Quote of the Day: Mae West on Daily Inspiration

Before she became Hollywood’s most unbothered provocateur, Mae West was repeatedly told she was “too much”, too loud, too sexual, too sharp. She fought censors, weathered arrests for her stage work, and watched doors close because she refused to dilute her voice to fit respectable tastes. Out of that bruising education came a line that sounds playful until you hear the steel in it: “You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”

Our era treats a finite life like a packing problem: cram in cities, careers, lovers, victories, proof. But West’s point isn’t to sprint. It’s to aim. One life can feel like a shortage if you spend it auditioning for other people’s approval, mistaking motion for meaning. “Once is enough” becomes true when your days aren’t just full, but honest, when you choose depth over display and stop confusing accumulation with aliveness.

Doing it “right” doesn’t mean immaculate. It means deliberate. You take the risk that fits your values, not the one that photographs well. You fail, learn, and return with better judgment. You invest in love that costs something, time, attention, humility, because it’s real. You practice courage not as bravado, but as the quiet habit of acting without guarantees.

Mae West earned her authority the hard way: from vaudeville grit to film stardom, she turned bold lyrics and sharper wit into a career that survived scandal, censorship, and the industry’s urge to tame her.

August is a month that reminds us how quickly seasons turn; the calendar doesn’t negotiate. Apply West’s test today: don’t ask how much you can fit into life, ask what, if repeated, would make you proud to say, at the end, that one was enough.