Michelle Obama on Glamour cover: “cute only lasts for so long”

[Honey]

Glamour Magazine has honored FLOTUS Michelle Obama with a “special recognition” for “her focus on mentoring the next generation”. She appears on one of five celebratory covers for Glamour’s December “Women of the Year” issue. It’s the first time a first lady has appeared on Glamour’s cover. The entire interview has not been released yet, but Glamour does havea very interesting preview of the cover interview up on their site right now. The editor also excerpts the interview by giving six “lessons” that she took away from Michelle’s interview. Some of these lessons are pretty good pieces of advice.

This year, Glamour is honoring First Lady Michelle Obama with a Special Recognition award for her commitment to mentoring young women. (She also appears on our cover–the first time in Glamour’s 70-year history that a First Lady has ever done so.) You simply cannot talk about 2009 without talking about Mrs. Obama: and no, I don’t mean her status as a style icon (richly deserved though it may be). Just nine months into her job, our nation’s first African-American First Lady has thrown open the doors of the White House to local children and families, determined to show young people that, in her words, “there’s no magic to being here”–that with hard work, any one of us can rise to greatness. And at Glamour, we love that she’s particularly set on expanding young women’s horizons: The First Lady is establishing mentor relationships between top women in the administration and girls in need in DC, and is encouraging women leaders around the country to do the same where they live. Love that.
One of my favorite things about [Katie Couric’s] interview with the First Lady is that Mrs. Obama delivers truly useable advice–the kind of advice any woman can draw on to reach her own personal goals. Here are six lessons I took away from her responses:
Mentoring matters, especially for young women: “I think that mentoring is such a critical part of the role I can play in this position. I see how little bits of exposure and big bits of exposure really change my girls significantly, and I want that for more girls around the country and the world.”
The real role models aren’t movie stars–they’re the people you know: “They were the people in my life. My mom, for sure. My dad. The teachers. For me, role-modeling was immediate, it was touchable…Children connect with who is in their lives, present and accounted for…That’s why we’re trying to encourage moms, teachers, fathers, to be that presence in their children’s lives, in their communities, because it really makes a difference.”
Don’t wait to be “discovered” by a mentor: “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. When I was a young lawyer, there were other women and men in the firm who took me under their wing. Look for those mentors, because sometimes mentors don’t find you–sometimes you seek them out. Oftentimes, they’re flattered and glad to lend a hand.”
Don’t put yourself last in line: In answer to a reader question about how she keeps her sanity, the First Lady told Katie, “I have always tried to put my kids first, and then…put myself a really close second, as opposed to fifth or seventh. One thing that I’ve learned from male role models is that they don’t hesitate to invest in themselves.”
When it comes to looks and style, set your own standards: “People are always going to have opinions, and people have a right to their opinions, particularly when you’re the First Lady; you’re representing the nation. So I can’t be surprised that people are interested. But I’ve tried to be at peace with the choices that I make first, and then be open to everyone else’s reflection.”
With men, don’t be swayed by “cute”: “Cute’ [is] good. But cute only lasts for so long, and then it’s, Who are you as a person? Don’t look at the bankbook or the title. Look at the heart. Look at the soul…When you’re dating a man, you should always feel good…You shouldn’t be in a relationship with somebody who doesn’t make you completely happy and make you feel whole.”

[From Glamour]
One of my favorite moments of the year was Michelle’s speech to a girls’ school in London back in April. The school had a 90% minority enrollment, and Michelle delivered an emotional, heart-wrenching, empowering message to those young girls: “You too can control your own destiny, please remember that. Whether you come from a council estate or a country estate, your success will be determined by your own confidence and fortitude…You are precious and you touch my heart.” I also like the whole “cute doesn’t last” quote from this interview. But the original saying is more to the point - “Pretty doesn’t last, stupid is forever.” Great advice!

Cele|bitchy

[Chilly Willy]

She's so smart. Love her.

[rollo]

Nice excerpts from the interview.

[BITTER]

Great look, great dress. What is that on her neck? Is it cloth or jewelry?

[rollo]

It looks like a fancy necklace.

[BITTER]

^^^It looks very Christmas-y. I like it.

[C_is_for_Cookie]

Like the dress, not too wild about the hair.

[Alysheba]

Love her!

[smurfette]

She looks great, love those arms. I watched her answer Jay Leno's 10 at 10 questions a few days ago. She's so cute and seems very sweet.

[NickiDrea]

She reminds me so much of my mother. I love her because she shows the world that there ARE intelligent and classy black women out there. I can actually say that I look up to Michelle Obama. In fact, I love the whole Obama family... and it has nothing to do with my political leanings. They remind me of my family

[Penny Lane]

She's so cool. Really, I don't think we've ever had a first lady as cool as she is... this interview proves just that. I love how intelligent and real she is.

[A*O]

According to an article in this month's Australia Womens Weekly she nearly wasn't First Lady at all. The "perfect" Obama marriage nearly fell apart when the kids were young and Michelle was expected to carry the whole load while Barak pursued his political ambitions to the exclusion of everything else, including his family.

[piperdiva]

Originally Posted by A*O

According to an article in this month's Australia Womens Weekly she nearly wasn't First Lady at all. The "perfect" Obama marriage nearly fell apart when the kids were young and Michelle was expected to carry the whole load while Barak pursued his political ambitions to the exclusion of everything else, including his family.

Makes me love her even more.

[cupcake]

BUT!!! They kept it together! I have alot of repsect for that.

[Birdina]

She's so awesome!