powerful woman speeches

The 15 greatest speeches of all time, by 15 inspirational women

We celebrate the greatest speeches of all time, spoken by women who have changed the world for the better

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Let these greatest speeches of all time empower you as a woman and unite us all in a quest for positive change. Words can be incredibly powerful, as is shown in these insightful, spine-tingling and, at times, revolution-inspiring speeches, spoken by great women throughout history, such as Maya Angelo and Emmeline Pankhurst, as well as modern change-makers like Amanda Gorman and Emma Watson . 

It's easy for women's voices to get lost in a sea of historical rhetoric. The most quoted speeches of all time are often those delivered by men, the words of many great women swept under the carpet. Swimming against the current, women have had to speak louder to get their voices heard. In the words of Virginia Woolf, they've had to create a room of their own. So we've rounded up fifteen inspirational women to celebrate those who found a room and encouraged others to do the same. 

Many of these speeches remain relevant for women fighting for equality in a social and political landscape where women are still under-represented. Take for example, Emma Watson's UN "He For She" speech— a decade later, we are still fighting for  equal pay . Or Hillary Clinton's impassioned delivery of "women's rights are human rights"—a quote that feels more relevant than ever considering the overturning of  Roe Vs Wade  in the US and ongoing regressive and oppressive policies worldwide. 

Now more than ever, women must support other women and not only allow their voices to be heard but help amplify the message they share. To inspire you to do the same, these are fifteen of the greatest speeches of all time. 

The greatest speeches of all time by women

1. virginia woolf, "a room of one's own" (1928).

"My belief is that if we live another century or so—I am talking of the common life which is the real life and not of the little separate lives which we live as individuals—and have five hundred a year each of us and rooms of our own; if we have the habit of freedom and the courage to write exactly what we think..."

Based on a series of lectures Woolf delivered in October 1928, A Room Of One's Own has since been heralded as a feminist manifesto. Her words continue to inspire women in 2015 nearly a century after she first spoke them. 

The speech strikes at the heart of patriarchy and argues that without financial independence and access to education—ideological, social and creative freedom is out of reach. Virginia knew this truth all too well: her own father believed only boys profited from schooling. As a result, she didn't go. Her strength of spirit defied even her own father: "Lock up your libraries if you like", she said, "but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind."

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2. Emma Watson, "Gender equality is your issue too" (2014)

"I am from Britain and think it is right that as a woman I am paid the same as my male counterparts. I think it is right that I should be able to make decisions about my own body. I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the policies and decision-making of my country. I think it is right that socially I am afforded the same respect as men. But sadly I can say that there is no one country in the world where all women can expect to receive these rights."

In 2014, Emma Watson partnered with UN Women to launch their HeForShe campaign fighting to end gender inequality and it's still relevant nearly a decade later.

"In 1995, Hilary Clinton made a famous speech in Beijing about women’s rights. Sadly many of the things she wanted to change are still a reality today." Watson continues, and speaking of Clinton... 

3. Hillary Clinton, "Women's Rights Are Human Rights" (1995)

"If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights once and for all. Let us not forget that among those rights are the right to speak freely—and the right to be heard."

Five words that said it all: "Women's rights are human rights".

In 1995, Hillary Clinton's speech at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing marked a watershed moment for women's rights. What makes this speech so inspirational isn't just the words she spoke but where she spoke them. Defying both US administration and Chinese pressure to dilute her remarks, she went for the jugular. It was a full-blown attack against policies abusing "unheard" women around the globe—not just China.

4.  Malala Yousafzai's "I am here to stand up for their rights, to raise their voice" (2014)

"I am those 66 million girls who are deprived of education. And today I am not raising my voice, it is the voice of those 66 million girls. Sometimes people like to ask me why should girls go to school, why is it important for them. But I think the more important question is why shouldn’t they? Why shouldn’t they have this right to go to school?"

At the age of 17 Malala Yousafzai was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for her work fighting for every child to receive an education. As the youngest winner of the prize,  the activist's powerful acceptance speech is not one to be forgotten. 

"Let us become the first generation that decides to be the last that sees empty classrooms, lost childhoods and wasted potentials. Let this be the last time that a girl or a boy spends their childhood in a factory. Let this be the last time that a girl is forced into early child marriage.

"Let this end with us. Let’s begin this ending . . . together . . . today . . . right here, right now. Let’s begin this ending now."

5. Sojourner Truth, "Ain't I A Woman" (1851)

'I have as much muscle as any man, and can do as much work as any man. I have plowed and reaped and husked and chopped and mowed, and can any man do more than that?'  

Named Isabella Baumfree , it says a great deal about Sojourner that she called herself Truth. She spoke it. An African-American abolitionist and women's rights activist, Truth was born into slavery in New York, sold at auction with a flock of sheep for $100 in 1806, escaping with her baby daughter in 1826. 

Oprah Winfrey has recited Truth's inspirational speech many times since.

6. Nora Ephron, "Commencement Address To Wellesley Class Of 1996" (1996)

"Whatever you choose, however many roads you travel, I hope that you choose not to be a lady. I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. And I also hope that you will choose to make some of that trouble on behalf of women."

Nora also spiked her speech with words of caution: "Understand: every attack on Hillary Clinton for not knowing her place is an attack on you," she rallied. Her words still echo today and one sentence rings eternally true: "Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim."

7. Aung San Suu Kyi, "Freedom From Fear" (1990)

"Fearlessness may be a gift but perhaps more precious is the courage acquired through endeavour, courage that comes from cultivating the habit of refusing to let fear dictate one's actions, courage that could be described as 'grace under pressure'—grace which is renewed repeatedly in the face of harsh, unremitting pressure."

Burma's "woman of destiny" has inspired millions during her lifetime of political activism and captivity, held under house arrest for 15 of the past 21 years in Burma. Receiving the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 1990, this now-famous speech followed in acceptance appeals to the spirituality of human nature: it's bravery, compassion and conviction.

8. Gloria Steinem, "Address to the Women of America" (1971)

"This is no simple reform. It really is a revolution. Sex and race, because they are easy, visible differences, have been the primary ways of organizing human beings into superior and inferior groups, and into the cheap labour on which this system still depends. We are talking about a society in which there will be no roles other than those chosen, or those earned. We are really talking about humanism."

In 1971 Gloria Steinem delivered an inspiring Address to the Women of America . It would soon be regarded as one of the most memorable speeches of the second-wave feminist era. What made her speech so powerful wasn't just its attack on sexism, but its focus on the intersectional issues of racism and class.

9. Greta Thunberg, "We'll be watching you" (2019)

"I shouldn’t be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you? You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words, and yet I’m one of the lucky ones. People are suffering, people are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and fairytales of eternal economic growth."

Greta Thunberg was only a teenager when she gave one of the most powerful speeches on climate change . Thunberg's United Nations speech in 2019 is the one everyone remembers when the name Greta Thunberg comes to mind. Albeit only a teenager, she has made many a powerful speech since, including asking world leaders to stop delivering ‘empty promises’. 

10. Maya Angelou, "On the Pulse of Morning" (1993)

'"Here on the pulse of this new day, you may have the grace to look up and out And into your sister's eyes, Into your brother's face, your country And say simply Very simply With hope Good morning."

Maya Angelou was only the second poet in history to read a poem at a presidential inauguration, and the first African American and woman. Touching upon the themes of change, inclusion and responsibility, it has since been called Angelou's "autobiographical poem".

Maya Angelou was an extraordinarily wise woman . One of her most inspiring quotes to live by? 

"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude."

11. Ruth Bader Ginsberg, "The Value of Diversity" (2009)

"As you leave here and proceed along life’s paths, try to leave tracks. Use the education you have received to help repair tears in your communities. Take part in efforts to move those communities, your Nation, and our world closer to the conditions needed to ensure the health and well-being of your generation and generations following your own."

Ruth Bader Ginsberg delivered this passionate keynote speech to graduates at Sciences Po in 2009. Nicknamed the 'notorious RBG' for her fighting spirit and tireless pursuit towards equality, in terms of both gender and race, this speech emphasises the importance of 'repairing the tears' in communities and coming together to build a stronger world for the generations after us. 

She explains earlier in the speech: "We will all profit from a more diverse, inclusive society, understanding, accommodating, even celebrating our differences, while pulling together for the common good."

After her passing in 2020, former President of the United States Barack Obama published a statement that read: “She was someone who believed that equal justice under law only had meaning if it applied to every single [individual].”

12. Julia Gillard "Misogyny speech" (2012)

"I rise to oppose the motion moved by the Leader of the Opposition, and in so doing I say to the Leader of the Opposition: I will not be lectured about sexism and misogyny by this man. I will not. The government will not be lectured about sexism and misogyny by this man—not now, not ever.

"I hope the Leader of the Opposition has a piece of paper and he is writing out his resignation, because if he wants to know what misogyny looks like in modern Australia he does not need a motion in the House of Representatives; he needs a mirror. That is what he needs."

In an iconic moment in feminist history, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard gave an impassioned speech on misogyny that has continued to hold its power to this day. Julia's speech was in response to opposition leader Tony Abbott accusing her of sexism, calling for her to sack Speaker Peter Slipper following an accusation of misogynistic text messages. 

Julia later said of the speech : "After every sexist thing directed at me that I’d bitten my lip on, now I was going to be accused of sexism – the unfairness of that. That anger propelled it.”

13. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie "We should all be feminists" (2011)

“Why the word feminist? Why not just say you are a believer in human rights, or something like that?” Because that would be dishonest. Feminism is, of course, part of human rights in general - but to choose to use the vague expression human rights is to deny the specific and particular problem of gender. It would be a way of pretending that it was not women who have, for centuries, been excluded. It would be a way of denying that the problem of gender targets women. That the problem was not about being human, but specifically about being a female human. For centuries, the world divided human beings into two groups and then proceeded to exclude and oppress one group. It is only fair that the solution to the problem acknowledge that.”

Award-winning Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TedTalks is widely regarded as one of the platform’s best-ever speeches. So much so, that it’s been published as a book and translated into 32 languages. 

In the thirty-minute talk address, she argued for women’s rights and inclusivity and drew on her own experiences. Oh, and Beyonce sampled the speech in her song Flawless .

14. Amanda Gorman "The Hill We Climb" (2021)

“We are striving to forge our union with purpose.

To compose a country committed to all cultures, colours, characters, and conditions of man.

And so we lift our gazes not to what stands between us, but what stands before us.”

The first person ever to be named National Youth Poet Laureate, Amanda Gorman — then only 22 — was catapulted to fame after she performed her poem “The Hill We Climb” at the 2021 inauguration of Joe Biden. Her work addresses sustainability, feminism, racism, and inequality. 

15. Michelle Obama "The 2018 United State of Women Summit" (2018)

“I wish that girls could fail as bad as men do and be OK. Because let me tell you, watching men fail up, it is frustrating. It’s frustrating to see a lot of men blow it and win. And we hold ourselves to these crazy, crazy standards.”

Speaking to Tracee Ellis Ross at the 2018 United State of Women Summit in Los Angeles, Michelle Obama called on the need for girls to be believed in, invested in, and nurtured the way that boys and men are. “If we want our daughters to dream bigger than we did, then we have more work to do,” she said. The speech launched a global petition calling lawmakers to #LeveltheLaw to “empower girls and women around the world”. 

If you're searching for more inspiration on the themes in these speeches, we've rounded up all the best feminist books to add to your reading list and four feminist petitions to sign. 

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10 Famous Speeches To Ignite The Feminist Fire Within You

Be inspired by the words of these powerful women

Throughout history, so many of the people to make us stop and take note with their famous speeches have been women. From the women's suffrage movement in the 1800s and feminism's second wave in the 1970s to the global Women's March in 2017, the words and actions of famous figures such as Emmeline Pankhurst, Virginia Woolf, Maya Angelou and Gloria Steinhem (to name just a few) have transformed society.

It might explain then why the theme of International Women's Day 2021 was #ChooseToChallenge. We can learn so much from the powerful actions and inspiring words of the women who came before us – but, also, there's still so much work we have to do. It's our duty to carry on their work, challenging and changing and speaking up for equality .

And so here, we've rounded up the most famous speeches from a new era of women, who are continuing the task of transforming opinions, breaking boundaries and inspiring us all to keep choosing to challenge. Listen, learn and take note.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Will Not Accept Your Apology

After Florida Representative Ted Yoho reportedly called Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 'a f*cking b*tch' on the steps of the Capitol in July 2020, he tried to excuse his behaviour by saying he has a wife and daughters. In response, AOC (as she's commonly referred to) took to the House floor with what has since been hailed 'the most important feminist speech of a generation' – fluently and passionately detailing why his 'apology' was, simply, not good enough.

Quotes of note:

'I am someone's daughter too. My father, thankfully, is not alive to see how Mr Yoho treated his daughter. My mother got to see Mr. Yoho's disrespect on the floor of this House towards me on television, and I am here because I have to show my parents that I am their daughter and that they did not raise me to accept abuse from men.

'What I believe is that having a daughter does not make a man decent. Having a wife does not make a decent man. Treating people with dignity and respect makes a decent man, and when a decent man messes up, as we all are bound to do, he tries his best and does apologise.'

Natalie Portman On Dismantling The Patriarchy

From her smart quip of 'here are all the male nominees' at the 2018 Golden Globes , calling out the women directors snubbed for the category, to her rousing 'f*ck up and thrive, sisters' speech at the ELLE Women In Hollywood event in 2019, Portman consistently calls out inequality in the film industry. And the actor's address at Variety's Women of Power event in 2019 was no different. In what is now referred to as 'Natalie Portman's Step-by-Step Guide to Toppling the Patriarchy', she made a strong case for all the ways in which we, as individuals, can make a difference.

'Be embarrassed if everyone in your workplace looks like you. Pay attention to physical ability, age, race, sexual orientation, gender identity and make sure you've got all kinds of experiences represented.

'Stop the rhetoric that a woman is crazy or difficult. If a man says a woman is crazy or difficult, ask him: What bad thing did you do to her? It's code that he is trying to discredit her reputation. Make efforts to hire people who've had their reputations smeared in retaliation.'

Michelle Obama On The Inequality Of Failure

Let's be honest: there are so many Michelle Obama speeches to choose from – the former FLOTUS is renowned for her passion for equality and her ability to uplift others with her words. But in a poignant keynote conversation with Tracee Ellis Ross at the United State of Women Summit in 2018, Obama spoke openly about the often-overlooked inequality of failure, and the disparities in repercussions for men and women.

Quote of note:

'I wish that girls could fail as bad as men do and be OK. Because let me tell you, watching men fail up, it is frustrating. It's frustrating to see a lot of men blow it and win. And we hold ourselves to these crazy, crazy standards.

'Start with what you can control. You start there. Because thinking about changing your workplace and changing the way the world thinks – that's big; that's daunting. And then you shrink from that. So start with what you can control. And that's you, first. And those questions start within. First, we must ask ourselves, "Are we using our voices? And when are we not? When are we playing it safe?" And at least be cognisant of that and understand, "These are the times that I shrunk away from doing more than I could, and let me think about why that was."'

Gina Martin On Misogyny, The Power Of Anger And How She Changed The Law

As she tells us in this refreshing TEDx talk from 2020, Gina Martin is not the kind of woman you'd expect to change the law. And yet, she did. The activist discusses the moment in 2017 when a stranger took a picture of her crotch at a festival without her consent – and how, after years of relentless campaigning, she succeeded in making upskirting a criminal offence. Martin makes it clear that anyone can make a change, no matter who they are or where they're from. And that's a lesson we all need to hear.

'Anger is a very normal response to having your human rights compromised. That's important to say. We have to stop using it to delegitimise people, with "angry feminist" or "angry Black woman" – all of these stereotypes. People are allowed to be angry about this stuff. And we have to hold space for them there. We have to realise it's not about us.

'Think about where you hold privilege – it might be in your job, as a parent, as a teacher, or just in the colour of your skin – and start this work now. Stop laughing at the jokes, buy the book, go to the event, diversify your social feeds, ask the questions. Sympathy is soothing, but it doesn't go far enough. Action does. And listen, you'll get things wrong. We all do, I've had some clangers. But it's not about perfection, it's about progress, it's about doing it because it's the right thing to do. We are so done with waiting for society to "change things" for us. We literally are society.'

Lady Gaga On Reclaiming Your Power

When Lady Gaga accepted her ELLE Women In Hollywood award in 2018, her career appeared to be at an all-time high, with Oscar buzz for her role in A Star Is Born , and her song 'Shallow' at number one in the US. But, as she explained, what people perceive a woman, especially in Hollywood, isn't always the reality.

Gaga may have made this moving speech several years ago, but it feels particularly poignant to revisit it during a period in which violence towards women is a more devastating and pressing topic than ever. In it, Gaga recounts how being sexually assaulted caused her to 'shut down' and 'hide'. She explores the debilitating effect of shame on her mental health and also the power of kindness and support in overcoming it.

Importantly, Gaga explains that she eventually found her power within herself – and how, once she took it back, she was able to use it to move beyond the prescribed expectations society puts upon women.

'What does it really mean to be a woman in Hollywood? We are not just objects to entertain the world. We are not simply images to bring smiles or grimaces to people's faces. We are not members of a giant beauty pageant meant to be pit against one another for the pleasure of the public. We women in Hollywood, we are voices. We have deep thoughts and ideas and beliefs and values about the world and we have the power to speak and be heard and fight back when we are silenced.'

'I decided today I wanted to take the power back. Today I wear the pants... I had a revelation that I had to be empowered to be myself today more than ever. To resist the standards of Hollywood, whatever that means. To resist the standards of dressing to impress. To use what really matters: my voice.'

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie On Redefining Feminism

You may not have knowingly heard to author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's speech before, but there's a good chance you will have listened to her words without realising – Beyoncé actually weaved a key part of Adichie's feminist manifesto into her track '***Flawless'. In her speech, Adichie reflects on the gender disparities still evident our society, with a focus on those in her native Africa, and dissects the meaning of 'feminist' – both the connotations and myths it carries – and how she came to define the term for herself.

'We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller, we say to girls, "You can have ambition, but not too much. You should aim to be successful, but not too successful, otherwise you would threaten the man." ...But what if we question the premise itself? Why should a woman's success be a threat to a man?

'I want to be respected in all of my femaleness because I deserve to be. Gender is not an easy conversation to have. For both men and women, to bring up gender is sometimes to encounter almost immediate resistance... Some of the men here might be thinking, "OK, all of this is interesting, but I don't think like that." And that is part of the problem – that many men do not actively think about gender or notice gender is part of the problem.'

Kamala Harris On Setting A New Standard For The Next Generation

On November 7 2020, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris delivered her first national address after Joe Biden 's position as President was secured. As the first woman to hold the position and the first person of colour to do so, Harris' presence alone was enough to break boundaries. But then came her words. In the speech, she reflected on triumph of democracy and credited the work of the women who came before us, plus that of 'a new generation of women in... who cast their ballots and continued the fight for their fundamental right to vote and be heard'.

'While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last, because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities. And to the children of our country, regardless of your gender, our country has sent you a clear message: Dream with ambition, lead with conviction, and see yourselves in a way that others may not, simply because they've never seen it before, but know that we will applaud you every step of the way.'

Amanda Gorman On Finding Your Voice

If you didn't know Amanda Gorman before this year, you'll definitely know her now, thanks to her reading at US President Joe Biden's swearing-in ceremony. The United States' first-ever youth poet laureate's powerful, rhythmic poem 'The Hill We Climb' made the world stop and listen, highlighting the many inequalities in our society and reminding us that we need to work together to overcome them.

While 2021 was the year that catapulted Gorman into the spotlight, it wasn't the first time she'd spoken out about the world around her. In her 2018 TED Talk, she discusses the power of speech, learning to find her voice and how 'poetry is actually at the centre of our most political questions about what it means to be a democracy'.

'I had a moment of realisation, where I thought, "If I choose not to speak out of fear, then there's no one that my silence is standing for."'

'When someone asks me to write a poem that's not political, what they're really asking me is to not ask charged and challenging questions in my poetic work. And that does not work, because poetry is always at the pulse of the most dangerous and most daring questions that a nation or a world might face.'

'If I choose, not out of fear, but out of courage, to speak, then there's something unique that my words can become... It might feel like every story has been told before, but the truth is, no one's ever told my story in the way I would tell it.'

Frances McDormand Demands Inclusion In Hollywood

It's one thing to make a great acceptance speech at the Oscars. But to share that honour with your fellow nominees and use it as a platform to highlight where your industry needs to do better? That's a whole other story, and one told by McDormand in a speech that got everybody on their feet as she accepted the Oscar for Best Actress at the 2018 Academy Awards.

'I want to get some perspective. If I may be so honoured to have all the female nominees in every category stand with me in this room tonight, the actors... the filmmakers, the producers, the directors, the writers, the cinematographers, the composers, the songwriters, the designers... We all have stories to tell and projects we need financed. Don't talk to us about it at the parties tonight. Invite us into your office in a couple days, or you can come to ours, whatever suits you best, and we'll tell you all about them. I have two words to leave with you tonight, ladies and gentlemen: "inclusion rider".'

Meghan Markle On Realising The Magnitude Of Individual Action

Long before she made headlines as the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle had already made the world take notice. At the UN Women Conference back in 2015, she spoke about 'accidentally' becoming a female advocate when at just 11 years old, when she convinced a dish soap company to change their sexist tagline from 'Women all over America are fighting greasy pots and pans' to 'People all over America…' instead. Here, she discusses the power of individual action, and why we need to remind women that 'their involvement matters'.

'It is just imperative: women need a seat at the table, they need an invitation to be seated there, and in some cases, where this is not available, well then, you know what, they need to create their own table. We need a global understanding that we cannot implement change effectively without women's political participation.

'It is said that girls with dreams become women with vision. May we empower each other to carry out such vision – because it isn't enough to simply talk about equality. One must believe in it. And it isn't enough to simply believe in it. One must work at it. Let us work at it. Together. Starting now.

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5 Powerful speeches by women in the 21st century

This women's equality day, join us in celebrating some of the most powerful speeches by women..

We may only be two decades in, but the 21st century has seen monumental shifts regarding gender equality. Movements such as #metoo, global fights for abortion rights, and the Saudi Arabian women's driving ban are a few that have highlighted the issue.

When you think of great speeches in history, images of Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King, and Barack Obama may spring forth. Due to ingrained biases, women have always needed to 'speak louder to have their voices heard'. Women's Equality Day, often referred to as Gender Equality Day, commemorates when Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby signed the proclamation granting American women the right to vote . On this Women's Equality Day (26th August 2021), we celebrate powerful speeches by women on the world stage fighting for equal rights. 

Oprah Winfrey

While receiving an award for 'Outstanding Contributions to the World of Entertainment' at the 2018 Golden Globes, Oprah Winfrey gave one of the most moving speeches by a woman at the awards. 

As someone born into poverty to a single mother who overcame discrimination with race and gender to succeed, she gave a rousing speech addressing the evolution of women's equality. Even more fitting, she was the first black woman to have received that award.

Key points of interest

[00:05:20] 

'In 1944, Recy Taylor was a young wife and a mother. She was just walking home from a church service she attended in Abbeville, Alabama, when she was abducted by six armed white men raped and left blindfolded by the side of the road coming home from church. They threatened to kill her if she ever told anyone. But her story was reported to the NAACP, where a young worker by the name of Rosa Parks became the lead investigator on her case'

[00:08:21] 

'So I want all the girls watching here now to know that a new day is on the horizon. And when that new day finally dawns. It will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say me too again.'

Read the entire transcript here .

Frances McDormand

Upon receiving her 2nd Oscar in 2018, Frances McDormand's speech received a standing ovation after highlighting the integral role women have in Hollywood - both in front of and behind the camera. 

The 'mic drop' moment was the mention of the ' inclusion rider .' An inclusion rider is a clause actors and filmmakers can insert into their contracts to ensure an appropriate level of diversity in a cast, from women to people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, and people with disabilities.

Key points of interest: 

[00:03:16] 

'And now I want to get some perspective. If I may be so honored to have all the female nominees in every category stand with me in this room tonight. [...] OK, look around, everybody, look around, ladies and gentlemen, because we all have stories to tell and projects we need financed'

[00:04:15] 

'I have two words to leave with you tonight. Ladies and gentlemen, Inclusion Rider.'

Read the whole speech here .

Emma Watson

From actress to activist, Emma Watson is an outspoken supporter of gender equality. In a passionate women's rights speech at the UN in 2014, she declared gender equality an issue for both males and females to advocate. She asserted that 'feminism' has almost become a dirty word and that it is down to the inadvertent feminists to strengthen the movement. 

She also talked about gender equality from a male perspective, highlighting mental health and gender stereotypes, demonstrating that men do not have gender equality either. 

Key points of interest:

[00:01:51] 

'The more I've spoken about feminism, the more I have realized that fighting for women's rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one thing I know for certain. It is that this has to stop. For the record, feminism, by definition, is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.'

[00:04:05] 

'I am from Britain. And I think it is right that I am paid the same as my male counterparts. I think it is right that I should be able to make decisions about my own body. I think. I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the policies and the decisions that will affect my life. I think it is right that socially I am afforded the same respect as men. But sadly, I can say that there is no one country in the world where all women can expect to receive these rights. No country in the world can yet say that they have achieved gender equality.'

[00:08:35] 

'If men don't have to be aggressive in order to be accepted, women won't feel compelled to be submissive. If men don't have to control, women won't have to be controlled. Both men and women should feel free to be sensitive, both men and women should feel free to be strong. It is time that we all perceive gender on a spectrum instead of two sets of opposing ideals.'

The entire transcript can be found here .

Malala Yousafzai

Malala Yousafzai is one of the leading women's rights activists globally and the youngest person (and first Pakistani) to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014. In her acceptance speech, she delivered a heartfelt message advocating a women's right to education. She sheds light on women's rights from a unique cultural point of view.

[00:03:39] 

'I have found that people describe me in many different ways. Some people call me the girl who was shot by the Taliban and some the girl who fought for her rights. [...] As far as I know, I'm just a committed and even stubborn person who wants to see every child getting quality education. Who wants to see women having equal rights and who wants peace in every corner of the world.'

Read the transcript in Trint .

Greta Thunberg

The youngest on our list, Greta Thunberg, is a name synonymous with activism. This is more of an honorable mention as her speech at the UN Climate Action Summit in 2019 focused on climate change rather than gender equality. However, even at the age of 16, and speaking in her non-native tongue, Thunburg faced gender-based bias following the speech. There was online backlash due to her emotional tone and age, proving that women's rights have a long way to go before equality is reached. 

Key point of interest:

[00:00:54] 

'You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words, yet I'm one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is the money and fairy tales of his time of economic growth. How dare you?'

The speech transcript is here for you to read .

What's next for women's equality?

Thanks to these speeches by women, the topic of gender equality remains at the forefront of the public's mind. Having said that, there is still some way to go in the case of equal pay and gender stereotypes and other global issues. However, these speeches have given women a platform in which to make their voices heard. 

Trint is an employer committed to equality for both genders with a number of initiatives like our Women in Tech and Diversity and Inclusion groups. We are committed to providing equal opportunities to our employees. 

We used Trint to transcribe the MP4 files of these speeches, try it out for yourself .

Your free trial awaits, learn more about trint for enterprise.

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5 of the most powerful speeches made by women, for women

By Chandni Sehgal

Woman's suffrage movements that date back to the late 1800s. The women's liberation movement of the 1960s. The black feminism movement of the 1970s. The #MeToo movement last year, that has continued to gain momentum in 2018. Beyond these, there are thousands of global and local women's movements, smaller and larger in scale, less conspicuous yet equally relevant that fly under the radar of the media… but that continue to exist, relentlessly fighting battles, for all women's rights.

Whether it's for basic fundamental rights that are perhaps still inaccessible to women in small, isolated parts of the world (issues like female infanticide, child marriage, rape in marriages, and more continue to exist), or whether it is more powerful, privileged women publicly fighting for issues like wage equality, the right to marry who they want, or waging a war against sexual harassment, stories of women fighting to be heard, and for equality, are everywhere.

If you're lucky enough to have access to an internet connection, and find yourself overwhelmed by a situation in your life as a woman, we think there's no one better than those who have overcome the odds, to inspire you. Read on for a round-up of inspirational quotes from the women who have shown us how it's done (again, and again).

1. Oprah Winfrey

By Veronica Cristino

By Katharina Fuchs

By Renata Joffre

Image: Getty

Born into poverty to a single teenage mother, she has publicly stated she was molested as a teenager. Fighting her personal odds, today she is a powerful media entrepreneur, actor, producer, philanthropist and global icon, among many other celebrated titles. At the 2018 Golden Globes, amidst the #MeToo outrage, she accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award (for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment).  As the first black woman—and the 15th woman overall—to win, the American icon gave a rousing speech, telling women everywhere to take heart, for the world is changing for the better.

Quotable quotes: "I want to say that I value the press more than ever before as we try to navigate these complicated times, which brings me to this: What I know for sure is that speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have, and I'm especially proud and inspired by all the women who have felt strong enough and empowered enough to speak up and share their personal stories... I want all the girls watching here and now to know that a new day is on the horizon! And when that new day finally dawns it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say 'me too' again."

2. Gloria Steinem

Her paternal grandmother, Pauline Perlmutter Steinem, was chairwoman of the educational committee of the National Woman Suffrage Association and a delegate to the 1908 International Council of Women—and with such illustrious genes, it's no surprise that she went on to become an outspoken feminist, journalist, and nationally-recognised social political activist for the American feminist movement.

On January 21, 2017, at the Women's March in Washington DC—the largest public rally for women's right at the time—she gave a fiery speech, urging women everywhere to unite, claim their lives, and own their truth.

Quotable quotes: “We are here and around the world for a deep democracy that says we will not be quiet, we will not be controlled, we will work for a world in which all countries are connected. God may be in the details, but the goddess is in connections. We are at one with each other, we are looking at each other, not up. No more asking daddy.

We are linked. We are not ranked. And this is a day that will change us forever because we are together. Each of us individually and collectively will never be the same again. When we elect a possible president we too often go home. We've elected an impossible president, we're never going home. We're staying together. And we're taking over. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Make sure you introduce yourselves to each other and decide what we're gonna do tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow and we're never turning back."

3. Malala Yousafzai

The youngest Nobel Prize laureate, this Pakistani activist for female education has survived an assassination attempt by Taliban activist to go on to set-up the Malala Fund and relentlessly fight for the right to female education. Accepting her Nobel Peace Prize in 2014, she gave an inspiring speech, uniting all those that have suffered the same atrocities, and that are fighting the same fight as her—reminding us that we are never alone.

Quotable quotes: “When my world suddenly changed, my priorities changed too. I had two options, one was to remain silent and wait to be killed. And the second was to speak up and then be killed. I chose the second one. I decided to speak up. The terrorists tried to stop us and attacked me and my friends on 9th October 2012, but their bullets could not win. We survived. And since that day, our voices have only grown louder. I tell my story, not because it is unique, but because it is not. It is the story of many girls… Though I appear as one girl, one person, who is 5ft 2in tall, if you include my high heels. I am not a lone voice, I am many.

I am Shazia. I am Kainat Riaz. I am Kainat Somro. I am Mezon. I am Amina. I am those 66 million girls who are out of school.”

