I have to tell you, my seven-year-old granddaughter said to my daughter, her mother, 'So what's the big deal about Grandma Maddy having been Secretary of State? Only girls are Secretaries of State.' Most of her lifetime, it's true. But at the time it really was a big deal.

I do not believe that things happen accidentally; I believe you earn them.

As you go along your own road in life, you will, if you aim high enough, also meet resistance... But no matter how tough the opposition may seem, have courage still and persevere.

I have always thought of myself as a Czechoslovak Catholic.

Our life comes in segments, and we have to understand that we can have it all if we're not trying to do it all at once.

Well, the thing that I learned as a diplomat is that human relations ultimately make a huge difference.

You have to learn to interrupt because you aren't going to get called on.