“It wasn't until I was named Youth Poet Laureate of L.A. in high school...” — Amanda Gorman Quote

It wasn't until I was named Youth Poet Laureate of L.A. in high school though that I officially began calling myself a poet. I just always loved writing, period.

For there is always light,

Anyone who has lived

To hone my voice, I read everything, from books to cereal boxes, three times: once for fun, the second time to learn something new about the writing craft, and the third time was to improve that piece.

I was born early, along with my twin, and a lot of times, for infants, that can lead to learning delays.

Slowly, over time, I learned enough that I started considering myself a musician, where I actually knew how to play instruments. But still, when I talk to my real musician friends, they're calling chords out, and I have no idea what they're talking about.

I'm pretty sure my mom is the only person on the planet who thinks that she got cancer so that I could find my calling in life, but as I started to build this company, all my years of useless education, random jobs, and weird interests merged into this serendipitous moment.

A calling is you feel - you look out and see the need - maybe it's the need for the poor, to help poor people. Maybe it's the need to get involved in the race problem, as Martin Luther King was - felt called.

The first time I ever experienced someone hating something I did on television was on 'Boy Meets World.' I remember these kids coming up to me and calling me a 'home-wrecker,' and so I had flashes of that going into my role on 'Mad Men.'