How She Does It

For Sesame Workshop CEO Sherrie Westin, there’s one question that rises above the rest. “Is Sesame going to be here for the next generation of children?” Making sure favorites like Elmo, Big Bird, Abby Cadabby, and Grover continue their work educating kids is a responsibility she takes very seriously. Over the past year, Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit behind the 56-year-old global phenomenon, faced what Westin called a “perfect storm.” There were federal funding cuts, the end of a distribution deal with Discovery / HBO Max, and the need to downsize the organization. Westin has guided Sesame Workshop through this moment with a determination to keep Sesame’s core mission of making kids “smarter, stronger and kinder” front and center. This season of Sesame Street kicked off a new distribution deal with Netflix and PBS, along with a greater focus on its philanthropic efforts. In our conversation, Westin shared her thoughts on Sesame's past and future, how her experience at ABC News and The White House influenced her leadership style, and how becoming a mother through the adoption of her daughter, Lily, profoundly changed her life. 💬 In this episode, we explore: Sherrie Westin’s path to CEO of Sesame Workshop, and what made her finally decide to throw her hat into the ring The global reach of Sesame Workshop and its work to support young children The impact of that famous 2024 tweet from Elmo asking, “How is everybody doing?" What it’s like being “co-workers” with Oscar, Grover, Bert, Ernie, and more Westin’s favorite memories of celebrities who have visited Sesame Street Her advice for college graduates How she and her husband, David Westin, manage a busy, two-career household Resources: 🔗 Visit Sesme Workshop 📸 Follow Sherrie Westin on LinkedIn 📸 Follow Sesame Workshop On Instagram 📸 Follow Sesame Street On TikTok 🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kecia Steelman was a 20-year-old single mom living in government housing when she faced a realization: if she wanted a better life, it was up to her. She became determined to find a job where she could learn and grow. From the men’s department at Target, she buckled down, worked holidays and weekends, and transformed what started as an $8 an hour gig into something much more. She built a career path that would lead her to become one of the most powerful women in the beauty business. On this episode of How She Does It, Kecia opens up about her first year as CEO at ULTA Beauty, the country’s largest beauty retailer. With 30 years of retail experience, including almost five years as ULTA Beauty’s COO, she was able to take on this new challenge and “hit the ground running.” From expanding the brand into international markets to working closely with brand founders like Beyoncé, Kylie Jenner, Paris Hilton, and more, the company has seen growth across both their e-commerce and retail sales. 💬 In this episode, we explore: Kecia’s rollout of ULTA Beauty’s most recent strategy, from the C-Suite to the employees on the sales floor The approach Kecia takes when it comes to setting expectations for Wall Street What her “best day” and “worst day” working in retail look like The three factors Kecia looks for when making a new hire What happens when Kecia visits an Ulta Beauty store unannounced The profound way Kecia’s mother inspired her Resources: 🔗 Visit Ulta.com 📸 Follow Kecia Steelman on Instagram 📸 Follow Kecia Steelman on LinkedIn 📸 Follow Ulta Beauty on Instagram 🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“I don’t sweep the floor with my uterus,” asserts Corinne Low, Associate Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy at the Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania. It’s a stark statement, but her underlying point is to urge men and women to re-examine gender roles around the work needed to maintain a home and family: cooking, cleaning, making the kids’ doctor’s appointments, and so on. Low was on the tenure track when her first marriage fell apart. She was overwhelmed with her job, a bad commute, a new infant, and housework. She was the higher earner of the couple, and the division of labor at home felt way too lopsided. So she used her know-how as an economist to study the data on how men and women divide tasks at home and develop strategies for how couples can create a system that’s fair. Today, Low is a tenured professor and is remarried to a woman. (She notes that it is not a prescription for everyone, but it works for her.) She writes about her research and her experience in HAVING IT ALL: What Data Tells Us About Women’s Lives and Getting the Most Out of Yours, which is a USA Today National Best Seller and an Amazon Best Nonfiction Book of the Year. 💬 In this episode, we explore: How to approach a conversation with a partner about re-allocating work around the house Why parents today are feeling “the squeeze” - when time pressures and money pressures hit at the same time - more than previous generations. What concerns Low about the “tradwife” trend Questions to ask yourself about your career path to determine if it’s compatible with the life you want outside of work Why a job with “boundaries” is better for women than a job with “flexibility.” 🔗 Visit Corinne Low’s website 📕 Find out more about Corinne Low’s book: HAVING IT ALL 📸 Follow Corinne Low on Instagram 📸 Follow Corinne Low on Substack 📸 Follow Corinne Low on LinkedIn 📸 Follow the show on Instagram: @hsdipodcast🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We love hearing insight and hard-won wisdom from some of the most exceptional and accomplished women. In this episode, we’ve put together some particularly insightful moments from a few of our guests from across our first 70 episodes. We cover how to push through those tough moments, trust your gut, and do what it takes to build the life you want (and not the life other people think you should be living.) So, as you take a moment to think about your own plans and dreams for the year ahead, we know listening to these smart and talented women share their own experiences will help inspire, clarify, and motivate you as you move forward on the path you are uniquely creating for yourself. 💬 In this episode, we hear from: Rachel Webber, CCO & CBO for Paris Hilton’s 11:11 Media, on the bold, split-second decision that changed her career-trajectory CNBC Host Melissa Lee on listening to her gut, despite disappointing her parents Filmmaker and author Crystal McCrary McGuire on the chance meeting that challenged her and helped her turn her dream career into a reality OpenTable CEO Debby Soo on finding the company where she could be her authentic self, and how she fought to become CEO Bonnie Hammer, Former NBCU Vice Chair, on the magic of asking for and getting what you want Chelsea Sodaro, 2022 Ironman World Champion, on pushing through the really tough moments Broadway producer Carmen Pavlovic on working through and learning from failure Actress Renée Elise Goldsberry on the best advice she’s received on managing anxiety Journalist Leigh Gallagher on her decision to become a single mom and how she did it Best-Selling Author Gretchen Rubin on the question that helps her tackle tough life choices 🎧Listen To Rachel Webber on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 52 🎧Listen To Melissa Lee on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 1 🎧Listen To Crystal McCrary McGuire on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 54 🎧Listen To Debby Soo on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 50 🎧Listen To Bonnie Hammer on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 57 🎧Listen To Chelsea Sodaro on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 59 🎧Listen To Carmen Pavlovic on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 30 🎧Listen To Renée Elise Goldsberry on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 61 🎧Listen To Leigh Gallagher on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 45 🎧Listen To Gretchen Rubin on HOW SHE DOES IT Episode 51 💻Watch episodes on HOW SHE DOES IT on our YouTube Page 📸 Follow the show on Instagram: @hsdipodcast🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices