
• 21:27
  Speaker 1: trying to walk is super important. I think it can't
• 21:31
  Speaker 1: just be not All of the different attributes are as
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: important in a particular setting, and you do have to
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: do that work. You have to understand, you know, what
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: is it that's driving this place, what's making it turn?
• 21:43
  Speaker 1: What does success look like in this environment? And then
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: draw map for people to help them understand how that's
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: connected to what you bring to the table.
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: I love that question, what does success look like in
• 21:54
  Speaker 2: this environment? Because that can change on a day to
• 21:57
  Speaker 2: day basis When you look holistically at the work that
• 21:59
  Speaker 2: you're doing, Right Now, what does success look like for you?
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: Freedom and opportunity. Right, So, I'm not starting out in
• 22:07
  Speaker 1: my career. I've been in the workforce for decades now,
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: I have experience and I'm still learning as well. So
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: I'm still growing and evolving and I want that opportunity.
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: But I think that there's been a really strong foundation,
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: and so having Nike's trust in me to do this
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: work and the freedom to lead an amazing, really truly
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: incredible team to deliver against our vision, there's no Yeah,
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: I can't ask for more. Yeah, Yeah, Is this anything
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: that you ever thought that you'd be doing? Yes? And No,
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: I knew that I would be championing humans. I have
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: always wanted the biggest platform available to do that. I
• 22:53
  Speaker 1: imagine that it would be at Nike. No, I did not,
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: And so I'm yeah, I'm super grateful to be in
• 23:01
  Speaker 1: the space that I'm in.
• 23:02
  Speaker 2: Like I mentioned before, you've been at Nike for over
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: a decade and you've held a numerous amount of different
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: roles here. Arguably, one would say then that you've sort
• 23:10
  Speaker 2: of climbed the corporate ladder. Another thing that a lot
• 23:13
  Speaker 2: of people might be interested in doing but don't really
• 23:16
  Speaker 2: know how to begin. For those that are interested in
• 23:19
  Speaker 2: this type of longevity within their career, whether it be
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: at one company or multiples, what would you say to
• 23:26
  Speaker 2: them when it comes to chasing the next level?
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: Great question. I think first I'd encourage everybody to do
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: the self work, really understand what it is that you
• 23:39
  Speaker 1: value the most, what success looks like for you, and
• 23:44
  Speaker 1: what that means, so that nobody can tell you what
• 23:47
  Speaker 1: that is. No one should be defining that for you.
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: And then I'd say, you know, career paths are not linear.
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: Sometimes it looks like you're making a lateral move, but
• 23:57
  Speaker 1: it's actually moved forward. And any spot that you're in
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: is an opportunity to lead. And I hope anyone listening
• 24:06
  Speaker 1: to this really hears this. Do not wait for a
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: title to start leading. A title is not leadership. A
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: title is not leadership. There is no perfect line that
• 24:19
  Speaker 1: you're crossing that says, oh, now they're ready. Wherever you are,
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: you're ready now. You have to do the internal work
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: and really understand who you are, because otherwise you might
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: not recognize success when it comes.
• 24:36
  Speaker 2: A title is not leadership. You are not someone who
• 24:38
  Speaker 2: regularly speaks in front of people. It's very clear. I
• 24:42
  Speaker 2: love that sentiment, and I think it's really value that
• 24:44
  Speaker 2: you can start wherever you are, right now, right. You
• 24:47
  Speaker 2: don't need to wait for some arbitrary moment to realize
• 24:51
  Speaker 2: that you are ready to meet the moment. When you
• 24:54
  Speaker 2: look at yourself as a leader, what characteristics would you
• 24:58
  Speaker 2: say really able you to be at the forefront and
• 25:03
  Speaker 2: to be the best leader that you can be.
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: I lead from a place of love, and love for
• 25:09
  Speaker 1: me is the strongest, most regenerate emotion that exists. What
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: wouldn't you do for love? What wouldn't you do for
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: those that you love? And I think that really helps
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: me stay centered. It makes my objectives and values really clear.
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: I talk at nauseum about being people centered and leading
• 25:34
  Speaker 1: people first. It's easy and really hard because love and
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: being people centered means that you have to be really
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: candid and honest. And also sometimes it takes longer, but
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: sometimes the longer makes things go faster.