4. Chimamanda Adichie

The Nigerian author is well known for her range of novels, short stories and nonfiction, but what brings here to the forefront of the women empowerment movement is We Should All Be Feminists, Adichie's 2012 TEDx talk, first delivered at TedX Euston. It inspired her book-length essay, We Should All Be Feminists. An excerpt from the speech where the African feminist shares her views on gender construction and sexuality:

Quotable quotes: “I am angry. Gender as it functions today is a grave injustice. We should all be angry. Anger has a long history of bringing about positive change, but in addition to being angry, I'm also hopeful because I believe deeply in the ability of human beings to make and remake themselves for the better. And this is how to start. We must raise our daughters differently. We must also raise our sons differently.”

5. Ellen DeGeneres

The American funny woman may be an award-winning actor, writer, producer and TV host, but she makes it to our list for her LGBT activism. At a time when homosexuality was still hidden away in the closet, in April 1997, a Time cover featured DeGeneres and her iconic words “Yep, I'm Gay.” Here's what we loved about her interview, as she credits her parents at a time for being supportive when it was a taboo subject, reminding us that we don't always have to fight our fights alone.

Quotable quotes: “I've been really lucky. I have a really great family. I have parents who understand. My mother understands, now even more so. My father is supportive. My dad said the most hilarious thing when I told him what I was going to do on the show. He said, “You're not going to go all flamboyant, are ya?” I was like, “Yeah, Dad, I'm going to completely change. I'm going to start wearing leather vests. I'm going to get one of those haircuts that they all have.”

By Sarah Thiele

By Prabal Sharma

Top 10 Famous Speeches by Women That Inspired the World

When we think of moments that have changed the course of history, speeches often come to mind. These powerful orations have the capacity to inspire, challenge, and transform societies. Particularly, speeches by women have echoed through time, breaking barriers and paving the way for future generations. This article shines a light on ten iconic speeches by women who used their voices to inspire the world.

How Speeches by Women Catalyze Social Change

Speeches have long been a catalyst for social change. Through eloquent words and persuasive rhetoric, speakers can ignite movements, alter public opinion, and sway the course of history. Women, in particular, have harnessed the power of speeches to advocate for rights, equality, and justice, leaving indelible marks on the fabric of society.

Leading Voices: Women Using Speeches to Inspire and Guide

Women have stood at podiums, not just to speak, but to lead. From rallying cries for suffrage to calls for peace and environmental action, their speeches have been more than words; they’ve been a call to action. These women have inspired countless others to stand up, speak out, and strive for a better world.

Trailblazing Speeches by Women in History

Sojourner truth - "ain't i a woman".

In 1851, Sojourner Truth delivered an impromptu speech that would become a cornerstone in the fight for women’s and African Americans’ rights. Her question, “Ain’t I a woman?” challenged societal norms and highlighted the intersectionality of race and gender, a conversation that continues today.

Sojourner Truth – “Ain’t I a Woman?” (1851) “Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain’t I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man – when I could get it – and bear the lash as well! And ain’t I a woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother’s grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain’t I a woman?”

Emmeline Pankhurst - "Freedom or Death"

Emmeline Pankhurst’s 1913 speech, “Freedom or Death,” encapsulated the fierce determination of the suffragette movement. Her words not only rallied women to the cause but also drew global attention to the fight for women’s right to vote.

Emmeline Pankhurst – “Freedom or Death” (1913) “I know that women, once convinced that they are doing what is right, that their rebellion is just, will go on, no matter the difficulties, no matter the dangers, till they have won their case. And so we are here to ask men to give us something that no one can deny: the liberty to have a voice in the choosing of the government under which they live.”

Voices of the Modern Era

Malala yousafzai - "the right to learning should be given to every child".

At the tender age of 16, Malala Yousafzai stood before the United Nations and advocated for children’s education worldwide. Surviving an assassination attempt, her resolve only strengthened, making her voice a beacon of hope and resistance against oppression.

Malala Yousafzai – Address to the United Nations (2013) “So here I stand, one girl among many. I speak not for myself, but for those without voice can be heard. Those who have fought for their rights: their right to live in peace, their right to be treated with dignity, their right to equality of opportunity, their right to be educated.”

Michelle Obama - "Let Girls Learn"

Michelle Obama’s “Let Girls Learn” initiative was more than just a program; it was a global call to action. Her speeches around the world inspired nations to invest in the future of girls, emphasizing education as a fundamental right.

Michelle Obama – “Let Girls Learn” (2015) “No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens. And I want to be very clear that we are not just talking about resources here, we’re talking about human potential, and we’re talking about the power of education to transform societies and economies, and the power of an educated girl to transform her family, her community, and her country.”

The Unsung Heroes

Wangari maathai - "bottle of water".

Wangari Maathai, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, used her acceptance speech to tell a simple story of a hummingbird trying to extinguish a forest fire. This metaphor for individual effort and environmental conservation resonated worldwide, inspiring millions to contribute to positive change, no matter the size of the contribution.

Wangari Maathai – Nobel Peace Prize Lecture (2004) “I found that when we destroy our environment, we destroy ourselves. We cannot tire or give up. We owe it to the present and future generations of all species to rise up and walk!”

Leymah Gbowee - "Mobilizing Women to Make Peace"

Leymah Gbowee’s leadership in mobilizing women across Liberia to demand peace is a testament to the power of grassroots movements. Her speeches, filled with raw emotion and unwavering resolve, played a pivotal role in ending Liberia’s civil war. Gbowee demonstrated how women’s voices could not only demand peace but also achieve it.

Leymah Gbowee – Nobel Peace Prize Lecture (2011) “It is time for women to stop being politely angry. We women in Liberia were tired of war. We were tired of running, we were tired of begging for food, we were tired of our children being raped. We came together – Christian and Muslim women – and we said: ‘We will do it, we will save our country.'”

Champions of Equality

Chimamanda ngozi adichie - "we should all be feminists".

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s eloquent speech, “We Should All Be Feminists,” adapted into a book and even featured in a song, has become a rallying cry for gender equality across the globe. Her persuasive argument for a more inclusive definition of feminism has inspired discussions about gender roles in countless homes, workplaces, and institutions.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – “We Should All Be Feminists” (2012) “Gender as it functions today is a grave injustice. We should all be angry. Anger has a long history of bringing about positive change; but in addition to being angry, I am also hopeful, because I believe deeply in the ability of human beings to remake themselves for the better.”

Ruth Bader Ginsburg - "Women's Rights Are Human Rights"

Throughout her career, Ruth Bader Ginsburg advocated for gender equality and women’s rights with unwavering determination. Her speeches and legal arguments laid the groundwork for significant legal advances in the fight against gender discrimination, reminding us that “women’s rights are human rights.”

Ruth Bader Ginsburg – Remarks at the Second Circuit Judicial Conference (1993) “The notion that we have made progress towards equality, yet that women’s rights are still a work in progress, underscores the need for vigilance in ensuring that the progress we have made is not rolled back and that we continue to advance towards full equality. Women belong in all places where decisions are being made.”

Need to Mention Women Speeches

Hillary Clinton – “Women’s Rights Are Human Rights” (1995) “At the conference in Beijing, it seemed clear to me that women’s rights—as long as they are denied—cannot claim to have fully achieved human rights. If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights, once and for all. Let us not forget that among those rights are the right to speak freely, and the right to be heard.”

This speech, delivered at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, marked a pivotal moment in the global fight for women’s rights, emphasizing the inseparable nature of women’s rights and human rights.

Greta Thunberg – “How Dare You” (2019) “This is all wrong. I shouldn’t be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to us young people for hope? How dare you! You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words. And yet I’m one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!”

Greta Thunberg’s impassioned speech at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York captured the world’s attention, highlighting the urgent need for action on climate change and holding leaders accountable for their role in the environmental crisis.

The legacy of these speeches by women is a testament to the power of words to inspire change, challenge injustices, and empower future generations. These voices, from different times and places, share a common thread of resilience, courage, and hope. They encourage us to listen, learn, and continue the conversation. As we reflect on these influential speeches, let’s remember the impact that words can have in shaping a more just and equitable world. Let these speeches inspire not just admiration, but action.

By examining the lives and legacies of these remarkable women, we gain insight into the enduring power of speaking out. Their words remind us of the progress made and the work that remains in the pursuit of equality and justice for all. In a world where women’s voices are still being silenced and marginalized, the messages of these trailblazers are as relevant and vital as ever. Let’s carry forward their legacy by amplifying voices that fight for change, championing causes that matter, and, most importantly, by never underestimating the power of speaking up.

In conclusion, the top 10 famous speeches by women that inspired the world are not just historical footnotes. They are living, breathing manifestos for change, echoing through the ages and inspiring us to act. As we move forward, let us hold onto the lessons they teach, the inspiration they provide, and the change they demand. The voices of these remarkable women have shaped our past, and now, it’s up to us to let them inspire our future.

This article serves as a bridge connecting the past’s powerful voices with today’s ongoing struggles and aspirations. By revisiting these speeches, we are reminded of the incredible strength inherent in speaking out and standing up for what is right. These women, through their words, have laid down a challenge to each of us: to live with conviction, to speak with courage, and to act with compassion. Their speeches are not just a call to remember history but a summons to create it.

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10 talks by women that everyone should watch

Color bravery. A headset for brainwaves. His/hers healthcare. 10 big, bold talks from female speakers.

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Color blind or color brave?

His and hers ... health care

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Speech: Women leaders – decisive, effective and inclusive

Opening remarks by un women executive director sima bahous at the inaugural meeting of the un general assembly platform of women leaders: “transformative solutions by women leaders to today’s interlinked challenges”..

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[As delivered]

On behalf of UN Women, it is my honour and great pleasure today to join their Excellencies President Kőrösi of the 77 th  session of the General Assembly, and President Shahid of the 76 th  session of the General Assembly, in welcoming this exemplary group of leaders to the first meeting of the United Nation General Assembly Platform of Women Leaders.

Thank you President Kőrösi for putting a spotlight on the power of women’s leadership at the opening of today’s General Assembly. And thank you, President Shahid, for inspiring the launch of this platform. It is also an honour to share this platform with our moderator, Helen Clark, also a former woman Head of Government—and an inspiring leader. I am also grateful for the cooperation of the Council of Women World Leaders, our partners in launching this UN General Assembly Platform of Women Leaders.

The initiative behind this Platform is fueled by a shared commitment to placing gender equality at the forefront of the multilateral arena, not only as a matter of human rights, but also because it is critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.  

Never has the opportunity to gather so many powerful women world leaders been so timely and so critical. But we all know that when it comes to women in political decision-making, equality is still far off. Women represent only 1 in 4 members of parliament worldwide and are just 34 per cent of those elected to local governments. And higher up the echelons of power, women are fewer in numbers. They are less than 10 per cent of Heads of State and Government. And more than 100 countries have never had a woman executive. This is why we see so few women in power at this venue—the High-Level Week of the UN General Assembly.

In 2020, only 4 per cent of speakers during the General Assembly were women, which Fortune magazine dubbed “the ultimate man-el.” As the Deputy Secretary-General recalled, with this pace, gender parity for the Heads of State and Government will not be reached for another 130 years. We cannot wait that long.  If we are to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we must redouble our efforts for gender equality. We must increase women’s leadership, and we must continue to push for spaces that amplify the voices of women. We know that gender equal societies are more peaceful and more prosperous.

Conflict, the climate crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic threaten our planet and all its people more than ever. Today, we have the roadmap. We know that balanced leadership is the key to unlock our common challenges. What we need now is increased political will and the full range of women’s life experiences and leadership talents.

UN Women remains your unwavering partner as you take these challenges head-on as women leaders often do: decisively, effectively, and inclusively.

I thank you.

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My Top Ten Favourite Speeches by Women

by Kolarele Sonaike

Why is it that when most experts are asked to name the greatest speeches ever given, the resulting list nearly always exclusively features speeches given by men? 

As anyone who has witnessed enough speeches firsthand can confirm, public speaking prowess does not belong to any one gender, race, or religion. Nevertheless, it certainly is true that historically, great speeches by women have failed to get anywhere close to the same level of recognition as comparable speeches by their male counterparts.

So, with huge indebtedness to the excellent Eloquent Women Blog by the late Denise Graveline, and Dana Rubin and her ‘ Speaking while female ‘ speech bank (who have both compiled by far the best resource of speeches by women), here is a list of 10 of the greatest speeches ever given, which also happen to be speeches by women (in reverse order). 

(Need some coaching to improve your own communication skills? Book into my calendar for a chat .

Prefer to watch a video of the list? Here you go:

10. Malala Yousafzi

Accepting the nobel peace prize (2014).

As the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, Malala is an inspiration to young women the world over.

Her speech is an excellent example of determination, resilience and humility.

Best line? “I tell my story not because it is unique, but because it is not”

9. Hillary Clinton

‘women’s rights are human rights’ speech (1995).

Clinton (Hillary, that is) ain’t no Clinton (Bill, that is) when it comes to speechmaking.

Bill had a natural talent for connecting with his audience in a way that Hilary by her own admission does not have. But way back before she decided to run for President and before Monica Lewinsky was just a glint in Bill Clinton’s eye, Hillary gave a very impressive speech in China no less about the critical need to elevate world thinking about the importance of women’s rights.

Perhaps we should have known back then that what she really wanted was to be the POTUS and not just the FLOTUS.

Best line? “ Women’s rights are human rights “

8. Oprah Winfrey

Accepting the Golden Globe Award (2018)

No list about great women is complete without Oprah!

She gave this speech at a time when many were sincerely hoping that she would announce a run for the Presidency and this speech did nothing to quell those hopes and rumours. With its inspiring and uplifting message about female empowerment, this was a tour de force that had a few in the audience crying (It’s Oprah, after all) and literally lifted a celebrity-packed audience to its feet. 

Best line? “For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dare speak the truth to the power of those men. But their time is up! ”

7. Emmeline Pankhurst

Freedom or death speech (1913).

Tricky picking speeches for which there is no recorded footage, but you only have to read the transcript of this speech to appreciate its power. Imagine a time when women had to go on hunger strikes, burn down men-only golf clubs, or get trampled to their death by horses at the Kings Derby, just to get men to pay attention.

It is this context that gives the bravery of Emmeline Pankhurst’s speech its greatness.

One passage in particular, struck me as incredibly radical yet directly on point.

“You have two babies very hungry and wanting to be fed. One baby is a patient baby, and waits indefinitely until its mother is ready to feed it. The other baby is an impatient baby and cries lustily, screams and kicks and makes everybody unpleasant until it is fed. Well, we know perfectly well which baby is attended to first. That is the whole history of politics. You have to make more noise than anybody else, you have to make yourself more obtrusive than anybody else, you have to fill all the papers more than anybody else, in fact you have to be there all the time and see that they do not snow you under.”

What better and more attention-grabbing way for someone fighting for her rights as a woman, than to use an analogy involving babies to make a political point.

Read the full transcript here

Best line? “W e will put the enemy in the position where they will have to choose between giving us freedom or giving us death.”

6. Maya Angelou

On the pulse of the morning – clinton inauguration (1993).

I suspect if any other person had delivered this poem (which is a pretty decent poem), it would have been well received, but not lauded.

The true genius of this speech lies in the delivery. That earthy rasping voice of Maya Angelou is just mesmerising. It infuses each word, each phrase, and each line with such gravitas that you can’t help but be absorbed by it. She doesn’t speak or recite, rather her voice is so melodic, so beautifully rhythmic, that she is almost singing.

And very noticeably, the huge throng of ordinary men and women in the crowd – most of whom had probably not read or listened to a poem since school, watched in complete enthralled silence.

Halfway through. What do you think?

(Have you taken my FREE Communication SuperSkills workshop?

5. Julia Gillard

On misogyny (2012).

Want to see a dinosaur torn apart? Then you’re in the right place.

Frustrated at the antics of the leader of the opposition at the time, Tony Abbott, Prime Minister at the time, Julia Gillard, decided that enough was enough for all that sexism and misogyny, and stood up in Parliament to tear Tony Abbott ‘a new one’. One of the most cutting, no holds barred, blistering attacks by one politician on another you’ll ever see, and delivered with perfect poise and control.

