Michelle Obama Now at 61, I'm finally owning my wisdom

Michelle Obama says she is only just getting started when it comes to putting together everything she has learned in an incredible life so far.

- BY MARK JEFFERIES Showbiz Editor

"As a woman, I think at 61, I'm finally owning my wisdom in a way that I didn't," she says.

"I think it takes women until we're about 60 to be like, 'I think I know a thing or two."

There would be few people who could argue with that.

Michelle describes herself as a "box checker", someone who likes ticking off lists and planning.

But no amount of preparation could have equipped her for the life she has had.

The former First Lady was born in DeYoung, Illinois, in January 1964, to parents Frasier Robinson III and Marian Shields. She grew up in a rented home in Chicago's South Shore neighbourhood, sharing a bedroom with older brother Craig.

The family did not have lots of money but Michelle quickly began to excel in primary education. "I knew my parents loved us, and that's a strong tool to have in your toolkit when you go to school every day."

After gaining a degree from the prestigious Harvard Law School, she was hired by the Chicago firm Sidley & Austin and in 1988 was ultimately assigned as advisor to a summer associate who would have an immense impact on her life.

"I met Barack Obama. He showed up in my life as the opposite of a box checker, but somebody that I describe in my book as 'the ultimate swerve'. He did nothing by the book.

"He was brilliant and interesting," she recalls, speaking on The Diary Of A CEO podcast.