Mind Over Mountain

Four-time Olympic sprinter Donna Fraser knows that winning and succeeding aren't always the same thing. She joins me to reflect on the heartbreak of narrowly missing an Olympic medal, the resilience that carried her through a breast cancer diagnosis, and the power of believing in yourself when life doesn't go according to plan. We explore what it means to redefine success, find strength in adversity, and turn our hardest experiences into opportunities to help others. We also answer a Dear Sugar letter about how to support a friend facing a serious illness.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby are joined by two of their Sigma Gamma Rho sorors: award-winning director Okema T. Moore, a three-time American Black Film Festival winner, and producer Nicole "Sassy" Harrison, who went from offering to fetch Okema's coffee to a full IMDb page and VFX credits in a single year. They get into Love Zuri, the festival favorite that brought them together, and What Kim Saw, a vertical thriller made for Juicy Shorts, a new Black woman-owned streaming platform. Okema explains why she refused to use AI to create an AI character, why Black women need sponsors and not just mentors, and how she walked away from a six-figure Wall Street job at 36 to chase this dream. She also opens up about living fully out loud, including calling off her wedding two months out: "I said I don't 'cause I knew I didn't." Plus, Terrika gets ready for her last-ever Connecticut Sun broadcast, and Okema gives Sheryl her flowers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2011, my friend Libby DeLana decided to take a morning walk every single day, no matter what. She’s been walking ever since—by now, farther than the circumference of the Earth. We talk about what all those miles have taught her about finding calm and clarity, putting one foot in front of the other, and having the courage to plunge into whatever comes next.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mount Everest record-holder Lhakpa Sherpa has spent her life climbing—mountains, barriers, and her way through extraordinary hardship. We talk about becoming the first Nepali woman to summit Everest and return safely, what the mountain has taught her about resilience, and why she has returned eleven times—more than any other woman in the world. Lhakpa also reflects on the difficult chapters of her life captured in Lucy Walker’s documentary Mountain Queen, and the strength it took to build a new life for herself and her daughters. We also answer a Dear Sugar letter about finding the courage to take a leap when fear tells you to stay where you are.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

High diver Molly Carlson knows what it means to be afraid and do it anyway. We talk about her journey from perfectionism and an eating disorder to finding joy in her sport again, how she learned to trust herself at the edge of a 27-meter platform, and why falling short of her Olympic dream ultimately helped her find a better path. We also answer a Dear Sugar letter about what it really means to love yourself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.