Best line? “ if he wants to know what misogyny looks like in modern Australia, he doesn’t need a motion in the House of Representatives, he needs a mirror.”

4. Sojourner Truth

Ain’t i a woman (1851).

Another speech for which we were denied the benefit of seeing it in action. To quote a review of the speech by an attendant on the day “ It is impossible to transfer it to paper, or convey any adequate idea of the effect it produced upon the audience.”

And yet, you can still imagine the awesome impact of seeing this tall, gaunt, dark-skinned woman in a white turban take to the stage to deliver this powerful oration to the audience of the Women’s Convention in Ohio in 1851. In many ways, this was the forerunner of Hillary Clinton’s Women’s Rights speech.

Sojourner Truth (she changed her name from Isabella Baumfree) was an abolitionist an escaped former slave, who successfully sued her former ‘master’ for custody of her son. So, you can imagine with that history, what a powerful presence she had and why she had such an impact.

I love this speech for its directness and honesty in confronting its audience with the stark simplicity of its premise: that a woman is the equal of a man in every measure.

And that refrain using the technique of anaphora (or phrase repetition) “Ain’t I a woman?… Ain’t I a woman?” It is a plea, an accusation, and an affirmation all in one. 

The speech only lasted about 3 minutes and then she finished with ‘old Sojourner ain’t got nothing more to say’.

I hope she dropped the mic on her way out! Oh YouTube! Wither weres’t thou when we needest thou?

Much as I love her, I’m not sure Kerry Washington was the right person to deliver this kind of speech, but she certainly gives it the right degree of attitude!

Best line? “Then that little man in black there, he says women can’t have as much rights as men. ’cause Christ wasn’t a woman! Where did your Christ come from?”

3. Michelle Obama

Introducing the president at the national democratic convention (2012).

We all know about Barack Obama’s public speaking prowess, but it shouldn’t be a surprise that his wife, a high-powered lawyer in her own right, and his former supervisor, can give a pretty mean speech when the occasion demands.

The content and style of delivery are masterful as she straddles the delicate balance between being real and being political. No surprise then that her approval ratings have remained consistently high even whilst those of her husband have waned.

I wonder if she’s also thinking of doing the Hillary shuffle from First Lady to President.

Best line? “Being President doesn’t change who you are, it reveals who you are”

2. Severn Suzuki

Speech to the un earth summit in rio (1992).

I defy you to watch this speech and not stop everything you’re doing until it has finished.

27 years before a 15-year-old Greta Thunberg wowed the world with her impassioned rhetoric on climate change, a 12-year-old girl stepped onto the world stage at the UN Earth Summit in Rio and made the world stop to listen.

A remarkable speech on many levels. Firstly, it’s content is powerful and filled with insightful observations about the perils facing the planet. Secondly, it is full of rhetorical flourishes that would make even the greatest speechmakers proud  – listen out for her expert use of repetition ‘I’m only a child yet…’. Finally, the poise and control with which she delivers her speech are remarkable for one so young.

It’s the perfect mix of passion and logic to sustain a compelling case.

Most impressive of all is the way she holds a room full of jaded and seasoned political world representatives transfixed until her last word. And then I love the way they all applaud with fervour like they’re the school kids and not her.

Best line? “ If you don’t know how to fix it, please stop breaking it”

1. Elizabeth I

The tilbury speech (1588).

No actual video footage of this one unsurprisingly, but still one of the greatest speeches ever given, full stop.

Faced with an invading Spanish Armada from abroad, domestic challenges at home (she had just executed the challenger Mary Queen of Scots), and religious condemnation from the Vatican, who declared her an evil heretic, there was a lot riding on this speech. On top of it all, she really was a woman in a decidedly man’s world, taking on a traditionally male role, in front of an entirely male army. No pressure then!

It’s astonishing that you cannot find a full video version of this great speech online despite the many great actors that have played Elizabeth 1 including Helen Mirren and Dame Judi Dench. Here, at least, is an excerpt featuring another great, Cate Blanchett.

Best line? “ I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a King of England too “

Is it the best of all the speeches by women? Maybe, maybe not. Over the centuries there have undoubtedly been a large number of great speeches by women, many of which are now lost in the annals of history.  But it is my personal favourite and top of my list.

Simple. Short. Sharp. As all great speeches, including yours, should always be.

Kolarele Sonaike

p.s. I help executives and entrepreneurs develop outstanding communication skills to take their careers to the next level. Reach out to chat when you are ready to work on your communication skills

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5 of Michelle Obama’s Most Powerful Speeches EVER

By Evette Dionne

During her time as First Lady, Michelle Obama has captivated audiences with her speeches. She has spoken about her experience as a black woman competing in the very white field of academia and has not been afraid to call out Donald Trump's sexist comments. While campaigning for Hillary Clinton last month in New Hampshire, Michelle pointed out how this election cycle is different. She said , "This is not normal. This is not politics as usual." Michelle later added about Trump's sexist rhetoric, "It has shaken me to my core in a way that I couldn’t have predicted."

Michelle Obama is a genius speaker in her own right. Like Barack, she knows how to engage an audience with a mixture of sharp intelligence and accessibility. She’s blessed stages from Greensboro, North Carolina, to Qatar with grace and confidence. In honor of Michelle’s last days in the White House, here are five of her most impactful speeches.

Michelle Reminisces about Growing Up on the Southside of Chicago

August 26, 2008

Democratic National Convention: Denver, CO

We knew a lot about the Obamas before they arrived at the Democratic National Convention, ready to become the first black couple to earn the nomination of a major party. We knew about their two daughters, their political aspirations, and their whirlwind romance and marriage. But this speech specifically introduced us to Michelle. It’s significant because it positioned Michelle as a woman who wanted to change the world. “All of us driven by a simple belief that the world as it is just won't do — that we have an obligation to fight for the world as it should be,” she said.

Michelle Discusses the Legacy of Maya Angelou

June 7, 2014

Maya Angelou’s Memorial Service: Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Maya Angelou’s death rocked the world — and moved Michelle to speak at her memorial service. She spoke about Maya’s work influencing her as a black girl being raised on the southside of Chicago. This proved to be the first time Michelle directly evoked her black womanhood. In that speech, Michelle said Maya’s poem, “Phenomenal Woman,” “spoke to the essence of black women.” “As a young woman, I needed that message,” she said. “As a child, my first doll was Malibu Barbie. That was the standard for perfection. That was what the world told me to aspire to. But then I discovered Maya Angelou, and her words lifted me right out of my own little head.”

Michelle Talks about her Role as First Lady

September 4, 2012

Democratic National Convention: Charlotte, North Carolina

By Kaitlyn McNab

By Shauna Beni-Haynes

By Kara Nesvig

Michelle’s 2012 DNC speech positioned her as a First Lady on a mission. She chronicled her and Barack’s blue collar lives before entering politics. Most importantly, she delivered a line that’s been circulating in politics ever since: “I have seen firsthand that being president doesn't change who you are – it reveals who you are.”

Michelle Stresses the Importance of Women's Rights

March 8, 2016

International Women’s Day: Washington, DC

Michelle celebrated the first anniversary of her Let Girls Learn initiative by speaking at an International Women’s Day conference in DC. This speech was impactful because she framed it around why fighting for women’s rights is important. “These issues aren’t settled,” she said. “These freedoms that we take for granted aren’t guaranteed in stone. And they certainly didn’t just come down to us as a gift from the heavens. No, these rights were secured through long, hard battles waged by women and men who marched, and protested, and made their voices heard in courtrooms and boardrooms and voting booths and the halls of Congress.”

Michelle Speaks about the Importance of Education

June 3, 2016

City College of New York Commencement: New York, NY

Michelle delivered her final commencement address as First Lady in June. In this speech, she leveled zingers at Donald Trump, but also spit an important line that has echoed throughout the entire campaign: “It’s the story that I witness every single day when I wake up in a house that was built by slaves, and I watch my daughters — two beautiful, black young women — head off to school, waving goodbye to their father, the President of the United States, the son of a man from Kenya who came here to American -- to America for the same reasons as many of you: To get an education and improve his prospects in life.”

Related: Michelle Obama Just Hilariously Shut Down a Guy Who Asked Her to Run for President

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23 Of The Best Speeches That Have Been Delivered By Inspiring Women

"When you are excellent ... you become an unforgettable woman."

BuzzFeed Contributor

March is Women's History Month, and there are many areas in life to celebrate outstanding contributions from amazing women.

One example is speeches — some of the most inspiring talks in history have been spoken by female orators like sojourner truth, oprah winfrey, and susan b. anthony. these 23 speeches delivered by women will inspire you to use your voice and stand in your power., 1. oprah winfrey's spelman college commencement speech..

Oprah encouraged the Spelman College class of 2012 to know who they are and what they want in life, use their gifts to serve the world, and always do the right thing. She also discussed how doing your best, regardless of what stage you're at in life, sets you up for success.

"Be excellent. People notice," Oprah said. "Even at Taco Bell, excellence shows itself  ... What I know is that when you are excellent, you become unforgettable. People remember you. You stand out. Regardless of what it is, you become an unforgettable woman."

2. Madonna's Billboard Woman of the Year speech.

When Madonna accepted Billboard's Woman of the Year award in 2016, she used her time onstage to address double standards faced by women and encouraged women to surround themselves with empowered allies.

"Women have been so oppressed for so long, they believe what men have to say about them, and they believe they have to back a man to get the job done," Madonna said. "And there are some very good men worth backing, but not because they're men — because they're worthy. As women, we have to start appreciating our own worth and each other's worth. Seek out strong women to befriend, to align yourself with, to learn from, to be inspired by, to collaborate with, to support, to be enlightened by."

3. Michelle Obama's The City College of New York commencement speech.

Michelle spoke at The City College of New York for her final commencement address as First Lady of the United States in 2016. She urged the graduating class to embrace difficulties they may face in life and see them as opportunities for growth.

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

4. Priyanka Chopra's Variety Power of Women speech.

When  Priyanka spoke  at Variety's Power of Women event in 2017, she said numerous personal experiences led her to creating The  Priyanka Chopra Foundation for Health and Education and partnering with UNICEF. 

One especially impactful moment for her was when she learned that her housekeeper's daughter had stopped going to school because it was too expensive for all of her siblings to attend. Instead, her brothers were chosen to become educated for fear that it would "be a waste of money" if the girl would later choose to get married.

"I was completely blown [away], and it shook me to my core," Priyanka said of this experience. "Eventually, I decided to cover the cost of her education so she could continue to learn because education is a basic human right and a huge necessity, especially today. From that point on, I was determined to make a difference in as many children's lives as I could in whatever big or small way that I could contribute."

5. Gloria Steinem's '70s Women's Liberation Rally speech.

"I would not have admitted my own inequality, even though I had been refused apartments by landlords who would not rent to women and refused access to supposedly public places," Gloria said  to the crowd at the rally.

"Now, thanks to the spirit of equality in the air, and to the work of many of my more foresighted sisters, I no longer accept society's judgment that my group is second class," she added.

6. Rihanna's Harvard University Humanitarian of the Year speech.

Harvard University named Rihanna as their Humanitarian of the Year in 2017  for her philanthropic endeavors, including her work in founding the Clara Lionel Foundation . The singer, actor, and businessperson visited the campus and spoke to Harvard students and faculty about humanitarianism.

"I know that each and every one of you has the opportunity to help someone else," Rihanna said. "All you need to do is help one person, expecting nothing in return. To me, that is a humanitarian."

7. Luvvie Ajayi Jones' TED Talk on getting out of your comfort zone.

During her TED Talk,  Luvvie encouraged listeners to become comfortable being uncomfortable. She said it took her years before she was able to call herself a writer, and, since that proclamation, she decided to force herself into more situations outside of her comfort zone.

"I realized fear has a very concrete power of keeping us from doing and saying the things that are our purpose," Luvvie said. "And I was like, you know what? I'm not gonna let fear rule my life. I'm not gonna let fear dictate what I do. And then, all these awesome things started happening, and dominoes started to fall."

8. Jessica Chastain's Screen Actors Guild Award acceptance speech.

In February 2022, Jessica won the SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role for her portrayal of Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye . She took a moment to acknowledge aspiring actors during her acceptance speech.

"I've wanted to be an actor my whole life, and ever since I was a kid it was the only thing I really ever though about," Jessica said. "There were years of studying and auditioning and not getting jobs ... I know what [that] feels like, and I know the loneliness of what that feels like. And so, for those of you who are struggling and feeling unseen, I just want you to know to keep going, 'cause you're one job away, I promise."

9. Emma Watson's HeForShe campaign speech.

Emma became a United Nations ambassador in 2014 and co-hosted an event for UN Women's HeForShe Campaign the same year. She gave a speech at the ceremony, during which she clarified the meaning of feminism and urged men to become involved in the fight for gender equality.

"The more I've spoken about feminism, the more I have realized that fighting for women's rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating," Emma said. "If there is one thing I know for certain, it is that this has to stop. For the record, feminism, by definition, is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. It is the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes."

10. Malala Yousafzai's Nobel Prize Concert speech.

When she talked at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in 2015, Malala used her platform to advocate for educating all children. She also stated that ensuring every child receives a quality education is a "collective campaign," wherein everyone must work together and do what they can to support the cause.

"I simply ask that the right to learning should be given to any child. I ask for nothing else," Malala said. "But unfortunately, there are 57 million children who are out of school."

"I request all of you to think today, that, how you can help? How can you help these children to go to school?" she added.

11. Debbie Sterling's TED Talk on females in engineering.

Debbie discussed  the lack of female engineers for her 2013 TEDxPSU speech. After earning her degree in engineering, Debbie learned that she had been at a disadvantage with underdeveloped spatial skills, and people who are more adept at these skills often grew up playing with construction toys. So, she decided to quit her job and create toys to help young girls develop engineering abilities, which led to GoldieBlox , her toy and entertainment company.

After being told that engineering toys geared at young girls don't sell, Debbie initiated a Kickstarter campaign to fund her idea, which led to her raising $150,000 in four days.

"The world was waiting for this; they wanted this," Debbie said. "The toy industry had it wrong. Yeah, sure, some girls like princesses and tiaras, and I like that stuff, too, but there's so much more to us than that. There's so much potential."

12. Sojourner Truth's Women’s Rights Convention speech.

In 1851, Sojourner, a  women's rights activist and abolitionist, gave a speech  at the convention, and in 1863 its transcription was re-released. Although this later version is often remembered by history, the original transcription of her talk is much truer to Sojourner's words on gender equality. 

"I have as much muscle as any man, and can do as much work as any man," the original transcription reads on the Sojourner Truth Project website. "I have plowed and reaped and husked and chopped and mowed, and can any man do more than that? I have heard much about the sexes being equal; I can carry as much as any man, and can eat as much too, if I can get it. I am as strong as any man that is now."

13. Maya Angelou's inaugural poem speech.

At former president Bill Clinton's 1993 inauguration, Maya recited her poem  "On the Pulse of Morning." Through this speech,  she made history as the first Black woman to write and read a poem at an inauguration ceremony for a US president.

"Lift up your eyes upon this day breaking for you. Give birth again to the dream. Women, children, men, take it into the palms of your hands, mold it into the shape of your most private need. Sculpt it into the image of your most public self. Lift up your hearts. Each new hour holds new chances for a new beginning," she said at the ceremony.

14. Lisa Nichols' motivational speech.

"Other people's perception of you ain't none of your business," Lisa said in her 2018 speech. "Everything you've ever been through, set through, rose through, cried through, prayed through, everything is a setup for your next best season."

The author and speaker also expressed the importance of not changing yourself or limiting your potential to fit other people's points of view.

"You're gonna find people that can't handle your light," she said. "After today, turn the lights up. After today, you don't dare dim your light."

