On Tuesday, June 14, Oprah Winfrey and First Lady Michelle Obama sat down for a powerful conversation entitled "Trailblazing the Path for the Next Generation of Women" during the United State of Women Summit at the White House.
Two inspiring, dynamic and powerful women sat down giving messages of hope and encouragement to other women who are working hard to fulfill their own destinies, live their own dreams and find their own place in the world. Here are 7 inspirational moments from First Lady Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey’s sit down during the United State of Women Summit:
1. Know Your Value
Know your self worth. Know who you are. Get a clear sense of yourself. Protect yourself and protect your time. FLOTUS states “If you do not take control over your time and your life other people will gobble it up.” You have to prioritize yourself. Know what your time and energy is worth. Don’t allow yourself to be taken advantage of. Invest time in getting to understand who you are and like who you are! Oprah emphasizes that you alone are enough! It’s a journey to get there, to loving yourself.
2. Always Evolve
Oprah says “until you take your last breath you are always growing.” Every experience that you encounter in your life is an opportunity to stimulate growth. The work always continues. We’re never done. Don’t think you’ve arrived. Michelle also acknowledged her own growth. She says she's still growing and we are all still growing. FLOTUS says that there are so many phases to life and this is just one portion of a very bigger journey that you have yet to know the outcome. It’s ever evolving. These are just phases but there’s more to come. Both Michelle and Oprah reiterate “We ain’t through!” The work always continues. You’re never done.
3. Put your phone down, limit social media and connect with others
Sometimes you have to turn off the world. Give yourself space to be quiet. Put the phones down and allow yourself to experience stillness. FLOTUS notes that people shouldn’t go back into their isolation, looking at their phones and being disconnected from people. She states: “you need to have people in your lives that you are connecting with.” We get so lost in the matrix that is social media that we lose ourselves. We go through life aimlessly checking our phones, always looking down at some electronic device searching for constant updates instead of seeking human connection. Furthermore, FLOTUS notes that everyone’s Facebook page projects the idea that everyone has great lives and jokingly Michelle states “everyone is lying!” There is a huge disconnect because we're trying to chase the superficial world of perfection and we seem to think that the life that is projected on the internet is reality because of our constant need to update our lives on social media. Ironically, I wrote about this very same thing in my article "Fairytale Fallacies: The Picture Perfect Life in the Land of Social Media."
4. Ignore the haters
Don’t read the negative things that people say about you on social media. Michelle Obama says that “people won’t remember what other people say about you, people will remember what you do.” FLOTUS said that when a teacher or someone told her that she couldn’t do something she would get so much satisfaction proving them wrong. I used to always say that if someone tells me that I can not do something I use that as motivation to prove them wrong! In the words of Janet Jackson "and can't nobody tell you want you can't do, shut that down automatic!" Michelle Obama says we should wake up everyday, work hard to do something of value, do it well and let that speak for itself. That will shut up the haters. You will have a whole portfolio of stuff that has defined you because of what you have done because in the end Michelle Obama says “it’s what I did— not what you called me that matters!" Another powerful quote from FLOTUS: “The best revenge is success and good work. You don’t have to say anything to the haters. You don’t have to acknowledge them at all. You just wake up every morning and be the best you that you can be and that tends to shut them up”
5. Don't chase fame, chase greatness
Oprah quotes MLK stating “Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great because greatness is determined by service.” If you use your platform as a platform for service it will usher you into greatness. We all have the ability to be great. Fame is fleeting. It's a temporary high but leaving a legacy is what's most important. Leave a legacy of greatness. When you serve others you are leaving your mark on the world. You are planting little seeds of greatness into others and eventually those seeds will blossom into something beautiful. Find ways to leave your mark on the world and greatness will come. Let your legacy be one of greatness!
6. Surround yourself with goodness and positive people
Surround yourself with people who uplift you. People who have your back. Michelle Obama says find people who will love you for who you are. There are people out there who will love and accept you just the way you are. People are out there waiting to love you but you have to make room for them. You want people in your life who will build you up not tear you down. Get rid of people who are not invested in your well being. Toxic relationships, friendships and even family members can drain your soul. Remove those negative people and replace them with the people who will love and accept you.
7. Work from your passion
Pursue your passion. Do something you care about. Oprah says allow your passion to fuel your interests. Find what you are passionate about and pursue that. When you work from your passion you become authentically you. You won't have to fake it. Michelle says that people can smell inauthenticity. You have to be authentically yourself and in order to do that you have to do things that you authentically care about. Oprah says the best success is when you can actually shift your paradigm to service. FLOTUS says “there’s nothing that makes me feel better than knowing that I helped to change somebody’s life.” Nothing else matters when you work from your passion because each day you get inspiration from the work that you’re doing.
Another important moment to take away from this awesome conversation is Michelle Obama’s message to women who want to have it all. Oprah asks the question “Can women really have it all?” FLOTUS explains why that statement is not only flawed but it is an unhealthy mindset which causes women to put too much pressure on themselves. Mrs. Obama explains: “as you’re trying to have it all and you’re beating yourself up and feeling less than because you aren’t having it all” it’s a ridiculous aspiration. You can have it all but often times it’s hard to get it all at the same time. It’s about managing expectations. FLOTUS says she doesn't want women to “have the expectation that if they are not having it all that somehow they are failing. Life is hard but life is long.”
Additional quotes for honorable mentions:
“Being president doesn’t change who you are. It reveals who you are and that’s something that we all should remember.”
“It’s not about what people say about you it’s what you do”
"What are you going to do to be better?"
Watch the full conversation here:
For more awesome speeches from VP Biden and the President at the United State of Women check out:
