Most people were good people if you just treated them well.

When I thought I had a good idea about something, I didn’t like being told no.

Becoming is never giving up on the idea that there’s more growing to be done.

It challenged me and humbled me, lifted me up and shrank me down, sometimes all at once.

Life was teaching me that progress and change happen slowly.

We had no choice but to stay positive and carry on.

You belong. You matter. I think highly of you.

Even if we didn’t end up winning, we were making progress that mattered.

Kids wake up each day believing in the goodness of things, in the magic of what might be.

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.

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.

I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves. And I watch my daughters, two beautiful, intelligent, black young women playing with their dogs on the White House lawn.

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

If we want maturity, we have to be mature. If we want a nation that feels hopeful, then we have to speak in hopeful terms… We have to model what we want.

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.

You cannot take your freedoms for granted. Just like generations who have come before you, you have to do your part to preserve and protect those freedoms… you need to be preparing yourself to add your voice to our national conversation.

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.

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.

When I hear about negative and false attacks, I really don’t invest any energy in them, because I know who I am.

Strong men, men who are truly role models, don’t need to put down women to make themselves feel powerful.

My most important title is “mom-in-chief”. My daughters are still the heart of my heart and the centre of my world.

No matter who you are, no matter where you come from, YOU are beautiful.

We learned about honesty and integrity – that the truth matters… that you don’t take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules… and success doesn’t count unless you earn it fair and square.

Barack and I were both raised by families who didn’t have much in the way of money or material possessions but who had given us something far more valuable – their unconditional love, their unflinching sacrifice, and the chance to go places they had never imagined for themselves.

Find people who will make you better.

The future of our world is only as bright as the future of our girls.

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

We’re so afraid of each other… Color, wealth, these things that don’t really matter still play too much of a role in how we see one another. And it’s sad, because the thing that least defines us is the color of our skin.

Friendships between women, as any woman will tell you, are built of a thousand small kindnesses…swapped back and forth and over again.

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.

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

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

You have to fill your bucket with positive energy—and if you have people hanging around you that are bringing you down and not lifting you up, whether that’s your ‘boo’ or your best friend—you have to learn how to push these people to the side.

Every girl, no matter where she lives, deserves the opportunity to develop the promise inside of her.

We should always have three friends in our lives-one who walks ahead who we look up to and follow; one who walks beside us, who is with us every step of our journey; and then, one who we reach back for and bring along after we’ve cleared the way.

My father’s life is a testament to that basic American promise that no matter who you are or how you started out, if you work hard you can build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids.

You see, our glorious diversity—our diversity of faiths, and colors and creeds―that is not a threat to who we are, it makes us who we are.

Reach for partners that make you better. Do not bring people into your life who weigh you down. Good relationships feel good. They feel right. They don’t hurt

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

Time, as far as my father was concerned, was a gift you gave to other people.

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

I have learned that as long as I hold fast to my beliefs and values—and follow my own moral compass—then the only expectations I need to live up to are my own.

We needed now to be resolute, to keep our feet pointed in the direction of progress.

Failure is a feeling long before it becomes an actual result. It’s a vulnerability that breeds with self-doubt and then is escalated, often deliberately, by fear.

Your story is what you have, what you will always have. It is something to own.

Instead of letting your hardships and failures discourage or exhaust you, let them inspire you. Let them make you even hungrier to succeed.

You can’t make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life, it’s the power of using your voice.

My job, I realized, was to be myself, to speak as myself. And so I did.

Success doesn’t count unless you earn it fair and square.

Men who are truly role models don’t need to put down women to make themselves feel powerful.

Am I good enough? Yes, I am.

Being president doesn’t change who you are – it reveals who you are.

Do not be afraid to ask for help.

There is no magic to achievement. It’s really about hard work, choices, and persistence.

Don’t be afraid. Be focused. Be determined. Be hopeful. Be empowered.

The ultimate form of disrespect is to dismiss someone’s worth and value.