15. Deshauna Barber's speech on persistence.

While she was in college and working part time at Target, a stranger approached Deshauna and encouraged her to try to become the next Miss USA , she said in her 2017  commencement speech at her alma mater, the University of Maryland University. Deshauna lost at the state pageant level for six straight years, but, with determination, went on to become Miss USA in 2016 . 

"I ask only one thing of you all today after you leave this building: Do not fear failure, but please be terrified of regret, as giving up is the birth of regret," Deshauna said. "After you walk out this door, you will receive 100 doors shut, slammed in your face. You will have 100 moments that will be filled with someone telling you no ... What I ask of you today is to not take no for an answer."

16. Jennifer Aniston's Variety Power of Women speech.

At Variety's 2019 Power of Women event, Jennifer spoke about her partnership with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, which started when actor Marlo Thomas introduced her to their work. She's now been a partner of the hospital for over 25 years, and she emphasized the importance of making children feel valued during the speech.

"That is what every child deserves to know: that they are seen, that they are powerful and they are loved, and that they deserve a seat at the table," Jennifer said. "And that anything they have to say, or any question they have to ask is of value, even if we don't have all the answers for it."

17. Dolores Huerta's National Farm Workers Association rally speech.

An archival transcription from KQED news  documented Dolores's impassioned 1966 speech at a NFWA  march and rally , which focused on gaining rights for agricultural workers. 

"The social and economic revolution of the farm workers is well underway and it will not be stopped until we receive equality," Dolores said. "The farm workers are moving. Nothing is going to stop them ... We may act in strange and unusual ways in our organizing, but we’re willing to try new and unused methods to achieve justice for the farm workers."

18. Greta Thunberg's Climate Action Summit speech.

Greta's speech at the 2019 United Nations Climate Action Summit confronted the world leaders' lack of urgency in addressing the need for climate action. 

"People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing," Greta said . "We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, and and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you?! ... How dare you continue to look away and come here saying that you're doing enough when the politics and solutions needed are still nowhere in sight?"

19. Larissa Martinez's valedictorian speech.

During her 2016 valedictorian speech at her high school graduation in Texas,  Larissa opened up  about being an undocumented immigrant. 

“I decided to stand before you today and reveal this unexpected reality because this might be the only chance to convey to you all that undocumented immigrants are people too," she said . "Immigrants, undocumented or otherwise, are ... people with dreams, aspirations, hopes, and loved ones."

20. Susan B. Anthony's women's right to vote speech.

In 1873, Susan delivered her speech addressing women's right to vote at different locations throughout the state of New York.

"It was we, the people, not we, the white male citizens, nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed this Union," Susan said. "And we formed it, not to give the blessings or liberty, but to secure them; not to the half of ourselves and the half of our posterity, but to the whole people — women as well as men. And it is downright mockery to talk to women of their enjoyment of the blessings of liberty while they are denied the use of the only means of securing them provided by this democratic-republican government — the ballot."

21. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's feminism speech.

Chimamanda, the author of We Should All Be Feminists ,  gave a speech at TEDxEuston  in 2011. She explained the damaging impact of gender norms, then encouraged everyone to embrace feminism in order to accomplish positive changes.

"We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller," Chimamanda said. "We say to girls, you can have ambition, but not too much. You should aim to be successful, but not too successful; otherwise you will threaten the man. If you are the breadwinner in your relationship with a man, you have to pretend that you're not. Especially in public. Otherwise, you will emasculate him. But what if we questioned the premise itself: Why should a woman's success be a threat to a man?"

22. Amanda Gorman's inaugural poem speech.

Amanda, who is the first US youth poet laureate , recited her poem "The Hill We Climb" at President Biden's 2021 inauguration ceremony . In doing so, she became the youngest poet in history to write a poem for a presidential inauguration.

"If we're to live up to our own time, then victory won't lie in the blade, but in all the bridges we've made. That is the promise to glade, the hill we climb, if only we dare," Amanda said. "It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit. It's the past we step into and how we repair it. We've seen a force that would shatter our nation, rather than share it, would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy. And this effort very nearly succeeded. But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated."

23. Hillary Clinton's women's rights are human rights speech.

In 1995, Hillary spoke  for the United Nations Fourth Women's Conference in Beijing, China. Her speech presented women's rights as human rights, using a phrase that has origins in the Global South.

"It is time for us to say here in Beijing, and for the world to hear, that it is no longer acceptable to discuss women's rights as separate from human rights," she said, before adding, "If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights, once and for all."

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Presentations

Communication, facilitation, ​powerspeaking blog: tips and strategies for crafting presentations, courageous women, powerful speeches.

by Carrie Beckstrom     Aug 31, 2020 6:49:19 PM

As women continue to be more prominent on the world stage, we find powerful lessons in their inspirational speeches. PowerSpeaking, Inc. CEO Carrie Beckstrom introduces three women who demonstrate how to move an audience and have an impact.

Note: Videos are fewer than five minutes each.

Former First Lady Michelle Obama

Like all powerful speakers, Michelle has it all:  clarity, confidence, and courage. Add to that a healthy dose of compassion, passion, and honesty, and you have her moving speech at the Democratic National Convention.  As you watch the video clip, notice her clear, plain language. Listen to how she modulates her voice as she moves from point to point. Her eye contact, gestures, and cadence all align powerfully with the messages she delivered.

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

If ever there was a courageous, hard-hitting speech delivered with grace and clear-eyed composure, it was Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez’s address to Congress in July. The clear, incisive thought process that defined her speech was impressive.  Her “I am someone’s daughter, too” is the kind of line you remember long after the speech is over because it so powerfully illustrated her message—and the feelings shared by so many other women. Notice how her measured, relatively slow cadence and the way she uses repetition not only reinforce her points, but also, give the audience time to absorb and reflect.  Like Michelle, her eye contact and gestures add to her impact.

Education Activist and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai

As the youngest person ever to win the Nobel Peace Prize (she was 17), Pakastani activist Malala Yousafzai learned very early how to make a difference through speaking out on injustice. Her courageous, passionate focus—before and after being shot in the face at 15 by the Taliban for her efforts—has been to fight for equal access to education for girls and young women. In this video clip, she addresses the Canadian Parliament after being given honorary citizenship to that country in recognition of her work. She speaks with a relaxed, personable style, addressing different segments of the audience (men, women, the young girls of Canada) at various points in her speech. Above all, note how the vivid data she cites and the stories she tells make for a powerful, memorable speech.

While few of us are in the public eye the way Michelle, Alexandria, and Malala are, our work and the impact we can have on our companies and communities matter. And so often, the quality of our communication determines what we can accomplish. We hope these and other examples on our website of effective speaking help you find your voice, use it to reach your audience, and inspire them to act.

Of course, if you’d like more formal training, we’d love to see you at an upcoming, virtual PowerSpeaking, Inc. workshop:

• PowerSpeaking® , to learn the core competencies of speaking and presenting - November 20, 2020
• Confident Speaking for Women® , to learn to Be Clear, Be Confident, and Be Courageous - October 8, 2020
• Speaking Up: Presenting to Decision Makers® , to learn the art and science of presenting to senior executives, September 15, 2020

Check out these and other upcoming workshops here .

On the journey with you,

Carrie Beckstrom, CEO and the PowerSpeaking, Inc. Team

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Topics: Speech Clarity , Career Advancement , Speaking to Executives , Presentation Skills , Leadership Development , Womens Empowerment , Executive Presentations , Women In Leadership , Confident Speaking for Women , Technical Presentations , Women Leaders , Speaking Skills , Presentation Training , Public Speaking Training , Executive Coaching , Corporate Communication , Persuasiveness , Effective Voice , speaker training

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25 Powerful Commencement Speeches by Famous Women

Most commencement speakers joke that they can’t even remember who spoke on the day of their own graduation (much less the speech), but I can confidently say that if Taylor Swift or Michelle Obama had been on my graduation stage, the memory would be burned into my brain for the rest of time. In any case, as the back-to-school vibes are setting in, you might be feeling nostalgic for that breezy, exciting day when you too graduated and received some sage advice you sort of, basically remember. Maybe even from some of the world’s most famous women out there?

And if not, you can still get some inspo out of reading the most significant quotes from their time on stage since we’ve culled together a list of striking quotes from famous ladies who delivered real, empowering, and provocative messages that are just as relevant today as they were when they shared them. Read on for truth bombs from Swift , Toni Morrison, Stacey Abrams , Amy Poehler, and more on everything from taking risks to redefining success.

Taylor Swift, New York University, 2022

“Learn to live alongside cringe. No matter how hard you try to avoid being cringe, you will look back on your life and cringe retrospectively. Cringe is unavoidable over a lifetime. Even the term cringe might someday be deemed cringe .

I promise you, you’re probably doing or wearing something right now that you will look back on later and find revolting and hilarious. You can’t avoid it, so don’t try to. For example, I had a phase where, for the entirety of 2012, I dressed like a 1950s housewife. But you know what? I was having fun. Trends and phases are fun. Looking back and laughing is fun.”

Michelle Obama, University of California, Merced, 2009

“When times get tough and fear sets in, think of those people who paved the way for you and those who are counting on you to pave the way for them. Never let setbacks or fear dictate the course of your life. Hold on to the possibility and push beyond the fear.”

Kristen Bell, University of Southern California, School of Dramatic Arts, 2019

“My sole trick to share with you is when you listen — when you really listen to people, when you listen as fiercely as you want to be heard, when you respect the idea that you are sharing the Earth with other humans, when you lead with your nice foot forward, you’ll win every time. It might not be today, it might not be tomorrow, but it comes back to you when you need it. We live in an age of instant gratification, of immediate likes and it is uncomfortable to have to wait to see the dividends of your kindness, but I promise you it will appear exactly when you need it.”

Stacey Abrams, Spelman College, 2022

“For so many years, we have been told to be fearless. That is the dumbest advice I have ever heard. Fear is real. And it’s usually a warning. It’s a caution to us, not to not act but to understand what we’re facing. I believe in embracing my fear. I take it out to lunch. Because if we are afraid of sexism, if we are afraid of racism, if we are afraid of success, if we are afraid of the limits of access — that’s okay. We need to know our fears, name our fears, number our fears — and then conquer our fears. Never let anyone tell you it’s wrong to be afraid. Fear is healthy. It is caving into fear that’s dangerous.

You see, I’m not afraid of fighting against those who tell me that we can’t have economic justice in America. Because they’re wrong and I’m right. I’m not afraid of saying that we should all have the right to voice our opinions in our elections, whether we agree with each other or not. I’m not afraid of these things because I understand why fear happens. It happens because sometimes in our guts, we know that if we acknowledge our fears and embrace our fears, we may beat our best ambition. I want you to hold onto your fear, get to know it, give it a name, give it a nickname. But never give it control.”

Vice-President Kamala Harris, Tennessee State University, 2022

“Now, I didn’t attend Tennessee State, but I am a fellow HBCU graduate. And I’d like to share a little story with you. A story about the first time I flew on the vice-presidential helicopter, which is called ‘Marine Two.’

Now this day — it was not long after I was sworn in, and we were flying from Andrews Air Force Base to the official residence of the vice-president. And one of the Marines asked me to look out the window. As it turns out, they had a surprise for me. The helicopter was circling around Howard University, my alma mater. I looked out the window of that helicopter, Marine Two, and I saw that we were over the Yard, which is Howard’s version of the Courtyard. As I looked down out of the window, I saw myself at 17 years old walking across campus with a big stack of books tucked under my arms at a place just like this. That reinforced that I could be anything, do anything, even if it had never been done before. Like you and full of hope, full of dreams, with a future full of possibility just like you.

I stand before you today as the vice-president of the United States of America and as a proud graduate of an HBCU to say: There is no limit to your capacity for greatness and there is no obstacle you cannot overcome, and there is no barrier you cannot break.”

Joan Didion, University of California, Riverside, 1975

“I’m not telling you to make the world better, because I don’t think that progress is necessarily part of the package. I’m just telling you to live in it. Not just to endure it, not just to suffer it, not just to pass through it, but to live in it. To look at it. To try to get the picture. To live recklessly. To take chances. To make your own work and take pride in it. To seize the moment. And if you ask me why you should bother to do that, I could tell you that the grave’s a fine and private place, but none I think do there embrace. Nor do they sing there, or write, or argue, or see the tidal bore on the Amazon, or touch their children. And that’s what there is to do and get it while you can and good luck at it.”

Gloria Steinem, Smith College, 2007

“Your generation has made giant strides into public life, but often still says: How can I combine career and family? I say to you from the bottom of my heart that when you ask that question you are setting your sights way too low. First of all, there can be no answer until men are asking the same question. Second, every other modern democracy in the world is way, way ahead of this country in providing a national system of child care, and job patterns adapted to the needs of parents, both men and women. So don’t get guilty. Get mad. Get active. If this is a problem that affects millions of unique women, then the only answer is to organize.”

Queen Latifah, Rutgers University, Newark, 2018

“I was taller than the other girls, bigger than the other girls, different than the other girls. By the time I was 13, I had a body. All of it. It was all there. Still is, and I’m damn proud of it. Anyway, I was looking for a role model to emulate, but nobody looked quite like me. And then I found myself standing on a lonely stage in our school production of The Wiz. I was [the big], tall Dorothy. But someone must’ve thought I had an okay voice, because I got to sing the finale, “Home.” I was petrified.

I looked out into the audience and just tried to focus on my mother’s smiling face in that crowd. And I sang, ‘When I think of home, I think of a place where there’s love overflowing’. And suddenly, I wasn’t Dana. I wasn’t Dorothy. I wasn’t big Dorothy. And for the very first time I can remember, I was more than comfortable in my own skin. I was confident. I knew I had found myself. Bringing someone else to life on the stage in a way that came from deep inside, ‘Home’ wasn’t just a song. It was a foundation that taught me I didn’t need a role model. I didn’t need to try to be like someone else. I just needed to be me.”

Hillary Clinton, Wellesley College, 1992

“As women today, you face tough choices. You know the rules are basically as follows: If you don’t get married, you’re abnormal. If you get married but don’t have children, you’re a selfish yuppie. If you get married and have children, but work outside the home, you’re a bad mother. If you get married and have children, but stay home, you’ve wasted your education. And if you don’t get married, but have children and work outside the home as a fictional newscaster, then you’re in trouble with Dan Quayle.

So you see, if you listen to all the people who make these rules, you might just conclude that the safest course of action is just to take your diploma and crawl under your bed. But let me propose an alternative. Hold on to your dreams. Take up the challenge of forging an identity that transcends yourself. Transcend yourself and you will find yourself … There is no dress rehearsal for life, and you will have to ad lib your way through each scene. The only way to prepare is to do what you have done: Get the best possible education; continue to learn from literature, scripture, and history, to understand the human experience as best you can so that you have guideposts charting the terrain toward whatever decisions are right for you.”

Zadie Smith, New School, 2014

“Walk down these crowded streets with a smile on your face. Be thankful you get to walk so close to other humans. It’s a privilege. Don’t let your fellow humans be alien to you, and as you get older and perhaps a little less open than you are now, don’t assume that exclusive always and everywhere means better. It may only mean lonelier. There will always be folks hard-selling you the life of the few: the private schools, private plans, private islands, private life. They are trying to convince you that hell is other people. Don’t believe it. We are far more frequently each other’s shelter and correction, the antidote to solipsism, and so many windows on this world.”

Nora Ephron, Wellesley College, 1996

“You are graduating from Wellesley in the Year of the Wonderbra. The Wonderbra is not a step forward for women. Nothing that hurts that much is a step forward for women. What I’m saying is, don’t delude yourself that the powerful cultural values that wrecked the lives of so many of my classmates have vanished from the earth. Don’t let the New York Times article about the brilliant success of Wellesley graduates in the business world fool you — there’s still a glass ceiling. Don’t let the number of women in the workforce trick you — there are still lots of magazines devoted almost exclusively to making perfect casseroles and turning various things into tents. Don’t underestimate how much antagonism there is toward women and how many people wish we could turn the clock back. One of the things people always say to you if you get upset is, don’t take it personally, but listen hard to what’s going on and, please, I beg you, take it personally. Understand: Every attack on Hillary Clinton for not knowing her place is an attack on you.”

