Priyanka Chopra:  gave an unvarnished glimpse of ambition, sacrifice, and the luxury of being able to choose how she spends her time and work at today’s BRIDGE Summit in Abu Dhabi. She acknowledged that her path did not start with “being selective.” “I wasn’t picky at all when I first began working. It’s a pleasure to just receive job, therefore I would do anything I could. I would answer “yes” to every question. I was really greedy in my 20s. Every day, I wanted to work.

“Now, Beyoncé said this, and I’m going to quote her,” she continued, reflecting on where that grind has led her to this point. I feel as if my sacrifice has been made. I put forth a lot of effort. Birthdays were missed by me. I missed my dad’s hospital stay. I missed Diwali and Christmas. I missed spending time with my loved ones. That time, I needed to work that hard. And in order for this lady to live the life I now have, the 20-year-old me had to make those sacrifices.

Additionally, she emphasized that working less is a luxury, saying, “I do think it’s a luxury… sometimes you’ve got to hustle.” There’s no other way around it… You will eventually be able to step back if you have a strong work ethic, are disciplined, and pursue your goals. “Now I can choose when I want to say yes,” she remarked, looking back with thankfulness, “but I couldn’t have done that if she hadn’t worked so hard.” So I thank her a lot sometimes. Thank your younger self.”