Each year we ask our classmates a straightforward, simple question taken from the lines of a poem by Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Mary Oliver. We share with you intimate and candid responses to this question, "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" Concept and photography: Tony Deifell, MBA 2002.
Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?
“Daddy! Where’s my magic wand?!” screamed Siyona, my four-year old daughter.
“I’m sorry. I’ll be back,” I told a potential investor on a videoconference.
Previously, I would have lamented this interruption. But we live in a new world. Work is life and life is work. Balancing is out and juggling is in. The lines between parenting and working are increasingly blurred, but I am here for all of it.
It took me a while to realize that having kids adds value even in business. I had thought that the guiding light for my biotech startup would be the prospect of saving lives and the opportunity to create generational wealth. But soon after starting, I was increasingly drawn to the idea that it was important for my kids to see that their beloved daddy works hard. I never want them to think that there is a tradeoff between being a success in the boardroom and a success in your kids’ toy room.
The investor from that meeting committed funding, and I helped my daughter find her wand. But little does she know that she and her brother are the real secrets to my success.