Lisa Kudrow, Vassar College, 2010

“You can’t pursue something and be committed to it if you’re apologizing for it at every party. Which I did for a while. I learned you have to surrender to the fact that you are one of too many in a highly competitive field where it is difficult to stand out … for now. Over time, through your work, you will demonstrate who you are and what you bring to the field. Just stay with it and keep working. I was collecting tools to cope with this uncertain path in case it got rocky later on, just in case. For now, it’s good, though.”

Shonda Rhimes, Dartmouth College, 2014

“Ditch the dream and be a doer, not a dreamer. Maybe you know exactly what it is you dream of being, or maybe you’re paralyzed because you have no idea what your passion is. The truth is, it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to know. You just have to keep moving forward. You just have to keep doing something, seizing the next opportunity, staying open to trying something new. It doesn’t have to fit your vision of the perfect job or the perfect life. Perfect is boring and dreams are not real.”

Naomi Wolf, Scripps College, 1992

“Become goddesses of disobedience … We are told that the worst thing we can do is cause conflict, even in the service of doing right. Antigone is imprisoned. Joan of Arc burns at the stake. And someone might call us unfeminine! … Unlike women in other countries, our breaking silence is unlikely to have us jailed, ‘disappeared,’ or run off the road at night. Our speaking out will irritate some people, get us called bitchy or hypersensitive and disrupt some dinner parties. And then our speaking out will permit other women to speak, until laws are changed and lives are saved and the world is altered forever. Next time, ask: What’s the worst that will happen? Then push yourself a little further than you dare. Once you start to speak, people will yell at you. They will interrupt you, put you down, and suggest it’s personal. And the world won’t end … And at last you’ll know with surpassing certainty that only one thing is more frightening than speaking your truth. And that is not speaking.”

Amy Poehler, Harvard University, 2011

“Take your risks now. As you grow older, you become more fearful and less flexible. And I mean that literally. I hurt my knee on the treadmill this week and it wasn’t even on. Try to keep your mind open to possibilities and your mouth closed on matters that you don’t know about. Limit your ‘always’ and your ‘nevers.’ Continue to share your heart with people even if it’s been broken. Don’t treat your heart like an action figure wrapped in plastic and never used. And don’t try to give me that nerd argument that your heart is a Batman with a limited-edition silver battering and therefore if it stays in its original package it increases in value.”

Anne Lamott, University of California, Berkeley, 2003

“I got a lot of things that society had promised would make me whole and fulfilled — all the things that the culture tells you from preschool on will quiet the throbbing anxiety inside you — stature, the respect of colleagues, maybe even a kind of low-grade fame. The culture says these things will save you, as long as you also manage to keep your weight down. But the culture lies … I’d been wanting to be a successful author my whole life. But when I finally did it, I was like a greyhound catching the mechanical rabbit she’d been chasing all her life — metal, wrapped up in cloth. It wasn’t alive; it had no spirit. It was fake. Fake doesn’t feed anything. Only spirit feeds spirit, in the same way only your own blood type can sustain you … So from the wise old pinnacle of my 49 years, I want to tell you that what you’re looking for is already inside you.”

Patti Smith, Pratt Institute, 2010

“Pinocchio went out into the world. He went on his road filled with good intentions, with a vision. He went ready to do all the things he dreamed, but he was pulled this way and that. He was distracted. He faltered. He made mistakes. But he kept on. Pinocchio, in the end, became himself — because the little flame inside him, no matter what crap he went through, would not be extinguished. We are all Pinocchio. And do you know what I found after several decades of life? We are Pinocchio over and over again — we achieve our goal, we become a level of ourselves, and then we want to go further. And we make new mistakes, and we have new hardships, but we prevail. We are human. We are alive. We have blood.”

Toni Morrison, Wellesley College, 2004

“Nobody has the exact memory that you have. What is now known is not all what you are capable of knowing. You are your own stories and therefore free to imagine and experience what it means to be human without wealth. What it feels like to be human without domination over others, without reckless arrogance, without fear of others unlike you, without rotating, rehearsing, and reinventing the hatreds you learned in the sandbox. And although you don’t have complete control over the narrative (no author does, I can tell you), you could nevertheless create it.”

Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Trinity College, 2004

“If there is one lesson you should learn today, it’s not to waste one precious second of your life. You should never say ‘I’m bored’ or ‘I’m tired’ or ‘there’s nothing to do.’ There’s so much to do that you can’t possibly let one second slip by that’s not filled to the brim. For example, there are something like 130,000 books published in this country every single year…Or if you look at the newspaper there’s always a concert or a play or a movie to go to. And there are museums filled with exhibits. And a whole world of wonders to visit. And there are friends and family to see. Sporting events to take part in. Fabulous foods to taste. Delicious wines to sip. And, in my special arena, great moments to share with a partner.”

Oprah Winfrey, Wellesley College, 1997

“Live your life from truth and you will survive everything, everything, I believe even death. You will survive everything if you can live your life from the point of view of truth. That took me a while to get, pretending to be something I wasn’t, wanting to be somebody I couldn’t, but understanding deep inside myself when I was willing to listen, that my own truth and only my own truth could set me free. Turn your wounds into wisdom. You will be wounded many times in your life. You’ll make mistakes. Some people will call them failures, but I have learned that failure is really God’s way of saying, ‘Excuse me, you’re moving in the wrong direction.’”

Rachel Maddow, Smith College, 2010

“When given the choice between fame and glory, take glory. Glory has a way of sneaking up on fame and stealing its lunch money later anyway. Life might very well be long, keep your eye on the horizon and live in a way that you will be proud of. You will sleep more. You will be a better partner. You will be a better mom. You’ll be a better friend. You’ll be a better boss, and you will not have to remember any complicated lies to brag about at the old-age home because you can brag about the truth of your well-lived life.”

Susan Sontag, Wellesley College, 1983

“In Spenser’s The Faerie Queen, Book III , there is a place called the Castle of Busyrane, on whose outer gate is written ‘BE BOLD,’ and on the second gate, ‘BE BOLD, BE BOLD,’ and on the inner iron door, ‘BE NOT TOO BOLD.’ This is not the advice I am giving. I would urge you to be as imprudent as you dare. ‘BE BOLD, BE BOLD, BE BOLD.’”

Maya Rudolph, Tulane University, 2015

“If I could give my 21-year-old self any advice it would be take as many bikini photos as you can now because your body is smokin’ hot. And it will not be this bangin’ after childbirth … If I must give any of you advice it would be: Say Yes. Say yes, and create your own destiny … Hold on to your old friends. Kiss your mama. Admit what your dreams are. Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t know what you’re gonna do tomorrow. But work hard and don’t be lazy. And put away your damn phone once in a while. And be nice to jerks, because we still don’t know the criteria for getting into heaven yet.”

Meryl Streep, Vassar College, 1983

“That choice, between the devil and the dream, comes up every day in different little disguises. I’m sure it comes up in every field of endeavor and every life. My advice is to look the dilemma in the face and decide what you can live with. If you can live with the devil, Vassar hasn’t sunk her teeth into your leg the way she did mine. But that conscience, that consciousness of quality, and the need to demand it can galvanize your energies, not just in your work, but in a rigorous exercise of mind and heart in every aspect of your life. I firmly believe that this engagement in the attempt for excellence is what sustains the most well-lived and satisfying, successful lives.”

Abby Wambach, Barnard College, 2018

“Like all little girls, I was taught to be grateful. I was taught to keep my head down, stay on the path, and get my job done. I was freaking Little Red Riding Hood. You know the fairy tale. It’s just one iteration of the warning stories girls are told the world over. Little Red Riding Hood heads off through the woods and is given strict instructions: Stay on the path. Don’t talk to anybody. Keep your head down, hidden underneath your Handmaid’s Tale cape. And she does … at first. But then she dares to get a little curious and she ventures off the path. That’s, of course, when she encounters the big bad wolf and all hell breaks loose. The message is clear: Don’t be curious, don’t make trouble, don’t say too much or bad things will happen. I stayed on the path out of fear — not of being eaten by a wolf — but of being cut, being benched, losing my paycheck. If I could go back and tell my younger self one thing it would be this: ‘Abby, you were never Little Red Riding Hood, you were always the wolf.’

Our landscape is overrun with archaic ways of thinking about women, about people of color, about the ‘other,’ about the rich and the poor, about the powerful and the powerless. And these ways of thinking are destroying us. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We will not Little Red Riding hood our way through life. We will unite our pack, storm the valley together, and change the whole bloody system.”

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55 quotes that celebrate women's strength and contributions

Coco Chanel once remarked, "Women have always been the strong ones of the world."

It's a message that still holds true today. Why? Because women are inherently built with strength, perseverance and character. In honor of Women's History Month, we've gathered together a list of empowering strong women quotes to use however you see fit.

Included in this collection of inspiring messages are luminaries like Michelle Obama , Eleanor Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart , Madeleine Albright and Maya Angelou who once said, "Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women."

It's a powerful message, as are all these meaningful quotes that honor and recognize women's courage and their countless contributions, like civil rights activist Rosa Parks , whose decision to stand her ground would go on to change the course of history.

“You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it’s right," Parks memorably said.

Whether you're aspiring to reach a personal goal , reminding a friend or loved one to stand strong in the face of adversity, or simply reading for inspiration, you're bound to find plenty of keepers among this compilation of motivating quotes from these mighty women.

After all, in many ways, it's words that can help us not only effect change in our own lives, but ultimately help shape the world .

Short strong women quotes

• “Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.” ― Oprah Winfrey
• “It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.” ― Madeleine Albright
• “Behind every great woman ... is another great woman.” ― Kate Hodges
• “I’m not going to limit myself just because people won’t accept the fact that I can do something else.”― Dolly Parton
• “Some leaders are born women.” ― Geraldine Ferraro

• “Well-behaved women seldom make history.” — Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
• “Am I good enough? Yes, I am.” ― Michelle Obama, “Becoming”
• “I have as much muscle as any man, and can do as much work as any man.” — Sojourner Truth, “Ain’t I A Woman?”
• “Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace.” — Amelia Earhart, “Courage”
• “Her own thoughts and reflections were habitually her best companions.” — Jane Austen, “Mansfield Park”

• “I may be the first woman member of Congress, but I won’t be the last.” — Jeannette Rankin
• “Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.” ― Maya Angelou
• “Women have always been the strong ones of the world.” ― Coco Chanel
• “You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it’s right.” — Rosa Parks
• “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.” — Ruth Bader Ginsburg

• “We are here, not because we are lawbreakers; we are here in our efforts to be law-makers.” — Emmeline Pankhurst, “My Own Story”
• “What I want young women and girls to know is: You are powerful and your voice matters.” — Kamala Harris
• “You have to believe in yourself when no one else does.” — Serena Williams
• “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
• “I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept.” — Angela Davis

• “A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman.” — Melinda French Gates
• “Don’t follow the crowd, let the crowd follow you.” — Margaret Thatcher
• “Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood.” — Marie Curie
• “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” — Helen Keller, “Let Us Have Faith”
• “As women achieve power, the barriers will fall.” — Sandra Day O’Connor, “Women in Power”

• “Love yourself first and everything else falls into line.” — Lucille Ball
• “Don’t mistake politeness for lack of strength.” — Sonia Sotomayor, “My Beloved World”
• “I am a woman’s rights.” — Sojourner Truth, “Ain’t I A Woman?”
• “If you do what interests you, at least one person is pleased.” — Katharine Hepburn
• “Ignite the mind’s spark to rise the sun in you.” — Florence Nightingale

Confident women quotes to inspire you

• “Stand for something or you will fall for anything. Today’s mighty oak is yesterday’s nut that held its ground.” — Rosa Parks
• “I am like a falling star who has finally found her place next to another in a lovely constellation, where we will sparkle in the heavens forever.” ― Amy Tan
• “It’s not about being perfect. It’s not about where you get yourself in the end. There’s power in allowing yourself to be known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice.” ―Michelle Obama, “Becoming”
• “In politics, If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.” — Margaret Thatcher
• “How shall we explain to them the meaning of democracy if the same Congress that voted for war to make the world safe for democracy refuses to give this small measure of democracy to the women of our country?” — Jeannette Rankin

• “Alone she goes to the gates of death to give life to every man that is born into the world.” — Elizabeth Stanton, “Solitude of Self"
• “The problems of our time will be solved only when all of the best mind, conscience and talent in the community are brought to their solution.” — Jane Addams, “Speech on Woman Suffrage”
• “My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent.” — Ruth Bader Ginsburg
• “Women, whether subtly or vociferously, have always been a tremendous power in the destiny of the world.” — Eleanor Roosevelt, “It’s Up to the Women”
• “Life is about finding yourself, embracing your strengths and weaknesses, and being true to who you are.” — Oprah Winfrey

• “The love expressed between women is particular and powerful because we have had to love in order to live; love has been our survival.” — Audre Lorde, “Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches”
• “We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.” — Marie Curie
• “It has taken 232 years and 115 prior appointments for a Black woman to be selected to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States, but we’ve made it! We’ve made it — all of us.” — Ketanji Brown Jackson, Supreme Court confirmation speech
• “The easiest way to disregard a woman’s voice is to package her as a scold.” — Michelle Obama, “Becoming”
• “You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.” — Maya Angelou

• “My daily challenge to myself is to be part of the solution, to be a joyful warrior in the battle to come.” — Kamala Harris
• “For one thing we know beyond all doubt: Nothing has ever been achieved by the person who says, ‘It can’t be done.’” — Eleanor Roosevelt
• “The future of life as we know it is being determined by everything we’re doing — and not doing. Now.” — Oprah Winfrey
• “When I dare to be powerful — to use my strength in the service of my vision — then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.” — Audre Lorde

• “No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars or sailed to an uncharted land.” — Helen Keller, “Optimism: An Essay”
• “When you get into a tight place, and everything goes against you till it seems as if you couldn’t hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that’s just the place and time that the tide’ll turn.” — Harriet Beecher Stowe, “Oldtown Folks”
• “As society sees what women can do, as women see what women can do, there will be more women out there doing things, and we’ll all be better off for it.”  — Sandra Day O’Connor, “Women in Power”
• “Chance is the first step you take, luck is what comes afterward.” — Amy Tan, “The Kitchen God’s Wife”
• “We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.” — Maya Angelou

More quotes to read for a boost

• Success quotes that'll motivate you to keep moving forward
• Life quotes that’ll inspire you to find the good in every day
• Positive quotes to brighten even the rainiest of days

Sarah is a lifestyle and entertainment reporter for TODAY who covers holidays, celebrities and everything in between.

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12 Inspiring Graduation Speeches by Amazing Women

L et’s face it, ten years out, many of us can’t remember who spoke at our graduation ceremonies, never mind repeat what they said. But every year there’s a small batch of gems–speeches by a celebrity or CEO that fuse together equal parts wit, wisdom, nostalgia and meaning. Many of these are by women. In fact, the commencement address has become a particularly powerful platform for accomplished women. In the coming weeks, big names like Scandal showrunner Shonda Rhimes and General Motors CEO Mary Barra will ascend podiums around the country. In the meantime, here are some of our favorite graduation moments from the last few years.

Julie Andrews at University of Colorado Boulder (2013) : “Use your knowledge and your heart to stand up for those who can’t stand. Speak for those who can’t speak. Be a beacon of light, for those whose lives have become dark. Fight the good fight against global warming. Be a part of all that is good and decent. Be an ambassador for the kind of world you want to live in”

Ellen DeGeneres at Tulane University (2009) : “Never follow anyone else’s path, unless you’re in the woods and you’re lost and you see a path and by all means you should follow that. Don’t give advice, it will come back and bite you in the ass. Don’t take anyone’s advice. So my advice to you is to be true to yourself and everything will be fine.”

