“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”
I want to max out on every moment of every day. Work hard, play hard, and sleep less. I attribute where I am today to the intense love and support I received from my family, my incredible educational experiences, and role models that illustrated to me that more, of everything, was possible and expected. I strive to give them a high return on their investment in me. I take my role as a steward for my race, gender, and family very seriously. The fact that my actions create inflections in and imprints on the lives of people I will never meet, but represent nonetheless, fosters an insatiable drive for excellence in everything I do.
Therefore, I will squeeze the life out of each minute, so at the end of each day, I am exhausted. I will make my husband Wesley sick of how intense my adoration, admiration, and awe of him is – every day – by spending more time with him than without him. I will hold the most honorable leadership position imaginable – parent – and will define my legacy by the kind of citizens, friends, and thinkers Wesley's and my children become. I will be that friend that is there when I am needed as much as when I am not needed. I will help others find their voice by showing them how I found mine. I will soften the inequities of capitalism within my sphere of influence. I will step deliberately, act purposefully, fail iteratively, live loudly, and think twice – every day. In the end, I hope to look back on a life that is a transparent collection of focused, fearless, and principled actions that changed a paradigm or two or two million.
Therefore, I will squeeze the life out of each minute, so at the end of each day, I am exhausted. I will make my husband Wesley sick of how intense my adoration, admiration, and awe of him is – every day – by spending more time with him than without him. I will hold the most honorable leadership position imaginable – parent – and will define my legacy by the kind of citizens, friends, and thinkers Wesley's and my children become. I will be that friend that is there when I am needed as much as when I am not needed. I will help others find their voice by showing them how I found mine. I will soften the inequities of capitalism within my sphere of influence. I will step deliberately, act purposefully, fail iteratively, live loudly, and think twice – every day. In the end, I hope to look back on a life that is a transparent collection of focused, fearless, and principled actions that changed a paradigm or two or two million.
— Edrienne Brandon