• 25:49
  Speaker 2: Yeah, when you say leading people centered, what do you
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: mean by that?
• 25:54
  Speaker 3: For someone who might not understand?
• 25:56
  Speaker 1: Sure, it means that you know in every I'm really
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: intention about how I connect with everybody, and I think
• 26:06
  Speaker 1: it's really important to start in your own backyard. So
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: and I'll go even further than that. I adore my family,
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: so I am really intentional and making sure that they
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: feel that they're adored. I love my team, and I'm
• 26:26
  Speaker 1: really intentional about making sure that they feel seen and heard.
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: That doesn't mean we always agree. It actually means that
• 26:35
  Speaker 1: we can disagree and still preserve the relationship. And it
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: also means that I'm trying to lift people up even
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: as I'm rising, and that we have the hard conversations,
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: because I think that that's probably one of the most
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: loving things that you can do with somebody, is to
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: just be direct and honest and caring. And often people
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: think those are mutual least lusive, but they're not right.
• 27:01
  Speaker 2: And I think there's something to be said about being
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: able to be firm but also kind and also see
• 27:06
  Speaker 2: people as who they are and value everything that they
• 27:09
  Speaker 2: bring to the table. I appreciate the sentiment that you
• 27:12
  Speaker 2: said that it might not be the fastest way to
• 27:14
  Speaker 2: be a people first leader, but if you know that
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: that is aligned with your values, then you're going to
• 27:20
  Speaker 2: be execuing in a way that not only feels good
• 27:22
  Speaker 2: for you but then reflects positively moving forward.
• 27:25
  Speaker 1: Absolutely, Yeah, I want.
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: To talk a little bit about that concept of feeling
• 27:30
  Speaker 2: and how it is that you want to feel in
• 27:34
  Speaker 2: your life. Would you say that with the answer of
• 27:37
  Speaker 2: how do you want to feel in your life, you
• 27:39
  Speaker 2: are execuing in a way that gets you to that goal.
• 27:41
  Speaker 3: How do you want to feel?
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: Ah? I love that question. So you know, I've had
• 27:46
  Speaker 1: a lot of loss in my life in the earlier
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: part of my life, and the most honorable thing I
• 27:53
  Speaker 1: can do for those that I've lost is to really
• 27:56
  Speaker 1: live my life to the fullest. And that's how I
• 27:59
  Speaker 1: want to live. I want to make sure that I
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: am not wasting any second of my life. So you know,
• 28:06
  Speaker 1: I often say I live my life with urgency, and
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: I live with it respectfully, like it is such a
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: privilege to be living and breathing and walking, and the
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: things that we get to do are just incredible. So
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: I want to make sure that I'm living my life
• 28:26
  Speaker 1: to its fullest and with great intention.
• 28:29
  Speaker 2: Living in purpose on purpose can be challenging when there
• 28:35
  Speaker 2: is so much going on. We've already talked about you
• 28:38
  Speaker 2: being at the front of the room for so many
• 28:40
  Speaker 2: big moments. Your career is such a big part of
• 28:42
  Speaker 2: your life, while also having this deep love and passion
• 28:45
  Speaker 2: for your family and your team.
• 28:48
  Speaker 1: How do you keep it balanced?
• 28:50
  Speaker 2: How do you keep it grounded so that you can
• 28:52
  Speaker 2: act in a way that you're saying is so important
• 28:54
  Speaker 2: to you.
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: Well, I'm pretty clear, so my purpose has not changed.
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: You know, I wanted to be human right lawyer when
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: I was seven. I probably want to be wild, you know,
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: human rights lawyer when I'm seventy. I think being open
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: to that, it looks differently. You know, I really thought
• 29:12
  Speaker 1: I would be a lawyer in a law firm. Actually
• 29:14
  Speaker 1: I did not think I would be at a law firm,
• 29:16
  Speaker 1: but I did think that I would be within that
• 29:18
  Speaker 1: role of lawyer for my entire life. And it turns
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: out that there are so many ways to be an advocate,
• 29:24
  Speaker 1: and frankly, I could be in a completely different role
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: with a completely different title. And I promised you that
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: I would still be championing girls and women and underrepresented voices.
• 29:35
  Speaker 1: My purpose is so clear in that, And you know,
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: I'd go back to what we were talking about earlier
• 29:41
  Speaker 1: as well. I think the mind, body spirit connection is
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: really important. So I you know, I intend and I
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: really hope to meddle in my eighties in distance running.
• 29:51
  Speaker 1: So I've got to take care of the body. Now. Yeah,
• 29:54
  Speaker 1: I'm you know, working the muscle, the mind muscle, and
• 29:57
  Speaker 1: the heart muscle. And there is always always time to
• 30:02
  Speaker 1: laugh and dance. And if you're not enjoying it, then
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: what is the point?
• 30:07
  Speaker 3: Yeah, what would you say brings you in the most joy?
• 30:09
  Speaker 3: These days? Oh?
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: My goodness, so many things bring me joy right now.
• 30:15
  Speaker 1: We've got some really great momentum in the work that
• 30:19
  Speaker 1: we're doing and seeing more girls and kids playing. And
• 30:28
  Speaker 1: you know, you have not lived until you have seen
• 30:31
  Speaker 1: a child run their first mile. Oh you just haven't
• 30:37
  Speaker 1: the joy on their faces. I can't even I can't
• 30:41
  Speaker 1: fully capture it in words. And if you've ever told
• 30:45
  Speaker 1: a child they are an athlete and their eyes light
• 30:50
  Speaker 1: up and they see you seeing them, I mean, it
• 30:55
  Speaker 1: gives me joy all the time.
• 30:57
  Speaker 3: Were you athletic as a kid?
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: Yes and no. It's a mixed answer. So one my mom,
• 31:04
  Speaker 1: I would say, my mom was the first insurance athlete
• 31:06
  Speaker 1: I ever met. She always had near minimum of three
• 31:08
  Speaker 1: jobs and I just don't know how she was doing
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: it all. And on Saturday mornings it was dancing time.
• 31:18
  Speaker 3: You know.
• 31:18
  Speaker 1: She would ask us what kind of week we had,
• 31:20
  Speaker 1: and depending on the kind of week we had, that
• 31:23
  Speaker 1: would define the kind of dancing that was going to
• 31:25
  Speaker 1: be happening. And I want you pictures because there's a
• 31:28
  Speaker 1: teeny teeny, tiny tiny apartment, so we'd have to move
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: the sofa out of the way and then we would
• 31:34
  Speaker 1: get our jam on. And it was so helpful to
• 31:39
  Speaker 1: learn early on that you could process your emotion and
• 31:42
  Speaker 1: your experiences through your body and to have that sense
• 31:46
  Speaker 1: of agency. Also, like I still find wonder in it
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: that you can go from having whatever kind of week
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: you had to processing it and shifting it, you know,
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: all on your own without anything else. Just that movement
• 32:01
  Speaker 1: is is so important. She also knew that it was
• 32:04
  Speaker 1: really important to have us engaged in activity, so we
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: did all sorts of things and then I fell in love.
• 32:12
  Speaker 1: And I'm very grateful to my first cross country coach.
• 32:16
  Speaker 1: So in high school, I really that's you know, started
• 32:18
  Speaker 1: running and never stopped.
• 32:19
  Speaker 3: Yeah, started running and never stopped.
• 32:21
  Speaker 2: How have you integrated that love for movement into your
• 32:24
  Speaker 2: family these days, because that's such a special and like
• 32:27
  Speaker 2: signature tradition that you had dancing in the apartment and
• 32:31
  Speaker 2: moving the couch so.
• 32:33
  Speaker 1: One of the reasons I fell in love with my
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: husband is because he is a dancer. The man has
• 32:38
  Speaker 1: moves on the dance floor.
• 32:40
  Speaker 2: He's like going to take this clip and be like,
• 32:43
  Speaker 2: just when you think I have it recorded, yeah?
• 32:46
  Speaker 3: Recorded?
• 32:47
  Speaker 1: Yeah, And so we still do that. We still go
• 32:48
  Speaker 1: out and we go dancing. We're also really active. I
• 32:53
  Speaker 1: mean I was sharing with some of the team earlier.
• 32:56
  Speaker 1: You know, we walked fourteen miles across Powis on Saturday.
• 33:01
  Speaker 1: We were celebrating our twenty third anniversary, and he had
• 33:05
  Speaker 1: planned it because that's that was just like a love letter.
• 33:08
  Speaker 2: Yeah, being able to move together is so special something
• 33:11
  Speaker 2: I one day hope to share with my future life partner.
• 33:14
  Speaker 3: We can move as well.
• 33:15
  Speaker 2: Love. I love that and I love someone that knows
• 33:18
  Speaker 2: that that is a part of your love language. Right,
• 33:19
  Speaker 2: How special is it that you get to share that
• 33:21
  Speaker 2: together and then be able not just to enjoy that
• 33:24
  Speaker 2: time together, but then move physically and emotionally through whatever
• 33:27
  Speaker 2: it is that you're working through.
• 33:29
  Speaker 1: Yeah, it's so important, you know. There are there are
• 33:32
  Speaker 1: those wonderful moms and dads out there who prep and
• 33:37
  Speaker 1: take their kids to all of their sporting events. I
• 33:41
  Speaker 1: have the equivalent in my husband who preps. You know,
• 33:43
  Speaker 1: he's like kind of the advanced team. He scopes out
• 33:47
  Speaker 1: where the best place to stay, where the carbowloading was
• 33:50
  Speaker 1: going to happen. He's a very great partner in that too.
• 33:53
  Speaker 1: Even he might not be running the miles, but he'll
• 33:55
  Speaker 1: be he'll he'll be taking in the calories and then
• 33:58
  Speaker 1: you know he's there at the finish line, you know,
• 34:00
  Speaker 1: ready for to click into recovery time.
• 34:03
  Speaker 3: What a saint? What a saint?
• 34:05
  Speaker 2: You beyond training actually like an athlete for your active pursuits.
• 34:10
  Speaker 2: You're quoted in twenty nineteen telling an audience that I
• 34:13
  Speaker 2: train for my job like an athlete. Talk to me
• 34:16
  Speaker 2: about that sentiment. What does that mean to you? What
• 34:19
  Speaker 2: does training for your job like an athlete entail?
• 34:22
  Speaker 1: So I'm gonna talk to you like a runner, right
• 34:24
  Speaker 1: because it's you know, I'm absolutely running an ultra here, right.
• 34:28
  Speaker 1: I've got we've got big goals. We want to you know,
• 34:31
  Speaker 1: create the future of your sport. We want to increase
• 34:33
  Speaker 1: girl participation by fifty percent. Like we've got big things
• 34:36
  Speaker 1: that were going after and then we break that down
• 34:40
  Speaker 1: into you know, sprints, recovery runs, weight training, right, there's
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: no you can't just do the linear running forward. I
• 34:50
  Speaker 1: think one of the most misunderstood things about running is
• 34:53
  Speaker 1: that all you do is run, But actually you have
• 34:56
  Speaker 1: to work so many other parts of your body so
• 34:59
  Speaker 1: that you can do that enjoyable part. That's the same
• 35:02
  Speaker 1: is true for your career and certainly for the work
• 35:05
  Speaker 1: that I do. I've got a long term vision, really
• 35:08
  Speaker 1: ambitious goals, and every single day we want a path
• 35:12
  Speaker 1: where we're moving forward. The pace the pace is always forward, forward,
• 35:16
  Speaker 1: and we're trying to do this by bringing in everybody
• 35:19
  Speaker 1: to be as inclusive as possible in the experience. So
• 35:24
  Speaker 1: you've got to train the mind, you've got to train
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: the spirit again the body, keep it fun, celebrate the wins,
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: learn from the mistakes, be okay with it. We're trying
• 35:36
  Speaker 1: to do something big here, so it's okay. It's not
• 35:39
  Speaker 1: going to be perfect all the time, but it is
• 35:42
  Speaker 1: going to be forward. Yeah, as much as possible, oword
• 35:45
  Speaker 1: as much as possible.
• 35:46
  Speaker 2: What I'm hearing you say is the importance of breaking
• 35:48
  Speaker 2: up these lofty, big, scary, hairy, audacious goals into smaller
• 35:53
  Speaker 2: things that might feel a little bit more doable in
• 35:56
  Speaker 2: the short term. When it comes to this bigger, broad
• 36:00
  Speaker 2: goal of creating more opportunity for young girls and women
• 36:04
  Speaker 2: in sport, increasing that participation by fifty percent, What does
• 36:08
  Speaker 2: a smaller goal even look like?
• 36:11
  Speaker 1: Now we're measuring this every year, right So one of
• 36:14
  Speaker 1: the things that actually that I love that we do
• 36:16
  Speaker 1: is we set five year goals and right now we're
• 36:19
  Speaker 1: actually going into the last year of our last five
• 36:24
  Speaker 1: year we'll call it our far year targets, and so
• 36:27
  Speaker 1: we measure it every year. Are we getting closer? If not, why,
• 36:32
  Speaker 1: what are we learning from it? Where are the breakthroughs?
• 36:35
  Speaker 1: Is it possible to accelerate in some areas where we
• 36:38
  Speaker 1: just wrong? You know, we'll see a hypothesis not what
• 36:41
  Speaker 1: we were expecting. Can we pivot? What should we do
• 36:45
  Speaker 1: about that? So we take the big audacious goal, we
• 36:49
  Speaker 1: break it down into five year increments, and from that
• 36:52
  Speaker 1: we break them into one year increments, and from that
• 36:54
  Speaker 1: we break them down into a quarter and on a
• 36:57
  Speaker 1: regular basis, we're measuring to see, you know, are we
• 36:59
  Speaker 1: making progress? And if yes, what are relearning? And if not,
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: what are relearning? Yeah?
• 37:04
  Speaker 2: I think there can be some difficulty in recognizing where
• 37:09
  Speaker 2: maybe some people would see that you've quote unquote failed.
• 37:14
  Speaker 2: But the way that you speak about this is that
• 37:17
  Speaker 2: there is actually quite a lot of opportunity within a failure,
• 37:22
  Speaker 2: or perhaps within the opportunity to pivot for someone who's
• 37:26
  Speaker 2: trying to get that under their wings, right, for someone
• 37:29
  Speaker 2: that is like, oh, but I just can't get over
• 37:31
  Speaker 2: the hurdle. I feel so much disappointment. I am frustrated
• 37:34
  Speaker 2: that this isn't going as I had hoped. Talk to
• 37:36
  Speaker 2: me about the power of the pivot. Talk to me
• 37:38
  Speaker 2: about what you do when things aren't going as you
• 37:41
  Speaker 2: hoped that they would.
• 37:43
  Speaker 1: One You have to process it, right. I don't I
• 37:47
  Speaker 1: believe in having candid conversations with your team, but I
• 37:49
  Speaker 1: also believe in having candid conversations with yourself, right, and
• 37:54
  Speaker 1: you know, you know what you know, and you just
• 37:57
  Speaker 1: have to be honest with yourself.
• 37:59
  Speaker 3: Think.
• 38:00
  Speaker 1: Think. That's why it's so important to decide what success
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: looks like for you. You know, you can continue down
• 38:05
  Speaker 1: that path, but for what purpose? And if you really
• 38:09
  Speaker 1: want to move forward, then you take the learnings. Then
• 38:12
  Speaker 1: you have to you know, what can you extract from that?
• 38:14
  Speaker 1: And then you you know, never give your agency away. Right.
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: You get to decide how long you sit in that,
• 38:20
  Speaker 1: But you also get to decide how quickly you can
• 38:22
  Speaker 1: move from that, And it all depends on what's more
• 38:26
  Speaker 1: important for you. And sometimes you know there is a
• 38:28
  Speaker 1: question like is it more important for you to be
• 38:30
  Speaker 1: right or is it more important for you to move forward?
• 38:34
  Speaker 1: And sometimes they're not mutually exclusive, but sometimes they are.
• 38:38
  Speaker 2: Yeah, the value of sitting in it, although it's such
• 38:42
  Speaker 2: an uncomfortable place to be when something doesn't go as
• 38:45
  Speaker 2: you'd hoped, there is such an opportunity And I keep
• 38:48
  Speaker 2: coming back to that word because it's important, Such an
• 38:50
  Speaker 2: opportunity in allowing yourself to feel, Because when you don't
• 38:55
  Speaker 2: feel and you don't acknowledge where it is that you are,
• 38:57
  Speaker 2: then you can't go after whatever it is that you
• 38:59
  Speaker 2: want next. You have to sit in that discomfort so
• 39:02
  Speaker 2: that you can then take those learnings and move forward.
