Barack and Michelle Obama's love story started on a surprisingly awkward note. During an August 7, 2025, episode of the former first lady's "IMO" podcast, Michelle recalled how she had first heard about her future husband through fellow members of the Harvard recruiting team. While the rest of Michelle's colleagues gushed about Barack's strong reputation as a rising star in the Ivy League scene, the future lawyer wasn't all that impressed. In fact, as the bestselling "Becoming" author confessed,
"I got his profile, and I thought, 'Ugh. What kind of name is Barack Obama?' I was like he's Black and everybody at the firm was excited that he was Black, and I was like, he's probably kind of weird."
Michelle only saw the future president as weirder after realizing he was also a Black man who grew up in Hawaii. To better understand how this unromantic first impression could have impacted the early days of Barack and Michelle's relationship, we tapped into the expertise of celebrity love coach and body language expert Nicole Moore, who professed that first impressions, whether accurate or otherwise, could indeed accelerate or impede a relationship. While a good first impression could generate the requisite sparks and compel both parties to want to deepen their connection, a negative one could lead to "a block in the romantic connection moving forward as quickly as possible."
The expert elaborated that the degree of a positive or negative first impression bore major importance in the long run, even determining whether someone chose to move forward with the relationship at all. In Michelle's case, it seems like her first impression wasn't that bad because she gave Barack a chance and, clearly, didn't regret it.
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Michelle Obama Warmed Up To Barack Obama After Their First Phone Call
Elsewhere during the August 7 episode of her "IMO" podcast, Michelle Obama proclaimed that fate essentially brought her and Barack Obama together when she was assigned as his adviser. And, once the pair began chatting over the phone, she quickly grew attracted to his voice. Michelle's thoughts about Barack only improved when she first met him too. After laying eyes on her future husband for the first time, the future first lady realized that he was much better looking than his photos and "kind of cool in a way that [she] didn't expect."
As Nicole Moore confirmed in her exclusive interview with The List, despite its relatively unromantic beginnings, Michelle and Barack's stunning relationship transformation isn't surprising. The celebrity love coach also pointed out that nerves could contribute to a less-than-stellar first impression during a first meeting since a potential partner may not feel calm enough to truly be themselves. It's generally a good idea to give a potential partner a second chance to get a better idea of what they are like without the added pressure.
Likewise, the Obamas' relationship may also have been aided by Barack's good first impression. In an interview with Oprah.com, the former president revealed his first thoughts upon seeing Michelle, admitting, "I remember being struck by how tall and beautiful she was." Suffice it to say that he was likely equally impressed by Michelle's stunning transformation over the years.
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