Toni Morrison at Rutgers University (2011) : “But I tell you, no generation, least of all mine, has a complete grip on the imagination and goals of subsequent generations; not if you refuse to let it be so. You don’t have to accept media or even scholarly labels for yourself: Generation A, B, C, X, Y, [majority], minority, red state, blue state; this social past or that one. Every true heroine breaks free from his or her class—upper, middle, and lower—in order to serve a wider world.”

Barbara Kingsolver at Duke University (2008) : “If somebody says ‘your money or your life,’ you could say, ‘life,’ and mean it. You’ll see things collapse in your time, the big houses, the empires of glass. The new green things that sprout up through the wreck — those will be yours.”

Michelle Obama at Eastern Kentucky University (2013) : “If you’re a Democrat, spend some time talking to a Republican. And if you’re a Republican, have a chat with a Democrat. Maybe you’ll find some common ground, maybe you won’t. But if you honestly engage with an open mind and an open heart, I guarantee you’ll learn something. And goodness knows we need more of that, because we know what happens when we only talk to people who think like we do — we just get more stuck in our ways, more divided, and it gets harder to come together for a common purpose. ”

Amy Poehler at Harvard Class Day (2011) : “As you navigate through the rest of your life, be open to collaboration. Other people and other people’s ideas are often better than your own. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.”

J.K. Rowling at Harvard (2008) : “So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had been realized, and I was still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.”

Sheryl Sandberg at Barnard College (2011) : “We will never close the achievement gap until we close the ambition gap. But if all young women start to lean in, we can close the ambition gap right here, right now, if every single one of you leans in. Leadership belongs to those who take it. Leadership starts with you.”

Maria Shriver at USC Annenberg School of Communication (2012) : “I hope if you learn anything from me today, you learn and remember — the power of the pause. Pausing allows you to take a beat — to take a breath in your life. As everybody else is rushing around like a lunatic out there, I dare you to do the opposite.”

Meryl Streep at Barnard (2010) : “This is your time and it feels normal to you but really there is no normal. There’s only change, and resistance to it and then more change.”

Kerry Washington at George Washington University (2013) : ““When you leave here today and commence the next stage of your life, you can follow someone else’s script, try to make choices that will make other people happy, avoid discomfort, do what is expected, and copy the status quo. Or you can look at all that you have accomplished today and use it as fuel to venture forth and write your own story. If you do, amazing things will take shape.”

Oprah Winfrey at Spelman University (2012) : “You must have some vision for your life. Even if you don’t know the plan, you have to have a direction in which you choose to go,”

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The 10 Best Motivational Speeches To Inspire You And Get You In The Right Mindset

Recently, I have heard many close people feeling overwhelmed, uninspired and caught up in life. Hearing those stories, it hit me that even I was feeling that same way, and really wanted to find a way out of that mindset. It was then that  I watched Steve Jobs' "How to live life before you die" speech that he gave at Stanford's graduation ceremony in 2005. It reminded me of the eagerness I had to conquer the world when I myself was graduating from college, and served as the perfect tool to get me inspired again. 

Motivational speeches have the power to inspire you, enhance your creativity, reduce fear, offer a new outlook, and motivate you. They engage your mind and heart in a way that gets you thinking more clearly, seeing opportunities, and moving forward. 

So if you need inspiration for your work, to start that project you always wanted to, or to keep going in a difficult situation, these 10 incredible motivational speeches will get you fired up and in the right mindset to succeed!

10 Great Motivational Speeches

With no further ado, here is a list of 10 amazing motivational speeches that I found very enlightening, and that perhaps also will resonate with you.

Warning: There may be some NSFW vocabulary in some of them.

How to Live Before You Die by Steve Jobs (2005)

In his 2005 commencement speech at Stanford University, Steve Jobs, the co-founder and CEO of Apple and Pixar, shared his personal life story and the lessons he learned along the way. The speech was delivered to the graduating class, to motivate the students as they embarked on their future endeavors.

Jobs divided his speech into three stories. The first was about connecting the dots, where he shared how dropping out of college and taking a calligraphy class later influenced the design of the Mac. The second story was about love and loss, where he shared the lessons he learned by being fired from Apple and starting over with NeXT and Pixar. He emphasized the importance of loving what you do and not settling.

The third story was about death. Jobs shared his experience with cancer and how facing mortality helped him make big choices in life. He encouraged the graduates to pursue their dreams, not waste time living someone else's life, and make the most of the limited time they have. Jobs concluded by urging them to "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish," a message he discovered in his youth that encapsulated his life philosophy.

After you've listened to the speech, you'll know why it is considered one of the best motivational speeches out there.

A Memorable Quote

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.” 

You Owe You by Eric Thomas (2015)

Eric Thomas, a renowned motivational speaker, delivers a powerful speech titled "You Owe You" in this video. The speech is part of his ongoing efforts to inspire and motivate people to take control of their lives and pursue their goals with unwavering determination.

In his speech, Eric Thomas emphasizes the importance of knowing what you want in life. He urges the audience to stop living life by accident and instead wake up every day with a clear purpose, spending the rest of their lives going after what they truly desire. Thomas stresses the significance of self-reflection and holding oneself accountable for the effort put into achieving one's goals.

His words come from his own life experiences. He encourages people to push themselves beyond their comfort zones and to give their all in the pursuit of their dreams. Thomas also emphasizes the need for self-discipline, and prompts to prioritize goals over temporary pleasures and distractions.

"You need to look at yourself in the mirror and say, why are you only giving 50 percent, what's wrong with you?”

Commencement Address at the 2014 Graduation by Jim Carrey

In 2014, renowned actor and comedian Jim Carrey delivered a commencement address at the Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa. The speech was given to the graduating class of 2014, with Carrey sharing his personal journey, life lessons, and insights on finding purpose and meaning in life, with his very characteristic sense of humor.

Throughout his speech, Carrey shares the importance of following one's heart and trusting in the universe to guide them towards their true calling. He encouraged the graduates to find what the world needs that their talent can provide, as the effect they have on others is the most valuable currency there is. Carrey also touched on the idea that material possessions and accomplishments will eventually fade away, and what truly matters is love and wisdom.

Moreover, Carrey shared his personal experience of reaching the heights of success and fame, only to realize that he still needed to free himself from his own fears and limitations. He stressed the significance of letting go of concern and choosing to serve others, as this mindset allowed him to connect with people on a deeper level and inspire them to present their best selves

"What's yours? How will you serve the world? What do they need that your talent can provide? That's all you have to figure out. As someone who's done what you're about to go and do, I can tell you from experience the effect you have on others is the most valuable currency there is."

How Great Leaders Inspire Action by Simon Sinek (2009)

In September 2009, Simon Sinek, a leadership expert and author, delivered a TED Talk at TEDxPuget Sound titled "How Great Leaders Inspire Action". The speech aimed to encourage people to be great leaders, using examples from greatly leaded companies.

Sinek introduces the concept of the "Golden Circle," which consists of three concentric circles labeled "Why," "How," and "What". He argues that most companies and individuals communicate from the outside in, focusing on what they do and how they do it, but great leaders and inspired organizations think, act, and communicate from the inside out, starting with their "Why". 

Sinek also explains that this pattern of communication taps into the limbic brain, which controls emotions, behavior, and decision-making. By expressing their "Why" first, leaders can create a deeper connection with their audience and inspire them to buy into their vision. Sinek says that people don't buy what you do; they buy why you do it, and this principle applies not only to businesses but also to individuals and movements.

"There are leaders and there are those who lead. Leaders hold a position of power or authority, but those who lead inspire us."

Control the Controllables by Inky Johnson (2017)

In this motivational speech, Inky Johnson, a former college football player who suffered a career-ending injury, shares his inspiring story and the lessons he learned along the way. 

Johnson shares the importance of focusing on the aspects of life that one has direct influence over, such as attitude, effort, and response to challenges. He encourages his audience to let go of the things they cannot control and instead direct their energy towards what they can change. Johnson stresses that by taking ownership of one's actions and mindset, individuals can overcome obstacles and achieve their goals.

Throughout his speech, he draws from his own experiences, particularly the injury that ended his football career. Despite facing a huge setback, he chose to focus on what he could control: his attitude and his determination to move forward. Johnson's message is one of resilience and personal responsibility, urging his listeners to embrace the challenges they face and use them as opportunities for growth.

“We sometimes can forget what we have control over and how powerful that is."

6 Rules of Success by Arnold Schwarzenegge (2009)

In this motivational speech, Arnold Schwarzenegger, the renowned actor, former professional bodybuilder, and former Governor of California, shares his six rules of success. Schwarzenegger's message aims to inspire and guide individuals on their path to achieving their goals.

Schwarzenegger talks about the importance of having a clear vision, not being afraid to fail, and ignoring the naysayers. He stresses that success requires hard work, determination, and the willingness to push oneself beyond perceived limits. Then he highlights the significance of giving back to the community and using one's success to help others.

He shares his personal experiences and the challenges he faced on his journey to success. He encourages people to stay hungry, never be satisfied, and strive for improvement. Schwarzenegger also underscores the value of self-discipline, stating that it is essential to work hard consistently and stay away from shortcuts or excuses.

"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength."

“He for She” Speech by Emma Watson (2014)

In September 2014, actress Emma Watson, known for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films, delivered a powerful speech at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. As the UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, Watson was there to launch the HeForShe campaign, a solidarity movement for gender equality.This inspiring speech motivates change both for men and women, in the context of feminism, to keep fighting for equal rights.

In her speech, Watson emphasized the importance of involving men in the fight for gender equality, extending a formal invitation to men, as gender equality is their issue too. Watson also addressed the misconception that feminism is synonymous with man-hating, clarifying that feminism is about equality and not discrimination.

Furthermore, Watson highlighted the need for women to be empowered to make their own choices, without being influenced by societal pressures or stigmas. She encouraged both men and women to embrace all parts of themselves, even those they may have abandoned due to gender stereotypes, in order to be more true and complete versions of themselves

"Both men and women should feel free to be sensitive. Both men and women should feel free to be strong… It is time that we all perceive gender on a spectrum, not as two opposing sets of ideals."

It Ain't About How Hard You Hit by Rocky Balboa (2006)

In the 2006 film "Rocky Balboa," Sylvester Stallone's character, Rocky, delivers a powerful speech to his son, Robert. Rocky and Robert are having a heart-to-heart conversation about Rocky's decision to return to boxing for one last fight. Although it is in the context of a movie, this speech is very inspiring and applicable to real life.

In the speech, Rocky explains that life is not about how hard you can hit but how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, and that's how winning is done. Rocky also points out that if you know what you're worth, you should go out and get what you're worth, but you have to be willing to take the hits without blaming the world, saying you're not where you want to be because of someone else.

The main theme is the importance of personal responsibility and resilience in the face of adversity. He acknowledges that life is hard and will beat you to your knees if you let it, but it's about how fast you can get up and move forward. Rocky encourages his son to be willing to take the hits and believe in himself, no matter how difficult the challenges may be.

"If you know what you're worth, then go out and get what you're worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers(...)”.

We don't "move on" from grief. We move forward with it by Nora McInerny (2018)

Nora McInerny, a writer and podcaster, delivered a poignant and humorous speech at TEDWomen 2018 in November 2018. In her talk, she shares her personal experiences with love, loss, and grief, aiming to shift the way we approach and discuss these universal human experiences.

McInerny challenges the concept of grief, arguing that it is a natural and ongoing part of life after loss. She encourages people to embrace the complex emotions that come with grief, acknowledging that it is possible to experience joy and sorrow simultaneously.

The speech highlights the importance of supporting those who are grieving and creating space for honest conversations about loss. She stresses that a grieving person will eventually laugh and smile again, but this doesn't mean the pain disappeared. Instead, they are moving forward, carrying their love and memories with them as they navigate life after loss.

"Grief is not a problem to be solved. It's an experience to be carried."

"Carpe diem. Seize the day" by John Keating (1989)

In the 1989 film "Dead Poets Society," John Keating, an English teacher played by Robin Williams, delivers a powerful speech to his students about seizing the day, known as the "Carpe Diem" speech. The scene takes place in a classroom at Welton Academy, an elite boarding school for boys, where Keating is teaching poetry to his students.

Keating begins the lesson by having one of his students, Mr. Pitts, read the opening stanza of the poem "To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick. The poem's central theme is the fleeting nature of life and the importance of making the most of one's time. Keating then introduces the Latin phrase "carpe diem," which means "seize the day," and encourages his students to embrace this philosophy.

To drive home the point, Keating invites his students to look closely at the faces of former Welton students in old photographs, pointing out that they are not so different from the current students. He reminds them that, like those in the photographs, each person in the room will die one day. Keating urges his students to make the most of their lives and seize every opportunity.

"Because we are food for worms, lads. Because, believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold, and die."

Why Motivational Speeches Work

Motivational speeches aim to inspire and encourage a specific audience to take action, overcome challenges, and achieve their goals. These speeches are usually delivered to a particular group of people, such as students, employees, or athletes, with the intention of changing their perspective on the obstacles they face.

They can come from anyone who has valuable life experiences to share in a specific field, and are often given by successful entrepreneurs, politicians, coaches, or other public figures. However, they can also come from someone close to you, like a friend or teacher, who wants to inspire you to reach your full potential. Even fictional characters from movies or books can deliver memorable motivational speeches that resonate with audiences.

The key to a great motivational speech is that it resonates with the listener on a deep, personal level. When a speech strikes a chord with someone, they become more open to embracing new perspectives and taking action to change their life.

Motivational Speeches: Let’s Wrap it Up

These 10 incredible motivational speeches can be the spark you need to reignite your inspiration and motivation, as they offer diverse perspectives and wisdom to help shift your mindset in a positive direction.

But remember, this is just a small sampling of the many powerful motivational speeches out there. Seek out other sources that resonate with you personally to keep refreshing the way you live your life. Listen to speeches from those you admire in your field or who have overcome challenges similar to your own.

Use these speeches as a launching point to cultivate a success mindset. Believe in your own abilities, surround yourself with encouragement, and keep moving forward even in the face of obstacles. Stay hungry for motivation, and seize each day as an opportunity to create the life you desire.

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Commencement 2024

Honorary degree recipient Ken Burns delivers the Undergraduate Commencement speech at Brandeis University's 73rd Commencement Exercises on May 19, 2024.

Brandeisian, love it.

President Liebowitz, Ron, Chair Lisa Kranc, and other members of the board of trustees, Provost Carol Fierke, fellow honorees, distinguished faculty and staff, proud and relieved parents, calm and serene grandparents, distracted but secretly pleased siblings, ladies and gentlemen, graduating students of the class of 2024, good morning.

I am deeply honored and privileged that you have asked me here to say a few words at such a momentous occasion that you might find what I have to say worthy of your attention on so important a day in all of your lives. Thank you for this honor.

Listen, I am in the business of history. It is not always a happy subject on college campuses these days, particularly when forces seem determined to eliminate or water down difficult parts of our past, particularly when the subject may seem to sum an anachronistic and irrelevant pursuit, and particularly with the ferocious urgency this moment seems to exert on us. It is my job, however, to remind people of the power our past also exerts, to help us better understand what's going on now with compelling story, memory, and anecdote. It is my job to try to discern patterns and themes from history to enable us to interpret our dizzying and sometimes dismaying present.