• 39:05
  Speaker 2: And that in itself is a really beautiful Again, that
• 39:09
  Speaker 2: word opportunity. If you look back on your last decade
• 39:13
  Speaker 2: at Nike and you think about some of these high
• 39:16
  Speaker 2: highs and some of perhaps maybe the lo lows, has
• 39:19
  Speaker 2: there been a particular learning that you revisit time and
• 39:23
  Speaker 2: time again that you think of, Okay, maybe this didn't
• 39:26
  Speaker 2: go how I wanted in the moment, but it has
• 39:29
  Speaker 2: now become the benchmark for how I think about some
• 39:34
  Speaker 2: of these disappointments as they happen in real time.
• 39:38
  Speaker 1: So as I've got two parts to that answer. Yeah,
• 39:42
  Speaker 1: One is I feel like every year, every day at
• 39:49
  Speaker 1: Nike has been better than my last, and the future
• 39:53
  Speaker 1: Vanessa is telling past Vanessa that all the time. The
• 39:59
  Speaker 1: second is, you should not only sit in process with
• 40:03
  Speaker 1: your emotion, you should also continuously fuel and nurture your imagination.
• 40:11
  Speaker 1: Sometimes I think, you know, I am allergic to boxes,
• 40:15
  Speaker 1: and if you look back in my career, I think,
• 40:17
  Speaker 1: I hope that's what some people will say, like I
• 40:18
  Speaker 1: will not be put in a box or be stifled
• 40:23
  Speaker 1: in whatever, you know somebody else's thought that I might
• 40:26
  Speaker 1: be happy in. But I have learned that you can
• 40:31
  Speaker 1: help people play imagination with you, and if you can
• 40:37
  Speaker 1: see it yourself and then help others see it, it
• 40:41
  Speaker 1: can go a really long way. And I guess I'll
• 40:45
  Speaker 1: add a third, which is, you know, never negotiate against yourself.
• 40:48
  Speaker 1: I think oftentimes before we've even gotten the idea out,
• 40:52
  Speaker 1: we have eight hundred bazillion reasons internally that are like, Oh,
• 40:54
  Speaker 1: I don't know of this. What if? What if? What if?
• 40:59
  Speaker 1: What if? I read a book many, many years ago
• 41:02
  Speaker 1: and had a mentor for a moment, Peter Block, who
• 41:05
  Speaker 1: wrote a book called The Answer to How is Yes.
• 41:10
  Speaker 3: The answer to how is yes?
• 41:12
  Speaker 1: The answer to how is yes. You almost don't have
• 41:14
  Speaker 1: to go further if you start from that premise, Yeah,
• 41:20
  Speaker 1: things you can do.
• 41:21
  Speaker 2: I've been really thinking about that concept of what if lately,
• 41:24
  Speaker 2: and I can't attribute it to anything specifically, but I
• 41:28
  Speaker 2: feel as though, in some cases, maybe because I've been
• 41:31
  Speaker 2: so go go go over the last couple of months,
• 41:33
  Speaker 2: that my anxiety has been rearing its head a little
• 41:36
  Speaker 2: bit more than usual. And something that's been really resonant
• 41:40
  Speaker 2: with me lately is that there's so much value in
• 41:44
  Speaker 2: getting over the hump of asking what if this goes wrong?
• 41:47
  Speaker 2: Or what if this goes wrong? And just being like,
• 41:49
  Speaker 2: but what if it goes right? Like why can't we
• 41:52
  Speaker 2: just sit and think about the good and hypothesize how
• 41:55
  Speaker 2: it could be if one day goes even better than
• 41:58
  Speaker 2: you had hoped or even better than you imagined, instead
• 42:01
  Speaker 2: of the opposite, right, Because sitting there and thinking about
• 42:05
  Speaker 2: the opposite, well you're just wasting your time. And I
• 42:09
  Speaker 2: recognize that that's only something that you can get to,
• 42:11
  Speaker 2: a conclusion that you can get to if you allow
• 42:14
  Speaker 2: yourself to kind of do the inverse right. So, yes,
• 42:17
  Speaker 2: I've been dealing with a lot of anxiety lately, and
• 42:20
  Speaker 2: it's happening for me. Yes, I've experienced negative self talk
• 42:23
  Speaker 2: and now I know what happens when I flip it
• 42:26
  Speaker 2: the other way. And so it is these moments of
• 42:28
  Speaker 2: these quote unquote failures that teach us how to do
• 42:32
  Speaker 2: something in maybe a way that could be better for us,
• 42:34
  Speaker 2: that could serve us more so in the long haul. Now,
• 42:37
  Speaker 2: like I said, often you are at the front of
• 42:39
  Speaker 2: the room in many really exciting scenarios. But when you
• 42:44
  Speaker 2: are alone and you look in the mirror, Vanessa, what
• 42:47
  Speaker 2: is it that you see looking back at you?
