There is no magic to achievement. It's really about hard work, choices, and persistence.
My message to women: Do what makes you feel good, because there'll always be someone who thinks you should do it differently. Whether your choices are hits or misses, at least they're your own.
I am not asking anyone to take the fun out of childhood. As we all know, treats are one of the best parts of being a kid. Instead, the goal here is to empower parents instead of undermining them as they try to make healthier choices for their families.
Together, we can help make sure that every family that walks into a restaurant can make an easy, healthy choice.
The work-life balance is a harsh reality for so many women, who are forced every day to make impossible choices. Do they take their kids to the doctor...and risk getting fired? Do they work weekends so they can afford to send their kids to better childcare...even though it means even less time with their families? Do they take another shift at work, so they can pay for piano lessons for their kids...even though it means they have to stop volunteering for the PTA? It just shouldn't be this difficult to raise healthy families.
Even if we give parents all the information they need and we improve school meals and build brand new supermarkets on every corner, none of that matters if when families step into a restaurant, they can't make a healthy choice.
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.
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 can make choices that make me happy, and it will ripple and benefit my kids, my husband, and my physical health. That's hard for women to own; we're not taught to do that.
I love french fries, I like a good burger, and I like pie. And that's okay. I would be depressed if I felt I could never eat the things that I love. I also don't want my girls to be obsessed about food. We don't have a "no junk food" rule - I just want them to think about their choices.
All we can do as women is make the best decisions for us. And that includes everything from how you look to how you dress to whether you choose to stay at home or work when you have kids. All those decisions are so personal, and we have to start with finding what brings us joy and what brings us our own individual confidence. And if we're feeling good with those choices, then it makes what everybody else has to say less important.
What I know for sure is that all the sacrifice and challenges we face are worth it if we're creating a better future for our kids. I just think if the adults are always thinking about the world we want to leave for our kids, we're going to make the right choices every single time.
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. I've tried to be at peace with the choices that I make first, and then be open to everyone else's reflection.
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