Gloria Steinem, the feminist icon who died this week at 92, devoted decades of her life to fighting for women's rights. Through her work as an author, journalist, and public speaker, she built an estimated net worth of $10 million—yet even as she campaigned for equal pay, she never placed much value on money for its own sake.

Steinem rose to national prominence as a co-founder of Ms. magazine in 1971 and as a leading voice of the women's liberation movement, co-founding the National Women's Political Caucus and organizations including the Ms. Foundation for Women—work that made her one of the most recognizable advocates for the Equal Rights Amendment and reproductive rights in the United States.

Asked in 2018 what advice she would give college graduates, Steinem urged them to pursue work aligned with their interests and talents rather than chasing the biggest paycheck.

"I would say do what you love, because each of us has unique interests and talents, and the more we can follow them, the more effective, happy, and successful we will be," she told The Cut in 2018.

"I want each of us to have a roof over our heads and enough food to eat—those things are important—but aside from those, money is boring, and as you may have noticed, groups of people based on money are boring."

An unconventional upbringing

That philosophy was likely shaped in part by Steinem's unusual childhood. Born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1934, she was raised in a trailer home. Her father was a traveling antiques and jewelry salesman, and the family moved so frequently that Steinem rarely completed a full year at the same school.

"I remember driving, looking at houses with yards and fences and thinking, How great. I could live there and just walk to school," she recalled to Architectural Digest in 2024.

Life on the road also taught her an early lesson about appearances—and about the danger of assuming everyone wants the same things.

"I kind of realized, too, that maybe the people who lived there wanted to live in a trailer," she added.

Her parents divorced in 1944, leaving the young Steinem to care for her mother, who struggled with mental illness. She later moved to Washington, D.C., with her sister, where she finished high school. In 1956, she graduated from Smith College, a women's liberal arts school in Massachusetts.

Even into her 90s, Steinem never stopped working for women's rights: 'Some of us live to work'

After college, Steinem became a journalist, famously going undercover in 1963 to report on degrading conditions at Hugh Hefner's Playboy empire—an assignment she later came to regret.

A few years afterward, she attended a meeting of women speaking out in favor of abortion rights. The experience changed the course of her career, steering her toward activism and ultimately making women's rights her life's work. That 1969 abortion rights hearing in New York—where she was struck by how few women spoke for themselves about their own experiences—is widely cited as the turning point that pushed her from journalism into full-time organizing.

Even in her later years, Steinem showed little interest in slowing down. She continued meeting with activists, speaking publicly, and advancing the causes she cared about. At any given time, she said, she had roughly a dozen projects underway.

"Most people must work to live, but some of us live to work," Steinem said.

Her apartment on New York City's Upper East Side became an iconic gathering place for activists, writers, and political organizers—including members of Fortune's Most Powerful Women earlier this year. The director of Gloria's Foundation told The New York Times that the apartment will continue to host gatherings and discussions after her death.

The space also came to embody Steinem's own view of success:

"It's the moment when you feel you are doing something you care about, that you can be honest, and that you're able to live in the moment."

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.