The Hurdle of Life: Lessons from the 400-Meter Hurdles

As I watched Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone cross the finish line to claim Olympic gold in the 400-meter hurdles, I was flooded with memories of my own journey on the track. It's been decades since I hung up my spikes, but the lessons I learned from hurdling have stayed with me, shaping who I am today.

The 400-meter hurdles is a race that demands a unique combination of speed, endurance, and an unwavering commitment to grit. It's a race where every step counts—literally. I was one of the fortunate few women who could manage 15 steps between each hurdle, a rhythm that was both a blessing and a challenge. Those 15 steps became a metaphor for how I approach life.

Speed is essential, but it's not just about how fast you can go—it's about maintaining that speed over the entire race. Especially in the 400 hurdles, endurance is more than just lasting until the end of the race. You learn to push through fatigue, to keep your form when every muscle in your body is screaming to slow down. It’s in these moments that you discover what you're truly capable of. It’s about enduring the discomfort, the uncertainty, and the pressure. It’s about finding the strength to finish strong, even when the finish line feels impossibly far away.

You also learn quickly that every hurdle is a new challenge, and the way you handle it sets the tone for the next. There are times when you're gliding effortlessly, every step perfectly placed, and times when you're struggling, just trying to maintain your rhythm. The key is to keep moving forward, adjusting your stride, and finding your rhythm again. That’s grit.

As I transitioned from the track to my professional journey, I found that these lessons translated seamlessly. In leadership, as in hurdling, it’s not enough to simply be fast or strong. Success comes from being able to navigate obstacles with grace, to keep your focus when the path gets tough, and to lead with the same grit and endurance that carried you through those 400 meters. We live in a world where we live for scale—better faster, stronger, harder—yet it’s these moments of focus and resilience carrying us through our utmost discomfort that will help us find our rhythm again and take us even further beyond our imagination.

Watching Sydney achieve her dreams filled me with immense pride and admiration. Her performance was a masterclass in athletic excellence, but more than that, it was a testament to the power of perseverance and dedication. She ran a race for all of us who have faced hurdles on and off the track. She showed us that with grit, speed, and endurance—measured step by step—there’s no limit to what we can achieve. Sydney’s victory is not just a triumph in athletics but a powerful reminder of what it means to be relentless in the pursuit of our goals.