She may have stepped down as CEO of Xerox in 2016, but don’t think for a second Ursula Burns has slowed down. She now sits on the boards of Uber, Nestlé and Endeavor, advises global leaders on inclusive capitalism, and continues to champion diversity in STEM through public policy work and nonprofit mentorship.
She’s one part engineer, one part truth-teller – with a calendar that runs like a semiconductor fab and a side-eye sharp enough to pierce a McKinsey white paper.
5:30 AM: Starts sharp. Coffee black. News global. Brain whirring like a printer spool. No affirmations, just analytics. By sunrise, she’s outthinking three Fortune 500 boards.
6:30 AM: Weights over cardio, always. Gospel soundtrack blaring. One eye on reps, the other on emails. Burns lifts like she leads: with control, grit, and power.
7:30 AM: Suit on, sharp lines. Zero frills. Nothing beige. The outfit says: “I own this room.” Her walk to the desk is basically a TED Talk.
8:00 AM: No coddling. She mentors with military efficiency. Young execs get truth, not hugs. “Don’t waste my time,” she says, while changing someone’s career in 40 minutes.
9:00 AM: Zooms. Decks. Strategy calls. If your idea’s fluff, expect silence. She dissects assumptions faster than interns refresh LinkedIn. Governance is war. Burns doesn’t blink.
12:30 PM: Deals are seasoned, not meals. She meets founders, fund managers, changemakers. Conversation is sharp, political, and pointed. There’s always an agenda. Calories? Barely registered.
2:00 PM: Spreadsheets, systems, capital plans. No assistants filtering briefs – Burns reads the original memo. “I don’t like dumb,” she once said. And she means every syllable.
4:00 PM: If inefficiency dares appear, emails fly like daggers. She doesn’t tolerate dithering. Diversity failures, lazy logic, or weak KPIs? Expect carnage – delivered with precision punctuation.
6:00 PM: Evening is sacred. Loved ones, bold debates, real connection. No small talk. Topics range from STEM policy to structural racism. Dinner is warm. Opinions? Fire.
8:00 PM: Reads biographies or science – never fluff. No screens, no scrolling. Just thought, reflection, and mental decluttering. By 9:30, lights off. Tomorrow? Same force. Different mission.