I asked a professional friend of mine, who is a woman, what she thought the greatest importance of the women’s movement is. She didn’t hesitate in saying, “empowerment---giving women the ability to succeed at multiple opportunities.” In her next breath she added, “Of course, empowerment can be a very heavy burden for many women. They want to be the good girl, the good daughter, the good wife and the good professional all at once. Not being able to do all those things perfectly can lead to a lot of stress and guilt, so empowerment is not a free ticket.”

Sometimes the best way to relieve stress is to laugh at oneself, so here are some thoughts on the subject of being empowered from some famous women. On being the good wife, Rosanne Barr says, “I’m not going to vacuum ‘til Sears makes one you can ride on.” Cher says, “The trouble with some women is they get all excited about nothing – and then they marry him.”

On being the good mother, Erma Bombeck comments, “Never lend your car to anyone to whom you have given birth.” Phyllis Diller adds, “Always be nice to your children because they are the ones who will choose your rest home.”

On the subject of being the good professional woman, Linda Ellerbe says, “If men can run the world, why can’t they stop wearing neckties? How intelligent is it to start the day by tying a little noose around your neck?” Indira Gandhi says, “My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was much less competition.”

And, on being a good daughter, one of the top ten reasons that show you’re not a good daughter, “7. When your mom calls and asks you what you’ve been up to, you go “I’m sorry, Who is this?”

Girls, you’ll face a lot of pressure to make people happy. My advice is to make yourself happy first and the rest will take care of itself.