They take a job with no description--and what they make of that role, is entirely up to them. Sounds like a startup? Yes, but...it's the role of First Lady. They are, according to Lady Bird Johnson "an unpaid public servant elected by one person - her husband." So for International Women's Day, something more than a commentary reflecting on their personal style and choice of ball gowns, 33 quotes from First Ladies to inspire startups, aspiring entrepreneurs and all the employees of early-stage companies out there:

You learn something out of everything, and you come to realize more than ever that we're all here for a certain space of time, and, and then it's going to be over, and you better make this count.--Nancy Reagan

I am a big believer that eventually everything comes back to you. You get back what you give out.--Nancy Reagan

You just get up each day and put one foot in front of the other and go. You know, each day is different.--Nancy Reagan

It's nice to win. - Bess Truman

Never lose sight of the fact that the most important yardstick of your success will be how you treat other people - your family, friends, and coworkers, and even strangers you meet along the way.--Barbara Bush

You just don't luck into things as much as you'd like to think you do. You build step by step, whether it's friendships or opportunities. - Barbara Bush

When you come to a roadblock, take a detour.--Barbara Bush

The winner of the hoop race will be the first to realize her dream, not society's dream, her own personal dream.- Barbara Bush

Become so wrapped up in something that you forget to be afraid.--Lady Bird Johnson

Any committee is only as good as the most knowledgeable, determined and vigorous person on it. There must be somebody who provides the flame.--Lady Bird Johnson

The clash of ideas is the sound of freedom.--Lady Bird Johnson

Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and diligence.--Abigail Adams

We have too many high-sounding words, and too few actions that correspond with them.--Abigail Adams

I've always felt that a person's intelligence is directly reflected by the number of conflicting points of view he can entertain simultaneously on the same topic.--Abigail Adams

You must do the things you think you cannot do.--Eleanor Roosevelt

You can't move so fast that you try to change the mores faster than people can accept it. That doesn't mean you do nothing, but it means that you do the things that need to be done according to priority.--Eleanor Roosevelt

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.--Eleanor Roosevelt

You have to accept whatever comes and the only important thing is that you meet it with courage and with the best that you have to give.--Eleanor Roosevelt

If life were predictable it would cease to be life, and be without flavor.--Eleanor Roosevelt

Never allow a person to tell you no who doesn't have the power to say yes.--Eleanor Roosevelt

It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan.--Eleanor Roosevelt

You must accept that you might fail; then, if you do your best and still don't win, at least you can be satisfied that you've tried. If you don't accept failure as a possibility, you don't set high goals, you don't branch out, you don't try - you don't take the risk.--Rosalynn Carter

You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow through.--Rosalynn Carter

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don't necessarily want to go, but ought to be.--Rosalynn Carter

The only routine with me is no routine at all.--Jackie Kennedy

I want to live my life, not record it.--Jackie Kennedy

Success is only meaningful and enjoyable if it feels like your own.--Michelle Obama

One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals. --Michelle Obama

Choose people who lift you up.--Michelle Obama

Whether you come from a council estate or a country estate, your success will be determined by your own confidence and fortitude.--Michelle Obama

I always look forward, not back.--Pat Nixon

All lives have triumphs and tragedies, laughter and tears, and mine has been no different. What really matters is whether, after all of that, you remain strong... - Pat Nixon

I do or die, but I never cancel out.--Pat Nixon