Hurdle with Emily Abbate
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Recent Episodes
This week, I’m sitting down with Seema Simmons, the General Manager of Running for North America at Nike. Seema’s path to the this role, 25 years in at Nike, has been anything but straight. She shares her journey from playing team sports and loving group fitness to pivoting away from an engineering major in college, and ultimately finding her dream role in Oregon.
In this inspiring and candid conversation, Seema discusses how her background in team sports shaped her unique leadership style, the lessons she learned from trusting her instincts (even when it was scary), and how she juggles a demanding career while prioritizing her role as a mother. Plus, she opens up about the challenge of being a quiet leader in a loud room, the power of embracing vulnerability, and Nike's commitment to making running more inclusive for women.
IN THIS EPISODE
- The unexpected journey from studying engineering to becoming a GM at Nike, and the hard conversation with her parents that led to a major pivot.
- The handwritten note from her mom that gave her the courage to trust her own intuition and pursue a different path.
- How her background in team sports shaped her leadership style, emphasizing hard work, teamwork, and knowing your role.
- Moving from a finance role into product development and the lesson of empowering your team by letting go of the need to be the "expert" in the room.
- Finding balance between a busy career and motherhood, and the "loud" message of women sacrificing family for work.
- The importance of being an authentic, quiet leader in a corporate environment and balancing that with stepping into your power.
- Nike’s approach to making running more inclusive and less intimidating, especially for women, and thinking "big" with audacious goals.
- Why passion and building a strong family-like culture is key to a long career in the sports industry.
QUOTABLE MOMENTS
Self-Worth and Authenticity
"We have to remind ourselves that we're worthy, we're good, we don't have to keep proving ourselves."
"I think it's about combining your authentic self with understanding how you need to show up in those environments."
"I want people to remember is, 'Wow, she made an amazing point.' I want the words that I share to have that impact versus 'she talked the whole time.'"
Career, Strategy, and Trusting Your Path
"Trust your gut and go with it, and then have fun with that journey, honestly."
"You get out what you put in, and you learn that really quickly in sports."
"The job of a leader is really empowering your team... and driving the strategy [versus] being in the weeds and the details."
"I think the job of a leader is really empowering your team... and driving the strategy [versus] being in the weeds and the details."
Family and Balance
"At the end of the day, my priority is to be a mom."
"I think that just kind of hopefully will be something that they take away with them, [that] they know that my girls actually recognize that as they were growing up."
SOCIAL
@hurdlepodcast
@emilyabbate
Seema on LinkedIn
@iheartwomenssports
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ASK ME A QUESTION: Email [email protected] to with your questions! Emily answers them every Friday on the show.
Listen to Hurdle with Emily Abbate on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later. Sharing the lessons in the aftermath of an unfortunate mistake earlier this week, plus answering a listener question on whether or not everyone could be a morning person. Plus: If morning workouts feel particularly hard for you, this could be the reason.
SOCIAL
@emilyabbate
@hurdlepodcast
@iheartwomenssports
JOIN: The Daily Hurdle IG Channel
SIGN UP: Weekly Hurdle Newsletter
ASK ME A QUESTION: Email [email protected] to with your questions! Emily answers them every Friday on the show.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
This week, Emily's sitting down with Olympic Gold Medalist, professional volleyball player, founding athlete for League One Volleyball, and co-owner of Love Nebraska, Jordan Larson. A lot has happened since our first chat in 2021. Jordan dives deep into the personal and professional work that has allowed her to maintain elite performance over an impressive 16+ season career. "The Governor" (Jordan's nickname) opens up about the immense internal work required to evolve from being a quiet "leader by action" to a vocal and empathetic captain for her team.
Jordan also shares her experience navigating a difficult personal period, including a divorce, and how she learned to separate her self-worth from her on-court performance. It's a candid conversation about finding inner peace, the importance of "failing fast" to learn, and her excitement for growing the future of women’s volleyball in the United States through ventures like Love Nebraska and League One Volleyball. This is a masterclass in resilience, leadership, and the power of continual evolution.
In This Episode:
- 16+ Seasons of Elite Performance: Jordan shares what still excites her about lacing up and how she remains a student of the sport after almost two decades.
- The Evolution of Leadership: We discuss the shift from being a "leader by action" to a vocal, empathetic captain who builds deeper connections with her teammates.
- Beyond the White Lines: Why true success and team cohesion require knowing the person behind the athlete, not just their on-court skill.
