10 Female Empowerment Quotes To Inspire You

Today, more than ever, celebrating women must take on a deeper meaning. It is vital to preserving the memory of our history and of the courageous women who fought for our rights.

Women have been called the weaker sex, but there is no evidence of this. Many women have led revolutions, stood up for everyone’s rights, made fundamental discoveries in various fields, and inspired history makers.

We have chosen ten iconic phrases, real mantras to remind us of our rights and girl power on March 8, International Women’s Day, and all the other days of our life! These women, in some way, have made or are making history.

1. Michelle Obama On Overcoming Hardships

“I am coming down from the mountaintop to tell every young person that is poor and working-class, and has been told regardless of the color of your skin that you don't belong, don't listen to them. They don't even know how they got at those seats.”

As I would always say, if they don’t give you a seat at the table, that’s fine. Just bring your chair along because you also deserve a spot at the table. Work hard on yourself, and no one will doubt that you deserve the spot you have created for yourself.

2. Hillary Clinton To Little Girls

"To all the little girls who are watching this, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful, and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your dreams."

Every child has the right to dream big. This is the message we should constantly preach to little girls whenever we can. They should be told that they deserve every opportunity that comes their way, and should not be limited in their dreams.

3. J.K Rowling On Body Size

“I’ve got two daughters who will have to make their way in this skinny-obsessed world, and it worries me because I don’t want them to be empty-headed, self-obsessed, emaciated clones; I’d rather they were independent, interesting, idealistic, kind, opinionated, original, funny – a thousand things, before “thin.” ”

Society has always been obsessed with skinny. How do we as women change this? We can do that by raising our kids to appreciate themselves irrespective of their size. Their skills and personalities should matter more than their body sizes.

4. Malala Yousafzai On Being Heard

“I raise my voice—not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. … We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back.”

In some places today, women are not being heard and some women never bother to use their voice. Now is the time to use your voice not just for yourself but for those around you. This way, we can have a better world for ourselves and future generations.

5. Oprah Winfrey On Having Limitations

“On my own, I will just create, and if it works, it works, and if it doesn’t, I’ll create something else. I don’t have any limitations on what I think I could do or be.”

The idea is to keep pushing until you create what you want for yourself. Just because you’re a woman does not mean you should limit yourself. And when you fail, find the will to rise back up and do better.

6. Meryl Streep On Expectations From Women

“People will say to me, ‘You’ve played so many strong women,’ and I’ll say, ‘Have you ever said to a man, ‘You’ve played so many strong men?’’ No! Because the expectation is men are varied. Why can’t we have that expectation about women?”

Society has expectations from men that are different from what they have from women. Women are sometimes expected to work twice as hard to be considered on the same pedestal as men.

7. Cher On The Power Of A Woman

“Women have to harness their power – it’s absolutely true. It’s just learning not to take the first ‘no’. And if you can’t go straight ahead, you go around the corner.”

Some women tend to give up too quickly because they don’t know how strong they are. A woman has more strength than she can imagine but it takes her having to push herself against all odds to find this strength.

8. Maya Angelou On Defeat

“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”

Defeats are the steps we need to conquer in other to make it out there. If everything came easy, you would end up not putting your best. What matters the most is how you rise after you have encountered defeat.

9. Shonda Rhimes On Dreams And Hardwork

“Dreams are lovely but they are just dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral, pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It’s hard work that makes things happen. It’s hard work that creates change.”

Everyone dreams but not everyone achieves those dreams. It is easy to dream but working hard and smart is what will bring your dreams to reality. No one ever made it far by just dreaming.

10. Mindy Kaling On Racialisation

“I never want to be called the funniest Indian female comedian that exists. I feel like I can go head-to-head with the best white male comedy writers that are out there. Why would I want to self-categorize myself into a smaller group than I’m able to compete in?”

For Mindy, it is all about being compared on the same pedestal as everyone else and not just being the big fish in a little pond. It is either you go big or go home and that is what every woman should aspire to in whatever field she finds herself in.