Former First Lady Michelle Obama has opened up about the life lessons she is passing on to her daughters, Malia, 27, and Sasha, 24.
During a wide-ranging appearance on the popular podcast “Call Her Daddy,” the former First Lady said her advice to her kids emphasizes the lasting value of strong female friendships.
Speaking with host Alex Cooper, Obama said that while many of the traditional milestones surrounding her wedding to former President Barack Obama have faded from memory, the friendships she built early in life have endured.
“The value of cultivating friendships is important — it’s as important as the degree that you got in college, it’s as important as the job title and the salary or the dude you’re trying to catch or the length of your veil on your wedding dress,” Obama, 62, said. “All that stuff comes and goes.”
Obama explained that as her public profile and career grew, she made a conscious effort to bring her close friends along with her rather than leaving them behind.
At the same time, she said she never closed herself off to forming new connections — a balance she hopes her daughters will learn to strike.
“You’ve got to be smart and selective about who you let in,” she told Cooper, adding, “Don’t be afraid to make friends, be open, stay open … We’re all going up this mountain together.”
A Deeper Dive Into Social Pressures
Michelle Obama’s appearance on “Call Her Daddy” — a podcast that has evolved from its early focus on sex and dating into more intimate, conversational interviews — further cements her growing presence in the podcast space.
The interview comes as Obama continues to promote her own show, “IMO,” which she co-hosts with her brother, Craig Robinson.
The conversation ranged widely, touching on female friendship, workplace objectification, online trolling, and the intense social pressures faced by young women. Obama did not shy away from discussing the criticism she has endured throughout her public life, particularly attacks on her appearance.
“It would hurt more coming from a woman,” she said of public criticism. “Because it’s like, ‘Wow, you know what we’re going through.’”
To cope, Obama said she tries to humanize those who attack her.
“In order to keep myself sane… I just try to wonder what’s going on in the mind of the person who can go there,” she said, adding that society often conditions women to feel inadequate and then turn on one another.
Fashion, Aging, and Evolving Power
Obama’s podcast visit follows the release of her third book, “The Look,” which chronicles her fashion choices over the years and the scrutiny that often accompanied them.
During the interview, she wore a Meredith Koop–designed outfit inspired by an iconic look from her college days, featuring a crisp button-down under a red knit vest paired with ’70s-style blue jeans.
She also reflected on aging, pushing back against the idea that women lose value as they grow older. While acknowledging the appeal of youth, Obama said she feels more confident and grounded in her 60s than she did decades earlier.
“This decade is my best yet,” she said, noting that women are often forced to evolve to survive societal pressures. “That is the power that we have as women. We know we have to keep evolving. So we do. A lot of men don’t.”
