What Michelle Obama can teach us about love

This outstanding First Lady is celebrated around the world for being one of the most iconic and inspirational women of all time. She has been praised for her love for humanity, applauded for her humility and envied for her extraordinary sense of style. But there is also a lot we can learn from her about love and commitment.

 Lots of young women nowadays make the mistake of setting their expectations too high when it comes to finding Mr Right. They want a man who has the perfect house, perfect car, perfect career, complete with overseas vacations and private jets.

That automatically eliminates most wonderful eligible bachelors out there. Ultimately, these luxury-seeking young women fall for older and often married men who promise them the world on a silver platter. They would much rather be the side-dish of a powerful, prestigious man than the beloved life-partner and companion of a man who's still working towards his dreams.

They crave instant success and detest the hard work, sacrifice and commitment that comes with supporting their man as he pursues his destiny.

Michelle Obama, however, committed herself to supporting and loving Barack Obama long before it even seemed humanly possible for him to become the first black President of the United States. She stood by him relentlessly and was his pillar of strength as he rose from being a civil rights lawyer and professor teaching constitutional law to the Illinois State Senate in 1996.

She believed in him as he ascended the political ranks and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004. And she was right there beside him as he was sworn in as president of the United States on January 20th, 2009.

During their marriage, she put up with his snoring, the wet towels he frequently left on the bathroom floor and his many political trips, during which she was often lonely. She loved him through thick and thin, hell and high water.

"I would not be standing here tonight" - the newly-elected President told the crowd that included Oprah Winfrey and Reverend Jesse Jackson, both in tears - "without the unyielding support of my best friend for the past 16 years, the rock of our family, the love of my life, the nation's new First Lady, Michelle Obama" at his Inauguration ceremony. 

If there's anything we can learn from this amazing woman, it's this: Don't just fall for someone because they've 'made it'. Stand by them, support them, encourage them and love them until they become everything they were born to be.

True love is about believing in someone's potential even when no one else does. True love is never lazy. It's always willing to put in the time, energy and effort required to help someone fulfill their dreams.

It's about time young women stopped taking short-cuts and snatching other women's husbands, fiances and boyfriends simply because they seem to be the 'finished product.' 

If you want an extraordinary man, take a leaf from the First Lady - love your man through thick and thin, believe in his dreams, pray for him constantly  and realize that the road to success is long and bumpy. Don't expect to share in the glory if you can't share in the pain.

Like the popular saying goes, ' Behind every successful man is a woman' - a woman who listens as he shares his hopes and aspirations and offers a shoulder to cry on when things don't quite work out... a woman who makes sure he gets to work on time and cheers him on when the whole world seems to be against him... a woman who takes care of him when he's sick, who prepares his meals and reminds him to take his multi-vitamins every morning...

She's more than just a cook, house-keeper, baby-sitter and personal assistant - she's his life-partner, soul-mate and biggest cheer-leader.

Real women know that a lot of blood, sweat and tears go into building that extravagant home, getting that brilliant career and achieving any kind of success in life. They know, because they've been there the whole time, helping their man become the king he was born to be.

So, before you jump into that married man's Porsche, remember that there's a woman like Michelle Obama in his life, who has made him the man he is today.

Baby girl, go and  get your OWN man!