MICHELLE BACHELET The first woman president of Chile, Bachelet is an amazing example of the power of a woman. Overcoming the adversity of losing her father to the regime of Augusto Pinochet and experiencing personally the torture and brutality of his reign, Bachelet went on to become a successful doctor before becoming the first ever female Defense Minister of Chile, followed by President.
She was a passionate leader of a country that needed that passion, with a large focus on the health problems plaguing her nation. I find her story inspirational not only because she was the first woman to hold such a post, but because of the challenges she didn't let get in her way of changing the world.
MAYA ANGELOU I'm a writer, and so it's probably no surprise that Maya Angelou has inspired me. Beyond her poise and wisdom, it is purely her way with words that moves me.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" to the poem "Still I Rise," I have never encountered a piece of her work that didn't make me want to close my eyes and envision, dream, and think.
DIANE SAWYER While I was a fan of Sawyer on Good Morning America, it was always her interviews and work on Primetime and 20/20 that fascinated me most. As a budding journalist, I loved to watch her intensely interview everyone from Fidel Castro to President Bush.
When I watch her interviews, it is something about her fearless traveling and inquisitive and firm line of questioning that makes me sure I picked the right profession.
GLORIA ESTEFAN Apart from the fact that Estefan, along with her husband Emilio and the rest of the Miami Sound Machine, can be credited with making Latin music and sounds mainstream in American culture, Estefan's life story is motivating.
An immigrant who was forced to migrate as a young girl with her mother from Cuba to Miami in the early years of Castro's dictatorship, Estefan went on to be an award-winning singer and performer with the Miami Sound Machine. Along the way, however, she faced incredible hardship again. After a serious bus accident, she was critically injured and told she might never walk again. How could I not find inspiration in the fact that ten months later, she was not only walking again, but back on tour and went on to sell millions of hit records?
MICHELLE OBAMA Yes, she's elegant, sophisticated and has already become a fashion icon. While those are all reasons our First Lady inspires me, what is fascinating to me about Michelle Obama is her confidence.
She exudes an easy confidence in herself, her family and her husband. A confidence in her family so strong that she was able to put aside her own career to support him in the presidential race. Her confidence in our country and her own values and beliefs pushes her to be a spokeswoman for the fight against childhood obesity. Every time I listen to her speak, I get a little bit of that confidence myself.
STEFANI GERMANOTTA aka LADY GAGA Incredible visual costumes, entertainment, and a much-needed invigoration to the world of pop music. This is what we get from Lady Gaga–and that's just when she's walking down a red carpet.
On stage, she is inspiring because of her pure fearlessness. What makes her fascinating, to me, is she will do anything from stage a suicide during a performance to wear a wig shaped like a telephone on her head, without caring what anyone thinks, and make it look fabulous and brilliant. In an age of autotune and 16-year-old Disney pop singers, Gaga is a breath of fresh air.
OPRAH WINFREY Ok, ok, so this might seem kind of obvious considering where I work, but those who know me know that Oprah has always been an inspiration to me. My mom will tell anyone who will listen that when I was little I always used to say that I wanted to be like Oprah when I grew up.
What is most inspiring to me about Oprah and her empire is her motto to "Live your best life." This motto has been a driving force in her changing the world of television. She wants those who appear on her show and her viewers to follow that same mantra, and she helps achieve this by battling the tough issues and promoting the good ones. It is also the motto of the magazine I work for, and it's something I've adapted into my everyday life. It reminds me to make the most of each day, to stay healthy, to treat those around me with respect and never forget what's important to me.
AUDREY HEPBURN Sabrina. Breakfast at Tiffany's. Roman Holiday. All Audrey Hepburn movies, all classic favorite movies of mine. I don't think I need to explain the fascination behind this one beyond pure femininity, glamor and sophistication.
JENNIFER LOPEZMost people either love her or hate her, but I'm on the end that love her. While she has been criticized for having a constantly changing persona, I have to applaud her for that very aspect of her career. Lopez began as a young, hot actress men loved to look at for her backside and moved on to chameleon stages like "Jenny from the Block," "J. Lo," and now simply a loving mother of twins who's still got it.
What's inspiring to me is that, as a Puerto Rican woman, Lopez has broken innumerable barriers and is still relevant 13 years after coming onto the scene as an actress in "Selena." Now, little Jenny from the Block is a singer, actress, dancer, fashion designer, producer and entrepreneur. Even if you hater her, there's no denying that's a powerful woman.
CATHIE BLACKThe President of Hearst Magazines, the Corporation I work for, Cathie Black is a female presence that definitely motivates me. When I worked as an intern at O Magazine, I read her book cover to cover, and when I was asked to join the staff full-time, I read the book again.
It was full of tips and life experiences that I took to heart and know I will always remember throughout my career. Black is a bold and unstoppable female presence in a corporate world that wasn't always welcoming for women. With accomplishments such as working as the Publisher of USA Today and helping establish it as the paper it is today to heading Hearst Magazines and leading the Corporation to do more than just hold its own, she has helped me truly believe that when you realize no dream is too big, anything is possible.
SUSAN RICEIn the last few years, I've found myself having an increasing interest in the world and international relations, so when I first read a Vogue profile about the US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, I was so intrigued that I kept the article and still read it from time to time as a bit of inspiration.
After a Washington D.C. upbringing and graduating from Stanford University, Rice quickly rose to become the country's second youngest and first African-American woman UN Ambassador to the U.S. Sometimes when I think I have a hard day at work or am going through a lot of stress, I think of Rice, and realize that my woes can't be quite as challenging as finding ways to fight genocide in Darfur.
ALICIA KEYSFrom the moment I first saw Alicia Keys perform "Fallen," I instantly regretted giving up the piano lessons my parents made me take in elementary school that I thought were so boring at the time.
Keys brought back musicianship to pop music, and made it cool again to actually play your own instruments and sing. Her music has been the soundtrack to some of my best and worst times, and her work with Keep A Child Alive inspired me to become more educated about the AIDS epidemic in Africa.
(All photos courtesy of Getty Images)
