On the new podcast Diary Of A CEO, the former first lady and Steven Bartlett discuss their lives.
Michelle Obama is now in her 60s, but she claims that she is only just beginning to put everything together. She smiles and says, “As a woman, I think I’m finally owning my wisdom in a way that I didn’t,” I believe that women must be like, “I think I know a thing or two” until we’re about 60.
There would be few people who could argue with that. Michelle describes herself as a “box checker” someone who like ticking off lists and planning. But no list could prepare her for the life she has had. The former first lady was born in DeYoung, Illinois, on January 1964, to parents Frasier Robinson III and Marian Shields.
She attended Chicago Public Schools with her older brother Craig, and she quickly excelled in elementary school. She was raised in a rented home in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood. Michelle adds, “I knew my parents loved us, and that’s a strong tool to have in your toolkit when you go to school every day,” despite the fact that the family didn’t have a lot of money and Michelle was raised in a shared bedroom.
Planning her life out then saw her gain at law degree from the prestigious Harvard Law School. She was hired by the Chicago corporate-law firm of Sidley & Austin, where she specialised in entertainment law, and was ultimately assigned as advisor to summer associate Barack Obama in 1988.
Barack Obama appeared in my life as the opposite of a box checker, but he was not the person I described in my book as the ultimate swerve, as I had met him at the same time. On the podcast Diary Of A CEO, she recalls that he was brilliant and fascinating.
He was actually attempting to unpack life in a way that people of my generation were not attempting to, and I decided, I must do more before I give in, and I think Barack helped me find the courage to do so.
Michelle subsequently worked in nonprofit companies in the States and as the associate dean of Student Services at the University of Chicago.
And Barack showed plenty of courage himself in the political world to get to the White House, winning the presidential election which meant Michelle was in the White House with husband between 2009 and 2017.
Michelle and her husband, who wed in 1992, were trying to conceive in the Nineties while also facing political pressure.
She discusses her struggles with fertility and IVF, saying, “Imagine your life as you’re checking boxes: I’m waiting, I delayed having children, I’ve found the love of my life, and I’m going to become pregnant.”
No one can prove that there is a biological clock, so you assume it will be like a box, and it will happen in that way. That is not true.
The biological clock is ticking as we wait for our lives to be perfect, which we really tried, which turned out to be perfect for our careers, as we matured, and have everything set.
She continues, “So when it happens to you, a box checker, someone who believed life would be going to be this and you did all the right things, and you know it was going to be that way and no one told you to be so that you be prepared for it, it just was a blow. And then you walk around with the blow as though it was your fault as a woman.
Thankfully, they were blessed to have two daughters, Malia born in 1998 and Natasha, who was born in 2001.
However, Michelle acknowledges that their time in the White House wasn’t always straightforward because of this.
Although Hillary Clinton and I were distinctly different, we were at a different time. The White House had a few small children, which wasn’t unusual. The West Wing simply didn’t consider or work to fully protect all of us as a whole in terms of accommodations and methods.
Since Barack’s time as President America has changed in many ways and the White House has a very different occupant in Donald Trump. Michelle has been vocal against him and chose not to attend his inauguration alongside Barrack, which saw her forced to deny rumours of marriage problems in April.
“You know, as a box-checker who has been doing the right thing her entire life, attempting to always set a example, always going high,” she says.
I believe I just self-proclaimed, “I think I’ve done enough of that,” and I’m never going to do it. It won’t ever suffice. So let’s get things started.
And while she may not like everything she sees right now in America or a lot of political issues, her husband still inspires hope.
She says, “You are not mad at me, I’m not mad at you,” reflecting on the current state of American leadership and the divisions among some. You have been told a lot about who people of my skin color are, and you don’t really understand what the world is all about. Because of what you’re going through, you’ve been taught to fear me.
I understand why people are afraid when you put yourself in someone else’s shoes. Barack helps me remember, and I do understand it. He says, “This is still the country that elected Barack Obama twice,” you know.
Business leaders and those in power who want power and haven’t understood their “why” can lead us into some dark tunnels, no, really, right?
“But it’s the empathy for me, that perspective-giving ability that prevents them from accepting all the hate and truly see the light in people,” he said. It’s just a better way to live; it prevents embarrassment, fosters optimism, and keeps people working for them. It’s a bit necessary to get past it.
Bartlett also thanks Michelle for her life’s impact during the podcast. He said that as a young black man who was “navigating the world and looking up role models that aren’t often in close proximity to our lives,” and that Michelle was a “huge source of inspiration.”
Afterwards he told the Mirror: “Sitting down to chat with Michelle Obama was one of the most significant moments of my career to date. It was also illuminating. What began as a conversation about leadership became something deeper — an honest and intimate exploration of Michelle’s fears, her marriage, and her journey to becoming who she is today.
For one, I’ve never heard her talk about her story in this way. It is undoubtedly one of DOAC’s most powerful episodes, and it represents a genuine moment for everyone who contributes to the program.
Michelle’s brother and co-host Craig Robinson also appear for the heartfelt and candid feature-length interview.