• 42:51
  Speaker 1: I you know, funny you should ask? Funny should ask?
• 42:56
  Speaker 1: Because I do. Every morning I make a good look
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: in the mirror and I say, you are possible, and
• 43:03
  Speaker 1: it is happening. Let's go.
• 43:06
  Speaker 3: I joke.
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: I don't need an alarm clock to wake up. I'm
• 43:10
  Speaker 1: so excited to get the day going because we've got
• 43:13
  Speaker 1: things to do. And every night I look in the mirror,
• 43:17
  Speaker 1: and I say, Okay, it can be done, and let
• 43:22
  Speaker 1: it go. And Emily, I would say to you, whether
• 43:26
  Speaker 1: you stop or keep going, there is no wrong answer,
• 43:29
  Speaker 1: there's only your answer.
• 43:31
  Speaker 3: Let it go.
• 43:32
  Speaker 2: That's so powerful, the idea of starting and bookending your
• 43:36
  Speaker 2: day both with the moment of self talk and also
• 43:40
  Speaker 2: recognition for what is I think that's really that's really
• 43:43
  Speaker 2: really special, beyond the let's call them affirmations. Maybe that
• 43:48
  Speaker 2: you say to yourself, who do you see looking in
• 43:50
  Speaker 2: the mirror?
• 43:52
  Speaker 1: I see you know. When I look in the mirror,
• 43:58
  Speaker 1: I'm looking. I see my eyes right, So I don't
• 44:01
  Speaker 1: really I don't focus on particular features. So I'm really
• 44:05
  Speaker 1: looking into the desire of someone who does not want
• 44:10
  Speaker 1: to waste their life.
• 44:12
  Speaker 2: I love that you mentioned earlier and thank you for
• 44:15
  Speaker 2: sharing this. That you experienced a lot of loss early
• 44:18
  Speaker 2: on in your life. As we wind down here right now,
• 44:21
  Speaker 2: you have an opportunity to offer yourself a piece of advice,
• 44:25
  Speaker 2: perhaps during those hurdle moments navigating what it felt like
• 44:29
  Speaker 2: to go through these losses. When you look back at
• 44:35
  Speaker 2: that time, knowing what you know now, what advice would
• 44:38
  Speaker 2: you offer to your younger self life is for living.
• 44:43
  Speaker 2: Life is for living. I'm so happy that we were
• 44:46
  Speaker 2: able to do this. This was so special. For those
• 44:48
  Speaker 2: that might not follow along with you just yet, where
• 44:51
  Speaker 2: can they keep up with you?
• 44:52
  Speaker 3: Follow along?
• 44:53
  Speaker 1: I keep up with what Nike's got going on, give
• 44:55
  Speaker 1: me the details. Well, for me, you're probably going to
• 44:58
  Speaker 1: find me mostly on LinkedIn. You know, it's part of
• 45:01
  Speaker 1: our mind, body, spirit space. And also you know, you
• 45:05
  Speaker 1: can go to Nike dot com for slash Purpose and
• 45:07
  Speaker 1: you can find a lot of the work that we
• 45:09
  Speaker 1: do there.
• 45:09
  Speaker 2: I love the opportunity whenever I sit down with someone
• 45:12
  Speaker 2: that is at the level that you're at, at the
• 45:14
  Speaker 2: company that is always there, like you can find me
• 45:16
  Speaker 2: on LinkedIn.
• 45:16
  Speaker 3: I'm like, yep, I'm there. I'm following along.
• 45:19
  Speaker 2: I'm loving everything that you're doing. I'm over at Emily
• 45:21
  Speaker 2: a Body and at Hurdle Podcasts. Another Hurdle conquered. Catch
• 45:25
  Speaker 2: you guys next time.