For nearly 50 years now, I have diligently practiced and rigorously tried to maintain a conscious neutrality in my work, avoiding advocacy if I could, trying to speak to all of my fellow citizens. Over those many decades I've come to understand a significant fact, that we are not condemned to repeat, as the saying goes, what we don't remember. That is a beautiful, even poetic phrase, but not true. Nor are there cycles of history as the academic community periodically promotes. The Old Testament, Ecclesiastes to be specific, got it right, I think. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again. There is nothing new under the sun. What those lines suggest is that human nature never changes or almost never changes. We continually superimpose that complex and contradictory human nature over the seemingly random chaos of events, all of our inherent strengths and weaknesses, our greed and generosity, our puritanism and our prurience, our virtue, and our venality parade before our eyes, generation after generation after generation. This often gives us the impression that history repeats itself. It does not. "No event has ever happened twice, it just rhymes," Mark Twain is supposed to have said. I have spent all of my professional life on the lookout for those rhymes, drawn inexorably to that power of history. I am interested in listening to the many varied voices of a true, honest, complicated past that is unafraid of controversy and tragedy, but equally drawn to those stories and moments that suggest an abiding faith in the human spirit, and particularly the unique role this remarkable and sometimes also dysfunctional republic seems to play in the positive progress of mankind.

During the course of my work, I have become acquainted with hundreds if not thousands of those voices. They have inspired, haunted, and followed me over the years. Some of them may be helpful to you as you try to imagine and make sense of the trajectory of your lives today.

Listen, listen. In January of 1838, shortly before his 29th birthday, a tall, thin lawyer prone to bouts of debilitating depression addressed the young men's lyceum in Springfield, Illinois. "At what point shall we expect the approach of danger?" He asked his audience, "Shall we expect some trans-Atlantic military giant to step the earth and crush us at a blow?" Then he answered his own question. "Never. All the armies of Europe, Asia, and Africa could not by force take a drink from the Ohio River or make a track on the Blue Ridge in a trial of a thousand years. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of free men, we must live through all time or die by suicide." It is a stunning, remarkable statement, one that has animated my own understanding of the American experience since I first read it more than 40 years ago. That young man was of course Abraham Lincoln, and he would go on to preside over the closest this country has ever come to near national suicide, our civil war, and yet embedded in his extraordinary, disturbing, and prescient words is also a fundamental optimism that implicitly acknowledges the geographical forcefield two mighty oceans east and west and two relatively benign neighbors north and south have provided for us since the British burned the White House in the War of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key.

Lincoln's words that day suggest what is so great and so good about the people who happen to inhabit this lucky and exquisite country of ours. That's the world you now inherit: our work ethic and our restlessness, our innovation and our improvisation, our communities and our institutions of higher learning, our suspicion of power. The fact that we seem resolutely dedicated to parsing the meaning between individual and collective freedom; What I want versus what we need. That we are all so dedicated to understanding what Thomas Jefferson really meant when he wrote that mysterious phrase, "The pursuit of happiness". Hint, it happens right here in the lifelong learning and perpetual improvement this university is committed to.

But the isolation of those two oceans has also helped to incubate habits and patterns less beneficial to us: our devotion to money and guns and conspiracies, our certainty about everything, our stubborn insistence on our own exceptionalism blinding us to that which needs repair, especially with regard to race and ethnicity. Our preoccupation with always making the other wrong at an individual as well as a global level. I am reminded of what the journalist I.F. Stone once said to a young acolyte who was profoundly disappointed in his mentor's admiration for Thomas Jefferson. "It's because history is tragedy," Stone admonished him, "Not melodrama." It's the perfect response. In melodrama all villains are perfectly villainous and all heroes are perfectly virtuous, but life is not like that. You know that in your guts and nor is our history like that. The novelist, Richard Powers recently wrote that, "The best arguments in the world," — and ladies and gentlemen, that's all we do is argue — "the best arguments in the world," he said, "Won't change a single person's point of view. The only thing that can do that is a good story." I've been struggling for most of my life to do that, to try to tell good, complex, sometimes contradictory stories, appreciating nuance and subtlety and undertow, sharing the confusion and consternation of unreconciled opposites.

But it's clear as individuals and as a nation we are dialectically preoccupied. Everything is either right or wrong, red state or blue state, young or old, gay or straight, rich or poor, Palestinian or Israeli, my way or the highway. Everywhere we are trapped by these old, tired, binary reactions, assumptions, and certainties. For filmmakers and faculty, students and citizens, that preoccupation is imprisoning. Still, we know and we hear and we express only arguments, and by so doing, we forget the inconvenient complexities of history and of human nature. That, for example, three great religions, their believers, all children of Abraham, each professing at the heart of their teaching, a respect for all human life, each with a central connection to and legitimate claim to the same holy ground, violate their own dictates of conduct and make this perpetually contested land a shameful graveyard. God does not distinguish between the dead. "Could you?"

[Audience applauding]

"Could you?" A very wise person I know with years of experience with the Middle East recently challenged me, "Could you hold the idea that there could be two wrongs and two rights?"

Listen, listen. In a filmed interview I conducted with the writer James Baldwin, more than 40 years ago, he said, "No one was ever born who agreed to be a slave, who accepted it. That is, slavery is a condition imposed from without. Of course, the moment I say that," Baldwin continued, "I realize that multitudes and multitudes of people for various reasons of their own enslave themselves every hour of every day to this or that doctrine, this or that delusion of safety, this or that lie. Anti-Semites, for example," he went on, "are slaves to a delusion. People who hate Negroes are slaves. People who love money are slaves. We are living in a universe really of willing slaves, which makes the concept of liberty and the concept of freedom so dangerous," he finished. Baldwin is making a profoundly psychological and even spiritual statement, not just a political or racial or social one. He knew, just as Lincoln knew, that the enemy is often us. We continue to shackle ourselves with chains we mistakenly think is freedom.

Another voice, Mercy Otis Warren, a philosopher and historian during our revolution put it this way, "The study of the human character at once opens a beautiful and a deformed picture of the soul. We there find a noble principle implanted in the nature of people, but when the checks of conscience are thrown aside, humanity is obscured." I have had the privilege for nearly half a century of making films about the US, but I have also made films about us. That is to say the two letter, lowercase, plural pronoun. All of the intimacy of "us" and also "we" and "our" and all of the majesty, complexity, contradiction, and even controversy of the US. And if I have learned anything over those years, it's that there's only us. There is no them. And whenever someone suggests to you, whomever it may be in your life that there's a them, run away. Othering is the simplistic binary way to make and identify enemies, but it is also the surest way to your own self imprisonment, which brings me to a moment I've dreaded and forces me to suspend my longstanding attempt at neutrality.

There is no real choice this November. There is only the perpetuation, however flawed and feeble you might perceive it, of our fragile 249-year-old experiment or the entropy that will engulf and destroy us if we take the other route. When, as Mercy Otis Warren would say, "The checks of conscience are thrown aside and a deformed picture of the soul is revealed." The presumptive Republican nominee is the opioid of all opioids, an easy cure for what some believe is the solution to our myriad pains and problems. When in fact with him, you end up re-enslaved with an even bigger problem, a worse affliction and addiction, "a bigger delusion", James Baldwin would say, the author and finisher of our national existence, our national suicide as Mr. Lincoln prophesies. Do not be seduced by easy equalization. There is nothing equal about this equation. We are at an existential crossroads in our political and civic lives. This is a choice that could not be clearer.

Listen, listen. 33 years ago, the world lost a towering literary figure. The novelist and storyteller, not arguer, Isaac Bashevis Singer. For decades he wrote about God and myth and punishment, fate and sexuality, family and history. He wrote in Yiddish a marvelously expressive language, sad and happy all at the same time. Sometimes maddeningly all knowing, yet resigned to God's seemingly capricious will. It is also a language without a country, a dying language in a world more interested in the extermination or isolation of its long suffering speakers. Singer, writing in the pages of the Jewish Daily Forward help to keep Yiddish alive. Now our own wonderfully mongrel American language is punctuated with dozens of Yiddish words and phrases, parables and wise sayings, and so many of those words are perfect onomatopoeias of disgust and despair, hubris and humor. If you've ever met a schmuck, you know what I'm talking about. [audience laughs] Toward the end of his long and prolific life, Singer expressed wonder at why so many of his books written in this obscure and some said useless language would be so widely translated, something like 56 countries all around the world. "Why," he would wonder with his characteristic playfulness, "Why would the Japanese care about his simple stories of life in the shtetls of Eastern Europe 1,000 years ago?" "Unless," Singer paused, twinkle in his eye, "Unless the story spoke of the kinship of the soul." I think what Singer was talking about was that indefinable something that connects all of us together, that which we all share as part of organic life on this planet, the kinship of the soul. I love that.

Okay, let me speak directly to the graduating class. Watch out, here comes the advice. Listen. Be curious, not cool. Insecurity makes liars of us all. Remember, none of us get out of here alive. The inevitable vicissitudes of life, no matter how well gated our communities, will visit us all. Grief is a part of life, and if you explore its painful precincts, it will make you stronger. Do good things, help others. Leadership is humility and generosity squared. Remember the opposite of faith is not doubt. Doubt is central to faith. The opposite of faith is certainty. The kinship of the soul begins with your own at times withering self-examination. Try to change that unchangeable human nature of Ecclesiastes, but start with you. "Nothing so needs reforming," Mark Twain once chided us, "As other people's habits." [audience laughs]

Don't confuse success with excellence. Do not descend too deeply into specialism. Educate all of your parts, you will be healthier. Do not get stuck in one place. "Travel is fatal to prejudice," Twain also said. Be in nature, which is always perfect and where nothing is binary. Its sheer majesty may remind you of your own atomic insignificance, as one observer put it, but in the inscrutable and paradoxical ways of wild places, you will feel larger, inspirited, just as the egotist in our midst is diminished by his or her self regard.

At some point, make babies, one of the greatest things that will happen to you, I mean it, one of the greatest things that will happen to you is that you will have to worry, I mean really worry, about someone other than yourself. It is liberating and exhilarating, I promise. Ask your parents.

[Audience laughs]

Choose honor over hypocrisy, virtue over vulgarity, discipline over dissipation, character over cleverness, sacrifice over self-indulgence. Do not lose your enthusiasm, in its Greek etymology the word enthusiasm means simply, "god in us". Serve your country. Insist that we fight the right wars. Denounce oppression everywhere.

Convince your government, as Lincoln understood that the real threat always and still comes from within this favored land. Insist that we support science and the arts, especially the arts.

[Audience cheering]

They have nothing to do with the actual defense of our country; They just make our country worth defending.

Remember what Louis Brandeis said, "The most important political office is that of the private citizen." Vote. You indelibly... [audience applauding] Please, vote. You indelibly underscore your citizenship, and most important, our kinship with each other when you do. Good luck and godspeed.

• Honorary Degree Recipients

NFL player Harrison Butker is correct about motherhood. He's wrong about our choices.

Butker is correct that motherhood holds far more value and worth for many women, including myself..

Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker delivered a controversial  commencement speech last Saturday, during Benedictine College's graduation ceremony in Atchison, Kansas. It sparked swift and furious backlash in news and on social media.

Butker, 28 , used his platform and opportunity to gloss over half a dozen hot topics, from the roles of men and women to the LGBTQ+ community to hurtful COVID-19 policies and abortion.

But what caught my attention was Butker's comments about the role of women, work and motherhood. As a working mom myself, Butker's comments highlighted an ongoing conflict moms have within themselves and society. It's not quite as simple as Butker portrays, but it's not as complicated as it seems.

Butker made a strong statement about women, work and motherhood

"For the ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment," Butker said. "I want to speak directly to you briefly because I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. ... Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world."

Butker also said his wife Isabelle seems to value her "vocation as a wife and as a mother" most and doesn't regret becoming either.

This seems to have made a lot of people mad. A petition at Change.org has been started, calling on the Kansas City Chiefs to dismiss its kicker due to his "dehumanizing" remarks.

Surprise! A lot of women value motherhood, but not all.

What Butker describes is an orthodox view of the roles of men and women, which holds that women are happiest and most satiated at home, raising children and being a wife.

For a lot of women, this is the case.

This activist was wrong: Yes, this anti-abortion activist's sentencing was extreme. But she was still wrong

These are also traditional Catholic views, and Butker spoke at Benedictine College, a Catholic private liberal arts school about 50 miles northwest from Kansas City, Missouri, where the Chiefs are headquartered.

For women who want to be homemakers and are married to kind, selfless and humble men who aren't obsessed with submission as a means of control, this lifestyle could be healthy for dedicated partners. It is certainly good for society for women to have babies, given the declining birth rate .

It's disheartening to see such a harsh reaction to traditional Catholic views. The extreme petition to "cancel" Butker or have him fired shows incredible ignorance and a lack of tolerance. It's fine to think that Butker is sexist, wrong or bigoted. But he has the right to hold orthodox views and should not lose his career over it.

It's exhausting to see a mantra of "diversity, equity and inclusion" in corporations, schools, colleges and organizations around the United States but see that it means only certain views are tolerated, only certain belief systems can be spoken of publicly.

Butker's views may not seem wise, progressive or healthy to women who want to have robust careers, who've suffered abuse in relationships or who simply don't understand more orthodox views. That's OK: They don't have to align with him or choose that path.

He's passionate about this, so he mentioned it in a speech. For women at a Catholic school's commencement wondering, in a world where women are breaking glass ceilings, if they can "just" stay at home and be a homemaker like they desire, perhaps they felt a sigh of relief or "permission" to follow their own calling in life. Butker did receive a round of applause after this portion of his speech.

Women might not have to choose as much as Butker thinks

Still, Butker's remark that all women will wish they chose motherhood over choosing a career is both a false binary and a bit more complicated. Not all women will want to become moms over becoming attorneys, and not all attorneys will be happier as stay-at-home moms or homemakers.

Butker can believe this based on his lived experience with his lovely wife, and that's OK − many people make life assessments from personal anecdotes.

The Met Gala was a joke: Yes, Zendaya looked stunning. But Met Gala was a tone-deaf charade of excess and hypocrisy.

What Butker did miss, perhaps for lack of time or nuance, is that women can be both great moms and have fantastic careers, though perhaps not simultaneously. In fact, a 2019 Gallup poll found that 56% of women preferred working to homemaking.

Women are also more likely to work part time than men. This could be because we're juggling raising the kids with wanting to help contribute financially to the family. For many families, especially "in this economy," as my teenage daughter is fond of saying, it feels absolutely necessary.

It's worth mentioning that given Butker's high-profile, lucrative career choice, his wife is likely not in a position to need to work, a privilege not all women have.

If I may interpret even further what Butker meant about "diabolical" lies being told to women, it's that there's only one way modern feminists think women can be happy, and that's climbing the corporate ladder. This is not true. But it's also untrue that women will only find motherhood rewarding (even if it's the most rewarding, which I think was his point). We can also find joy in careers and especially in doing both. Even though doing both is hard and a struggle many men don't have.

To women who want to be a mom and have kids, I say: Work toward doing both. Aim for a career that allows for the flexibility motherhood requires. This will eliminate some paths altogether but open up more, especially in today's post-pandemic world, where so many industries have embraced remote work. This will present challenges, but so would not having kids, or not having a career.

For me, motherhood holds more value than a career

As a woman who has lived a more orthodox, homemaker lifestyle (I used to home-school my kids) but who has also worked full time and then some, I can say I value being a mom the most.

My work, my calling as a writer, is important. I'm grateful for it. But my role as a mother is infinitely more treasured and worthwhile. There are millions of writers in the world. But I am only mom to four humans. It is this narrow, unique scope through which G.K. Chesterton suggested a mother know the " hugeness of her task ."

But if women want to become moms, have a career or do both, they should do it with gusto. Moms should have a lot of kids if they want them. I've heard many moms of one or two children wish they had more, but I've never heard a mom wish she had less.

The reaction to Butker's very Catholic speech to a Catholic college is not tolerance but a tyranny of ideology. Since when, in a post-modern world, can women not enjoy a career and motherhood? If anything, this is as backward as believing women should only have a thriving corporate career. This is anathema to feminism and the freedom American life offers.

People may choose to disagree with or even disdain Butker's views. This is their right as Americans. But it wouldn't hurt for people to realize millions of Americans hold orthodox views on women and family − and they're not all setting women back. Butker isn't entirely correct that all women should choose motherhood over work, but he is correct that motherhood holds far more value and worth for many women, including myself.

Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY.   She lives in Texas with her four kids.