195 Michelle Obama Quotes That Hold A World Of Wisdom

I tried to be a serious student and not procrastinate, but I was still somebody that would be described as somebody who liked to have fun, too, and go to the occasional party - or two or three.

  

You don't have to be a renowned artist like Q-Tip to try your hand at poetry. You don't need any special equipment - that's the beauty of it.

  

We need a president who will choose to do what's best for the country, even when it doesn't personally benefit them.

  

The issues that cross a president's desk are never easy. The easy questions don't even get to the president.

  

Meryl Streep is exactly as awesome as you would imagine Meryl Streep to be.

  

Working with our military community has been the biggest honor of my life.

  

I think our democracy has it exactly right: two terms, eight years. It's enough. Because it's important to have one foot in reality when you have access to this kind of power.

  

I think Hillary Clinton is a phenomenal woman, and I've gotten to know her, and I think she's made some pretty major contributions over the course of her life.

  

I will not run for president. No, nope, not going to do it.

  

I want a president with a record of public service: someone whose life's work shows our children that we don't chase form and fortune for ourselves; we fight to give everyone a chance to succeed.

  

We need an adult in the White House. When making life-or-death, war-or-peace decisions, a president can't just pop off or lash out irrationally.

  

I love that we can trust Barack to do what he says he's going to do, even when it's hard - especially when it's hard.

  

Ultimately this issue is on us. We're the ones who make the decisions about what our kids eat.

  

Together, we can help make sure that every family that walks into a restaurant can make an easy, healthy choice.

  

When you're not engaged in the day-to-day struggles that everybody feels, you slowly start losing touch. And I think it's important for the people in the White House to have a finger on the pulse.

  

I always say that women should wear whatever makes them feel good about themselves. That's what I always try to do.

  

I've seen how the issues that come across a president's desk are always the hard ones - the problems where no amount of data or numbers will get you to the right answer.

  

I specifically did not read other First Ladies' books, because I didn't want to be influenced by how they defined the role. I knew that I would have to find this role - very uniquely and specifically to me and who I was.

  

When a father puts in long hours at work, he's praised for being dedicated and ambitious. But when a mother stays late at the office, she's sometimes accused of being selfish, neglecting her kids.

  

I was a sociology major. And it had nothing to do necessarily with law, which is ultimately - I went to law school. But what I tried to do was choose something that I was passionate about or something that I cared about.

  

Remember, it is not about voting for the perfect candidate - there is no such thing. Presidents are human.

  

This healthy eating stuff, it's here to stay, and we now have everything we need to seize the opportunity and give all our kids the healthy futures they so richly deserve.

  

Whether we're Democrats, Republicans, or independents - it does not matter. We all understand that an attack on any one of us is an attack on all of us.

  

I say this everywhere I go: I admire and respect Hillary. She has been a lawyer, a law professor, First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the United States, a U.S. Senator, Secretary of State.

  

Our veterans who fall on hard times and find themselves without a home deserve more than just handwringing or kind words. They deserve real help that gets them back on their feet.

  

All of these young people have some kind of potential in them. And if we don't invest in them as a nation, regardless of where they come from or what color they are, if we don't invest in them, we lose.

  

Kids are watching us. I experience it every single day. They hang on my every word, what I wear, what I say.

  

I want kids to know: Don't wait for somebody to come along and tell you you're special. Because that may never happen.

  

Barack knows the American Dream because he's lived it, and he wants everyone in this country to have that same opportunity, no matter who we are or where we're from or what we look like or who we love.

  

For so many people, television and movies may be the only way they understand people who aren't like them.

  

When it comes to the qualifications that we should demand of our president, to start with, we need someone who will take the job seriously.

  

What I admire most about Hillary is that she never buckles under pressure. She never takes the easy way out. And Hillary Clinton has never quit on anything in her life.

  

When they set off for their first day at their new school, I will never forget that winter morning as I watched our girls, just 7 and 10 years old, pile into those black SUVs with all those big men with guns.

  

I can't play soccer, and I'm not a great swimmer. I won't drown, but you won't see me doing laps in a pool.

  

I am so tired of fear. And I don't want my girls to live in a country, in a world, based on fear.

  

People want to feel hopeful.

  

I think that people are tired. They're tired of the same old kind of politics. People want a new tone to politics.

  

You see, at the end of the day, my most important title is still 'mom-in-chief.' My daughters are still the heart of my heart and the center of my world.

  

We're all bombarded with so many dietary messages that it's hard to find time to sort through all this information, but we do have time to take a look at our kids' plates.

  

And I come here as a daughter, raised on the South Side of Chicago - by a father who was a blue-collar city worker and a mother who stayed at home with my brother and me.

  

And let's be clear: It's not enough just to limit ads for foods that aren't healthy. It's also going to be critical to increase marketing for foods that are healthy.

  

I come here tonight as a sister, blessed with a brother who is my mentor, my protector and my lifelong friend. And I come here as a wife who loves my husband and believes he will be an extraordinary president.

  

It was clear to me that if I could get through Princeton at the top of my class, I could do anything in the world.

  

When it comes to social media, there are just times I turn off the world, you know. There are just some times you have to give yourself space to be quiet, which means you've got to set those phones down.

  

Not being afraid to be wrong - I had to learn how to do that.

  

People change because of kids. They change how they eat. They change the way they think. They change the way they see one another.

  

I think I'm pretty smart. I think I'm pretty clever. But there's a lot that you hone in on when you finish your education.

