#SHINESTRONG: Leading Ladies Share Their Words of Wisdom

These women #SHINESTRONG and empower us through their work.

Faye Wattleton - As president of Planned Parenthood, Faye Wattleton is all for helping those who need care while also empowering people to advocate for themselves. "There does not have to be powerlessness. The power is within ourselves," she's said. (Photo: Earl Gibson III/WireImage)

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Faye Wattleton - As president of Planned Parenthood, Faye Wattleton is all for helping those who need care while also empowering people to advocate for themselves. "There does not have to be powerlessness. The power is within ourselves," she's said. (Photo: Earl Gibson III/WireImage)

Michelle Obama - BET.com and Pantene direct the spotlight on inspirational women who have embodied what it means to #SHINESTRONG and the nuggets of wisdom they have shared with us over the years. First Lady Michelle Obama delivered the commencement address at Oregon State University in 2012 and advised graduates to live life for themselves. "Success is only meaningful and enjoyable if it feels like your own," she said. (Photo: Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images)

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Michelle Obama

Janelle Monae - We admire the singer for staying true to herself and in turn inspiring so many through her actions and lyrics. (Photo: Marc Baptiste/Atlantic Records)

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Janelle Monae

Tyra Banks addresses male model for his homophobic statements on America's Next Top Model: - “This is an industry that is predominantly female. So whenever you step into an industry that is predominantly a certain sex, you get the stereotype that you are gay. Be proud of this industry and every single male model. Gay, straight, heels, corsets… Who gives a f**k?”(Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

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Tyra Banks

Whoopi Goldberg on Kenya Moore’s involvement in the Porsha Williams brawl:  - "I will ask you, Kenya, do you think it was OK for you to provoke people? Because if you’re worried about your image and how people are gonna see you, I don’t know if messing with people like this is the right thing to do." (Photo: Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images for the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival)

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Whoopi Goldberg

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Sojourner Truth

Alice Walker: February 9 - The celebrated author of The Color Purple celebrates her 69th birthday. (Photo: Peter Kramer/Getty Images)

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Alice Walker

Oprah Winfrey - The media mogul has climbed the ranks from an impoverished life to the point where she now has her own television network and makes sure to give back however she can. Her willingness to throw herself into her passions, regardless of whether she stumbles, motivates us. She once famously declared, "I don't believe in failure. It is not failure if you enjoyed the process."  (Photo: Mark Davis/Getty Images for SBIFF)

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Oprah Winfrey

Katherine Dunham - The matriarch of Black American dance was able to infuse her choreography with history and culture and paved the way for renowned dance groups like Alvin Ailey to step up to the stage. She was talented, fearless and curious, and once said, "I used to want the words 'She tried' on my tombstone. Now I want 'She did it.'" (Photo: Reuters/Jeff Christensen/Landov)

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Katherine Dunham

Suzanne de Passe - The television writer and producer behind some of our favorite series, such as Sister, Sister, as well as screenplays for Lady Sings the Blues and Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever, has preached on the power of taking "no" as a vitamin. (Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

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Suzanne de Passe

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Nikki Giovanni - The award-winning poet inspires and riles up the fiery "Renaissance Woman" inside us because, as she says, "You've got to find a way to make people know you're there."  (Photo: Mike Simons/Getty Images)

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Nikki Giovanni

Johnnetta Cole - Although Washington is the epicenter of politics, it also has several world-renowned museums to which admission is free. At the helm of the National Museum of African Art is Johnnetta Cole, who was also Spelman College's first African-American female president.  (Photo: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for the Jackie Robinson Foundation)

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Johnnetta B. Cole

Esi Eggleston Bracey - The VP of Procter & Gamble told Ad Age, "If my role inspires people to appreciate our unique gifts, then I'm making a difference, and that means a lot to me." (Photo: PNP/WENN.com)

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Esi Eggleston Bracey

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Rosa Parks

Dr. Maya Angelou - The late poet was a celebrated wordsmith and activist who filled so many of us with inspiration and courage. When it comes to the latter virtue, she said that it's the most important of all because we need courage to then be able to practice any other virtue with consistency. (Photo: Ken Charnock/Getty Images) 

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Dr. Maya Angelou

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Esther E.T. Franklin - In her 2011 interview with Ad Week for the Legend Awards, Franklin said, "There's no better way to challenge your assumptions and perceptions than to be part of the everyday experience." (Photo by Imeh Akpanudosen/Getty Images for Variety)

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Esther E.T. Franklin

Queen Latifah: March 18 - The talk show queen, who got her start in East Coast hip hop nearly three decades ago, is a Hollywood powerhouse at 44. (Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

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Queen Latifah