Michelle Obama Quotes

When you've worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity...you do not slam it shut behind you...you reach back, and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed.

We got a commitment that 3 million nurses are going to be trained to better identify these signs [of PTSD], because, you know, when these troops come home and they become veterans and they go back into the civilian community, they're not always going through the VA system for medical care. They're going to show up at community hospitals and clinics.

I am an example of what is possible when girls from the very beginning of their lives are loved and nurtured by people around them. I was surrounded by extraordinary women in my life who taught me about quiet strength and dignity.

Gardening has increased, community gardens have increased significantly. There are 50 percent more community gardens right here in Washington DC.

Walk away from 'friendships' that make you feel small and insecure, and seek out people who inspire you and support you

No, I think that if he had known he would be president, he would have started dying his hair, like, 10 years ago. Now it's too late.

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.

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.

There is nothing more important to this nation's future than investing in our young people.

I was blessed throughout my entire career. I had people rooting for me. It started with my parents, but it extended to almost every teacher that I had. Even when I was a young lawyer, there were other women and men in the firm who took me under their wing.

There are so many really good role models out there, we just have to make sure that we don't glorify just one type. We have the first Latina Supreme Court Justice, Sonia Sotomayor, who is ready to be a force in kids' lives. I could name hundreds of people like her.

Countries are stronger and more prosperous when the voices and opinions of all their citizens can be heard.

Earlier in my college career, there was no doubt in my mind that as a member of the Black community I was somehow obligated to this community and would utilize all of my present and future resources to benefit this community first and foremost.

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.

He’s always asking: ‘Is that new? I haven’t seen that before.’ It’s like, Why don’t you mind your own business? Solve world hunger. Get out of my closet.

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.

You've got to make choices that make sense for you because there's always going to be somebody who'll think you should do something differently.

We're going to have to change our traditions, our history.

Throughout my life, I've learned to make choices that make me happy and make sense for me. Even my husband is happier when I'm happy.

I look at how my kids view exercise. They have a complete understanding that nutrition and exercise go hand in hand. I didn't think like that when I was a kid. But they have a real consciousness about it that I'd like to think comes from the years of attention we've put into this.

The president's job is a lot harder. And that's why I'm working hard to get him re-elected, because he's handled himself with a level of grace and poise that not many people could given the challenges that he's faced.

Fortunately, we have help from the media. I have to say this: I'm very grateful for the support and kindness that we've gotten. People have respected their privacy and in that way, I think, you know, no matter what people may feel about my husband's policies or what have you, they care about children and that's been good to see.

My happiness isn't connected to my husband's or my boss's or my children's behavior. You have control over your own actions, your own well-being.

What I love about design is the artistic and scientific complexity that also becomes useful . . . Great designers also pursue a mission. Great designers design with mankind in mind . . . The crossroads of science and art, innovation and inspiration are what I love about design.

For the first time, the nation will have goals, benchmarks, and measureable outcomes that will help us tackle the childhood obesity epidemic one child, one family, and one community at a time.

Success isn't about how much money you make, it's about the difference you make in people's lives.

Every elected official on this planet should understand - don't play with our children, don't do it.

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.

I love that for Barack, there is no such thing as 'us' and 'them' - he doesn't care whether you're a Democrat, a Republican, or none of the above... he knows that we all love our country... and he's always ready to listen to good ideas... he's always looking for the very best in everyone he meets.

Barack and I have been in the public eye for many years now, and we've developed a thick skin along the way. When you're out campaigning, there will always be criticism. I just take it in stride, and at the end of the day, I know that it comes with the territory.

All of us are driven by a simple belief that the world as it is just won't do - that we have an obligation to fight for the world as it should be.

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

One of the things I want ... all the kids here to remember, is that these [Major League Soccer] stars were not born superstar athletes ... Many of them started out just like many of you-playing on a team at school, or just kicking a ball around on the playground with their friends. But they stuck with it. And I tell this to my girls all the time. I mean, you get to the point when ... things you enjoy ... start getting hard-that's when you know you're getting good, and you have to stick through it.

I feel fortunate as a woman to have a husband who loves me and shows me in every way.

I think the most moving part of my trip [to Africa] so far was seeing 92-year-old Nelson Mandela, and just thinking about his life. This man has lived through a struggle that few nations have known.

I never thought I'd be on Sesame Street with Elmo and Big Bird. I'm still thrilled. I'm on a high.

For me exercise is more than just physical, it’s therapeutic.

You know, you have to start with hope...you don't get anywhere in this country without hope. So it's a necessity. What Barack says is that people have to understand hope isn't just blind optimism. It isn't passive. It isn't just sitting there waiting for things to get better. Hope is the vision that you have to have. It's the inspiration that moves people into action...There are more people engaged in this political process in this year than we've seen in my lifetime. And it is all because of hope because people believe in the possibility of something unseen.

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

Do not bring people in your life who weigh you down. And trust your instincts ... good relationships feel good. They feel right. They don't hurt. They're not painful. That's not just with somebody you want to marry, but it's with the friends that you choose. It's with the people you surround yourselves with.

And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values, like you work hard for what you want in life. That your word is your bond; that you do what you say you're going to do. That you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don't know them and even if you don't agree with them.

For me, as a mother, I am just, you know, I just can't put into words how important it is for every American, for every mother, for every person in this country, to have healthcare.

People want to feel hopeful.

But, as potentially the first African American first lady, I was also the focus of another set of questions and speculations; conversations sometimes rooted in the fears and misperceptions of others. Was I too loud, or too angry, or too emasculating? Or was I too soft, too much of a mom, not enough of a career woman?

People are always going to have opinions, and people have a right to their opinions.

Being president isn't anything like reality TV.

My experiences at Princeton have made me far more aware of my 'blackness' than ever before.

I tell this to my girls all the time: This journey we're on is a once - in - a - lifetime opportunity.