  

The notion that we have even one single veteran living on the streets should be just considered a travesty to all of us.

  

We can't afford not to educate girls and give women the power and the access that they need.

  

I hope that people around the world will be as inspired as I am to step up and to speak out on behalf of girls around the world who struggle to go to school.

  

That is my wish, hope, instruction for all of you: Take your education seriously, okay? Always do that. Because I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for my education.

  

Whether you want to go into music, whether you want to be a lawyer, whether you want to be President of the United States, the bottom line for all of you is that you have got to get your education.

  

Our love, our gratitude, our admiration for our men and women in uniform, our veterans and their families - all of that is bigger than any one party or any one election.

  

You've got to vote, vote, vote, vote. That's it; that's the way we move forward. That's how we make progress for ourselves and for our country.

  

Oh, I can't play soccer, and I'm not a great swimmer. I won't drown, but you won't see me doing laps in a pool.

  

I am desperate for change - now - not in 8 years or 12 years, but right now.

  

Like so many American families, our families weren't asking for much. They didn't begrudge anyone else's success or care that others had much more than they did... in fact, they admired it.

  

So we know that it's not enough for us to simply encourage more people to study abroad. We also need to make sure that they can actually afford it.

  

The problem is when that fun stuff becomes the habit. And I think that's what's happened in our culture. Fast food has become the everyday meal.

  

For me, education was power.

  

What I tell my kids is, 'I'm preparing you for college and for life. So, having independence, knowing how to set your own boundaries, figuring out how to make that balance. We still have screen-time rules.'

  

Elections aren't just about who votes but who doesn't vote.

  

Here in America, we don't give in to our fears. We don't build up walls to keep people out.

  

Another suggestion is to cook a meal, maybe not every night, but a couple more times a week than you usually do. That way you have leftovers, and you take your lunch to work.

  

I was not raised with wealth or resources or any social standing to speak of.

  

I have to be in tune. All the time. I have to be in tune with my husband, where he is, how he's feeling. I have to be in tune with where my family is.

  

My husband will tell you one of the most frequent questions he gets from world leaders is, 'How's your wife's garden?'

  

I hate fund-raising. Haaaaate it. Hate, hate it.

  

What I have never been afraid of is to be a little silly, and you can engage people that way. My view is, first you get them to laugh, then you get them to listen.

  

I'm a fry lover.

  

I always tell young girls, surround yourself with goodness. I learned early on how to get the haters out of my life.

  

If I made a commitment, I stood by that commitment - and try to make it real. Because when you become leaders, the most important thing you have is your word, your trust. That's where respect comes from.

  

I want a president with a record of public service, someone whose life's work shows our children that we don't chase fame and fortune for ourselves: we fight to give everyone a chance to succeed.

  

Every day, the people I meet inspire me... every day, they make me proud... every day they remind me how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation on earth.

  

Talent and effort, combined with our various backgrounds and life experiences, has always been the lifeblood of our singular American genius.

  

With every word we utter, with every action we take, we know our kids are watching us. We as parents are their most important role models.

  

Public education is our greatest pathway to opportunity in America. So we need to invest in and strengthen our public universities today, and for generations to come.

  

If proud Americans can be who they are and boldly stand at the altar with who they love then surely, surely we can give everyone in this country a fair chance at that great American Dream.

  

I know what it feels like to struggle to get the education that you need.

  

My kids are normal. If they could eat burgers and fries and ice cream every day, they would. And so would I. But that doesn't sustain us.

  

My mother's love has always been a sustaining force for our family, and one of my greatest joys is seeing her integrity, her compassion, her intelligence reflected in my daughters.

  

America is just downright mean.

  

I've seen firsthand that being president doesn't change who you are. It reveals who you are.

  

We as women, we have to understand that we know more, just even instinctively, than we think we do.

  

Being president isn't anything like reality TV. It's not about sending insulting tweets or making fiery speeches; it's about whether or not the candidate can handle the awesome responsibility of leading this country.

  

Sometimes, it's just easier to say yes to that extra snack or dessert, because frankly, it is exhausting to keep saying no. It's exhausting to plead with our kids to eat just one more bite of vegetables.

  

Remember a few years ago when Congress declared that the sauce on a slice of pizza should count as a vegetable in school lunches? You don't have to be a nutritionist to know that this doesn't make much sense.

  

We learned about dignity and decency - that how hard you work matters more than how much you make... that helping others means more than just getting ahead yourself.

  

Do not be afraid to ask for help. Nobody gets through college on their own.

  

Find people who will make you better.

  

Through my education, I didn't just develop skills, I didn't just develop the ability to learn, but I developed confidence.

  

The one way to get me to work my hardest was to doubt me.

  

If my future were determined just by my performance on a standardized test, I wouldn't be here. I guarantee you that.

  

Whether you come from a council estate or a country estate, your success will be determined by your own confidence and fortitude.

  

You don't have to be somebody different to be important. You're important in your own right.

  

Our greatness has always come from people who expect nothing and take nothing for granted - folks who work hard for what they have, then reach back and help others after them.

  

Choose people who lift you up.

  

At the end of the day, when it comes time to make that decision, as president, all you have to guide you are your values, and your vision, and the life experiences that make you who you are.

  

There are still many causes worth sacrificing for, so much history yet to be made.

  

We need to do a better job of putting ourselves higher on our own 'to do' list.