We learned about gratitude and humility – that so many people had a hand in our success, from the teachers who inspired us to the janitors who kept our school clean… and we were taught to value everyone’s contribution and treat everyone with respect.

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

Choose people who lift you up.

The fact is, with every friendship you make, and every bond of trust you establish, you are shaping the image of America projected to the rest of the world. That is so important. So when you study abroad, you’re actually helping to make America stronger.

So the next time we battle with our kids over those vegetables, or they refuse to join us for a walk to the park, the next time we struggle to change our schools or communities, we need to remind ourselves that parents everywhere are going through exactly the same thing. We have to remember that we’re all in this together.

Every day, you have the power to choose our better history—by opening your hearts and minds, by speaking up for what you know is right.

Success is only meaningful–and enjoyable–if it feels like your own.

It wasn’t so long ago that I was a working mom myself. And I know that sometimes, much as we all hate to admit it, it’s just easier to park the kids in front of the TV for a few hours, so we can pay the bills or do the laundry or just have some peace and quiet for a change.

If you do not take control over your time and your life, other people will gobble it up. If you don’t prioritize yourself, you constantly start falling lower and lower on your list.

You have to stay in school. You have to. You have to go to college. You have to get your degree. Because that’s the one thing people can’t take away from you is your education. And it is worth the investment.

Let’s be very clear: Strong men – men who are truly role models – don’t need to put down women to make themselves feel powerful. People who are truly strong lift others up. People who are truly powerful bring others together.

You don’t want to be with a boy who is too stupid to appreciate a smart young lady. There is no boy who is cute enough or interesting enough to stop you from getting your education.

When I get up and work out, I’m working out just as much for my girls as I am for me, because I want them to see a mother who loves them dearly, who invests in them, but who also invests in herself. It’s just as much about letting them know as young women that it is okay to put yourself a little higher on your priority list.

Our life before moving to Washington was filled with simple joys. Saturdays at soccer games, Sundays at grandma’s house ,and a date night for Barack and me was either dinner or a movie, because as an exhausted mom, I couldn’t stay awake for both

For me, being Mom in Chief is, and always will be, job number one.

Failure is an important part of your growth and developing resilience. Don’t be afraid to fail.

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.

It’s about leaving something better for our kids. That’s how we’ve always moved this country forward, by all of us coming together on behalf of our children, folks who volunteer to coach that team, to teach that Sunday school class, because they know it takes a village.

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.

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

Don’t ever make decisions based on fear. Make decisions based on hope and possibility. Make decisions based on what should happen, not what shouldn’t.

The difference between a broken community and a thriving one is the presence of women who are valued.

When someone is cruel or acts like a bully, you don’t stoop to their level. No, our motto is, when they go low, we go high.

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

There’s power in allowing yourself to be known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice. And there’s grace in being willing to know and hear others. This, for me, is how we become.

When you are struggling and you start thinking about giving up, I want you to remember something that my husband and I have talked about since we first started this journey nearly a decade ago, something that has carried us through every moment in this White House and every moment of our lives, and that is the power of hope—the belief that something better is always possible if you’re willing to work for it and fight for it.

The world might not have changed, but the way we thought about it, and our ability to work within it, had.

We need to start focusing on what matters — on how we feel and how we feel about ourselves.

One of the things I realized is that if you don’t take control over your time and your life, other people will gobble it up.

Just do what works for you because there will always be someone who thinks differently.

When girls are educated, their countries become stronger and more prosperous.

One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals.

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

You should never view your challenges as a disadvantage. Instead, it’s important for you to understand that your experience facing and overcoming adversity is actually one of your biggest advantages.

You may not always have a comfortable life, and you will not always be able to solve all of the world’s problems at once, but don’t ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious, and hope can take on a life of its own.

The only way you can fail is if you quit.

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

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

The only limit to the height of your achievements is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work hard for them.

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

There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.

When they go low, we go high.