- The Hardest Hurdle: Jordan opens up about the immense internal work required to find peace and process her divorce, and how she used that time to define her self-worth outside of volleyball.
- Failing Fast: The necessity of taking risks in practice and the importance of a "goldfish mindset" for quick failure and recovery.
- Love Nebraska and League One Volleyball: Her passion for growing the sport domestically and the importance of creating opportunities for female athletes to thrive at home.
- Advice to Her Younger Self: The importance of being able to sit in the hard, uncomfortable feelings instead of running from them.
QUOTABLE MOMENTS
🥇 On Success, Self-Worth, and Longevity
- “How do I help others around me believe that they are unstoppable?”
- “There’s moments of time in my career that I burnout was real and I was like maybe this is time to step away.”
- “I think the fastest you fail, the more you learn.”
🧘 On Inner Peace and Healing
- “I really started building myself up. Lots of therapy, and I feel like today I’m in a place of just loving myself and finding inner peace and learning that that is actually the true happiness.”
- “I think I would go back to tell myself that like it’s gonna hurt, but that doesn’t mean that that’s wrong. That even in the pain and the hurt, it’s okay to sit in it.”
🏐 On Leadership and Team Dynamics
- “It’s not just about what’s happening between the white lines. It’s about how I get to know my teammates, how I’m showing up for them.”
SOCIAL
@hurdlepodcast
@emilyabbate
@gov1007
@iheartwomenssports
JOIN: The Daily Hurdle IG Channel
ASK ME A QUESTION: Email [email protected] to with your questions! Emily answers them every Friday on the show.
Listen to Hurdle with Emily Abbate on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Special episode popping into your feed today, live from Every Woman's Marathon, featuring Molly Huddle and Des Linden. Huddle's a 2x Olympian, and recently toed the line in Scottsdale for her first marathon since having her second child six months ago. Linden, the 2018 Boston Marathon Champion and fellow Olympian, recently ran the TCS New York City Marathon alongside first-timer Anthony Ramos.
In this conversation, Huddle and Linden get candid about the highs and lows of training and competing, offering advice on how to conquer big goals while remaining honest and compassionate with yourself.
In this episode, we discuss:
- Molly Huddle’s first marathon back postpartum
- Des Linden’s experience running the New York City Marathon alongside Anthony Ramos
- How to conquer the “pain cave” during a hard race
- The importance of self-compassion and being honest with yourself
- Mental strategies for running a marathon (staying present, embracing the challenge)
- The significance of celebrating the small wins
- Advice for first-time marathoners
- QUOTABLE MOMENTS
On Mental Toughness & The Pain Cave
- "You're stronger than you think." – Des Linden (as parting advice to the audience)
- "You didn't train so that this would be something easy. You trained so you'd be prepared for when it got difficult." – Des Linden
- "The best thing to do for that [the pain cave] is to just stay in the moment." – Molly Huddle
- "When you cross the finish line, you're going to just have that tool in your pocket of like, 'Look what I did, look what I can do.'" – Molly Huddle
On Strategy & Planning
- "I like to just think bottle to bottle ... you can pretend you're starting over again." – Molly Huddle
- "Stay here... You're strong... Hang on." – Molly Huddle
- "What can I get out of something that's not going my way?" – Des Linden
- "If it was easy, everyone would do it." – Emily Abbate
On Life, Balance, and Identity
- "This year I will have made a baby, ran a marathon, and I'm like writing a book. Like, what's wrong with me? Like, why am I feeling like that's not enough stuff?" – Molly Huddle
- "You put in work, and you stay committed, and have this self-belief, and if you keep looking forward, there's always things to tackle that are out in front of you." – Des Linden
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
Team Milk
SOCIAL
@mollyhuddle
@des_linden
@hurdlepodcast
@emilyabbate
@iheartwomenssports
JOIN: The Daily Hurdle IG Channel
ASK ME A QUESTION: Email [email protected] to with your questions! Emily answers them every Friday on the show.
Listen to Hurdle with Emily Abbate on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Talking about why it was a good call for me to forgo my annual turkey trot in favor of taking it easy. Also, answering a listener question about hot to get more comfortable lifting weights.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
Future, my personal training app
SOCIAL
@emilyabbate
@hurdlepodcast
@iheartwomenssports
JOIN: The Daily Hurdle IG Channel
SIGN UP: Weekly Hurdle Newsletter
ASK ME A QUESTION: Email [email protected] to with your questions! Emily answers them every Friday on the show.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.