Never work just for money or for power. They won’t save your soul or help you sleep at night.

Edelman contrasts external rewards (money, power) with internal measures of a life: integrity, peace of mind, and moral “salvation” in a secular sense. The quote argues that instrumental success cannot compensate for ethical compromise; wealth and influence may buy comfort or control, but they do not resolve guilt, loneliness, or the anxiety that comes from betraying one’s values. “Sleep at night” functions as a plainspoken test of conscience: if your work harms others or empties your life of meaning, no amount of compensation will quiet the mind. Implicitly, she recommends choosing work aligned with service, justice, and responsibility to others.