Girls are so quick to say they can't do something, and they won't even try, whereas boys tend to just go for something even if it's probably a bad idea.
My role models were all men. I grew up - I was a big 1980s Laker fan: you know, the years of Worthy, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, and, you know, eight-foot-tall men that I could never emulate, and then these big 300-pound football players.
I have been involved with U.S. Soccer for 30 years, and I don't remember one senior woman in the organization that you would deal with on a daily basis in a position that was making decisions. That is a huge issue. How many times do you hear, 'There are no women around?' Well, they are fishing in the wrong pond.
For the average person walking down the street, they don't even know a women's soccer league exists in this country.
When they asked me what charity I wanted to play for on 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire?' the first thing that came to my mind was that this would be a great opportunity to let people know about TOPSoccer.
We should teach kids, whether you're on the varsity team or not, that movement is a great thing in your life.
I think that was one of my biggest worries. I didn't want to be so focused on soccer that it became my whole life.
I always thought it would be so much fun to write a book.
I'd always thought leadership was a CEO or president or person in a position of power. And honestly, to me, that meant a man - because that's what I was reading about in history books growing up.
Whether you empower one person or the free world, that is leadership.
As female athletes all over the world have discovered the hard way, changing cultures and mindsets takes action.
People will say, 'Who are your role models, and who are your pioneers?' And the first person that comes to my mind is Billie Jean King because we didn't have women that we could watch when I was growing up.
I don't know if there's any sport that's stupid, but I really don't understand curling. I guess I'm just not into brooms on ice.
I would be doing anything to avoid a 9-5 job and high heels. Lifeguard, beach volleyball player, whatever.
I remember the day I met Cammi Granato, a former star on the U.S. women's hockey team. We were at a Women's Sports Foundation dinner in 1996, and she came over to introduce herself. She had watched the U.S. women's soccer team win gold at the Atlanta Olympics and was hopeful the U.S. women's hockey team could do the same.
Imagine the day when girls everywhere won't have to fight for the right to be recognized for their great work or their contributions to society.
When I think about Abby Wambach's last days with the U.S. team, I am reminded of her first days with the U.S. team. The 21-year-old came bouncing in, laughing, joking and, of course, talking. An enormous personality matched only by her thirst for purpose. Because Abby didn't subscribe to external boundaries or predetermined molds.
Ask any coach in any sport, and they'll tell you that cutting players is their least favorite thing to do. No coach enjoys having to tell players who have worked so hard and for so long on a dream that they are no longer on the team.
It all comes down to perspective. When I get crabby about something, like the delay that was driving me crazy because I told my kids I'd be home for dinner, I have to remind myself where it fits in the scheme of things. We have to say, 'That's life,' which can sometimes be comforting.
Stressing out over how you look, what you're wearing, or when you're getting home is not worth it.
