Bozoma Saint John on Grief and Work

Bozoma Saint John is one of the most celebrated marketing execs out there. She’s worked for Apple, Uber, Endeavor, Pepsi, and Netflix…just to name a few. But while those big names are on her resume, Boz told us about the other titles that have influenced her and her career. Like ‘single mom.’ And ‘widow.’ This week, Boz explains how her story of love, loss, and survival has made her live “urgently”, especially when it comes to work.

In this episode shares: 

• What it means to live urgently at work 

• Why you need to take the credit for what you do   

• How we can better show up for our colleagues that are grieving 

• Why grief has made her a better leader

• The hardest part of writing her memoir, The Urgent Life

On Navigating Grief and Work

Boz: Returning to work, it felt necessary because I need to refind my place, you know, recenter after being knocked off like the center of my life so dramatically with the death of my husband. Like my whole world has shifted. All of a sudden I went from being a wife, and a mother, and an executive, and successful, to being someone people looked at with pity, a widow, a single mom, someone who was battling grief and mental health challenges. All of a sudden it was like I wasn't the person that I was supposed to be anymore.

On Living Urgently

Boz: Living urgently, I think sometimes it can be confused for living recklessly or spontaneously or without care, but that's not it at all. You know, urgency is a combination of things. It's the combination of time, of intention, of selfishness. You know, it's like when people say, “Ooh, be humble. Care for everybody.” No, man, you gotta be selfish about your life because it's yours. Right? 

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